Crime 101

Crime 101 is a crime thriller starring Chris Hemsworth as a meticulous jewel thief and Mark Ruffalo as the detective obsessed with catching him.

I got some vibes of The Departed but what it really felt like was the ultimate intersection of Heat and The Thomas Crown Affair. It’s a sleek, high-stakes film that is heavy on style, fast cars, and elaborate heists. The plot hit some familiar beats, including the "one good cop vs. a corrupt station" trope, which felt a bit overplayed, but overall it was easy to follow and kept me engaged.

Hemsworth played well off of his cast mates and shined as a guarded and careful man with a complicated past. I really appreciated the diverse, star-studded supporting cast that included Halle Berry and Corey Hawkins. Berry’s arch in particular was interesting because the writers tapped into aging in an industry that doesn’t want you there and what you would do about it. With that being said, I did find myself wishing for more character development for the rest of supporting players like Nick Nolte, Monica Barbaro, and Barry Keoghan. There was also some questionable accent work from Hemsworth and Keoghan, whose American voices tended to fade in and out, making some of dialogue a bit distracting. Keoghan also seems to be settling into an "unhinged villain" typecast, though his energy was undeniably effective.

Despite an unrealistic ending, the film had a lot of heart, exploring themes of finding connection through loneliness and the drive to reinvent oneself. Thus providing a satisfying sense of closure.

The Departed

 

The Departed is a 2006 Oscar winning crime drama starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon and Jack Nicholson in a high-octane cat-and-mouse thriller set in South Boston that follows as an undercover cop and a mole in the police as they attempt to identify each other, before they themselves are found out, while infiltrating an Irish gang in.

The film did an authentic job of portraying the city's internal racism and the raw tension of law enforcement. The plot twists were top-tier and the story was surprisingly easy to follow for such a complex premise. While it’s a remake of the Hong Kong film Infernal Affairs, Martin Scorsese made it entirely his own, diving deep into themes of identity confusion and the blurred lines between loyalty and betrayal. My only criticism is looking at it today, the cinematography and action sequences didn't hold up as well as I would have liked.

Leonardo DiCaprio gave a performance with incredible range, and his chemistry with Jack Nicholson was electric; even though Nicholson was essentially playing "The Joker”, it still worked for his role of Frank Costello. Mark Wahlberg’s performance felt a bit one-note as he’s largely the same in everything. I also found myself wishing for more character development for the people of color in the story.

In the end, this film perfectly captured the grit and moral ambiguity of the Boston Police Department and the Irish mob. I can definitely see why it is a fan favorite and why it swept the Oscars two decades ago.

Hit Man

 

Hit Man is an action comedy film from Richard Linklater starring Glen Powell as a mild-mannered professor who moonlights as a fake hit man for the police, the story takes a dangerous turn when he falls for a woman, played by Adria Arjona, who tries to hire him.

Though the plot was a bit predictable, it was very easy to follow and made for a fun watch. I really appreciated the deeper themes around choosing the life you want to live. It explores the idea that we are all capable of great change if we actually put our minds to it. This was a clever, genre-blending film that sat somewhere between a romantic thriller and a dark character study. While it was marketed as a comedy, I wouldn’t necessarily call it a "comedy" per se as it didn’t have me rolling in laughter, though it certainly had its humorous moments.

Powell was fantastic here, showing off his charisma and impressive range as he jumped between various "hit man" personas. He and Arjona had great chemistry, which made the morally complex situation they found themselves in much more engaging.

In the end, this was a nice Saturday night Netflix stream, even if it won’t necessarily be something I’d feel the need to watch a second time.

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man

Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man serves as a gritty continuation of the beloved series, bringing Cillian Murphy's Tommy Shelby out of exile during the chaos of the Birmingham Blitz. 

Directed and written by the same team behind the original show, Tom Harper and Steven Knight, the film doesn't miss a beat when it comes to world-building. The costumes and sets perfectly immerse you in WWII-era England, capturing that signature Peaky Blinders atmosphere.

The casting remained a high point, with original players returning alongside fantastic newcomers like Rebecca Ferguson and Barry Keoghan. Keoghan was a particular standout, bearing a striking physical resemblance to Murphy, and the two played off each other brilliantly. There was some diversity with Jay Lycurgo as Elijah and Stephen Graham returning as Hayden Stagg, but unfortunately, there were still no BIPOC women represented in significant roles.

While the plot is interesting, the film as a whole didn't land quite as well as the television show. It felt predictable and a bit slow-moving in its execution, lacking some of the urgency and tension that made the series so gripping. It also missed the dark comedy that was sprinkled throughout the TV show, those moments of levity that balanced out the heaviness and gave the characters more dimension. That said, I appreciated the deeper themes woven throughout, coming to terms with trauma and doing the right thing without expecting recognition or reward. I also genuinely appreciated seeing an evolution of Tommy Shelby's character, watching him grapple with his past and move toward something resembling redemption.

By the end, I found the movie to be just okay. It provides a satisfying conclusion to Tommy's story while leaving the door open for potential future stories centered on the Shelby family. If you're a fan of the series, it's worth watching for closure, but it doesn't quite reach the heights of the show's best moments.

Hamnet

 

Hamnet is a historical drama directed by Chloé Zhao. The film follows William Shakespeare, played by Paul Mescal, and his wife, Agnes, played by Jessie Buckley, as they navigate the devastating loss of their young son, Hamnet, a tragedy that eventually inspires the creation of Hamlet.

The cinematography was stunning and vast, yet the story remained intimate and easy to follow. It was a breathtaking exploration of the intersection between personal tragedy and timeless art.

While the chemistry between the leads was undeniable, Jessie Buckley was the star. She handled Agnes with such range and grace that you felt every ounce of her grief. Paul Mescal played a more reserved version of a father managing his pain, turning it into purpose, which was a vital and moving contrast to Buckley's raw performance.

Hamnet is a beautifully paced film that explores the enduring power of memory and pulls at the heartstrings in the best possible way. It is a well-deserving film of its massive awards sweep including Jessie Buckley’s well-earned Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Actress.

The Secret Agent

The Secret Agent is a slow-burning 70s neo-noir political thriller set in Brazil during the final years of Brazil’s U.S.-backed military dictatorship. The story follows Marcelo, played by Wagner Moura, as he attempts to escape the country with his son with the help of an underground resistance.

The film explored the heavy themes of surveillance, political paranoia, and the erasure of history through disinformation.

While it won the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Film and earned an Oscar nod, I personally didn’t find it worthy of that level of accolade. The pacing was quite sluggish until the final thirty minutes, and Wagner Moura’s performance felt a bit too safe. I didn’t see the emotional range or character development needed to fully invest in his journey.

The cinematography purposefully used a dated, grainy 70s aesthetic that added to the mood, but the story itself left a lot of questions. As one Reddit user pointed out, the film assumes the audience is "piecing together" an incomplete story from tapes and newspapers, much like the characters themselves. While that intentional vagueness was an interesting take on plot holes, it ultimately left me feeling more disconnected than invested.

Train Dreams

 

Train Dreams is a sprawling, meditative period drama that feels like a quiet, yet heavy, transition from the old world into the new. Directed by Clint Bentley and based on the Denis Johnson novella, the film follows Robert Grainier, played by Joel Edgerton, as he navigates a life of labor and loss in the turn-of-the-century Pacific Northwest.

While the slow-paced narrative could easily be interpreted as boring by some, the sheer scale of the cinematography created a profound sense of isolation, making you feel lonely even when characters are on screen.

The writing was incredibly strong, particularly in the heartbreaking scenes between Robert and Claire, played brilliantly by Kerry Condon, which actually moved me to tears. The chemistry between Edgerton and Felicity Jones, who played Gladys, was also so palpable it made you truly root for them. While, I wasn’t a huge fan of the choice to include narration from Will Patton, I suppose it fit the era’s oral storytelling tradition.

I deeply appreciated the film’s commitment to historical honesty and diversity. It took a hard look at the Chinese Exclusion Act, showing the systemic mistreatment faced by Chinese railroad workers. Beyond that, the inclusion of Indigenous actors like Nathaniel Arcand, who played Robert's friend and storekeeper, Ignatius Jack, added a layer of authenticity to the setting that many period pieces miss.

Even though I wouldn't have personally voted for Train Dreams to be nominated for Best Picture, I can still appreciate the strong writing and inclusive casting that will make it a significant piece of cinema.