Posted in: Disc Reviews by Jeremy Butler on September 17th, 2026
"I'm Bane. I could kill you, but death would only end your agony and silence your shame. Instead, I will simply break you."
If there is one arena that I would give DC Comics supremacy over Marvel, it would be with their animated movies. I don’t know why, but when it comes to their cinematic endeavors, DC has not yet broken the mold in the way Marvel has. However, when it comes to their animated endeavors, particularly when it comes to the Batman franchise, DC can’t be touched. And Batman Knightfall Part 1 is no different. As this franchise takes one of the most popular storylines of the series, it perfectly sets the stage for the next installment. However, disappointingly, we won’t get that until late this year, and I predict we will then be craving the final installment, which won’t be expected until 2027. The important thing about the Knightfall storyline is that it introduces two significant characters, Bane (the man who broke the bat) and Jean-Paul Valley, also known as Azrael. This marks the first appearance of Jean-Paul Valley in the DC animated movies. Anson Mount returned to voice Batman for the second time, along with returning Jack Griffo (Tim Drake) and David Dastmalchian (who previously voiced Calendar Man and now voiced the Riddler) and also joined by first-timers Michael Mando (Bane) and Pablo Schreiber (Jean-Paul Valley).
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 17th, 2026
"Protect me today in all my travels along the road's way. Give me your warning sign when danger is near that I may stop while the path is clear." Prayer of intercession of Saint Christopher, patron saint of travelers.
There's been a lot of talk in the last few years that Saint Christopher had been stripped of his sainthood. Of course, that isn't true at all. He had his feast day taken away, as all saints do at one time or another. You see, there are only 365 days to a standard year, and there are far more saints than there are days of the year. His feast day was given up to Saint James, the apostle. Why go through this bit about Saint Christopher, you might be asking. You see, the old boy is quite the center of the latest horror film by director Andre Ovredal. His last hit was the Dracula spin-off film The Last Voyage Of The Demeter, which was one of the best horror films of that year. He's returned to his somewhat folk-horror roots with Passenger, and once again it's the best horror film I've encountered this year. It's now out on Blu-ray out from Alliance Home Entertainment. It's got everything a good horror film should have and doesn't lean too heavily on the standard tropes of jump scares or manic editing to mask the bad f/x. This one is a keeper, and you'll get far more enjoyment out of taking home the Blu-ray than you will through streaming. Sometimes streaming is enough. This is not one of those times.
Posted in: The Reel World by Brent Lorentson on September 17th, 2026
What happens when you take two 90s cult classics, Clueless and The Craft, and put them together? Forbidden Fruits is the charming lovechild of these films, and it kind of surprises me that this film has gone under the radar for so long, especially when I’d consider it one of the better horror films to come out this year, and definitely the best film Shudder has released on streaming in 2026. I went into this one with low expectations, and by the time it hit the midway point, I have to admit I was enjoying the heck out of this film. Considering the new Practical Magic 2 just opened this past weekend to a lackluster box office haul, it makes me wonder if basically Hollywood, and more importantly audiences, just don’t want to see witches on screen anymore? Heck, online over the past few years it seems every woman has latched onto the notion that liking Halloween, buying pumpkin spice lattes, and having your own garden is all that’s needed to join a coven … Gone are the days when it was the outcasts, the goth kids that listened to The Cure and Marilyn Manson were the ones that embraced being weird and were into Wicca and other forms of witchcraft. This is a film that holds a mirror up to the new generation of those that practice witchcraft and exposes the absurdity of it all.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 16th, 2026
"It's always the same in any orchard. You plant your trees. The trees grow tall. Then sooner or later they begin to get mangled, and before you know it the apples start to rot. And that, Harry, my son, is pruning time."
There's nothing like a good mob drama on television/streaming. Sometimes there ends up being some drama that wasn't quite scripted but gets plenty of a show's attention. That's exactly what has happened with Guy Ritchie's attempt at the long form of television/streaming. This one has to do with the cast. It's a pretty big deal ... unless it isn't. Mobland has had some of the best streaming numbers in the history of Paramount +, but that's not what brought it to the attention of the news cycle. There has always been talk that Tom Hardy is a difficult actor to deal with. The talk was intense after Mad Max Fury Road when Charlize Theron made some accusations and will reportedly be unwilling to work with him again. No one really gave it much mind, because feuds happen in this business all of the time. But when word came out that Hardy was being fired for the upcoming third season of Mobland, it was noticed.
Posted in: The Reel World by Jeremy Butler on September 12th, 2026
“Your blood. My blood. Our blood.”
Well, I can’t say I saw this coming. Of all the movies to get a sequel, this film wasn’t even on my list. Though when I think about it, maybe I shouldn’t be surprised given that the first film was an adaptation of a series with four books in it. In 1998, Sandra Bullock’s and Nicole Kidman’s chemistry is what made the first one work, and it is the same in this sequel. In fact, it’s as if no time has passed as the pair play off one another with ease. The gang is all back for the most part with the exception of Goran Visnjic (which isn’t surprising given that he was the previous film’s antagonist) and Aidan Quinn (although is character is referenced, with Diane Wiest and Stockard Channing returning as well). The film is noteworthy for Channing because it marks her first theatrical release in 13 years. Also joining the film are Joey King, Maise Williams, Xolo Mariduena, and Lee Pace.
Posted in: The Reel World by Brent Lorentson on September 11th, 2026
It’s not often that a horror movie comes along that reflects what is happening in pop culture or feels as though it was ripped from the headlines. I’m surprised there hasn’t been much buzz about Nightborn, considering it’s about the horrors of post-partum depression and media attention surrounding the Lindsay Clancy case. I know everyone has their opinions on the case, and because of the case I kind of let this film simmer for a while before deciding to write this. I’ll start by saying that if you're sensitive to the topic of the film, you may just want to skip it altogether, and don’t bother reading this review, I’m not here to spoil anything, and I don’t want to upset anyone, either. One other thing that may turn people off to this film is that it is a Finnish film with a mix of English and Finnish poken throughout, and I know some people just hate subtitles … With all that out of the way, how is the movie, what is it all about, and most importantly, is it any good? The film opens up with a young couple, Saga (Seidi Haarla) and Jon (Rupert Grint), who move into an old family home that rests on the outskirts of a Finnish forest. After engaging in some adult activities in the woods, surrounded by some disturbing looking trees, we definitely get the impression they are being watched by some unseen entity. It’s not long after that Saga discovers she’s pregnant and we see her have the baby, and, well, let's just say the birth scene is a bit gory and not what the young couple expects.
Posted in: Disc Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 10th, 2026
"Space ... the final frontier. These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise. Its 5-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before!"
Star Trek: The Original Series finally makes it to high definition. If you’re anything like me, you’ve been waiting for this day for what seems like centuries. They’re here. One of the best features about this set is the multi-angle option. Remember how we were promised all of this control way back when DVD’s first hit the market? We got the same promises when Blu-ray arrived, but we weren’t going to hold our breath. Hey, I still have a red, yellow, blue, and green button on my Blu-ray remote. What are they ever going to be good for? Anyway, we finally have a use for the angle button. You can use it to toggle between the new digital f/x Paramount recently created for the show, or you can watch the original f/x if you’d rather. With that button you now have the ability to toggle between the two. Through the use of branching technology you can go between them as often as you like and never stop the show.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 9th, 2026
"I hold a grudge. I really do. Back to you. You did 25 years. You didn't rat, but you also didn't learn anything. You get out here. You move west. But the killing spree continues. Bikers. Chickies. We know everything. Everything you've been up to since you got out here. But as of right now I'm not going to charge you for mass murder ..."
Maybe the heat has finally caught up with Dwight. It's Season 3, and where are we going from here? Let's back it up just a bit. Sylvester Stallone plays mob guy Dwight "The General" Manfredi. It's his first television role, and he couldn't have chosen better than to appear in a Taylor Sheridan show on Paramount+. Sheridan pretty much owns the streaming service, all of it except maybe the Star Trek shows. He knows how to create characters and to then put the right actor in that role. I've seen it happen a thousand times now, from Yellowstone to Mayor of Kingstown and a couple of Yellowstone spin-offs. The part appears made just for Sly, and he makes it worth everything he has, all the while making it look effortless. That's Sheridan's magic, of course. Create and cast well, and no one has to really work at all. Yeah, that's a bit of an oversimplification, but it sure looks that way, doesn't it? That ain't workin'. That's the way you do it.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Gino Sassani on September 3rd, 2026
"Dearest Rebecca, I know you have many questions. So do I. After all, life is a mystery. But if there's one answer to all of the riddles of the universe, one secret to happiness, I promise it would be simply this ... sheep. No, seriously, it really is sheep."
It really is. The Sheep Detectives is exactly what it sounds like. No. it's not detectives investigating sheep. OK, so it might not be exactly what it sounds like. It's the sheep that are doing the investigating here, so move over, Monk. Move over, Sherlock Holmes. Move over, Columbo. This one is going to be solved by the sheep. No, seriously. It's going to be solved by the sheep. It all started with a German book for the kids called Three Bags Full written by Leonie Swann in 2005. The screenplay is by Craig Mazin, and it was directed by Kyle Balda and is his first live-action film after directing popular animated titles like a few Minions films as well as being co-director of The Lorax. So now he's taking a stab at live action ... but that's not completely true. Yes, I'm talking about the ... sheep, which are all CGI. It's now out on Blu-ray from MGM/Amazon studios, and it's going to be a rare (these days) real family treat.
Posted in: No Huddle Reviews by Jeremy Butler on September 1st, 2026
Well, this film features a pretty stacked cast of talents with the likes of Tom Waits, Adam Driver, Cate Blanchett, Mayam Bialik, Charlotte Rampling, and Indya Moore coming together in this triptych divided into chapters set in New Jersey, Dublin, and Paris. Not only is it a stacked cast, but it’s also a lot of repeat business, as this film marked the second collaboration between actress Cate Blanchett and director Jim Jarmusch after Coffee and Cigarettes, the third collaboration between actor Adam Driver and Jarmusch after Paterson and The Dead Don't Die, and the sixth collaboration between actor Tom Waits and Jarmusch after Down by Law, Mystery Train, Night on Earth (Waits composed it), Coffee and Cigarettes, and The Dead Don't Die. So obviously, Jarmusch has fostered some great relationships with impeccable group of actors and vice versa; the actors have found a creative storyteller with whom they wish to continue collaborations. This triptych is a example that creative storytelling, as the three chapters, or better known as movements, are narratively independent but thematically interconnected.
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