Flash Frames

I’m in my catch-up period for this year’s new releases, so this is gonna be a lot of fun. __________________________________________________ Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 "You there?" Director: Emma Tammi Cast: Josh Hutcherson, Elizabeth Lail, Piper Rubio, Theodus Crane, Freddy Carter, Skeet Ulrich, Wayne Knight, Mckenna Grace, Teo Briones, and Matthew Lillard Synopsis: “One year after the supernatural nightmare at Freddy Fazbear's Pizza, the stories about what transpired there have been twisted into a campy local legend, inspiring the town's first ever Fazfest. With the truth kept from her, Abby sneaks out to reconnect with Freddy, Bonnie, Chica, and Foxy, setting into motion a terrifying series of events that will reveal dark secrets about the real origin of Freddy's, and unleash a decades-hidden horror.” I’m a big fan of the Five Nights at Freddy’s games, so I’m well aware that for this, I gotta separate the fan-brain and the critic-brain. I didn’t even hate the f...

We gotta lock back in again. No days off for this movie stuff. I’ve only been to the theater like twice in the past month or so, I’m stepping up my game now. __________________________________________________ TRON: Ares "No going back." Director: Joachim Rønning Cast: Jared Leto, Greta Lee, Evan Peters, Jodie Turner-Smith, Hasan Minhaj, Arturo Castro, Gillian Anderson, and Jeff Bridges Synopsis: “A highly sophisticated program called Ares is sent from the digital world into the real world on a dangerous mission, marking humankind's first encounter with A.I. beings.” Maybe it’s the low bar that I had for myself, but TRON: Ares ended up being just fine. For a series of movies that never did too well commercially, the $200 million+ budget confuses me. Unlike a lot of recent blockbusters, though, that money is put onto the screen. It’s very pretty to look at with all of its sleek CGI and the occasional glimpses into the Grid can be stunning. I also think Ares boasts one of ...

I know this is later than I hoped, but hey, at least it’s up at all. Let’s get it done. __________________________________________________ Train Dreams “All the wondrous, devastating layers of an entire life.” Director: Clint Bentley Cast: Joel Edgerton, Felicity Jones, Clifton Collins Jr., Kerry Condon, Will Patton, and William H. Macy Synopsis: “A logger leads a life of quiet grace as he experiences love and loss during an era of monumental change in early 20th-century America.” I was really blown away by Train Dreams , which comes from the same team behind last year’s Sing Sing (one of my favorites of that year). It has the same qualities of the newer Terrence Malick movies, specifically The Tree of Life , that really made me feel spellbound by its philosophical take on a man trying to hold onto what he has left in the changing world that surrounds him. Edgerton really shows up here, especially when he’s paired with Jones. Macy is also fantastic in his small role, as always. Bryce ...

I’ve been very happy with these weekly mini-reviews that have been going on, so we’re just gonna keep the train rolling. __________________________________________________ A House of Dynamite "Not if. When." Director: Kathryn Bigelow Cast: Idris Elba, Rebecca Ferguson, Gabriel Basso, Jared Harris, Tracy Letts, Anthony Ramos, Moses Ingram, Jonah Hauer-King, Greta Lee, and Jason Clarke Synopsis: “When a single, unattributed missile is launched at the United States, a race begins to determine who is responsible and how to respond.” A House of Dynamite had a lot going for it. A great ensemble cast, a very timely kind of movie, a wide audience reach in terms of a Netflix release. It never hit theaters near me, so that’s the best I was getting. Up until its release, it even had talks of being a big presence at the Oscars this year. Unfortunately, Kathryn Bigelow’s latest movie really falls on its face. As I’ve said, A House of Dynamite had a lot going for it. A great ticking-cloc...

Mini-reviews ended up going very well the last time, so I may end up sticking with this structure for a while! Straight and to-the-point reviews, all that jazz, no need to delay anything. So, let’s get started. __________________________________________________ Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere "Everyone knows his music. But no one knows the moment everything changed." Director: Scott Cooper Cast: Jeremy Allen White, Jeremy Strong, Paul Walter Hauser, Stephen Graham, and Odessa Young Synopsis: “Bruce Springsteen, a young musician on the cusp of global superstardom, struggles to reconcile the pressures of success with the ghosts of his past.” This was one of my most anticipated of the year, given that Bruce Springsteen is one of my personal favorite artists ever, and for the most part, Deliver Me from Nowhere really ended up delivering for me. This is not like Bohemian Rhapsody , which was a greatest hits “womb-to-tomb” movie, and picking out a specific part of Springsteen...

I’ve been very busy over the past few days, so I’ve decided to knock out some of the newer releases I’ve seen in one post! Maybe I’ll do some more of these often and save some of the films I’ve seen with some more I have to say. So, here are three movies I’ve seen recently. __________________________________________________ After the Hunt "Not everything is supposed to make you comfortable." Director: Luca Guadagnino Cast: Julia Roberts, Ayo Edebiri, Andrew Garfield, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Chloë Sevigny Synopsis: “A college professor finds herself at a personal and professional crossroads when a star pupil levels an accusation against one of her colleagues, and a dark secret from her own past threatens to come to light.” What I got most out of Luca Guadagnino’s latest film is not the #MeToo movie that the trailer makes it out to be, although I would’ve been perfectly fine with that with this cast. After the Hunt is a story about “good optics” and how even something as seriou...

"She started banging on her door pounding on it, “let me in,” and then... bang!" Director: Geeta Gandbhir Synopsis: “Police bodycam footage reveals how a long-running neighborhood dispute turned fatal in this documentary about fear, prejudice and Stand Your Ground laws.” __________________________________________________ I’m self-aware enough to admit my failings as a newer critic, and one of those is that I rarely watch documentaries. It’s not that I don’t like them, but for the most part, I just don’t gravitate towards them. However, The Perfect Neighbor immediately stood out to me back in January when it premiered at Sundance. I didn’t personally know what it was about yet, but all I knew was that this doc was almost entirely made up of footage from police bodycams. There’s seemingly no interviews and no commentary of any sort either; you’re seeing simply what happened, intentionally designed that way to form your own thoughts on this incident. It’s a lot to ask from the ...

“The unforgettable true story of a UFC legend.” Director: Benny Safdie Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Ryan Bader, Bas Rutten, and Oleksandr Usyk Synopsis: “The story of legendary mixed martial arts and UFC fighter Mark Kerr.” __________________________________________________ I’ve really been looking forward to this one. It never dawned on me until I started to write this, but The Smashing Machine feels like a personal milestone for me. The first A24-distributed movie I’ve seen in a theater was Uncut Gems with Adam Sandler back in 2019, and I vividly remember being physically on the edge of my seat after that. I had such a visceral reaction to Uncut Gems , and I can also remember what I thought when the credits finished and the audience began to clear out: “I wanna make movies.” I can point out other movies in my life that I really love and are my personal favorites, but this is the movie that convinced me to commit to going to film school. Six years have passed since then, and I...

“A look behind the curtain.” Director: Taylor Swift Synopsis: “The exclusive world premiere of the music video “The Fate of Ophelia,” along with behind-the-scenes footage from the music video shoot, brand new lyric videos, and Taylor Swift’s personal reflections on songs from her 12th studio album, The Life of a Showgirl .” __________________________________________________ I’m sitting in a hotel room in a different state, pretty much wiped from the first day of being at the Eerie Horror Fest this past weekend. Most of this is being written on downtime from the fest, especially since I went to my first midnight screening experience for Rats: Night of Terror last night/this morning. Although, I did just wanna talk about something I saw at a movie theater a few weeks back. I didn’t see a movie, though. That’s why I said “something” and not “movie” or “film,” or if you wanna get real fancy, a “picture.” For this little article, I’m writing about a musician. Not just any musician, though,...

Okay, this is my first time taking on a task like this, so please bear with me. I’m giving Oscar predictions a shot, and this is just gonna be a lot of fun! It’s a long one, though. Each category is in order of likely nomination, not alphabetical or anything. I really don’t have a lot to say for each category, but up here, I’ll talk about some changes that I think could happen. A lot of the technical categories are sort of in flux right now for me because there are a lot of variables. In terms of visuals effects , we obviously know that Avatar: Fire and Ash is winning, but it’s mainly the other nominees that could be interesting. I have Superman and Fantastic Four getting in, but I also have F1 in too. F1 could really fall out, though, and I think either Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning or TRON: Ares could probably take its place. The presence of Wicked: For Good is something I’m still on the fence about. Unless it’s just as praised as Part One last year, I think it’ll...

“Some search for battle, others are born into it…” Director: Paul Thomas Anderson Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro, Regina Hall, Teyana Taylor, and Chase Infiniti Synopsis: “Bob is a washed-up revolutionary who lives in a state of stoned paranoia, surviving off-grid with his spirited and self-reliant daughter, Willa. When his evil nemesis resurfaces and Willa goes missing, the former radical scrambles to find her as both father and daughter battle the consequences of their pasts.” __________________________________________________ Writer/Director Paul Thomas Anderson has already cemented himself as one of the go-to directors of this era, and even if you don’t know that name, you’ve at least heard of the movies he’s made. There Will Be Blood , Punch-Drunk Love , Boogie Nights , The Master , Magnolia , Phantom Thread … He’s rarely missed, at least for me. It’s been tough to wrap my head around his latest film, One Battle After Another , and I’ve seen it twice. I gotta...

“Who will save us from our heroes?” Director: Bryan Andrews Cast: Iman Vellani, Elizabeth Olsen, Paul Rudd, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, Tessa Thompson, Simu Liu, Awkwafina, Hailee Steinfeld, Wyatt Russell, Randall Park, and Dominique Thorne Synopsis: “After the Avengers are overtaken by a zombie plague, a desperate group of survivors discover the key to bringing an end to the super-powered undead, racing across a dystopian landscape and risking life and limb to save their world.” __________________________________________________ I might have to just get right to the point for this one because I don’t have a bunch to say about Marvel Zombies , the latest Marvel miniseries that has hit Disney+. I really wasn’t too excited for it, mainly because of the other animated Marvel show  What If…? ending up really collapsing in on itself. They had a Marvel Zombies episode that I thought was… fine? I didn’t hate it, but it left my mind pretty soon after watching it. I also just don’t like t...

“All $$ ain’t good $$” Director: Spike Lee Cast: Denzel Washington, Jeffrey Wright, Ilfenesh Hadera, A$AP Rocky, John Douglas Thompson, Dean Winters, LaChanze, Princess Nokia, and Ice Spice Synopsis: “When a powerful music mogul is targeted by a ransom plot, he is forced to fight for his family and legacy while jammed up in a life-or-death moral dilemma.” __________________________________________________ Spike Lee is undoubtedly one of the biggest living legends in cinema. I don’t think anything is ever gonna take away the impact he’s left. Admittedly, his filmography is a terribly embarrassing blind spot for me, but I’ve seen most of the heavy hitters, barring Malcolm X . Wild that I haven’t gotten to that yet. That’s besides the point, though. The next point is… another movie I haven’t seen, and that’s High and Low , one of the many celebrated movies from the just-as-celebrated Japanese director Akira Kurosawa. I’m not gonna make this a history lesson or anything, but to keep things...

“The law’s reach never stretched this far.” Director: Akiva Schaffer Cast: Liam Neeson, Pamela Anderson, Paul Walter Hauser, Kevin Durand, CCH Pounder, and Danny Huston Synopsis: “Lieutenant Frank Drebin Jr becomes a police officer like his legendary father and must save the police department from shutting down by solving a case.” __________________________________________________ It’s nice to laugh every once in a while. It’s even better to laugh incredibly often, and that doesn’t really happen these days. By all accounts, that’s mainly because big budget studio comedies don’t really happen anymore. Sure, we’ve got the smaller ones or the ones made for streaming, but that’s not cutting it anymore. The spoof comedies, or the ones with really dumb jokes that got run into the ground in the mid-2000s, used to fill in that gap. Airplane , the original Naked Gun movies, Scary Movie (which is making its own comeback next year), and Mel Brooks comedies like Blazing Saddles and Young Franke...

I needed a picture to put here, so here’s the pale horse from Twin Peaks . Woah, an actually written post? Crazy things are happening in the world. This is gonna be very short, but I'm moving back to writing articles for movie reviews. I genuinely love making the YouTube videos and all of that stuff, but without getting into personal details, my eyesight is starting to get wonky. Obviously, I have to hope that this won't be permanent and it is treatable—maybe even fixable, but I have to take this seriously. Going through the process of this means that I'm limiting myself on screens, stuff like that. So, that means I'm taking a bit of a hiatus from the Flash Frames channel. Could it come back? Sure. Will I stop watching movies and reviewing them? Absolutely not. They're just written down instead of being on one of the largest sites imaginable. If you stick around, thank you. <3

Caught Stealing (2025) Director: Darren Aronofsky Cast: Austin Butler, Regina King, Zoë Kravitz, Matt Smith, Liev Schreiber, Vincent D'Onofrio, Benito Martínez Ocasio, Griffin Dunne, and Carol Kane. Synopsis: Burned-out ex-baseball player Hank Thompson unexpectedly finds himself embroiled in a dangerous struggle for survival amidst the criminal underbelly of 1990s New York City, forced to navigate a treacherous underworld he never imagined.

Together (2025) Director: Michael Shanks Cast: Dave Franco, Alison Brie, Damon Herriman, Mia Morrissey, Karl Richmond, and Jack Kenny. Synopsis: Years into their relationship, Tim and Millie find themselves at a crossroads when they move to the countryside, abandoning all that is familiar in their lives except each other. With tensions already flaring, a nightmarish encounter with a mysterious, unnatural force threatens to corrupt their lives, their love, and their flesh.

Weapons (2025) Director: Zach Cregger Cast: Josh Brolin, Julia Garner, Alden Ehrenreich, Austin Abrams, Cary Christopher, Benedict Wong, and Amy Madigan. Synopsis: When all but one child from the same classroom mysteriously vanish on the same night at exactly the same time, a community is left questioning who or what is behind their disappearance.

War of the Worlds (2025) Director: Rich Lee Cast: Ice Cube, Eva Longoria, Clark Gregg, Andrea Savage, Henry Hunter Hall, Iman Benson, Devon Bostick, and Michael O'Neill. Synopsis: Will Radford is a top cyber-security analyst for Homeland Security who tracks potential threats to national security through a mass surveillance program, until one day an attack by an unknown entity leads him to question whether the government is hiding something from him... and from the rest of the world.

The Fantastic Four: First Steps (2025) Director: Matt Shakman Cast: Pedro Pascal, Vanessa Kirby, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, Joseph Quinn, Julia Garner, Sarah Niles, Mark Gatiss, Natasha Lyonne, Paul Walter Hauser, and Ralph Ineson. Synopsis: Forced to balance their roles as heroes with the strength of their family bond, the Fantastic Four must defend Earth from a ravenous space god called Galactus and his enigmatic Herald, the Silver Surfer.