Pasckie Pascua's Nerdy Squirrel Reviews: Movies.

“Anniversary” (2025, Hulu) dystopian political thriller . Tensions rise and loyalties are tested when a couple meet their son's new girlfriend, a radical young woman who's part of a controversial movement known as the Change. Stars Diane Lane and Kyle Chandler.         Critics are all-praises for this talky, lecture-heavy, politically-argumentative yarn. I second-the-motion the ensemble performance although I don’t concur with the crowded room; so many characters. And the jousts? I find them corny, contrived, self-appeasements. 🎥💻📽 “Inheritance” (2025, Hulu) espionage thriller. A young woman discovers her estranged father was formerly a spy, which throws her into the middle of a global international conspiracy and makes her a target.         The plot is a political cliche but the globetrotting thrill somehow managed to provoke some excitement. And leads Phoebe Dynevor as Maya, and Rhys Ifans as the dad, ...

“The Choral” (2025, Netflix) British historical drama. Set in 1916, during World War I , in the fictional town of Ramsden, Yorkshire , the film follows the members of the local choral society which recruits a disparate group of townspeople for a performance of Edward Elgar 's “ The Dream of Gerontius ,” a work chosen because it was not written by a German.         Nicholas Hytner, who was an accomplished theater director, before he gained A-1 stature as a filmmaker, is enough reason to watch this movie. And who'd turn down a Ralph Fiennes-led movie? I won't.        “The Choral” glows with smart lines and sterling ensemble performance. The problem is the too-many characters with their respective side-stories. What ensued is a drama that splintered all over the place. Still, the show managed to entertain. 🎥💻📽 “In the Hand of Dante” (2025, Netflix) drama , directed by Julian Schnabel . The story follows a handwr...

“The Hanoi Hilton” (1987, Pluto TV) war film which focuses on the experiences of U.S. prisoners of war who were held in the infamous Hoa Lo Prison in Hanoi during the 1960s and 1970s.          I remember watching this movie in the big-screen moviehouse in Manila many years ago. I didn't know if I liked it then. Those were the years of kickass Vietnam War movies. Right off Francis Ford Coppola's “Apocalypse Now,” came Oliver Stone's “Platoon,” Stanley Kubrick's “Full Metal Jacket,” Barry Levinson's “Good Morning, Vietnam,” etcetera.        “The Hanoi Hilton” tried the dramatic path sans action sequences yet it came out as a melodramatic yarn. That's all. This movie was swallowed by the best of the genre in those years. 🎥💻📽 “Scarface” (1983, Amazon Prime) epic crime drama , directed by Brian De Palma and written by Oliver Stone . Al Pacino stars as Cuban refugee Tony Montana , who arrives in Miami durin...

“Dead Man's Wire” (2025, Netflix) crime thriller , directed by Gus Van Sant . Inspired by the 1977 hostage standoff involving Tony Kiritsis , who is played by Bill Skarsgård . With Cary Elwes , Colman Domingo , and Al Pacino .         Bill Skarsgård's intense but loose performance is both hilariously nerdy and fearlessly earnest. Comical but not really funny; humorous but serious. Bottomline, Bill embodied Tony Kiritsis’ dead-end desperation and focused intent to push his message across.        Mr Van Sant's mastery in infusing laughs in an authentic period piece. But who says the behaviour of the police, media, and the rest of the characters here are not true? 🎥💻📽 <>“Christy” (2025, HBO Max) biographical sports drama. The film chronicles the rise of former professional boxer Christy Martin to becoming America's best-known female boxer in the 1990s, and later her coach-turned-husband's 2010 attempted...

“Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man” (2026, Netflix) British crime drama. Set during World War II in 1940, the story follows an exiled Tommy Shelby as he is pulled back to a bombed-out Birmingham to thwart a Nazi plot to collapse the British economy using counterfeit money.         Stars Cillian Murphy, Sophie Rundle , Stephen Graham , Rebecca Ferguson , Tim Roth , and Barry Keoghan .         The production design is enthralling, the script is fleshed-out tight, the sound editing is gripping, and ensemble performance, A-1. But if you saw all six seasons of “Peaky Blinders,” this immortal man movie denouement is simply the end of the TV series. A fitting finale. Done. No more prequels or sequels or spinoffs, please! 🎥💻📽 “A New Breed of Criminal” (2023, Prime Amazon) British crime drama. Inspired by a true story, the 87-minute film follows the lives of the infamous Sayers brothers as they rise from a trouble...