FINAL DESTINATION BLOODLINES (debuted on 08.02), FREAKY TALES (debuted on 08.09), THE LEGEND OF OCHI (debuted on 08.16), FRIENDSHIP (debuted on 09.06), WARFARE (debuted on 09.13), and SUPERMAN (debuted on 09.20) are movies we want to draw your attention to. They are all available on HBO & HBO Max.
FINAL DESTINATION BLOODLINES
The newest chapter in New Line Cinema’s bloody successful franchise takes audiences back to the very beginning of Death’s twisted sense of justice. It only took five movies to do it, and I’m finally getting around to calling attention to it. If you are a huge fan of this horror franchise, then you’ve caught it by now. But I have to ask, how many clever ways to die are there?
The horror film is directed by Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein from a screenplay by Guy Busick and Lori Evans Taylor, based on a story by Jon Watts, Busick, and Evans Taylor. After the commercial success of the previous film, Final Destination 5 (2011), a new concept entered development, described as a re-imagining of the franchise. It met several delays, including the pandemic and the industry strikes. It was finally targeted to have its debut on HBO Max in January of 2022, but at the last moment, plans were in motion to have the 110-minute movie have a theatrical run instead. It was released in the United States by Warner Bros. Pictures on May 16, 2025. The film received generally positive reviews from critics and grossed $310.4 million worldwide, becoming both the best-reviewed and highest-grossing installment in the franchise.
So, in 1969, Iris Campbell and her boyfriend Paul attended the grand opening of the Sky View, a high-rise restaurant tower. Iris has a premonition of a chain of events that causes the tower to collapse, killing everyone inside. She warns the attendees and prevents the collapse, but, in doing so, disrupts Death’s design. Fifty-five years later, Iris and Paul’s granddaughter, college student Stefani Reyes, is plagued by recurring nightmares of the averted accident and returns home seeking answers, and down the deadly path we go.
FREAKY TALES
We’re always up for something a little offbeat, or, well, freaky, right? This seems to fit the bill by title alone. But just how bonkers is it? First off, it is an action comedy that interlaces four stories that unspool in 1987 Oakland, California. It is written and directed by Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, who gave us It’s Kind of a Funny Story, Mississippi Grind, and Captain Marvel. The film stars Pedro Pascal, Boden and Fleck’s longtime collaborator Ben Mendelsohn, Jay Ellis, singer Normani in her film debut, Dominique Thorne, and Jack Champion.
The first tale is “Strength in Numbers: The Gilman Strikes Back”. Punk rockers in their neighborhood of Gilman are always threatened by Nazi skinheads. Finally, the youths, including one played by Champion, fight back in a cartoonish fight scene and reclaim their territory.
Tale # 2 is “Don’t Fight The Feeling”. Also in the crowd the night of the Nazi fight are Barbie (played by Throne) and Entice (played by Normani). After the skinheads are run off, the two women are recognized as the rap team known as Danger Zone. They are invited to perform at a concert, but after being verbally assaulted by the Nazi’s, and sexually harassed on the street by policemen, also dealing with the misogyny from the male rappers became the last straw! They were empowered to battle back!
The next story goes by the title of “Born to Mack” and stars Pedro Pascal (THE LAST OF US) as Clint.. Someone from Clint’s criminal past, seeking revenge on him, accidentally kills his pregnant wife. With a renewed determination to end his involvement in the underworld, Clint finds the criminal organization he works for is unwilling to let him go, insisting that he pull a job connected to an upcoming basketball game. But, with nothing else to live for, he defies the given order. Clint is picked up by the police and learns that his baby survived the attack. The police ask Clint to identify the man who shot his wife, which he emphatically refuses to do.
It all wraps up with “The Legend of Sleepy Floyd,” and it ties all the stories together. While Sleepy Floyd is playing a record-setting game with the Golden State Warriors, his house is robbed, his family is attacked, and his girlfriend is murdered by the Nazi gang leader, Travis. Floyd is given a tip about the identity of the Nazis by the punks, who have overheard a conversation between Clint and another criminal. Floyd takes revenge on them with his supernatural martial arts skills. The gang ringleader, the policeman who earlier sexually harassed Barbie and Entice, also turns out to be “The Guy” whom Clint has been working for. In the end, all the bad-ass MFs collectively take justice into their own hands, and all is right once again in Oakland in 1987.
It not only throws in the late 80’s vibe, but also offers the music of the day, iconic Oakland locales, a Tom Hanks cameo, the late Angus Cloud (EUPHORIA) as the skinhead leader, and an odd sci-fi twist or two. Is it too freaky or just freaky enough to enjoy?
THE LEGEND OF OCHI
What a cool little critter! Okay, with that out of the way, how about the movie itself? THE LEGEND OF OCHI is a fantasy adventure written and directed by Isaiah Saxon in his feature film debut and based on his own original story. It stars Helena Zengel, Finn Wolfhard, Emily Watson, and Willem Dafoe, and a slew of puppeteers. The film makes use of puppetry, animatronics, computer animation, and matte paintings. The titular creature was a puppet, operated by 7 performers, including Robert Tygner as Lead Ochi Puppeteer, and with Paul Manalatos handling the Ochi vocal effects.
In a remote village on the Black Sea island of Carpathia, local inhabitants have hunted reclusive primate-like creatures known as the Ochi for generations. A fanatical farmer/hunter named Maxim (Defoe) leads a hunting party of mostly young boys, including his disaffected daughter Yuri (Zengal) and reserved adopted son Petro (Wolfhard). During one of these hunts, a baby Ochi gets lost and injured and later ends up spotted by Yuri who frees its leg from a trap and treats it back at her home in secret. Discovering it to be a sapient creature instead of the violent monster she was taught Ochi to be, she sets off on a journey to return it to its family. Complications, naturally, ensue as the father confuses her absence for an abduction by adult Ochi.
One element that seems to add to this tale’s richness is that some scenes of the film were shot in Transylvania, in the Apuseni Mountains, at the Bâlea Lake. The fluidity of the puppetry is magical as well. The movie clocks in at 95 minutes and leans towards favorable reviews. RogerEbert.com stated the movie is a “rare A24 family film, and a charming throwback to adventure movies of the ’80s like The Neverending Story and The Dark Crystal, complete with original puppetry that reportedly contains not an ounce of CGI manipulation”. Screen Rant wrote, “if Saxon had to make sacrifices to get The Legend of Ochi made, then we can all forgive some of the messier emotional moments. Though it’s a children’s movie on paper, there’s something for everyone in the film. The adults in the room might even be reminded of the time when movies really were pure magic. Letting yourself be swept away by the magic of The Legend of Ochi is as natural as breathing, and you might be surprised how moved you are when the credits roll.”
FRIENDSHIP
FRIENDSHIP is a black comedy from A24 written and directed by Andrew DeYoung in his feature directorial debut. It stars Tim Robinson (THE CHAIR COMPANY), Kate Mara (ENTOURAGE), Jack Dylan Grazer (WE ARE 
WHO WE ARE), and Paul Rudd (Death of a Unicorn). The 101-minute movie started at the 2024 Toronto International Film Festival. Reviewers frequently highlighted DeYoung’s direction and the film’s uneasy tone. IndieWire noted the contrast between “cringe comedy” and “high-arthouse aesthetics” in the film’s look and staging, crediting cinematographer Andy Rydzewski and editor Sophie Corra. We csn’t help focus on the term “cringe comedy’ because Robinson is certainly giving us that with his starring turn in HBO’s THE CHAIR COMPANY. In fact, his role in FRIENDSHIP was specifically written with him in mind.
Now to plot. Craig Waterman (Robinson), a marketing executive in the fictional city of Clovis, is preparing to sell his family home alongside his wife, Tami (Mara). Recently recovered from cancer, Tami is frustrated with Craig’s emotional unavailability and his lack of interest in her flower business and has rekindled a relationship with her ex-boyfriend Devon, leaving Craig increasingly adrift. The new neighbor, Austin Carmichael (Rudd), a quirky local meteorologist, drops off a gift to Tami to introduce himself. Austin invites Craig over for a beer that evening, which Tami accepts on Craig’s behalf. Craig reluctantly agrees, and the two strike up an unexpected friendship, bonding over music, work frustrations, and a shared sense of restlessness. But, as we are forewarned, an element of cringyness creeps in to carry us through the rest of the movie.
This movie serves as one of the many great films from A24 – a simple premise, simple budget, solid cast, and nicely designed from beginning to end. It may not receive great buzz, or garner awards, or even rack up a big box office return, but those who lay their eyes on it, whether they be a film critic or your average filmgoer, like the cinematic experience it offers. A24, and movies like FRIENDSHIP are doing alright.
WARFARE
So, watching a war film is not an activity a lot of people go for, even though there have been outstanding films in that genre. Graphic violence and the art of organized killing in the name of patriotic duty isn’t on everyone’s list. But along comes WARFARE, a title many a critic says should be added to the list of great war movies.
Written and directed by Ray Mendoza and Alex Garland, this movie is based on Mendoza’s experiences during the Iraq War as a U.S. Navy SEAL. The film depicts an encounter on November 19, 2006, after the Battle of Ramadi. The script is drawn from the testimonies of the platoon members and is presented in real time. It stars an ensemble cast including D’Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai as Mendoza, alongside Will Poulter, Cosmo Jarvis, Kit Connor, Finn Bennett, Joseph Quinn, and Charles Melton. The film is dedicated to platoon member Elliott Miller (portrayed by Jarvis in the film), who lost his leg and ability to speak in the incident.
This movie reminds me of a favorite of mine called Black Hawk Down. Troops are pinned down where they don’t want to be. In this case, Navy SEAL platoon Alpha One takes control of a local two-story house shortly after controlling the Iraqi city of Ramadi. The control wasn’t for long as enemy fire pinned them down. After an attempt to evacuate the hotspot, they are forced to regroup back inside the building, but this time, tending to severe injuries. It isn’t until Alpha Two assists in their extraction before it was too late, making one more horrific and heroic war tale. But critics and audiences who could handle such action liked the movie.
SUPERMAN
With little fanfare, the big movie of the summer landed on HBO and its streamer. It still trends as a must-see on HBO Max. It is a big, bold superhero movie from the world of DC that is the anchor for the newly launched DCU venture. Written and directed by James Gunn, we see Superman facing unintended consequences after he intervenes in an international conflict orchestrated by billionaire Lex Luthor. Superman must win back public support with the help of his reporter and superhero colleagues. And the movie must revitalize the superhero genre, even well after fatigue has been said to have hit the genre due to Marvel’s multi-saga that precedes this initiative from its rival. Many seem to say it is off to a good start.
In case you need to be told, Superman (David Corenswet) has fallen out of favor with the human race. He has meddled in human affairs and appears to have an agenda to take over Earth for his own uses. Those seeds of dissent came around because of Lex Luthor’s (Nicholas Hoult) own brand of meddling. Losi Lane (Rachel Brosnahan) and Jimmy Olsen (Skyler Gisondo), of course, stay loyal to the Man of Steel. Also aiding Superman on the side of justice are Guy Gardner, of the Green Lantern Corps (Nathan Fillion), Hawkgirl/Kendra Saunders (Isabela Merced), and Mister Terrific/Michael Holt (Edi Gathegi), and we surely can’t forget Krypto! Anthony Carrigan (BARRY) is also featured as the oddity Metamorpho/ Rex Mason.
James Gunn had the following to say about the movie, which had many stops and starts along the way due to long formulation of the project and the industry labor strikes. He stated, “‘How can you take a character like this, who’s perceived as old-fashioned by many? There have been so many different permutations of the character throughout the years, so how could you do it for a modern audience?’ I knew what I wanted to do in creating a story that was both utterly human and utterly fantastic… It has all the fantastic elements that we’ve never really seen in a Superman movie: the flying dog, the giant Kaiju, pocket universes, science and sorcery, and all these things that were in the old Max Fleischer cartoons.” It appears he and DC Studios pulled it off.
These are just the latest movies to HBO and HBO Max. We’ll mention more soon.
