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A haunting, beautifully-shot coming-of-age horror – that wears its It Follows influence on its sleeve. Leviticus has been generating a huge amount of buzz on the film festival circuit, premiering at Sundance before going on to screenings at festivals including SXSW and Sydney. So, when I saw that its cinema screenings were limited, I knew I had to get in there and see it before it was too late. Written and directed by Adrian Chiarella, Leviticus follows Naim (Joe Bird) and Ry

It’s strange that acclaimed filmmaker Ridley Scott picked this frustratingly dull post-apocalyptic movie – as he comes to the twilight of his directorial career. Because for the most part it’s just plain boring. It starts in second gear and only a couple of times reaches third. And more frustratingly it’s not for the lack of talent at hand. It’s an excellent cast who can only deal with the tediously lifeless material put in front of them. Talking of lifeless, that’s pretty mu

Just like Marmite, you’ll either love or hate this bizarre, stylish and deeply unconventional slow burner. Please take my 4.5/5 with a huge pinch of salt. If you want a straightforward horror, this probably isn’t for you. If you enjoy slow, psychological films that leave you questioning what you’ve just watched – this satirical surrealist slasher could be right up your alley. Written and directed by Jane Schoenbrun – who made two low-budget indie horrors We’re All Going to th

A nostalgic Looney Tunes adventure that deserved far better than the treatment it received. Honestly, I never thought I’d end up seeing Coyote vs Acme. For those who follow the stranger side of Hollywood, you’ll probably remember the saga surrounding this film. It was completed, only to be shelved by Warner Bros and treated as a tax write-off before eventually being rescued by independent distributor Ketchup Entertainment, who acquired it for around $50 million. And I really

This fast-moving sci-fi action-thriller is easily more fun than the recent Jurassic World movies. It definitely has the vibes of producer JJ Abrams’ highly-acclaimed works like Cloverfield and Super 8, as a mysterious cosmic event brings dinosaurs into suburban America – more specifically 1982-set Michigan. The Platt family seem like the perfect picket-fence foursome – parents Greg (Ewan McGregor) and Denise (Anne Hathaway), along with their teenage kids Audrey (Maisy Stella)

A roar-some adventure that gives its target audience exactly what they came for. My seven-year-old recently told me that he has almost outgrown PAW Patrol. Sad news – especially as it was one of the few shows I didn’t mind being forced to watch (also a big fan of Bluey, if you’re curious). So, with my son still having a little PAW Patrol love left in him, we headed to the cinema to check out PAW Patrol: The Dino Movie. And, as expected, I’m very glad we did. The film sees Ryd

Tom Holland’s Spidey breathes fresh life back into the Marvel Cinematic Universe – with a passionately grounded outing that has something for everyone. And after taking the biggest opening day ($169.8 million) and weekend ever at the US box-office ($360.1m) – and second biggest worldwide behind only Avengers: Endgame – it seems like cinema-goers came out in their droves to see this summer blockbuster. After taking over the reins from Jon Watts (who did the original Holland-le

Just because a movie is an absolute masterclass – doesn’t mean that it will necessarily appeal to everyone. There’s no doubt in any way shape or form, this is sensational cinema, and is even better viewed in IMAX – the way generational filmmaker Christopher Nolan (Oppenheimer, The Dark Knight Trilogy) intended. But at nearly three hours, the only negative – and this will only be a ‘negative’ from a certain perspective – is if you’re not somewhat a fan of the source materi

It’s absolutely stunning the amount of criticism that this Disney animation-to-live-action remake has been receiving – as this is a perfectly fine adaptation. Yes, undoubtedly this retread of a movie that is less than ten years old has come too quick – and therefore looks like it’s simply trying to cash-in – but to be fair, if Dwayne Johnson waited much longer to play his role in the flesh, he’d be getting too old. Which is probably the overriding factor as to why it was made

The most relentlessly savage entry in the franchise yet. Let me save you some time. Rather than reading this entire review to decide whether Evil Dead Burn is for you, I’ll answer that in the first few sentences. Do you enjoy splatterpunk horror? The kind of film that dares you to keep looking at the screen even when every instinct is telling you not to? If the answer’s ‘yes’ – go and see Evil Dead Burn. If not... you can probably skip this one. This follow-up to 2023’s Evil

Even though it looks like the trademark Minions tomfoolery is starting to wear thin – they at least tried hard to change up the narrative. With the third movie in the series – and seventh in the wider Despicable Me/Minions universe – there’s no doubt that the slapstick humour is being played out. There’s simply only so much you can do – even with much-loved one-dimensional characters – until the ‘well runs dry’. But kudos to the film’s creators for coming from a different ang

An entertaining cosmic adventure that never quite feels like the next big step for DC. When the rebooted Superman landed last year, the reaction from critics was mostly lukewarm. A lot of people seemed underwhelmed – but it had its supporters. Personally, I had a really good time with it. Sure, I thought it could have been stronger considering it was launching DC's brand-new cinematic universe, but I walked out entertained and optimistic enough about what was to come. That’s

A surprisingly heartfelt farewell! Blimey! I never thought I'd be writing about how a Jackass movie made me emotional. I remember being around 16 when Jackass first aired on MTV, and I genuinely couldn't have been more the target audience. My mates and I were obsessed - although, to be fair, so was seemingly every other teenager on the planet. Every Monday we'd meet up at school, talking about the latest stunts, laughing at what we'd watched and, despite the warnings at the s

The fifth instalment in any franchise has no right to be this good. While the Toy Story trilogy was nicely wrapped up in 2010, it’s no surprise that Disney/Pixar keeps milking this cash cow – and you could be forgiven for thinking the series may break at some point. The fourth movie didn’t quite shine as brightly as the first three – even though perfectly solid in its own right – so how would this prevent a potential decline? By making it poignantly topical – and with heaps o

Steven Spielberg returns after a four-year directing hiatus with an intriguing and thought-provoking slice of cinematic entertainment. This sci-fi thriller definitely comes into the ‘solid’ category of the legendary helmer’s movie work – but doesn’t quite compete in the upper echelons of his iconic back catalogue. In real terms it’s – in my humble opinion – about on a par with Close Encounters of the Third Kind. If that yardstick is any help of course, depends how much you li

The Wayans are back... but unfortunately they didn’t bring the magic with them. I have such a soft spot for the original Scary Movie, released at the start of the Millennium. To really show my age here, I can remember spending hours trying to download the trailer on painfully slow internet. Every half an hour or so, my mates and I would get another few seconds loaded, watch it, then laugh hysterically before waiting for the next bit to buffer. At the time, it felt like the fu

Photo: Tracy Shankland Peterborough actor set to terrify audiences in new Prime Video horror film Peterborough has produced its fair share of homegrown talent over the years, and here at ESP Magazine, we're always proud to shine a spotlight on local creatives who are making their mark. One of those rising stars is actor Jamiyka Jones, who is set to appear on screens around the world later this year after landing the title role in upcoming indie horror film The Snow Demon, dir

Everything seemed to be coming together for this blockbuster reboot of a dormant franchise – hoping for potential greatness. But sadly the Powers of Grayskull don’t seem to have been strong enough – as this tonally doesn’t really hit the mark. Mattel’s mega-popular range of toys, which sparked a childhood animation that were a weekly mainstay of schoolkids’ TV schedule (including mine), did manage to get an underwhelming Dolph Lundgren-led 1987 movie. But this universe was ye

This has pretty much come out of nowhere to already become one of the biggest indie horror hits of all-time – after a sensational opening weekend worldwide. It was actually my son, Joshua, who gave me the back story to this ‘found footage’ web series-turned-movie from creator Kane Parsons – who directs this in his film debut – which probably helped better than going in ‘completely cold’. And if it lives up to the hype will definitely depend on a certain point of view – as thi

This is an easy-going musical comedy – which works best when you stop comparing it to greatness. I walked into Power Ballad with huge expectations. I’m a massive fan of writer-director John Carney and his previous music-focused movies Once, Sing Street and Begin Again. All three are easy recommendations for anyone who loves films about music. This latest effort follows Rick (Paul Rudd), a former aspiring musician whose dreams of stardom never quite worked out, and who now mak