Civil War (2024) - Movie Review

The Movie: Civil War

The Director: Alex Garland

The Cast: Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura, Cailee Spaeny, Stephen McKinley Henderson, Sonoya Mizuno, Nick Offerman

The Story: A journey across a dystopian future America, following a team of military-embedded journalists as they race against time to reach DC before rebel factions descend upon the White House.

Dagr - Movie Review

The Movie: Dagr

The Director: Matthew Butler-Hart

The Cast: Riz Moritz, Ellie Duckles, Tori Butler-Hart

The Story: Fame seeking YouTubers find themselves in a paranormal nightmare when the advert team they are stealing from awakens a murderous occultist from the past.

Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire - Movie Review

The Movie: Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire

The Director: Adam Wingard

The Cast: Rebecca Hall, Brian Tyree Henry, Dan Stevens, Kaylee Hottle, Alex Ferns, Fala Chen

The Story: Two ancient titans, Godzilla and Kong, clash in an epic battle as humans unravel their intertwined origins and connection to Skull Island's mysteries.

Immaculate - Movie Review

The Movie: Immaculate

The Director: Michael Mohan

The Cast: Sydney Sweeney, Simona Tabasco, Álvaro Morte, Benedetta Porcaroli

The Story: Cecilia, a woman of devout faith, is warmly welcomed to the picture-perfect Italian countryside where she is offered a new role at an illustrious convent. But it becomes clear to Cecilia that her new home harbors dark and horrifying secrets.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

The Movie: Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

The Director: Gil Kenan

The Cast: Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Kumail Nanjiani, Patton Oswalt, Celeste O'Connor, Logan Kim, Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts

The Story: When the discovery of an ancient artifact unleashes an evil force, Ghostbusters new and old must join forces to protect their home and save the world from a second ice age.

Problemista - Movie Review

The Movie: Problemista

The Director: Julio Torres

The Cast: Tilda Swinton, Julio Torres, RZA, Greta Lee, Catalina Saavedra, James Scully, Larry Owens, Laith Nakli, Kelly McCormack, Spike Einbinder, Greta Titelman, River L. Ramirez, and narrated by Isabella Rossellini

The Story: Alejandro is an aspiring toy designer from El Salvador struggling to bring his unusual ideas to life in NY. As time runs out on his work visa, a job assisting an erratic art-world outcast becomes his only hope to stay in the country.

Night Shift (2024) - Movie Review

The Movie: Night Shift

The Director: The China Brothers (Paul & Ben)

The Cast: Phoebe Tonkin, Lamorne Morris, Madison Hu, Patrick Fischler, Lauren Bowles, Christopher Denham

The Story: While working her first night shift at a remote motel, a woman begins to suspect that the property is haunted.

Madame Web - Movie Review

The Movie: Madame Web

The Director: S. J. Clarkson

The Cast: Dakota Johnson, Sydney Sweeney, Isabela Merced, Celeste O'Connor, Tahar Rahim, Mike Epps, Emma Roberts, Adam Scott

The Story: Cassandra Webb is a New York metropolis paramedic who begins to demonstrate signs of clairvoyance. Forced to challenge revelations about her past, she needs to safeguard three young women from a deadly adversary who wants them destroyed.

Dune part 2 - Movie Review

The Movie: Dune part 2

The Director: Denis Villeneuve

The Cast: Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Josh Brolin, Austin Butler, Florence Pugh, Dave Bautista, Christopher Walken, Léa Seydoux, Souheila Yacoub, Stellan Skarsgård, Charlotte Rampling, Javier Bardem.

The Story: Paul Atreides unites with Chani and the Fremen while seeking revenge against the conspirators who destroyed his family.

One-Percent Warrior - Movie Review

The Movie: One-Percent Warrior

The Director: Yûdai Yamaguchi 

The Cast: Tak Sakaguchi, Kensuke Sonomura, Sho Aoyagi, Itsuji Itao, Kenjiro Ishimaru, Keisuke Horibe, Togo Ishii

The Story: After his devastatingly fast, samurai-style combat approach sets filmmakers against him, a legendary action star films his own movie, on turf claimed by feuding yakuza gangs, including Japan’s deadliest martial arts assassin.

Lovely, Dark, and Deep - Movie Review

The Movie: Lovely, Dark, and Deep

The Director: Teresa Sutherland

The Cast: Georgina Campbell, Nick Blood, Wai Ching Ho, Edgar Morais

The Story: Lennon, a new back-country ranger, travels alone through the dangerous wilderness, hoping to uncover the origins of a tragedy that has haunted her since she was a child.

Seagrass - Movie Review

The Movie: Seagrass

The Director: Meredith Hama-Brown

The Cast: Ally Maki, Luke Roberts, Chris Pang, Sarah Gadon, Nyha Breitkreuz, Remy Marthaller

The Story: A Japanese-Canadian woman grapples with the death of her mother as she brings her family to a retreat. When her relationship with her husband begins to affect the children's emotional security, the family is changed forever.

Drive-Away Dolls - Movie Review

The Movie: Drive-Away Dolls

The Director: Ethan Coen

The Cast: Margaret Qualley, Geraldine Viswanathan, Beanie Feldstein, Pedro Pascal, Colman Domingo, Bill Camp, Matt Damon

The Story: Jamie regrets her breakup with her girlfriend, while Marian needs to relax. In search of a fresh start, they embark on an unexpected road trip to Tallahassee. Things quickly go awry when they cross paths with a group of inept criminals.

Bob Marley: One Love - Movie Review

The Movie: Bob Marley: One Love

The Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green

The Cast: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Lashana Lynch, James Norton, Tosin Cole, Anthony Welsh, Michael Gandolfini, Umi Myers, Nadine Marshall

The Story: The story of how reggae icon Bob Marley overcame adversity, and the journey behind his revolutionary music.

I.S.S. - Movie Review

The Movie: I.S.S.

The Director: Gabriela Cowperthwaite

The Cast: Ariana DeBose, Chris Messina, John Gallagher Jr., Maria Mashkova, Costa Ronin, Pilou Asbæk

The Story: Tensions flare in the near future aboard the International Space Station as a conflict breaks out on Earth. Reeling, the U.S. and Russian astronauts receive orders from the ground: take control of the station by any means necessary.

I Did It My Way / 潜行 - Movie Review

The Movie: I Did It My Way / 潜行

The Director: Jason Kwan

The Cast: Andy Lau, Lam Ka Tung, Eddie Peng, Cya Liu, Simon Yam, Cheng Jut Si, Philip Keung, Terrance Lau

The Story: As the secretive, complex world of online drug trafficking increasingly targets Hong Kong, the police launch a risky, top-secret sting operation to bring down one of the most notorious drug lords in Asia.

When Evil Lurks - Movie Review

The Movie: When Evil Lurks

The Director: Demián Rugna

The Cast: Ezequiel Rodriguez, Demián Salomon, Luis Ziembrowski, Silvia Sabater, Marcelo Michinaux

The Story: In a remote village, two brothers find a demon-infected man just about to "give birth" to evil itself. They decide to get rid of the body, only to end up unintentionally spreading chaos.

Noryang: Deadly Sea / 노량: 죽음의 바다 - Movie Review

The Movie: Noryang: Deadly Sea / 노량: 죽음의 바다

The Director: Kim Han-min

The Cast: Kim Yoon-seok, Baek Yoon-sik, Jung Jae-young, Huh Joon-ho

The Story: Winter of 1598, the story of Yi Sun-shin's last naval battle during the Japanese invasions of Korea that happened in the Noryang Strait.

TheTwohSix Top Ten Favorite Movies of 2023

Here its is, TheTwoOhSix Top Ten Favorite Movies of 2023. For me, this was a very strange year for cinema with a lot of heavy hitters missing the mark but still several that knocked it out of the park and more than enough in the overall lineup to keep things interesting. Out of all of those, you will find my absolute favorites in the list below. Enjoy!

Insidious: The Red Door - Movie Review

The Movie: Insidious: The Red Door

The Director: Patrick Wilson

The Cast: Ty Simpkins, Patrick Wilson, Sinclair Daniel, Hiam Abbass, Andrew Astor, Rose Byrne

The Story: The Lamberts must go deeper into The Further than ever before to put their demons to rest once and for all.

The Moon / 더 문 - Movie Review

The Movie: The Moon / 더 문

The Director: Kim Yong-hwa

The Cast: Sol Kyung-gu, Doh Kyung-soo, Kim Hee-ae, Jo Han-chul, Park Byung-eun, Choi Byung-mo, Hong Seung-hee

The Story: A man is left in space due to an unfortunate accident while another man on Earth struggles to bring him back safely.

Wonka - Movie Review

The Movie: Wonka

The Director: Paul King

The Cast: 

Timothée Chalamet, Calah Lane, Keegan-Michael Key, Paterson Joseph, Matt Lucas, Mathew Baynton, Sally Hawkins, Rowan Atkinson, Jim Carter, Natasha Rothwell, Olivia Colman, Hugh Grant

The Story: With dreams of opening a shop in a city renowned for its chocolate, a young and poor Willy Wonka discovers that the industry is run by a cartel of greedy chocolatiers.

Poor Things - Movie Review

The Movie: Poor Things

The Director: Yorgos Lanthimos

The Cast: Cast: Emma Stone, Mark Ruffalo, Willem Dafoe, Ramy Youssef, Christopher Abbott, Suzy Bemba, Jerrod Carmichael, Kathryn Hunter, Vicki Pepperdine, Margaret Qualley, Hanna Schygulla

The Story: The fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter; a young woman brought back to life by the brilliant and unorthodox scientist, Dr. Godwin Baxter.

The Iron Claw - Movie Review

The Movie: The Iron Claw

The Director: Sean Durkin

The Cast: Zac Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Harris Dickinson, Stanley Simons, Maura Tierney, Holt McCallany, Lily James

The Story: The true story of the inseparable Von Erich brothers, who made history in the intensely competitive world of professional wrestling in the early 1980s.

Concrete Utopia / 콘크리트 유토피아 - Movie Review

The Movie: Concrete Utopia / 콘크리트 유토피아

The Director: Um Tae-hwa

The Cast: Lee Byung-hun, Park Seo-joon, Park Bo-young, Kim Sun-young, Park Ji-hu

The Story: Survivors from a massive earthquake struggle for a new life in Seoul.

Ballerina / 발레리나 - Movie Review

The Movie: Ballerina / 발레리나

The Director: Lee Chung-hyun

The Cast: Jun Jong-seo, Kim Ji-hun, Park Yu-rim

The Story: Grieving the loss of a best friend she couldn't protect, an ex-bodyguard sets out to fulfill her dear friend's last wish: sweet revenge.

Godzilla Minus One / ゴジラマイナスワン - Movie Review

The Movie: Godzilla Minus One / ゴジラマイナスワン

The Director: Takashi Yamazaki

The Cast: Ryunosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe, Yuki Yamada, Munetaka Aoki, Hidetaka Yoshioka, Sakura Ando, Kuranosuke Sasaki

The Story: Post war Japan is at its lowest point when a new crisis emerges in the form of a giant monster, baptized in the horrific power of the atomic bomb.

Eye For an Eye: The Blind Swordsman / 目中无人1 - Movie Review

The Movie: Eye for an Eye: The Blind Swordsman / 目中无人1

The Director: Bingjia Yang

The Cast: Xie Miao, Gao Yi, Zhang Haosen, Gao Weiman, Xiang Hao, Liu Ben, Zhang Di 

The Story: After stumbling into the aftermath of a brutal attack that resulted in an innocent man’s murder, a highly trained and exceptionally deadly swordsman temporarily sets aside life as a bounty hunter to investigate.

Wish - Movie Review

The Movie: Wish

The Director: Chris Buck, Fawn Veerasunthorn

The Cast: Ariana DeBose, Chris Pine, Alan Tudyk, Angelique Cabral, Victor Garber, Natasha Rothwell, Jennifer Kumiyama, Harvey Guillén, Evan Peters, Ramy Youssef, Jon Rudnitsky

The Story: Wish will follow a young girl named Asha who wishes on a star and gets a more direct answer than she bargained for when a trouble-making star comes down from the sky to join her.

The Marvels - Movie Review

The Movie: The Marvels

The Director: Nia DaCosta

The Cast: Brie Larson, Teyonah Parris, Iman Vellani, Zawe Ashton, Gary Lewis, Seo-Jun Park, Zenobia Shroff, Mohan Kapur, Saagar Shaikh, Samuel L. Jackson

The Story: Carol Danvers gets her powers entangled with those of Kamala Khan and Monica Rambeau, forcing them to work together to save the universe.

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes - Movie Review

The Movie: The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes

The Director: Francis Lawrence

The Cast: Tom Blyth, Rachel Zegler, Peter Dinklage, Hunter Schafer, Josh Andrés Rivera, Viola Davis

The Story: Coriolanus Snow mentors and develops feelings for the female District 12 tribute during the 10th Hunger Games.

Wineville - Movie Review

The Movie: Wineville

The Director: Brande Roderick

The Cast: Brande Roderick, Carolyn Hennesy, Texas Battle, Casey Lott, Keaton Roderick Cadrez, Will Roberts

The Story: A woman who escaped her abusive father as a teen must return to settle the affairs of the family vineyard upon his death. She finds that the dark secrets she left behind have only festered and blackened over the decades, fermenting into violence and death.

Killers of the Flower Moon - Movie Review

The Movie: Killers of the Flower Moon

The Director: Martin Scorsese

The Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, Jesse Plemons, Lily Gladstone, Tantoo Cardinal, John Lithgow, Brendan Fraser, Cara Jade Myers, JaNae Collins, Jillian Dion, William Belleau, Louis Cancelmi, Tatanka Means, Michael Abbot Jr., Pat Healy, Scott Shepard, Jason Isbell, Sturgill Simpson

The Story: An epic western crime saga, where real love crosses paths with unspeakable betrayal.

Mercy Road - Movie Review

The Movie: Mercy Road

The Director: John Curran

The Cast: Luke Bracey, Toby Jones

The Story: It tells the story of a flawed everyman who commits a crime. He soon learns how far he is willing to go to save his child.

Creepy Crawly - Movie Review

The Movie: Creepy Crawly

The Directors: Chalit Krileadmongkon & Pakphum Wongjinda

The Cast: Pirat Nitipaisalkul, Chanya McClory , Benjamin Joseph Varney, David Asavanon

The Story: While quarantining at a Thailand hotel, guests begin disappearing with no explanation from staff, leaving the group to wonder whether there may be some truth to local urban legends about a terrifying creature rumored to possess its victims.

Mortal Kombat (2021) - Movie Review

The Movie: Mortal Kombat

The Director: Simon McQuoid

The Cast: Lewis Tan, Jessica McNamee, Josh Lawson, Tadanobu Asano, Mehcad Brooks, Ludi Lin, Chin Han, Joe Taslim, Hiroyuki Sanada, Max Huang, Sisi Stringer, Matilda Kimber, Laura Brent

The Story: It's a movie about the video game.

Fair Play - Movie Review

The Movie: Fair Play

The Director: Chloe Domont

The Cast: Phoebe Dynevor, Alden Ehrenreich, Eddie Marsan

The Story: When a coveted promotion at a cutthroat financial firm arises, once supportive exchanges between lovers Emily and Luke begin to sour into something more sinister.

The Creator - Movie Review

The Movie: The Creator

The Director: Gareth Edwards

The Cast: John David Washington, Gemma Chan, Ken Watanabe, Sturgill Simpson, Madeleine Yuna Voyles, Allison Janney

The Story: Against the backdrop of a war between humans and robots with artificial intelligence, a former soldier finds the secret weapon, a robot in the form of a young child.

A Million Miles Away - Movie Review

The Movie: A Million Miles Away

The Director: Alejandra Márquez Abella

The Cast: Michael Peña, Rosa Salazar, Bobby Soto, Sarayu Blue, Veronica Falcón, Julio César Cedillo, Garret Dillahunt, Eric Johnson, Michelle Krusiec

The Story: A biopic about José M. Hernández and his path from a farm worker to becoming an engineer and an astronaut. A tale of perseverance, community and sacrifice to accomplish a seemingly impossible dream.

Cassandro - Movie Review

The Movie: Cassandro

The Director: Roger Ross Williams

The Cast: Gael García Bernal, Roberta Colindrez, Perla De La Rosa, Joaquín Cosío, Raúl Castillo, El Hijo del Santo, Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio

The Story: Follows the true story of Cassandro, the ''exotico'' character created by Saúl Armendáriz, gay amateur wrestler from El Paso who rose to international stardom.

#ChadGetsTheAxe - Movie Review

The Movie: #ChadGetsTheAxe

The Director: Travis Bible

The Cast: Spencer Harrison Levin, Michael Bonini, Taneisha Figueroa, Cameron Vitosh, Brandon Doyle, Shun Hagins

The Story: Four social media influencers live stream their trip to Devil's Manor, former home to a satanic cult.

Oppenheimer - Movie Review

The Movie: Oppenheimer

The Director: Christopher Nolan

The Cast: Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey, Jr., Matt Damon, Rami Malek, Florence Pugh, Benny Safdie, Michael Angarano, Josh Hartnett and Kenneth Branagh

The Story: The story of American scientist J. Robert Oppenheimer and his role in the development of the atomic bomb.

Shortcomings - Movie Review

The Movie: Shortcomings

The Director: Randall Park

The Cast: Justin H. Min, Sherry Cola, Ally Maki, Debby Ryan, Tavi Gevinson, Sonoya Mizuno, Jacob Batalon, Timothy Simons

The Story: A trio of young Bay Area urbanites--Ben Tanaka, Miko Hayashi, and Alice Kim--as they navigate a range of interpersonal relationships, traversing the country in search of the ideal connection.

Barbie - Movie Review

The Movie: Barbie

The Director: Greta Gerwig

The Cast: Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, Simu Liu, America Ferrera, Kate McKinnon, Issa Rae, Rhea Perlman, Will Ferrell

The Story: Barbie and Ken are having the time of their lives in the colorful and seemingly perfect world of Barbie Land. However, when they get a chance to go to the real world, they soon discover the joys and perils of living among humans.

Liquor Store Dreams - Documentary Review

The Documentary: Liquor Store Dreams

The Director: So Yun Um

The Story: The autobiographical documentary follows two Korean American children of liquor store owners in Los Angeles who must reconcile their own dreams with those of their immigrant parents.

Joy Ride (2023) - Movie Review

The Movie: Joy Ride

The Director: Adele Lim

The Cast: Ashley Park, Sherry Cola, Stephanie Hsu, Sabrina Wu, Ronny Chieng, Meredith Hagner, David Denman, Annie Mumolo, Timothy Simons, Desmond Chiam, Baron Davis, Lori Tan Chinn, Alexander Hodge, Chris Pang

The Story: Follows four Chinese-American friends as they bond and discover the truth of what it means to know and love who you are, while they travel through China in search of one of their birth mothers.

Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part 1 - Movie Review

The Movie: Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part 1

The Director: Christopher McQuarrie

The Cast: Tom Cruise, Hayley Atwell, Ving Rhames, Simon Pegg, Rebecca Ferguson, Vanessa Kirby, Esai Morales, Pom Klementieff, Mariela Garriga, Henry Czerny, Shea Whigham, Greg Tarzan Davis, Charles Parnell, Frederick Schmidt, Cary Elwes, Mark Gatiss, Indira Varma, Rob Delaney

The Story: Ethan Hunt and his IMF team embark on their most dangerous mission yet: To track down a terrifying new weapon that threatens all of humanity before it falls into the wrong hands.

The Childe / 귀공자 - Movie Review

The Movie: The Childe / 귀공자

The Director: Park Hoon-jung

The Cast: Kim Seon-ho, Kang Tae-ju, Kim Kang-woo, Go Ara

The Story: In a desperate attempt to secure funds for his mother’s surgery, an amateur boxer searches for the wealthy estranged father he’s never met. But after a lead takes him from the Philippines to Korea, he is relentlessly pursued by a quirky yet highly dangerous man.

Mad Heidi - Movie Review

The Movie: Mad Heidi

The Director: Johannes Hartmann, Sandro Klopfstein

The Cast: Alice Lucy, David Schofield, Casper Van Dien, Katja Kolm, Kel Matsena, Almar G. Sato, Max Rüdlinger, Werner Biermeier, Pascal Ulli, Rebecca Dyson-Smith, Milo Moiré, Yves Wüthrich

The Story: Swiss mountain girl Heidi is abducted by brutal government troops and must defend herself and fight a war against a cheese-fueled machinery of hate.

Past Lives - Movie Review

The Movie: Past Lives

The Director: Celine Song

The Cast: Greta Lee, Teo Yoo, John Magaro, Moon Seung-ah, Leem Seung-min

The Story: Nora and Hae Sung, two deeply connected childhood friends, are wrest apart after Nora's family emigrates from South Korea. 20 years later, they are reunited for one fateful week as they confront notions of love and destiny.