Original Movies (not sequel, not reboot, not spin-off)
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The Invitation (2022) directed by Jessica M. Thompson
Young woman lured into the lair of a family of vampires that want to preserve its power using the young woman's blood. Young woman fought her way out with lots of violence. Well done and sufficiently exciting, sufficiently entertaining, nothing particularly outstanding. Worth streaming if you like the genre.
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Jane (2022) directed by Sabrina Jaglom
Contemporary teenage psychological thriller. Wound up private school students manipulate a dead classmate's social media account to get ahead. Not sure how much it would appeal to older audience who did not grow up with social media, but it's an interesting take on how social media can be an effective prop around which to build a psych thriller.
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Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul. (2022) directed by Adamma Ebo
Comedic mock documentary chronicling how a disgraced pastor of a Christian mega church and his "First Lady" attempt to rebuild their congregation. It's not a topic that I am familiar with, it seems to have some pretty brutal critiques on the "mega church" phenomenon, the antics of their lead pastors and spouses, and the social dynamics in that circle. Worth a stream if you want something different and not completely brain dead.
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Moon Man (2022) directed by Zhang Chiyu
Chinese comedy sci-fi. Story is around an astronaut who, after he got sent to the Moon, learns that all life of Earth has been destroyed by an asteroid and is the last human alive, along with a kangaroo, on his lunar base. But it turns out humanity did survive the first asteroid strike and the later part of the movie is about the astronaut and the remainder of humanity on Earth working together to thwart the threat of another asteroid also heading for Earth. Pretty original, good (but different from American) humor, good production, comedy and sci-fi with heart. Recommended if you want to try foreign sci-fi comedy.
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Nope (2022) directed by Jordan Peele
Part sci-fi part horror around a family of horse handlers' encounter with a UFO. Plot development is a bit slow and fairly captivating. Conception and design of the UFO is pretty original. If nothing else, watch video clips of the UFO scenes.
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Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva (2022) directed by Ayan Mukerji
Hindi superhero fantasy, first of a planned trilogy. Think of it as Thor with a Hindu background with a Bollywood spin. Have big dance music number like any big Bollywood production and that's nice. But the superhero fantasy part, while well done, does not seem to advance beyond preexisting superhero fantasy movies. If you want to watch a movie about superhero deities that's different from the DC/Marvel stuff, yeah, watch this one. The visuals/CGI is competent but still trails behind the Marvel stuff.
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Barbarian (2022) directed by Zach Cregger
Horror thriller. Young woman took out a rental that's double-booked that first misleads you into thinking that it's a movie about a young woman being terrorized by a squatter. But soon it's revealed that the house has another very violent and very powerful resident. A bit like "The Hills Have Eyes," but shrink the hill into a house.
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See How They Run (2022) directed by Tom George
Comedy mystery. British. Understated humour. Very British. It's basically a whodunit mystery, with lots of misdirections along the way to keep you guessing. The pace is not as fast as the typical Hollywood production, but fast enough. Decent direction and decent acting. Worth streaming if you want something light hearted and not too braindead to pass a couple of hours.
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Don't Worry Darling (2022) directed by Olivia Wilde
Psychological thriller in sci-fi skin. Feels like The Stepford Wives, though not the same. Good acting, good direction, good set design. On the whole the movie is very competently done. If you like the Stepford Wives, or if you are nostalgic for the 1950s/1960s, chances are you will like this movie.
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Pearl (2022) directed by Ti West
Slasher film. A troubled young woman from a difficult family slashes her way towards a performing arts career. This movie has a very raw, authentic indie feel to it. Very well done. If you feel like watching a slasher but is already sick of the existing Hollywood slasher franchises, this one is as good as they come.
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The Woman King (2022) directed by Gina Prince-Bythewood
Action, drama, supposedly with historical basis. Very well done as a production. The romantic side plot is a bit extraneous. I get the sense that it wants to be a "war epic" but never quite get there. Would probably have been more celebrated by Hollywood for having an almost all Black cast if Black Panther has not come before it. The idea of a woman warrior or a woman army? Wonder Woman and the Black Widow got those covered too. (The Chinese also have their Mulan and the Yang women generals.) This is still a good movie, just not quite "great" or "epic" with historical comparisons.
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Ticket to Paradise (2022) directed by Ol Parker
Romantic comedy. Middle-aged divorced couple reunites after their daughter's wedding on a tropical island. Go watch it if you like George Clooney or Julia Roberts. Not that the other actors did not do a good job or the tropical island's sceneries are not beautiful, but there is just not much more to the movie than the two established stars.
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Triangle of Sadness (2022) directed by Ruben Östlund
Satire, dark comedy. Seems like a movie that tries to be intellectual and artsy. From watching the trailers I thought I would like the movie but when watching the film I ultimately found it too long and too pretentious. The plot and dialogue are rather contrived. It was trying way too hard, so to speak.
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The Menu (2022) directed by Mark Mylod
Horror, comedy, satire. The brilliant, eccentric, but misguided head chef of a fine dining establishment ultimately redeemed by a good ole cheeseburger. The comedy/satire part makes fun of super expensive but ultimately pretentious abstract "fine dining" and the associated kitchen operation. The horror part has human mutilation and killing in a fine dining "experience" (no cannibalism, so no worry about being grossed out in this way). Good concept, interesting plot, good acting, good direction. It's a good movie.
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Strange World (2022) directed by Don Hall and Qui Nguyen
Animation film by Disney. Definitely has that Disney quality as far as the animation goes. Creative imagination of the "strange world" with colorful, polished visuals to match. The "moral of the story" has a strong environmental message to it. A fun movie to watch. Disney animation usually comes with good music, but in this film none of the music leaves much of an impression with me. For you snowflakes out there, know that there are depictions of homosexual and interracial relations in this film, just in case some of you are easily triggered by these things.
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Violent Night (2022) directed by Tommy Wirkola
Action, comedy. It has many elements of a traditional Christmas movie, with a Santa that has magical Christmas powers and a little boy from a troubled family who still believes in Santa. The twist is that, like the robot Santa from Futurama that violently guns down those on the naughty list, this movie's Santa engages in violent battles to mow down terrorists and kidnappers in all sorts of creative, bloody ways. It also pays a lot of homage to Die Hard, complete with heavily armed terrorists dressed in white snow attires arriving on snowmobiles. It's an entertaining Christmas movie.
I would say bookmark this movie for streaming around next Christmas, especially if you're the sort who thinks Die Hard is a Christmas movie.
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Babylon (2022) directed by Damien Chazelle
Drama. A lot like "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood," it's a movie set in an alternate history of the movie business, with some DEI social commentary mixed in. Very good acting and direction in general; Margot Robbie gave an outstanding performance as the wild and wildly talented starlet-turned-star protagonist. I couldn't help thinking of "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood" as I was watching this movie, though this movie is even wilder, more excessive than "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood." I suppose if you like "Once Upon a Time ... in Hollywood," you will likely like this movie too.
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M3GAN (2023) directed by Gerard Johnstone
Sci-fi horror, think human sized Chucky in robotic/AI form. I like this movie, much more than I thought I would. AI powered robot developing into a good friend/nanny to a young girl, then evolved to become a super killer robot. The plot sounds trite in the sci-fi genre, yet it works so surprising well in this movie. Don't know how the film maker did it, much the robot's facial expressions came off surprisingly convincing (and surprising creepy when warranted) on screen. Really exceptional dance-like action sequences performed by the robot as it moves in for kills that are both artful and creepy at the same time. Not for little kids (this is a horror film after all), otherwise highly recommended.
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A Man Called Otto (2022) directed by Marc Forster
Light drama, comedy. Difficult, suicidal retiree learns new meanings of life, friendship, and community through interactions with a new young family that moves into his neighborhood. Well acted and well directed, this is a heart-warming film. If you are not already sick of Tom Hanks and want a nice movie to pass a couple of hours, this one will fit the bill just fine without being braindead.
