Series Review: "Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators" (2023).

From the directors of Murder Among the Mormons and Untold: The Girlfriend Who Didn't Exist comes Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators. This documentary film directed by Jared Hess and Tony Vainuku. The film chronicles the meteoric rise, dramatic fall, and gripping behind-the-scenes stories of one of the biggest spectacles on television during the height of the '90s. Told first hand from the stars who lived through it, this five part series reveals untold stories of the iconic American Gladiators’ triumph, turmoil, and ultimate price of fame.

From September 1989 to May 1996, the American competition television program, American Gladiators, aired weekly in syndication. The series matched a cast of amateur athletes against each other, as well as against the show's own "gladiators", in contests of strength and agility. The show featured four competitors, two men and two women, in most episodes. The players, referred to throughout the series as "contenders", faced off in a series of physical games against each other and against a cast of costumed athletes looking to prevent them from succeeding (the titular "Gladiators"). Each match saw the competitors trying to advance in a tournament, with one man and one woman crowned champion at its conclusion. Following the success of the show, other countries began to produce their own versions of the show. The concept was originally created in 1982 by Johnny C. Ferraro and Dann Carr. Carr gathered the Gladiators and hosted the show, and Ferraro financed and produced the original competition at Erie Tech High School in Erie, Pennsylvania so Ferraro could have the event on film as to shop the new creation. In 1983 Ferraro financed, developed and packaged the American Gladiators as a movie project. In 1984 Carr sold his interest in a literary purchase to Flor-Jon Films. Ferraro had been the main driving force behind the American Gladiators brand since 1982. In 1987, Flor-Jon Films then licensed the unscripted rights to The Samuel Goldwyn Company (now part of MGM). Ferraro is the sole creator of the 1994 kids' version of the series, Gladiators 2000 (a.k.a. G2). An all-star, one-off primetime celebrity special, Superstar American Gladiators aired on ABC on May 4, 1995. Flor-Jon Films, Inc and the Samuel Goldwyn Co in 1993 granted a license to Chariot Entertainment in an effort to launch a live American Gladiators show on the Las Vegas Strip, but the president of Chariot became mired in a securities fraud prosecution, through no fault of Flor-Jon Films or The Samuel Goldwyn Co, and the live show went unrealized.

This is about American Gladiators, intrinsically. We follow the eight-year build of the reality show that will soon be rubble, we see the rehearsals and the logos plastered everywhere but it's about showing that there are no small parts too. In terms of giving fans a better idea of the countless moving parts involved in a project like American Gladiator, and in terms of spotlighting a few of the many people who labor behind the scenes, the series is a very satisfying coda to the show.

Simon says Muscles & Mayhem: An Unauthorized Story of American Gladiators receives:

Also, see my reviews for Murder Among the Mormons and Untold: The Girlfriend Who Didn't Exist.

Film Review: "Nimona" (2023).

"A little anti. A little hero." This is Nimona. This animated science fantasy adventure comedy drama film directed by Nick Bruno and Troy Quane, adapted by by Robert L. Baird and Lloyd Taylor, and based on the 2015 graphic novel of the same name by ND Stevenson. When Ballister Boldheart, a knight in a futuristic medieval world, is framed for a crime he didn't commit, the only one who can help him prove his innocence is Nimona, a mischievous teen with a taste for mayhem - who also happens to be a shapeshifting creature Ballister has been trained to destroy. But with the entire kingdom out to get him, Nimona's the best (or technically the only) sidekick Ballister can hope for. And as the lines between heroes, villains, and monsters start to blur, the two of them set out to wreak serious havoc - for Ballister to clear his name once and for all, and for Nimona to...just wreak serious havoc.

In June 2015, 20th Century Fox Animation acquired the rights for an animated feature film adaptation of Stevenson's webcomic. Patrick Osborne was hired to direct, and Marc Haimes was hired to pen the adaptation. In June 2017, 20th Century Fox scheduled the film for a February 14, 2020 release date. In March 2019, The Walt Disney Company completed its acquisition of Fox, then in May 2019, the film was delayed to March 5, 2021. In November 2019, the film was delayed again to January 14, 2022. Through 2020 there was word that the film would be released in 2022. By March, Osborne departed the film. Ultimately, Bruno and Quane were hired to direct. In June, Stevenson stated that the film was still happening. In August, it was reported that the film was still scheduled to be released in 2022, but gave no further details. In early February 2021, Disney announced it was shutting down Blue Sky Studios, and that production of the film was canceled. At the time of its cancellation, the film was reportedly 70% finished in Layout. In March, it was reported that Chloë Grace Moretz and Riz Ahmed were to have voiced Nimona and Ballister Blackheart, respectively, and that the film was being shopped around to other studios to be completed. In early April, it was announced that Annapurna Pictures had picked up the film earlier in the year, and would be releasing it on Netflix in 2023. DNEG Animation was announced as the project's animation partner. DNEG Animation completed all visuals for the finished film, including the titles, animation, and end credits. In December, it emerged that the film would serve as the first release of Annapurna's new division, Annapurna Animation. In late April 2023, Frances Conroy, Lorraine Toussaint, Beck Bennett, and RuPaul Charles were cast.

The film and the cast challenges younger viewers in asking to sympathize with characters who are completely unusual in every sense of the word.

To call the film frenetic is an understatement, but there is a level of control and visibility to its rapid-fire storytelling and fight scenes that is very welcome.

Simon says Nimona receives:

Also, see my review for Spies in Disguise.

Film Review: "Eldorado: Everything the Nazis Hate" ("Eldorado - Alles, was die Nazis hassen") (2023).

"Here it's right!" This is Eldorado: Everything the Nazis Hate (Eldorado - Alles, was die Nazis hassen). This German documentary film directed by Benjamin Cantu and Matt Lambert, and written by Cantu and Felix Kriegsheim. At the heart of this documentary about freedoms lost under Hitler is a glitzy nightclub in 1920s Berlin that became a haven for the queer community.

The Eldorado was the name of multiple nightclubs and performance venues in Berlin before the Nazi era and World War II. The name of the cabaret Eldorado has become an integral part of the popular iconography of what has come to be seen as the culture of the period in German history often referred to as the "Weimar Republic". Two of the five locations the club occupied in its history are known to have catered to a gay crowd, though the phrase gay bar, which could conjure up images of the type of bar that became common after World War II catering first and foremost to gay and lesbian clientele, does not accurately describe what an establishment like Eldorado to a certain extent was, and what similar venues still are to this day. Eldorado was a gay cabaret in that along with gay, lesbian, and bisexual patrons, a heterosexual-identifying audience (artists, authors, celebrities, tourists) would have been present as well. "Cross-dressing" was tolerated on the premises, though for the most part legally prohibited and/or sharply regulated in public (and to an extent in private) at the time. This exception to everyday life attracted not only male patrons who wished to dress in the "clothing of the opposite sex", and their admirers, but also to no small extent women who wished to do the same, and their admirers. Wealthy lookers-on were encouraged to come and drink and watch as so-called "Zechenmacher" (tab payers). However the eradication during the Nazi Period of any and all references to queer life in Germany was so thorough, that very little explicit public, or even archival reference to the clubs queer history remained by 1945. Criminalization made researching, speaking, or writing about queer realities a legal risk during the first decades following WWII, not only in Germany. That the cabaret Eldorado is remembered at all, is due in no small part to its central role in inspiring the novels of the Anglo-American author Christopher Isherwood and to the Broadway musical and moreover to the 1972 film Cabaret inspired by Isherwood's novels. At the same time historians, and activist of the Gay liberation movement, and of the ensuing LGBT rights movement began piecing back together was is now called queer history. Eldorado thereby became a prominent part of the telling of LGBTIQ+ histories.

The film captures an impressive array of voices and is especially noteworthy for the number of men and women of color with whom Cantu spoke. Its dramatisation footage is extensive and the stories told by its talking heads are full of the sort of elder wisdom and poignant recollection that remains a potent testament a hundred years later.

Simon says Eldorado: Everything the Nazis Hate (Eldorado - Alles, was die Nazis hassen) receives:

Film Review: "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" (2023).

"A legend will face his destiny" in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. This action adventure film directed by James Mangold, written by Mangold, Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, and David Koepp, and based on the characters created by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman. Experience the return of legendary hero, Indiana Jones, in the fifth installment of this beloved swashbuckling series of films. Finding himself in a new era, approaching retirement, Indy wrestles with fitting into a world that seems to have outgrown him. But as the tentacles of an all-too-familiar evil return in the form of an old rival, Indy must don his hat and pick up his whip once more to make sure an ancient and powerful artifact doesn't fall into the wrong hands.

Plans for a fifth Indiana Jones film go back to the late 1970s when Lucas and Steven Spielberg negotiated with Paramount for four sequels to Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981). Lucas began researching potential plot devices for a fifth film in 2008, although the project stalled for years. In 2016, Koepp was eventually hired to write the fifth film with a release date set for 2019, although this was delayed several times due to rewrites. In 2018, Jonathan Kasdan was hired to replace Koepp, who returned to write in 2019 before eventually leaving the project. Spielberg was too direct, but stepped down in 2020, with Mangold hired to replace him. By early June 2021, Harrison Ford and John Rhys-Davies were confined to reprise their roles, with Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Mads Mikkelsen, Antonio Banderas, Toby Jones, Boyd Holbrook, Shaunette Renée Wilson, and Thomas Kretschmann rounding out the film's cast. At the same time, principal photography commenced and wrapped in late February 2022. Filming took place at Pinewood Studios, Iver Heath, Buckinghamshire, England, UK, as well as Glasgow, Scotland; Marsala, Trapani, Sicily, Italy; Northumberland and North Yorkshire, England. With an estimated production budget of nearly $300 million, it is the most expensive film in the Indiana Jones franchise, as well as one of the most expensive films ever made. The film was originally set for a July 19, 2019 release date. But, in April 2017, it was delayed to July 10, 2020. It then shifted to July 9, 2021, and then once again delayed to July 29, 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Finally, in October 2021, it was delayed to June 30, 2023.

The film stars Ford, Rhys-Davies, Waller-Bridge, Mikkelsen, Banderas, Jones, Holbrook, Wilson, and Kretschmann. Ford does a convincing job as an ageing adventurer not quite ready to join the museum-worthy objects he collects.

The film dazzles audiences with a surface of nostalgic fun made shiny new-but beneath that mask, if you care to notice it, lurks an abyss of futility. The mediocrity of the film is not the fault of the audience, but people need to demand more. This is simply not serious or challenging filmmaking, even in the action genre. It's fan fiction writ large, making it clearer than ever that George Lucas is Indiana Jones. With his voice gone, all that's left are tinny reverberations of movie history.

Simon says Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny receives:

Also, see my review for Ford v Ferrari.

Film Review: "Transformers: Rise of the Beasts" (2023).

"Unite or fall" in Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. This science fiction action film directed by Steven Caple Jr., written by Joby Harold, Darnell Metayer, Josh Peters, Erich Hoeber, and Jon Hoeber, and based on Hasbro's Transformers toy line. It is the seventh installment in the Transformers film series and serves as both a standalone sequel to Bumblebee (2018) and a prequel to Transformers (2007). The film takes audiences on a '90s globetrotting adventure with the Autobots and introduce a whole new faction of Transformers - the Maximals - to join them as allies in the existing battle for earth.

In December 2018, when asked about the future of the Transformers franchise, producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura stated that another big Transformers film "would be produced" and that it would be "different than the ones that we've done before." After the success of Bumblebee (2018) that year, he said that the series would make some changes in tone and style, inspired by the film. In January 2020, Paramount Pictures was reportedly working on two different Transformers films, one penned by James Vanderbilt and another penned by Harold. In November, Caple Jr. was hired to direct Harold's script. In February 2021, it was revealed that the film was going under the working title Transformers: Beast Alliance, hinting the introduction of characters from the Beast Wars franchise. During a virtual event held by Paramount in June, di Bonaventura and Caple revealed the official title as Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, and confirming that it would feature the Maximals, the Predacons, and a new take on the Terrorcons faction. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) would serve as a major influence for the film's tone and action. In an April 2023 interview, Di Bonaventura stated that the film's story will have a character arc for Optimus Prime prior to the 2007 film, akin to Bumblebee in his self-titled film. In May, Caple said that the events of the 2007 film will be preserved, but also that the story would be standalone. By early June 2021, Anthony Ramos, Dominique Fishback, Luna Lauren Vélez, Michael Kelly, Peter Cullen, Ron Perlman, Peter Dinklage, Michelle Yeoh, Pete Davidson, Liza Koshy, John DiMaggio, Michaela Jaé Rodriguez, and Colman Domingo were cast. At the same time, with a budget of $200 million, principal photography commenced and wrapped in late October. Filming took place in Brooklyn, Los Angeles, and Montreal, as well as throughout Iceland, Peru, and New Mexico. The visual effects were provided by Moving Picture Company and Wētā FX instead of Industrial Light and Magic. The film was initially scheduled for a June 24, 2022 release date, before it was delayed to June 9, 2023.

The movie is full of humor and heart, most effectively provided by Ramos, who manages to be genuine, despite acting predominantly in front of fully CG personas.

The film may very well represent a vast improvement in quality for the Transformers series. But that means the previous Michael Bay films must be even worse than you think, as the film is pretty dang awful.

Simon says Transformers: Rise of the Beasts receives:

Also, see my reviews for Creed II and Bumblebee.

Series Review: "Sleeping Dog" ("Schlafende Hunde") (2023).

From Germany and Netflix comes Sleeping Dog (Schlafende Hunde). This German series directed by Stephan Lacant and Francis Meletzky, adapted by Christoph Darnstädt, and based on the series, The Exchange Principle, created by Oded Davidoff and Noah Stollman. A former detective now living on the streets searches for the truth after a new death raises unnerving doubts about a supposedly settled murder case.

The series stars Max Riemelt, Luise von Finckh, Peri Baumeister, Tara Corrigan, Luna Jordan, Carlo Ljubek, Melika Foroutan, Antonio Wannek, Melodie Wakivuamina, Bernd Hölscher, and Martin Wuttke. While Riemelt's performance as the damaged Atlas is intriguing, there's nothing else about the show that feels distinctive or worth following for six episodes. Riemelt's performance shines here, as a mentally ill former cop whose life just keeps getting convolutedly worse, but otherwise the show is a misery parade with no hope of reprieve. Though Riemelt does his best, there are better shows involving an obsessed, morally compromised cop looking for answers. Riemelt's performance is a slow-burner. Confusion -- and a lack of mobility, hobbling around on crutches -- grows into a sullen resolve to chase down any scrap of a clue about his past.

The show is just a messy series that at its best serves as a reminder that good writing is essential to the medium and that pouting and looking dour and confused it not really premium-cable-style acting. The troubling questions and terrific performances are enough to keep you following this murky trail, if you're not seriously burned out on corrupt authorities. The show's problem isn't its premise, which is no better or worse than your average gritty crime drama. The show so completely personifies the mundane procedural that it actually becomes awful. The six episodes sent to critics work well enough because of the performances - especially those of Max Riemelt, Finckh, Ljubek and Foroutan - the direction by Lacant and Meletzky, and our wanting to know what Atlas is going to do. It's mildly gripping, not to be dismissed, but sometimes let down by obviousness and by some bizarre underperforming by actors around Riemelt. As a cop-thriller, the show is oddly subdued. This can be very funny at times a traffic jam caused by two turtles rooting in the middle of the road is an early highlight. But the focus remains the two-fold mystery: who exactly is our hero, and why does at least one somebody want him dead? What seems at the outset like a chance for Riemelt to do some heavy existential lifting never quite makes good on that promise. Instead, the show eventually settles into a conventional web of TV intrigue. The story would have been tighter with one or two fewer episodes. Still, it’s an entertaining series that has drive, even when it’s going in the wrong direction. Overall, I dont think anyone will be disappointed with the show and it may actually surprise some people. There is nothing here you havent seen before but it is delivered in an entertaining package.

Simon says Sleeping Dog (Schlafende Hunde) receives:

Film Review: "Elemental" (2023).

"Opposites react" in Elemental. This computer-animated romantic comedy-drama film directed by Peter Sohn, written by John Hoberg, Kat Likkel, and Brenda Hsueh, and produced by Pixar Animation Studios. Set in Element City, where fire-, water-, land- and air-residents live together, Elemental introduces Ember, a tough, quick-witted and fiery young woman, whose friendship with a fun, sappy, go-with-the-flow guy named Wade challenges her beliefs about the world they live in.

Following the release of The Good Dinosaur (2015), Sohn began working on the project when the idea first started. He pitched the concept to Pixar to develop Elemental based on the idea of whether fire and water could ever connect or not. Elemental draws inspiration from Sohn's youth, growing up as the son of immigrants in New York City during the 1970s, highlighting the city's distinct cultural and ethnic diversity, while the story is inspired by romantic films, like Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (1967), Moonstruck (1987), Amélie (2001), My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002), and The Big Sick (2017). Rather than visit countries for research, the team spent many hours watching POV city tours on YouTube like Venice and Amsterdam for inspiration. The animation tools were utilized to design the visual effects and appearance of each character, particularly Ember and Wade. Production on Elemental lasted for seven years, both in the studio and at the filmmakers' homes, with the story being finished remotely. Pixar had to upgrade and buy more computers for Elemental. There is over one-hundred and fifty-one thousand cores in use for this film in three large rooms on the Pixar campus. For perspective Toy Story (1995) had two-hundred and ninety-four cores, Monsters, Inc. (2001) had six-hundred and seventy-two cores, and Finding Nemo (2003) had nine-hundred and twenty-three cores. This is a massive amount of computing power.

The film stars the voice talents of Leah Lewis, Mamoudou Athie, Ronnie del Carmen, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Catherine O'Hara, and Joe Pera. There are some sweet early scenes establishing the characters' rapport, but Lewis and Athie are so enamored of the standup-comedy world that it takes nearly forty minutes for an actual conflict to be brought up.

The film suffers from an excess of pleasantness, and this very pleasantness thins out its substance, blands out its tone, weakens its comedy. Lewis and Athie having difficulty managing the nuance of their story and the needs of mainstream cinema. They come up with a picture that has a defined cultural perspective, but remains bland overall. The world-building is spare to the point of obtuseness, which is saying something considering this is the same studio that gave us a believable world inhabited only by cars. For better or worse, Disney and Pixar have redefined the genre of cinematic animation, but as their outsized influence has faded, their grip on the title of most inventive seems to be slipping from their grip. This isn't a bad movie per se, but it is an extremely frustrating one that left me longing for the days when rom-coms weren't structured like The Return Of The King.

Simon says Elemental receives:

Also, see my reviews for The Good Dinosaur and Lightyear.

Film Review: "Take Care of Maya" (2023).

From the director of Tough Guys comes Take Care of Maya. This documentary film directed by Henry Roosevelt. When ten-year-old Maya Kowalski was admitted to Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital in 2016, nothing could have prepared her or her family for what they were about to go through. As the medical team tried to understand her rare illness, they began to question the basic truths that bound the Kowalskis together. Suddenly, Maya was in state custody – despite two parents who were desperate to bring their daughter home. The story of the Kowalski family – as told in their own words – will change the way you look at children’s healthcare forever.

Director Henry Roosevelt displays a dynamic presentation about a well-researched review investigation into the Kowalski family's battle against the draconian American healthcare system. Despite the lead family members acting as talking heads and driving the narrative forward, the film still offers an infuriating indictment of the American healthcare system by investigators and enough of the voices we need to hear from to make this urgent viewing. An angry piece of cinematic advocacy that doubles as a passionate ode to old-fashioned investigative journalism, the film takes a handful of harrowing real-life stories and slaps them with the streaming 'filter'. To call the film heart-breaking and infuriating is a massive understatement. This documentary will leave you angry beyond words, but you should watch it nonetheless. The film, which examines cases in which loving and caring parents are charged with supposed child abuse, is the rare entry whose revelations feel cogent, earned and memorable. The information is harrowing and disgusting, but it’s also inspiring to see how one family’s dogged battle shed light on a troubling pattern in the American healthcare system leading to actionable changes for the better. This documentary doesn’t offer much in terms of craft, but one could perhaps make the argument that the subject matter necessitates no-frills storytelling that soberly focuses on facts and video evidence. A revealing study on America's healthcare system: the hospitals and staff accusing parents of inflicting child abuse with evidence and sows disinformation, further stigmatising these parents; and investigative journalism that digs into minefields. It’s easy to feel overwhelmed with sadness and empathy for the victims. Easy to feel proud that a family and a documentarian turned wrong into right. That takes courage. The film suffers from the Netflix brand of overproduction, looking just a little too flashy and sinking everything with voiceover and interview sound bites that have been scripted to death. A strong, powerful documentary that, despite feeling a tad neat and cold at times, benefits from Maya's presence. And most importantly: it is a film that will remain engraved in your memories for a long time. The film ends up being a vital and eye opening examination of widespread injustice that still leaves a lot on the table thanks to its strangely narrow focus. It’s all so very sober, so deeply sobering, that when actual emotion pops, that’s what jars. It shouldn’t be the case -- all of this should rattle us and move us into action.

Simon says Take Care of Maya receives:

Film Review: "Extraction 2" (2023).

"Prepare for the ride of your life" with Extraction 2. This action thriller film directed by Sam Hargrave, adapted by Joe Russo, and based on the graphic novel Ciudad by Ande Parks, Joe Russo, Anthony Russo, Fernando León González, and Eric Skillman. It is the sequel to Extraction (2020). After barely surviving the events of the first movie, Rake is back as the Australian black ops mercenary, tasked with another deadly mission: rescuing the battered family of a ruthless Georgian gangster from the prison where they are being held.

In May 2020, it was reported Joe Russo had been hired to pen the sequel, with the intention of both Hargrave and Chris Hemsworth returning to direct and star respectively. In December, the Russo Brothers stated that beyond the sequel they hope to develop a series of films set within the world of Extraction to not only explore some of the characters that were introduced in the first film but to potentially launch a cinematic universe. In January 2021, it was rumored that the Russo brothers were also working on an origin story for Randeep Hooda's character Saju. By late November, Hemsworth, Golshifteh Farahani, and Adam Bessa were confirmed to reprise their roles, with  Olga Kurylenko, and Idris Elba rounding out the film's cast. At the same time, principal photography commenced and wrapped in early April 2022. Filming took place in Prague, Czech Republic; Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; and Vienna, Austria. The film was shot on the Arri Alexa Mini LF cameras and implemented the same long-take strategies from the first film.

The film stars Hemsworth, Farahani, Bessa, Kurylenko, and Elba. Hemsworth makes Rake a consistent, driven, intelligent, and yet vulnerable hero. It's too bad Academy voters will fail to notice his fantastic performance. As phlegmatic mercenary Tyler Rake, Hemsworth's svelte and photogenic demeanour is paraded with grace and pride. Hargrave loves his leading man, understands his appeal and shoots him accordingly as a killer on a catwalk.

The film does exactly what good sequel should: it replicates aspects of the original while also expanding its mythology through a measure of novelty and one-upmanship. If the element of surprise has gone, there’s plenty for genre fans to soak up in the film , not least Hemsworth’s impeccable, graceful presence as the world’s best mercenary. As ever, it's the action that dazzles. Hargrave choreographs the killer action sequences with brutal elegance and the flick contains genuinely tense and unpredictable moments. The elegance of this action packed sequel is marvelled and celebrated in its brutal violence. While it struggles to reach the heights of its surprisingly entertaining predecessor, the film certainly raises the bar for action films. The creative team blows open the doors to this secret world and allows viewers inside this dark world where Rake (the appropriately manly Hemsworth) made his home, and boy, do they make it fun again. The film delivers action, plenty of guns and a hint of class, providing the necessary action and narrative to develop this growing franchise.

Simon says Extraction 2 receives:

Also, see my review for Extraction.

Film Review: "The Flash" (2023).

"Worlds Collide" in The Flash. This superhero film directed by Andy Muschietti, written by Christina Hodson, and based on the DC Comics character created by Robert Kanigher and Carmine Infantino. It is the 13th installment in the DC Extended Universe (DCEU). Barry uses his superpowers to travel back in time in order to change the events of the past. But when his attempt to save his family inadvertently alters the future, Barry becomes trapped in a reality in which General Zod has returned, threatening annihilation, and there are no Super Heroes to turn to. That is, unless Barry can coax a very different Batman out of retirement and rescue an imprisoned Kryptonian… albeit not the one he’s looking for. Ultimately, to save the world that he is in and return to the future that he knows, Barry’s only hope is to race for his life. But will making the ultimate sacrifice be enough to reset the universe?

Development of a film featuring the Flash began in the late 1980s, with multiple writers and directors attached to the project through 2014. The film was then redeveloped as a part of the DCEU, with Miller cast as the title character. Multiple directors were attached to the film over the following years, with Seth Grahame-Smith, Rick Famuyiwa, and the duo of John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein all departing the project over creative differences. In July 2019, Muschietti and Hodson were hired as director and writer, and pre-production began in January 2020. At the 2017 San Diego Comic Con, it was confirmed that the film would be influenced by the comic book storyline Flashpoint, featuring multiple DC Comics characters, including both Ben Affleck and Keaton, reprising their respective versions of Batman. By late April 2021, Sasha Calle, Ron Livingston, and Maribel Verdú were cast with Michael Shannon, Kiersey Clemons, and Antje Traue reprising their roles. At the same time, with a budget of $200 million, principal photography commenced and wrapped in late October. Filming took place at Warner Bros. Studios, Leavesden; Hertfordshire; Lincolnshire; and London, as well as Edinburgh and Glasgow, Scotland. The film was originally scheduled for a March 23, 2018 release date, when Warner Bros. first announced their slate of DCEU films, before it was moved to March 16. In July 2019, it was then moved to July 1, 2022 after Muschietti was hired. It was then moved up to June 3, 2022, before being delayed to November 4, 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was once again moved to June 23, 2023 before it was finally moved forward to June 16, 2023.

The film stars Miller, Calle, Shannon, Livingston, Verdú, Clemons, Traue, Affleck, and Keaton. Muschietti's take on Miller's speedster and others is totally goofy, endlessly inventive and often makes no sense.

Once separated from its shortcomings, the film may not be the most clean-cut or composed comic book movie and crumble beneath its own creative consequences but vows that there is more to the multiverse yet to be discovered.

Simon says The Flash receives:

Also, see my reviews for It Chapter Two and Shazam! Fury of the Gods.

Series Review: "The Playing Card Killer" ("Baraja: La Firma Del Asesino") (2023).

From the director of Last Street and Entre Vinyes comes The Playing Card Killer (Baraja: La Firma Del Asesino). This Spanish crime documentary film directed by Amanda Sans Pantling. Playing cards left at crime scenes connect a string of slayings perpetrated by a serial killer known as "Asesino de la Baraja". In the present, the killer contemplates his past crimes in jail.

From January 4 - March 18, 2003, Spanish serial killer, Alfredo Galán Sotillo, killed six people and wounded three. He grew up unremarkable and introverted. In September 1998, he joined the Spanish Army and became a corporal in the 31st Mech Regiment "Asturias" of Madrid and participated in humanitarian missions in Bosnia. He was diagnosed with neurosis and anxiety and continued drinking. On January 24, 2003, Galán shot fifty-year-old Juan Francisco Ledesma in the head in front of his two-year-old son. On February 5, the body of twenty-eight-year-old airport cleaner Juan Carlos Martín Estacio was found shot in the head. An ace of cups was left nearby. Later the same day, Galán entered Bar Rojas in Alcalá de Henares and shot three people: the bar owner, thirty-eight-year-old Teresa Sánchez García survived multiple gunshots; her eighteen-year-old son Mikel Jiménez Sánchez and fifty-seven-year-old customer Juana Dolores Ucles López were killed. On March 7, 2003, twenty-seven-year-old Santiago Eduardo Salas was shot in the face by Galán, but survived. Salas's friend, twenty-nine-year-old Anahid Castillo Ruperti, was able to escape unharmed. A two of cups was dropped at the scene. On the evening of March 18, 2003, Galán shot and killed a husband and wife, Gheorgi and Diona Magda, as they walked home from work. Galán left two more tarot cards — the three and four of cups — at the scene. It was not originally his intention for playing cards to be his "signature". He only began leaving cards after the media sensationalized the fact that a card had been found by a victim's body. On July 3, 2003, while severely inebriated, Galán surrendered at a police station and confessed to being "The Playing Card Killer." His confession included details about pen markings on the cards that were not public. Upon sobering up, he recanted, but ballistics irrefutably linked spent cartridges in his residence to the murders. The weapon was later found at his father’s home. It was reported that in some of the murders, Galán had wished his victims good morning and ordered them to kneel before shooting them. He had smuggled the gun, a Tokarev 7.62-caliber TT-33, into Spain by hiding it in a television set. He will be released in 2028 after twenty-five years in prison.

An absorbing documentary that follows the capture of Spain's most famous serial killer while exposing the flaws of the country's legal and judicial systems. Within a genre that tends to thrive in sensationalism, the series is a rigorous documentary that is especially respectful of the victims and their relatives. A zesty doc that walks right up to the edge of dark thriller, peers over the cliff, and takes a psychological plunge into something weird and fascinating.

Simon Says The Playing Card Killer (Baraja: La Firma Del Asesino) receives:

Series Review: "Arnold" (2023).

"One man. Three lifetimes." This is Arnold. This documentary series directed by Lesley Chilcott. This three part documentary series chronicles never before seen footage & stories of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s journey from rural Austria to the highest echelons of the American dream. In the series, there’s unprecedented access to the most candid interviews from Schwarzenegger, his friends, foes, co-stars and observers. We see many talk about his days pumping iron to his triumphs in Hollywood, all the way to his time governing the state of California. The joys and the turbulence of his family life are unveiled in a tale that matches his larger-than-life persona. 

Born on July 30, 1947, Austrian and American actor, businessman, filmmaker, politician, and retired professional bodybuilder, Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger, was born. He is best known for his role in high-profile action movies and he served as the 38th governor of California from 2003 to 2011. Schwarzenegger began lifting weights aged fifteen and won the Mr. Universe title aged twenty, and subsequently the Mr. Olympia title seven times. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time, and has written many books and articles about it. The Arnold Sports Festival, considered the second-most important bodybuilding event after Mr. Olympia, is named after him. He appeared in the bodybuilding documentary Pumping Iron (1977). He retired from bodybuilding and gained worldwide fame as a Hollywood action star, with his breakthrough in the sword and sorcery epic Conan the Barbarian (1982), a box-office hit with a sequel in 1984. After playing the title character in the science fiction film The Terminator (1984), he starred in Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) and three other sequels. His other successful action films included Commando (1985), The Running Man (1987), Predator (1987), Total Recall (1990), and True Lies (1994), in addition to comedy films such as Twins (1988), Kindergarten Cop (1990) and Jingle All the Way (1996). He is the founder of the film production company Oak Productions. As a registered Republican, Schwarzenegger chaired the President's Council on Physical Fitness and Sports during most of the George H. W. Bush administration. On October 7, 2003, he was elected Governor of California in a special recall election to replace then-Governor Gray Davis. He received 48.6% of the vote, 17 points ahead of Democrat runner-up Cruz Bustamante. On November 17, he was sworn in to serve the remainder of Davis' term, and was reelected in the 2006 California gubernatorial election with an increased vote share of 55.9% to serve a full term. In 2011 he reached his term limit as governor and returned to acting. Schwarzenegger was nicknamed the "Austrian Oak" in his bodybuilding days, "Arnie" or "Schwarzy" during his acting career, and "the Governator" (a portmanteau of "Governor" and "Terminator") during his political career.

The show is absolutely one of the better documentaries on Netflix that explore the life of one of the most successful action heroes of all time and does so in a way that's creative and inspiring.

Simon says Arnold receives:

Film Review: "Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse" (2023).

From the producers of Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse comes Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. This computer-animated superhero film directed by Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers and Justin K. Thompson, in their feature directorial debuts, written by Phil Lord, Christopher Miller and David Callaham, based on the Marvel Comics characters, and produced by Sony Pictures Animation in association with Marvel Entertainment. It is the sequel to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018). Miles Morales returns for the next chapter of the Oscar®-winning Spider-Verse saga, an epic adventure that will transport Brooklyn's full-time, friendly neighborhood Spider-Man across the Multiverse to join forces with Gwen Stacy and a new team of Spider-People to face off with a villain more powerful than anything they have ever encountered.

In late November 2018, before Into the Spider-Verse's release, Sony began developing a sequel with the writing and directing team attached. It was set to focus on the relationship between Moore's Miles and Steinfeld's Gwen. In November 2019, the sequel was officially announced with an April 8, 2022 release date. However, in April 2020, the film's release was shifted to October 7, 2022 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, design work for new characters had begun. In early June, animation work began with a different visual style for each of the six universes visited by the characters. It was revealed that Lord and Miller told Sony the sequel would be the same size as Into the Spider-Verse, but it ended up having the largest crew of any animated movie ever with around one-thousand people working on it. They added that it has 240 characters and takes place in six universes. In December 2020, Daniel Pemberton confirmed that he would return to compose the sequel's score. In late May 2023, production on the film was completed thirteen days before its release. With a runtime of one-hundred and forty minutes, it makes it the longest animated film ever produced by an American studio.

The film stars the voice talents of Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Brian Tyree Henry, Luna Lauren Vélez, Jake Johnson, Jason Schwartzman, Karan Soni, Daniel Kaluuya, Oscar Isaac, Shea Whigham, Mahershala Ali, Andy Samberg, Amandla Stenberg, Rachel Dratch, Jorma Taccone, Kimiko Glenn, Elizabeth Perkins, and Taran Killam. There will never be a better take on Spider-Man characters. This film is better than 90% of the Marvel Cinematic Universe films that Disney has put out in the last fifteen years.

Perhaps the most important animated sequel to come out in the last decade, the film was a renaissance of sorts for the artform. Over one-hundred animators combined computer animation with a hand-drawn style to mimic a comic book look. Inventive visuals, fresh storytelling and embracing the comic books' wackiness helped make the first non-white Spider-Man one of the best. It's an absolutely delightful watch and one of the finest examples of the excitement and joy of which cinema is capable. Another resoundingly successful experiment that will open countless doors to the weird, wonderful world of comic books.

Simon says Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse receives:

Also, see my reviews for Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse and Morbius.