1. // The Creator
A visually stunning movie and a real throw back Sci-Fi adventure flick with plenty of action and an intriguing narrative, and with an abundance of absorbing world building. The Creator kind of came out from nowhere and was a breath of fresh air for cinema in 2023. Directed by visionary filmmaker Gareth Edwards (Rogue One / Monsters) the movie stars John David Washington (Tenet) as Joshua, a former soldier tasked with hunting the creator of a new AI super weapon, in an adventure story set against the backdrop of a dystopian near future war between humans and robots.
The Creator clearly wears its influences on its sleeve with themes prevalent that we have seen explored before in movies such as The Terminator (1984) and Blade Runner (1982), and that’s absolutely fine. As what The Creator delivers we have not necessarily seen this good for sometime, and its style is derivative of vintage 80s / 90s Sci-Fi but with a fresh and modern twist. It actually stands out as being one of the most individual films of the year as it tackles a story that nothing else has really touched on recently.
As well as embarking on his mission to track down the perpetual ‘Creator’ Joshua is also grieving the disappearance of his wife during an undercover operation gone wrong, and the way the narratives weave together is thoroughly engaging throughout. While the visuals and F/X are impressive for a movie with a reported budget on the region of $80m, relatively modest when compared with the money the likes of Marvel and DC are spending on their movies at the moment. KZ
2. // Talk To Me
Talk To Me is the debut film from Australian brothers Michael & Danny Philippou, which landed in theaters this summer with the reputation of being the big indie Horror flick of the year so far … and it absolutely lived up to the hype! For a first picture it is a masterclass in originality providing a completely new spin on the Possession-Horror sub genre, from filmmakers who made a name themselves over the last decade creating short videos on YouTube, while amassing over 6.75 million subscribers in the process.
The concept of Talk To Me is based around a group of young adults who have acquired a cursed severed hand which acts as a gateway for contacting the spirit world, and a conduit for the dead to posses those who hold it. The cast of teenagers intriguingly use the hand as a macabre party game and essentially get high on the experience of being possessed, thinking they are being careful by only letting the spirits inhabit their bodies for a short period of time. It comes as no surprise however that the game (clearly also a metaphor for drug use) takes a dark turn for the worse, as the movie heads into a thoroughly twisted and wholly unique direction.
Talk To Me was filmed independently by the Philippou brothers with local funding in their native South Australia, before A24 snapped up the worldwide distribution rights after catching a viewing at the prestigious Sundance Film Festival. And based on the immediate success the film has seen, a sequel has now already been commissioned by the innovative production company. KZ
3. // Evil Dead Rise
The latest installment in the Evil Dead franchise arrived ten years after Fede Alvarez’s 2013 reboot of Sam Raimi’s Horror classic. And Raimi along with the star of his first three movies Bruce Campbell has once again produced, with Lee Cronin (The Hole In The Ground) this time sitting in the directors chair for Evil Dead Rise.
The film provides a fresh take on the story by moving the setting to that of an apartment in a high rise block (albeit the brutal intro pays homage to the traditional ‘cabin in the woods’ setting) where Ellie (Alyssa Sutherland – Vikings) a single mother of three children is visited by her estranged sister Beth (Lilly Sullivan – Monolith). A small earthquake opens up a hole in the building’s car park and Ellie’s three children discover what used to be an underground bank vault. Here they find one of the three mysterious Books Of The Dead along with a number of dusty old records.
When the records are played back in the apartment during a thoroughly engaging scene of suspense, the demon resurrection spell is cast as words from the book are read aloud, and all hell inevitably breaks loose as Ellie becomes possessed by the evil spirit. From here the movie plays out in an absolute blood bath as her family fight for survival, being that the earthquake has taken out both the power and stairs of the building leaving them all trapped together. The movie’s relatively swift runtime of 96 minutes then absolutely zips by, as the gloriously over the top carnage commences. KZ
4. // Killers Of The Flower Moon
At over 80 years old Martin Scorsese (Goodfellas / The Departed) is a legend of Hollywood who has earned the right to work only on his own terms. As he always has done, Scorsese makes passion projects and tells epic historical stories. He has been vocal regarding his distain for the Marvel era of cinema, and Killers Of The Flower Moon is about as far away from the conventions of the MCU as you can get. In nearly six decades of making movies there are two actors that are unquestionably forever associated with the esteemed director, Robert De Niro (Taxi Driver / Raging Bull) who has starred in ten Scorsese flicks and Leonardo DiCaprio (Gangs Of New York / The Wolf of Wall Street) who has starred in six.
Killers Of The Flower Moon brings the two leading actors together for only the second time in their careers and the first under the famed director. Scorsese has also embraced the streaming platforms as an avenue for his art, seemingly understanding the limitations cinema offers in showing films nearly four hours long to a modern audience, and this is his second following The Irishman (2019 – Netflix) to land on a steaming platform following a limited theatrical run. And Killers Of The Flower Moon is unquestionably a modern classic, a slow burning character driven epic full of exploration into racial tensions in the USA 100 years ago, telling the story of the indigenous Osage Nation who became wealthy in the 1920s when oil was found underneath their Oklahoma land.
Their white neighbours who had previously controlled all of the money in the area want a piece of the action. And the manipulative William ‘King’ Hale (De Niro) devises a plan where by he arranges inter-racial marriages with the Osage women in order to legally lay claim to their wealth when they die, giving them a helping hand to the grave along the way. One such husband is King’s returning war hero nephew Ernest (Di Caprio) who falls in love with Mollie (Lily Gladstone) a strong woman from the richest families in the area. When her sister turns up murdered the community seek help from the government, which as the body count mounts up eventually arrives in the form of F.B.I investigator Tom White (Jesse Plemons – Fargo). KZ
5. // The Pale Blue Eye
Directed by Scott Cooper (Crazy Heart) A Pale Blue Sky is set in a snowy New York winter in 1830, where Detective Augustus Landor (Christian Bale – The Prestige) is summoned to speak with a military colonel and asked to help them investigate the mystery surrounding the hanging of a cadet. A cadet who’s body was then violated in the mortuary, having his heart being carved from his chest and stolen. Landor is a extremely thorough and matter of fact investigator with a fine reputation, but a tortured past.
He gets to work diving into the wider world of the military academy where he meets a young Edgar Allen Poe (Harry Melling – Please Baby Please) a rather awkward soldier as well as a fledgling poet at this time in his life, who himself seems to have a keen interest in solving the riddle. The two begin to work together on unraveling the curious case, and both characters are played superbly (you’d expect nothing less from Bale) in this sumptuous gothic period drama. The manner in which the heart of the cadet appears to have been ritualistically removed leads the pair of sleuths down a path of the occult, following the discovery of potential magical qualities when the heart of a hanged man is used in witchcraft.
The pair preside over a cast of potential suspects within the academy to try and establish who may secretly be dabbling in the dark arts. And the movie plays out like a classic ‘who-dunnit’ with twists and turns through to one hell of a mind blowing reveal at the climax. A twist which leaves you wanting to go straight back to the beginning of the film to watch it all over again, in order to spot the clues that the filmmakers have teasingly left throughout. KZ
6. // Guardians Of The Galaxy: Volume 3
So as we all well know the Marvel Cinematic Universe has been patchy at best since its first three phases culminated in the climactic Avengers: Endgame in 2019. They’ve since provided just one significant high point with Sam Raimi’s horror-tinged Dr Strange in the Multiverse of Madness (2022) but also managed to hit a real low one with Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love and Thunder (2022) totally dropping the ball with one of their key remaining players, and somehow completely messing up the follow on to 2017’s excellent Thor: Ragnarok.
The rest of their movie and television projects have been largely forgettable, but hopes from fans of a solid finalè to the universally revered Guardians of the Galaxy trilogy fortunately came to fruition this summer. This is for now at least a last Marvel hurrah from Writer and Director James Gunn before he rides off into a DC sunset, and it is a credit to the Guardians of the Galaxy journey that he has been allowed to complete his vision for the series.
Working well is the fact that Guardians of the Galaxy manages to both be a part of the wider MCU, while also sitting quite comfortably as its own standalone trilogy. And Vol. 3 focuses on telling its own story without any connection or set up to what might come next from Marvel, or even these characters in whatever capacity they may show up again in future films. Visually it is a stunning movie as you would expect, with some incredible space action set pieces. While tonally it is also the darkest of the three films, but with a hell of a lot of heart at the core of its story. KZ
7. // Oppenheimer
A new Christopher Nolan film deserves attention whatever the subject matter, and Oppenheimer follows a run of releases starting with Dunkirk in 2017 and followed by Tenet in 2020, which has somewhat polarised his fanbase, despite them all continuing to be hits at the box office. Nolan is perhaps best known for turning the comic book genre on it’s head when Batman Begins (2005) kick-started his iconic Dark Knight Trilogy.
While earlier films of his such as Memento (2000) The Prestige (2006) and Inception (2010) all feature original ideas and ground-breaking concepts that helped establish him as one of the leading auteurs of the modern era. And of all his filmography Oppenheimer may just be the most straightforward narrative he has created, as he provides a historical biopic which covers the life of the father of the Atomic Bomb, across a story spanning a number of decades over a near three hour run time.
Cillian Murphy (Peaky Blinders) is captivating in the leading role, and his odds-on Oscar nominated performance is paramount to the film’s success. The movie also supplies a stellar supporting cast which includes Emily Blunt (The Adjustment Bureau) Matt Damon (The Departed) and Robert Downey Jr (Iron Man) who combine in a typically stylish Nolan film, which visually looks absolutely fantastic. KZ
8. // The Killer
An intriguing new movie from David Fincher (Seven / Fight Club) one of modern cinema’s most notable directors which stars Michael Fassbender (Shame / Prometheus) as a cold and calculating nameless hit-man, forced into hiding while trying to exact revenge on those who wish him dead after a hit gone wrong. And in typical Fincher fashion this is no genreric action movie, instead introducing the concept with a slow burning first act as we watch Fassbender’s character prepare for his kill.
A tedious and mundane methodical process which is accompanied by his inner monologue, narrating the movie much like we’ve heard before from Fincher, who has always been a master of his craft. There are moments of action within of course including a lively and incredibly well choreographed fight scene, but in the main Fincher has created a largely character driven narrative with the movie absolutely hinging on the casting of Fassbender, who as usual delivers a first class performance.
There are some beautiful moments of tension building, such as with the finale of the opening sequence as the hit-man is poised to take his shot, waiting for the perfect moment to pull the trigger as The Smiths ‘How Soon Is Now?’ plays. And the music from The Smiths is also drip fed throughout the film alongside a mesmerising score from Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, in what is an unsurprisingly stylish film from Fincher, which in another sign of the times landed on Netflix after an incredibly short and limited theatre run. KZ
9. // Reptile
Another movie that headed straight to Netflix, Reptile sees Detective Tom Nichols (Benicio Del Toro – The Usual Suspects) investigating the murder of Summer (Matilda Lutz – Rings) an estate agent who is found slain in an empty property she was selling in New England. Coming under suspicion are her lover and colleague Will Grady (Justin Timberlake – In Time) her ex-husband (Karl Gifford – Watcher) and local weirdo with a grudge Eli (Michael Pitt – Boardwalk Empire) in what is a classy ensemble cast of characters.
Reptile plays out nicely in a True Detective kind of style, and is a debut feature film by music video director Grant Singer who also wrote the screenplay along with Del Toro. Reptile is a solid ‘who-dunnit’ mystery with a spiders web of intrigue and breadcrumb clues sprinkled throughout, and is also a real character study on Del Toro’s troubled detective as he works the case alongside a close knit team of fellow officers who often come across as being as shady as the people they are investigating.
Tom juggles his work with matters closer to home, as the narrative also focuses on his relationship with his wife Judy (Alicia Silverstone – Clueless) in a story where nothing is quite as it seems. And as the reasons for Summer’s murder begin to become clearer, it becomes apparent that the killer/s may well not be those first suspected. KZ
10. // Knock At The Cabin
Opening with a suspenseful Hitchockian-esq score and based on the novel The Cabin At The End Of The World (Paul G. Tremblay), M. Night Shyamalan’s (The Sixth Sense) latest movie is a return to form following the lack lustre Old released in 2021. It features a captivating performance from Dave Bautista (Army of the Dead) as Leonard, a mysterious man who’s intentions are entirely unclear when he approaches Wen, a seven year old girl playing alone in the woods. This provides an initially uncomfortable premise as he tries to befriend her by playing the nice guy, until his conversation takes on a slightly sinister tone as he tells her “My heart is broken, because of what I have to do today” before three other strangers emerge from the trees.
Wen runs to a cabin where she and her two Dads are taking a vacation, while Leonard and his associates follow eventually knocking on the door and asking to be let in. The four strangers then cut the cabin’s phone line, stranding the family before forcing their way in. This opening sequence is paced perfectly with the thrilling score ideally complimenting the visuals, while typically for M. Night the audience are brought straight into the story with no possible way of knowing, unless you’ve read the book of course, where this tale is headed.
Wen’s fathers Eric (Jonathan Geoff – Mindhunter) and Andrew (Ben Aldridge – Spoiler Alert) are eventually tied to chairs after putting up a decent enough fight and are told by their intruders that the family must choose to willingly sacrifice one of themselves, in order to stop an impending apocalypse. If they fail to do this all three of them will live, but the rest of humanity will perish leaving them to wander the planet alone. This set up makes for an intriguing character driven premise, which is played out nicely and keeps you engaged and curious through to the finalè. KZ
11. // Cobweb
One of the stand out Horror flicks of 2023, Cobweb arrived with little fanfare or promotion but proved to be a quintessential Halloween season movie. It’s a film which is darkly mysterious and spends the majority of its run time providing intoxicating suspense and some thoroughly creepy scenes, before going absolutely over the top in the final act much in the same way that recent modern Horror classics such as Malignant (2021) and Barbarian (2022) had done.
Directed by Samuel Bodin (Marianne) the movie which is filmed under the haze of a dark and foreboding blue colour palate, follows young protagonist Peter (Woody Norman – The Last Voyage Of The Demeter) a shy and reserved boy who is bullied at school and emotionally suppressed at home by his controlling parents. From the very beginning something feels quite unnatural about both his mother Carol (Lizzy Caplan – Cloverfield) and father Mark (Antony Starr – The Boys) and both are instantly submissive when he tells them that he hears strange noises and a voice coming from behind his bedroom wall at night.
As Halloween approaches and Peter withdraws further into his shell, he finds an arm around his shoulder in the guise of concerned substitute teacher Miss Devine (Cleopatra Coleman – Infinity Pool) but also finds the unlikeliest of ally in the voice he speaks to at night. This turns out to be a true devil on his shoulder which also warns him about a grave danger he is in from the one place he should feel the safest, and from the very people who should be protecting him. KZ
12. // Infinity Pool
They say that the Apple never falls far from the tree, and that’s proving to very well be the case in terms of the career of director Brandon Cronenberg (Possessor) who adds to his catalogue of movies with a twist of the bizarre which clearly take more than a hint of inspiration from his legendary auteur father David. From the very beginning Infinity Pool introduces a sense of disequilibrium and the proposition that someone’s world is going to be turned upside down, as Cronenberg spins his camera in a beautifully shot but nausea introducing wide angled landscape scene.
The movie brings together a solid cast as struggling writer James Foster (Alexander Skarsgård – The Northman) is seduced by femme-fatale Gabi Bauer (Mia Goth – Pearl) while holidaying with his wife Em (Cleopatra Coleman – Cobweb) on a fictional island. Cronenberg delivers shocks early on in the movie by introducing a masturbation scene that leaves nothing to the imagination, followed by a long lingering shock on a shimmering ocean with a dark foreboding drone score. Here he perfectly sets the style and tone of the movie, outlining early on that the viewer will be in for an often uncomfortable experience.
The premise of the story has its heart in Sci-Fi as Cronenberg explores the notion of cloning, as well as the theme of how far would you go if you knew you could commit acts of violence with absolutely no consequences? And we watch this premise unfold in the character of James as he loses control and spirals down a nightmarish rabbit hole, which true to the family name Cronenberg delivers with an abundance of graphic nudity, shocks and gore, as well as plenty of narrative twists and turns. KZ
13. // When Evil Lurks
A real surprise this year came in the form of this Argentinian horror which had its premier at Fantastic Fest in Texas, before arriving on Shudder soon after. Directed by Demián Rugna (Terrified) When Evil Lurks opens with two rural farmers, brothers Pedro (Ezequiel Rodríguez) and Jimi (Demián Salomón) investigating the sound of gunfire that wakes them up at night. They discover a mutilated body which they rationalise as having been attacked by a puma, before stumbling across a home harbouring a hideously deformed man, who appears to be in the midst of a demonic possession.
They alert the local town law enforcement who don’t seem to want to know, and as they start spreading the news around their neighbourhood, it becomes apparent that this isn’t the first experience of a ‘rotten’ many of the locals have had. The movie quickly establishes a lore around the phenomenon, such as shooting an infected (who will try to coax you into harming it) with a firearm will pass the possession on to that person, while it also seems that the demon can also easily travel from person to animal.
Within minutes we are fully sucked into the action as the brothers try to move and dispose of the grotesque man without spreading the infection. The Body-Horror is quite repulsive in these opening scenes, setting the mood and tone for what is to come in abundance, as naturally the infection starts to spread and we follow Pedro as he tries to evacuate his loved ones. In fact When Evil Lurks gives Evil Dead Rise a good run for its money in terms of its relentless shock and gore, and much like [Rec] (2007) – is a Spanish language Horror that sticks long in the memory. KZ
14. // M3gan
M3GAN is a Sci-Fi / Thriller that owes much to Child’s Play and Chucky, while also taking influence from classic tales of man vs machine. It evaluates humans relationship with the robotic and how dependency on a non-human life-form and an over reliance of technology is not necessarily going to end well! The movie is directed by Gerard Johnstone (Housebound) and stars Allison Williams (Get Out) as Gemma, a talented career driven robotics engineer who has created M3gan, a highly advanced AI robotic companion for children.
At the heart of the film there is a relationship between Gemma and her recently orphaned niece Cady (Violet McGraw – Black Widow) as Gemma becomes her guardian and tries to balance her career with the unexpected responsibility of being a parent. She uses her niece as a test for M3gan to prove her market-worth to her company, and this allows the film to provide a social commentary on the over reliance on technology in place of traditional parenting and human to human contact.
The movie builds slowly to its inevitable climax, focusing on character development before eventually the elements of a traditional slasher flick rear their head in the final act. There is a dark underlying humour throughout, and a few laugh out load moments of pure absurdity which keep the movie light-hearted. Despite it subtle elements of horror, where the violence was kept relatively minimal to ensure a 15 age cinema rating in the UK and PG-13 in America. KZ
15. // Renfield
Renfield became a highly anticipated release when photos of Nicholas Cage (Leaving Las Vegas) started to emerge in character as a larger than life version of Count Dracula, and it became clear that the latest incantation of the worlds most famous vampire was going to be far from run of the mill. The film which is shot in a wonderfully bright colour palate and directed by Chris McKay (The Tomorrow War) begins with Dracula’s familiar Renfield (Nicholas Hoult – The Menu) recounting the tale of how he came to be under Dracula’s servitude.
The movie pays homage to the original Bela Lugosi era films before bringing the story into modern day New Orleans. The opening scene sets the tone perfectly with sharp and witty dialogue while the strong gore provides the perfect combination for a good Horror-Comedy. Hoult plays Renfield like he’s a character in a Guy Ritchie movie mixed with a bumbling English Hugh Grant kind of fellow, who initially cares for and tries to help his master every which way he can. But the gratitude and admiration he seeks in return never comes from the completely self-centred vampire, in what the film quickly establishes is an abusive one way relationship.
This is a role in which Nicholas Cage as the blood sucking immortal, absolutely steals every scene he is in by putting in one of those great performances he is able to muster from time to time, creating a thoroughly sinister and despicable character. There is a side plot involving a New Orleans mobster family and the cop looking to bring them down, with Renfield and Dracula each ultimately taking opposing sides in their narrative, as the movie plays out to a bloody and action packed climax. KZ
16. // Scream VI
The latest movie in the Scream franchise arrived a little over a year since director duo Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett (Ready Or Not / V/H/S) rebooted the classic series, introducing a new cast of characters including sisters Sam (Melissa Barrera – Keep Breathing) and Tara (Jenny Ortega – Wednesday) while bringing the legend of the Ghostface killer fresh to a new generation. 2022’s fifth installment also featured the now legacy cast from the original movie to keep a familiarity for the fan-base, while taking the decision to finally kill one of them off with the murder of Dewey (David Arquette).
From that cast of original characters it is only reporter Gale Weathers (Courtney Cox – Friends) who came back for this reboot sequel, although we’re also treated to the return of Kirby Read (Hayden Panettiere – Heroes) not seen since Scream 4 (2011). Scream VI picks right up where it’s predecessor left off and provides another fine installment in the consistently enjoyable franchise.
Where in typical slasher fashion suspending your disbelief and allowing yourself to once again engage in the trademark who-dunnit aspect to the story, building to the inevitable Scooby Doo style reveal of the killer/s is no bad way to spend two hours. In addition to getting the basics of what we expect from a Scream film right, VI also features some of the goriest moments of the franchise. While also providing an unforgettable set piece on the New York subway, a cool utilisation of moving the movie out of the town of Woodsboro, and into the Big Apple. KZ
17. // Saw X
The Saw franchise has been to the 2000s what the likes of Friday The 13th and A Nightmare On Elm Street were to the 80s. A Horror series churning out sequels on an almost yearly basis, eventually becoming stale with a drastic dip in quality before going on to reinvent itself, trying to capture that initial magic that first captivated audiences. And since it felt like Saw came to the end of its initial road with the mediocre Saw 3D (2010) which was just another generic movie providing visceral gore and shocks but little more, it has previously had two stabs at reinventing the wheel.
First by seemingly bringing back from the dead the original protagonist and face of the franchise John Kramer (Tobin Bell) in Jigsaw (2017) and then with the standalone companion flick Spiral: From The Book of Saw (2021) starring Chris Rock (Fargo), with neither films particularly setting the Horror world alight. And so this brings us to Saw X where expectations for yet another movie that was going to again focus on John Kramer were not exactly sky high, which is something that has absolutely worked in this films favour. Saw X sits in the timeline between the first two movies where we see Kramer just months from death, a frail and cancer ridden man who desperately wants to cling on to his life.
He is given a tip off about a group of medics who perform an unlicensed procedure which may finally cure his cancer, and he takes the plunge and heads down to the private clinic in Mexico. After his surgery he returns to the clinic with a gift to find that the doctors are nowhere to be found, and discovers the whole procedure was a scam and that he hadn’t been treated on at all …. cue revenge! Kramer seeks to exact horrifying and typically gory payback on those who wronged him, in what has turned out to be one of the very best movies in the franchise. KZ
18. // Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
The original Indiana Jones trilogy is rightly considered to be a near perfect Action-Adventure series of movies. A series that brought together the magic of George Lucas (Star Wars) and Steven Spielberg (Jaws) at the pinnacle of their creative prowess, a true movie-star at the peak of his career in Harrison Ford (Blade Runner) and stories that were expertly paced and thoroughly engaging throughout. The films were iconic for a reason and remain so to this day, holding up on repeat viewings whilst providing warm nostalgia for anyone who saw them back in the day.
Then nineteen years after Ford last hung up his fedora in The Last Crusade (1989) the team reformed for The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) a legacy sequel which received a lukewarm response from most, due to it’s over the top use of CGI and rather absurd Sci-Fi infused events of the final act. And for a decade it seemed like that was going to be the end of the road for one of the most recognisable adventure heroes in cinema. Harrison Ford turned 80 in July 2022 and surely he didn’t have another Indiana flick in him? Well the answer is yes he did and this time it came courtesy of the now Disney owned Lucasfilm, and without Steven Spielberg behind the camera for the first time.
Instead Director James Mangold (The Wolverine / Logan) was trusted to finally bring the saga to a close and what’s been delivered is an enjoyable nostalgic trip that while doesn’t compare to the 80s trilogy, is certainly a step in the right direction. While the realms of the fantastical it may head towards in the final act of it’s time-travel plot may be on a par with its 2009 counterpart, there is much more of an old-school Indie tone throughout. With an opening passage set in the final year of WW2 and with a passable de-aged Ford providing the finest sequence by far of both modern movies. KZ
19. // A Haunting In Venice
The third installment of Kenneth Branagh’s reinvention of Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot series and this time he takes a major diversion from the remaking the classic and most well known material, to deliver a very loosely based adaptation of the vintage crime writer’s lesser known 1969 novel Hallowe’en Party. As well as directing Branagh also returns to acting in the role of the iconic Belgian detective, as he has already done so in Murder on the Orient Express (2017) and Death on the Nile (2022) placing him firmly as one of the most recognisable versions of the beloved character alongside such actors as David Suchet, Peter Ustinov and Albert Finney.
The story sees a happily retired Poirot enjoying a quiet and peaceful life with only his bodyguard for company to swat away the many visitors begging him to investigate their cases. His tranquil existence is disturbed by the visit of an old friend Ariadne Oliver (Tina Fey – Date Night) who coaxes him out to visit the home of Rowena Drake (Kelly Reilly – Eden Lake), who following hosting a children’s Halloween party in her home will be conducting a Sèance with the infamous Joyce Reynolds (Michelle Yeoh – Everything Everywhere All At Once) in the hope of contacting her recently deceased daughter.
The skeptical Belgian detective joins in along with a cast of characters including Dr. Leslie Ferrier (Jamie Dornan – The Fall) as the mystery of the past unravels with a thoroughly supernatural twist, with the master sleuth once again looking to solve a new crime as the medium is discovered impaled on a spike, and an attempt on Poirot’s own life is made in this wonderfully filmed gothic period flick. KZ
20. // The Popes Exorcist
Perhaps the finest movie of the year with ‘Exorcist’ in the title, The Popes Exorcist is in no doubt lifted by the presence and performance of Oscar winner Russell Crowe (Gladiator) an actor who will always levitate whatever script he is delivering. Clearly paying a huge debt to William Friedkin’s iconic 1973 movie and its legacy, this is a film which focuses much more on the powers of the Catholic Church than The Exorcist: Believer did this year.
And follows the story of Father Gabriel Amorth (Crowe) the Vatican’s chief exorcist who embarks on a mission to investigate the possession of a young boy, amid a deeper exploration of the Catholic Church’s relationship with the supernatural. The methods of Father Amorth have come under great scrutiny within the Vatican who struggle to understand his practices, but Crowe plays a strong and unwavering character who the audience is fully on board with from the opening scenes.
The film pays homage to the original Exorcist movie as it focuses on the symptoms of the child as he becomes possessed, and also the feelings of his mother as she desperately tries to understand what is happening to him, looking to medical professionals for help and answers before turning to the church for guidance. The film provides a number of absorbing scenes between Crowe and the demon in this solid thriller from director Julius Avery (Samaritan / Overlord) with the priest heading towards hell itself as he realises the power of the foe he is facing. KZ
Words by Mark Bates
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