Pasckie Pascua's Nerdy Squirrel Reviews: Movies.

“The Gorge” (2025, Apple TV) science fiction romantic action horror. Follows two elite snipers who are ordered to guard a deep gorge without knowing what lies inside.         Okay, what “lies inside” or down there are the Hollow Men or mutated human beings. They were originally scientists and soldiers from a post-World War II experiment, whose DNA has fused with the local plant and animal life due to a chemical leak and an earthquake. These terrifying, animalistic creatures are trapped in a purgatorial state between life and death, losing their humanity to become grotesque, immortal beings driven by primal aggression.         A reference to T.S. Eliot's poem "The Hollow Men," the backstory enthralls me. Mr Eliot described these lost souls as empty, spiritually vacant beings trapped in a meaningless, decaying existence. But “The Gorge” is not all that, unfortunately. This feature is a typical sci-fi banger...

“28 Years Later” (2025, Netflix) post-apocalyptic coming-of-age horror film . The third instalment in the “ 28 Days Later” film series . I saw both “ 28 Days Later ” (2002, Cillian Murphy) and “ 28 Weeks Later “ (2007, Robert Carlyle/Jeremy Renner) but I forgot what happened then, LOL! Danny Boyle and Alex Garland return as director and writer (they didn’t do “28 Weeks…”) with more ruthless chic and slimy shenanigan. Mr Boyle of 1996’s “ Trainspotting ” and 2008’s “ Slumdog Millionaire .” And Mr Garland of 2014’s “Ex Machina,” among other gems.         This movie’s storyline: It's been almost three decades since the rage virus escaped from a biological weapons laboratory. Still living in a ruthlessly enforced quarantine, some have found ways to exist amid the infected. One such group of survivors lives on a small island connected to the mainland by a single, heavily defended causeway. When one of them decides to venture into the dark heart of th...

“Frankenstein” (2025, Netflix) gothic drama film produced, written and directed by Guillermo del Toro , based on the 1818 novel by Mary Shelley . The story follows the life of Frankenstein, an egotistical scientist whose experiment in creating new life results in dangerous consequences.        I think I watched all or most of the cinematic features about Victor Frankenstein and his creature. I saw the first, made in 1931, when I was a boy; the creature was portrayed by Boris Karloff.         Guillermo Del Toro's creature could be the most intriguing and the complexity of the character, easier to navigate--because the interface of mechanical evil and primal humanity is so real. Makes me think of A.I.? Scary stuff?        As a work of visual art, Tamara Deverell's stunning production design enthralls, terrifies, and enlightens. That broken dark is The Creature; warmth resides i...

“Restless” (2024, Amazon Prime) British thriller dark comedy. A mild-mannered care worker's peaceful existence is disturbed when an intimidating party animal moves into the house next door, a property that her parents inhabited for decades before their recent passing.         This movie had a simple or not-so-unusual plotline. But from sequence 1 to the end, I am glued. The major reason? Lyndsey Marshal. She won Best Actress at the Manchester Film Festival for her performance; the movie, Best UK Feature Film.        As Nicky, who is tormented no end by her next-door neighbor, Ms Marshal is a sight to watch. I got so engaged and involved in her character's sad situation that I wanted to confront the asshole myself!         And this urgent reminder or warning to one and all: Piss someone off all you want. But you don’t mess with their cat or dog! They’ll go John Wick or Nick...

“Timestalker” (2024, Amazon Prime) British historical science fiction romantic comedy . Agnes falls in love with the wrong man and then gets reincarnated and falls in love with him over and over again, travelling through 1680s western Scotland, rural England in the 1790s, 1980s Manhattan , and a post- apocalyptic 22nd century.         A few sequences kind of worked but the entire movie is a dull, tired and ho-hum derivative of the usual sitcom obligatories. What shows promise is comedian Alice Lowe, who also directed from her own script. Try again next time? 🎥💻📽 “Drugstore June” (2024, PlutoTV) crime comedy. After the pharmacy in her small town is robbed, June, a wannabe influencer Gen-Z twenty-something girl who still lives at home with her parents, takes matters into her own hands to solve the crime. The film stars Esther Povitsky in her first starring role, who co-penned the script with the director Nicholaus Goossen.    ...

“Pleasure” (2021, Tubi) drama based on director Ninja Thyberg's 2013 short of the same name about a young woman from a small Swedish town who moves to Los Angeles to become a porn star.         Anchored on lead star Sofia Koppel as Bella Cherry/Linnea, defiance and vulnerability, this little movie jars that many other big productions didn't. Ms Thyberg's direction verges from straight-up documentary courage to one-camera film school inventiveness. And what I see is a winner.        I haven't seen a fine movie about the porn industry since big studio's “The People vs. Larry Flynt” (1996) by Milos Forman and “Boogie Nights” (1997) by Paul Thomas Anderson. 🎥👍📽 <>“Her Body” (2023, Roku) Czech drama film, based on a true story of Andrea Absolonová , who was a Czech diver and a member of the Czech high diving national team. She injured her spine when she was 20 years old in an accident when training for the...