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Opus

When Ariel Ecton (Ayo Edebiri), a young up-and-coming journalist working in print media, is chosen to cover a major entertainment story she seizes the opportunity. Pop superstar Alfred Moretti (John Malkovich) hasn’t made an album since the ’90s but is now blessing his fans with his new highly anticipated album. The journalists (and one influencer) invited to cover the release are hand-selected by Moretti himself. They’re given a PR package and invited to stay on Moretti’s compound. However, when Ariel, her boss (Murray Bartlett) and the rest of the crew arrive, it’s soon clear that Moretti not only runs a mind control cult, he also has nefarious reasons for inviting each of them. Ariel must find a way to escape and let the outside world learn about the real man behind the pop icon.

Written and directed by Mark Anthony Green, Opus has a lot of great ideas but fails to execute any of them well. The plot is very similar to The Menu (2022) just swap out the chef for a pop star, the staff for cult members, and ill-behaved rich people for critics. The revelation as to why Ariel and the other journalists (and one influencer) were hand selected is only revealed at the very end and by then there is little reason to care. An earlier reveal or even some clues along the way would have helped immensely. Moretti’s popularity is assumed not explained. The cult’s purpose and their fascination with pearls is shown but not examined. The critique of influencers standing in for journalists for major news stories falls flat.

There are so many potentially interesting tropes and themes to explore that the movie just bypasses. My favorite minor plotline is Ariel’s communications with cult member Rachel (Tamera Tomakili). They’re both the sole black women in their respective groups and the film could have done a bit more to explore their isolation and how they both try to rise above their situations.

Opus is a mystery without any clues and relies on us enjoying John Malkovich’s kooky character to carry the film.

Posted Film Reviews

SXSW: The Snake

“Jamie… I thought you were going to stop being an idiot.”

After a stint in jail, 40-something wild child Jamie (Susan Kent) returns home only to find herself locked out of her own house. Facing a battle with her equally irresponsible mom Anne (Robin Duke) over her beloved grandmother’s estate, Jamie is determined to get the house back. She enlists her loser boyfriend Davey Danger (Dan Petronijevic) to help her break into the house. But he’s too busy thinking about getting laid to actually help. Her self-absorbed best friend Laura (Emma Hunter) lets her stay at her penthouse loft much to the chagrin of her husband Steve (Jonathan Torrens). When the neglected Steve gets a bit too involved in Jamie’s life, her world starts to spiral. Can Jamie get back on her feet and reclaim what’s rightfully hers?

Directed by Jenna MacMillan and written by Susan Kent, The Snake is a quirky coming-of-middle-age story with a satisfying redemption arc. Kent plays just the sort of flawed protagonist we’re seeing more of in cinema: self-destructive women in an emotional battle for survival. Jamie’s crazy antics are balanced out with the heartwarming message about chosen family and the healing power of dogs. Robin Duke (Schitt’s Creek) who is delightfully deranged as the problematic mother and she steals the show whenever she’s on screen.

The eccentric cast of characters add spice to Jamie’s story but there are too many of them. Characters like the best friend’s son and the twin duo Captain Stink could have easily been cut. I also would have liked to have seen more scenes with prison guard Theresa (Kim Roberts) and drag queen/bar owner Jimbo (Bon Bon Scott) as they add more emotional weight to Jamie’s story.

The Snake had its world premiere at the 2026 SXSW Film & Television Festival. It’s a Canadian production filmed on Prince Edward Island and with support from Telefilm Canada and the Prince Edward Island Film Fund. It was recently picked up for distribution by Game Theory Films.

Posted Film Reviews

SXSW: Same Same But Different

Rana (Medalion Rahimi) is working as a caretaker for a wealthy family in Cape Cod when she impulsively agrees to get married for a green card. She’s been hooking up with her boss Rebecca’s (Joey Lauren Adams) son Adam (Logan Miller) and they both agree to throw a small wedding at the home. Rana invites her two best friends, who are the closest she has to family as her mother still resides in Iran, to the event. Setareh (Laya Mohammadi) is a lawyer who is struggling to come to terms with her boyfriend Pat’s (Richie Moriarty) change in career. Nadia (Dalia Rooni) is a fitness coach who is in a loving relationship with Ryan (Michael Bazsler) but is too strong-willed to take the next step with him. The trio come together to both celebrate and commiserate. Alternately speaking in English and Persian, they discuss Rana’s big decision while also grappling with their own romantic futures.

Among the cast of characters at the beach house is Malena (Lauren Noll ), Adam’s attractive lesbian half-sister who has Setareh questioning her sexuality. Siddartha (Kevin Neal), a kooky spiritual guide and personal advisor to Rana, is as eager to officiate the ceremony as he is to collect the Venmo payment for his services.

Credit: Nathaniel Krause

Directed by Lauren Noll and written by  Dalia Rooni, Same Same But Different is a modern day romantic comedy that has all the charm of its mainstream counterparts with more dynamic and realistic characters. At the heart of this movie is a story about a friendship, one that is tightly bonded in culture and that thrives on mutual love and understanding. The movie does take a bit too long to establish the characters and loses momentum in the beginning. But stick with it because once it picks up and proceeds at delightful pace with a satisfying payout.

Same Same But Different is based on a true story. In a Q&A screenwriter Dalia Rooni (who also plays Nadia in the film) says, 

“this story was inspired by a real weekend that I now see as the turning point of my life. I was invited to a spontaneous wedding on Cape Cod, where my free-spirited foreign friend married a man she had only been dating for a short time…Alongside the joy, there was something else, something that felt almost like grief. For the first time, I understood what it meant to lose my innocence. I felt the quiet, painful threshold of becoming a woman.”

Movies like Same Same But Different demonstrate what the world of indie filmmaking has to offer: vibrant and unique stories that audiences have been craving.

Same Same But Different had its world premiere at the 2026 SXSW Film and Television Festival.

Still from The End of Quiet
Posted Film Reviews

The End of Quiet

In a remote part of West Virginia lies Green Bank, a small town of just under 150 residents. Since the 1950s, Green Bank has been the home to the National Radio Astronomy Observatory which detects even the faintest of transmissions from space. In order for the observatory and its employees to do their job, there must be a “Quiet Zone” of 35k square kilometers. That means that anyone living in this zone is prohibited from using cellular services or WiFi. As the years go by, this self-imposed restriction is becoming harder and harder to enforce. With so much of our social infrastructure relying on some level of connectivity, it’s becoming impossible to live without it. Can Green Bank stay as it is or is this the end of quiet?

Directed by Kasper Bisgaard and Mikael Lypinski, The End of Quiet is a contemplative documentary that follows the stories of a handful of Green Bank residents living and working in the Quiet Zone. Instead of talking head interviews, the film captures snippets of the lives of the residents. Subjects include employees of the observatory, a gun enthusiast and his granddaughter, a young couple growing their family, a lonely Vietnam vet and a chronically ill woman and her dog. We observe the subjects as they display varying degrees of calm and unease living in this unique part of the world. There is a sense of paranoia throughout the film. Discussions of alien life seem to point to an underlying fear of authority and forces on the outside.

I was particularly interested in the idea of technological remoteness as a form of control or isolation. I would have liked more information about the observatory and a greater focus on the particulars of the Quiet Zone. However, this documentary seems to be more of a time capsule of the last days of this community’s particular way of life. The End of Quiet will get audiences thinking about their reliance on connectivity and the ramifications of modern life.

The End of Quiet is an official selection of the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival Documentary Competition.

Posted BIPOC

Tinā

“What’s a parent without their kids?”

Mareta (Anapela Polataivao) is grieving the loss of her daughter who tragically lost her life during the Christchurch, New Zealand quakes of 2011. Unsure what her future holds for her now, Mareta receives help from Sio (Beulah Koale) who helps her file for unemployment. When that runs out, his next step is to help her land an interview for a teaching position at an elite school attended mostly by Pākehās (non-Polynesian New Zealanders). Mareta is an imposing woman with a heart of gold. She dons her native Samoan garb, standing out from the rest of the teachers at the school, and is affectionately called Tinā (Samoan term for mother). Mareta soon bonds with Sophie (Antonia Robinson), a talented young singer who is dealing with an alcoholic mother and the physical and emotional scars from a terrible accident. Their mutual interest in music eventually sparks an idea. Mareta will lead the school’s very first choir. It’s a rough start but once the students learn to appreciate Mareta’s tough love approach the choir becomes something extraordinary. As the choir group prepare for a singing competition, looming villains and tragic news threaten the disrupt the beautiful harmony.

Directed by Miki Magasiva, Tinā film hits all the right notes and deserves to be up there with feel good stories about teachers like Dead Poets Society (1989) and Radical (2023). It will send you on an emotional rollercoaster and by the end you’ll find yourself sobbing into a fistful of tissues. While the story is rather sentimental and almost veers towards cloying, it ultimately finds a balance especially when punctuated with its musical sequences. I really enjoyed the performance by Polataivao who gives her character a sense of mystery and charm.

Tinā is sure to be a crowd pleaser.

Tinā is distributed by Rialto and hits theaters in select markets (Hawaii, American Samoa and Guam) August 29th and nationwide on September 5th.

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