[6.75/10] The Last Duel (2021)

The Last Duel (2021)

Quick Review: An unusual chivalry tale of conflict, sacrifice, cruelty, but above all a battle of egos, told from various perspectives in a repetitive, but skillful plot structure, "The Last Duel" may be a bit draggy, cold, and at times hard to keep track of, but its medieval imagery is imposing in its grittiness and somber tone, the action scenes -- savage and deftly-staged, notably the ultraviolent final duel, and the acting rather brilliant, with Comer dominating the screen, and Affleck standing out.

[3.75/10] Willy's Wonderland (2021)

Willy's Wonderland (2021)

Quick Review: Watching Nic Cage beating the sh*t out of a bunch of big bloodthirsty fluffy mascots under colorful neon lights in a dark space and accompanied by a crazy loud soundtrack may sound like tons of fun and even 'artful' in a way, but "Willy's Wonderland" turns out to be a real excruciating experience that feels more like a hard rock music video rather than a proper horror feature, which tries too hard to be stylish, and forgets all about acting, dialogue and characters.

[6.25/10] House of Gucci (2021)

House of Gucci (2021)

Quick Review: Stylish, but far from fashion-centric, rushed yet sluggish, and murky in feel and look, if campy in its approach, "House of Gucci" is a tonally muddled affair of greed, wealth, betrayal, murder, alienation, and manipulation that also plays as an old-fashioned romance, and the result is a mildly intriguing and often amusing tale with a hit-n-miss cast - Gaga owns the cunning and driven Patrizia, Leto is comically over-the-top, Pacino and Irons are excellent, but Driver falls a bit flat.

[6.50/10] Spencer (2021)

Spencer (2021)

Quick Review: Abstract in feel and small in scale, "Spencer" is far from what you would expect from a biopic about 'the people's princess', as it's only an extract of her life story that takes place during three days, but it is just enough to convey the anxiety, tension, horror, and claustrophobia she experiences within the Royals, thanks to the alluring Stewart, who captures every gesture of Diana's uneasy persona in a stellar turn that also highlights some of the princess' most iconic classy looks.

[7.00/10] King Richard (2021)

King Richard (2021)

Quick Review: A by-the-numbers, if riveting and smoothly-paced 'rags to riches' biopic with an appealing 1990s feel and look, focused on the man behind the success of tennis prodigies Venus and Serena, "King Richard" gives an insightful, moving, and above all inspiring look at the Williams' breakthrough, in a rather dramatic fashion, but what makes it really work is Will Smith's dedicated lead turn as the determined father of five, whose ambitious plans more than pay off in the end.

[5.50/10] The Feast (2021)

The Feast (2021)

Quick Review: A subdued, offbeat, and deliberately paced supernatural revenge slow-burner filmed entirely in Welsh and set in a fancy house in rural Wales, "The Feast" is quietly deranged, tad baffling and featuring some truly gruesome imagery, which combined generate a very ominous tone and give it a surreal feel, but its sluggishness, inexplicable nature and dry acting make this folk horror demanding, hard to sit through, and impossible to get wholly satisfied by the foreseeable payoff.

[7.50/10] Last Night in Soho (2021)

Last Night in Soho (2021)

Quick Review: A stylistically daring '60s-influenced genre mix, elevated by Wright's perky direction, somber, yet snazzy visuals, inventive editing, and brilliant use of music, "LNiS" is an imaginative, enigmatic, nuanced, twisty, eerie, and tad puzzling mash- up of romantic teen drama, murder mystery, and ghost story that works largely due to McKenzie and Taylor-Joy's equally as mesmerizing turns in their interchanging roles, with the transitions between them two being the most impressive bit.

[4.50/10] Held (2021)

Held (2021)

Quick Review: With a weak plot full of holes that feels like it's been conceived to conveniently lead up to the disturbing twist towards the ends, which is the film's only strong point, "Held" blends marriage drama and 'home invasion' revenge thriller in order to deliver something fresh and different, but in the end, the motives behind the mystery terror is not enough to excuse all the cruelty here, plus, the stiff acting, sub-par writing, and vapid tone don't do any favors to the film either.

[6.50/10] Benedetta (2021)

Benedetta (2021)

Quick Review: Provocative, sinful, sexy, outrageous and controversial, Verhoeven's lesbian religious drama about lust, love, lies, deception, and betrayal will not be everyone's cup of tea, as it is definitely not an easy watch, but "Bendetta" is still a bold, ballsy, and beautifully-filmed period piece of blasphemy, power, rot, and corruption set in XVII century, whose explicit erotic imagery is every bit as scandalous as its titular character, who Efira portrays shamelessly well, and with no boundaries.

[5.25/10] Seance (2021)

Seance (2021)

Quick Review: Yes, director Simon Barrett certainly has visual flair, as he sets a spooky atmosphere from the start with an 'urban legend' set up, eerie setting, and murky tone, but despite its technical merits, and some adequate acting, particularly from both Waterhouse and Smith, "Seance" turns out to be deceitful, and not in a good way, as it kicks of as a campy, potentially fun ghost story, and further on switches into a dime teen slasher, which makes you feel cheated in the end. 

[7.50/10] One Second (2021)

One Second (2021)

Quick Review: Amusing, poignant, sad and tad quirky, "One Second" is on one hand a story from a true film lover to true moviegoers, who treat films as treasure, and on the other a moral tale of unity and support, at the center of it being a cat-n-mouse game turned friendship, between a prison fugitive and orphan thief both with their equally as moving stories, this is a love letter to cinema from Yimou, who yet again displays visual flair, elegantly capturing the beauty of bare Chinese deserts.

[6.00/10] The Voyeurs (2021)

The Voyeurs (2021)

Quick Review: A voyeuristic game becomes an extreme obsession with tragically fatal consequences in this raunchy, sexy, naughty, and explicit Canadian thriller with attractive cast, and a few surprises along the way, and even though the whole thing is too far-fetched to make real sense, and the twist towards the finale is pretty obvious to leave the impact it aims to, you just can't take your eyes off of "The Voyeurs", due to its fetishist approach, seductive nature and graphic sex scenes.

[5.50/10] Red Notice (2021)

Red Notice (2021)

Quick Review: A mixed bag of a 'heist' caper with a touch of Indiana Jones-like adventure, "Red Notice" benefits from its flashy style, zippy over-the-top action scenes, diverse settings, and the allure of its three stars, but there's too much going on in its ridiculously far-fetched, if very generic plot featuring one too many twists, and crazy amount of dialogue full of references, but devoid of wit, in which all the jokes, mostly coming from Reynolds who yet again plays Reynolds, fall totally flat.

[6.25/10] The Man with the Answers (2021)

The Man with the Answers (2021)

Quick Review: As charming, sweet and unforced as queer dramas go, as a road trip movie from Greece to Germany, "Man with the Answers" benefits from the lavish European scenery, but in its core, it's all about the explosive chemistry between the two strangers Victoras and Mathias, who build such a strong, genuine, and affecting bond throughout the journey, it's hard not to admire their falling for each other, and the film's free-of-tropes approach.

[6.00/10] Clifford the Big Red Dog (2021)

Clifford the Big Red Dog (2021)

Quick Review: As goofy, harmless, and good-hearted as its giant, fluffy canine protagonist, "Clifford" is on one hand a fun, playful, enjoyable, and often enchanting family-friendly comedy about an oversized red CGI dog causing frenzy in NYC, and on the other - an adorable story with a 'dare to be unique' message about the sweet bond between two misfits - with Camp and Whitehall injecting further heart and laughs to this feel-good film for pet lovers.

[4.50/10] Home Sweet Home Alone (2021)

Home Sweet Home Alone (2021)

Quick Review: A lazy, fabricated, and totally unnecessary sequel that neither has the charm, the heart, or the humor of the first two '90s films, "Home Sweet Home Alone" tries too hard to be fun, funny and poignant, but in the end it's a sloppy bummer with ludicrous attempt at a story and a far from likable protagonist, who's by no means a worthy substitute for Culkin's Kevin, but at least some of the tricks he plays on the desperate couple are creative...ish.

[6.75/10] The Medium a.k.a. Rang Song (2021)

The Medium (2021)

Quick Review: Shot in a mock-doc style, even if the crew barely gets involved in the whole supernatural scenario, "The Medium" is blends a cultural study that explores Asian shamanism in an eye-opening way, a dysfunctional family drama of loss and alienation, and a possession horror with malevolent Thai spirits, that slowly builds tension and dread up until the particularly sinister night vision scenes, followed by a ghastly third act, filled with gore, true frights and disturbing imagery.

[6.00/10] Run Hide Fight (2021)

Run Hide Fight (2021)

Quick Review: The truly sensitive subject matter makes it undoubtedly controversial, and the idea for its creation a little bit vile, because of the alarming real-life events it was inspired by, but putting that aside, "Run Hide Fight" is an exceptionally well-crafted piece of entertainment with solid thrills, chills, and tension, and a likable and skillful heroine, portrayed by Isabel May, who is as convincing as an actor as she's as an action performer during all the deftly-crafted set pieces.