Author: Josiah Teal

Bygones: Review.

Directed by WNBA player Angel McCoughtry, Bygones weaves a story of love, forgiveness, and basketball through 1969 and present-day Atlanta. In 1969, Leon (Jordan Pressley) is a young African American basketball player fresh off the celebrations of a championship victory. While walking back to his hotel, a group of white men attack him in the woods, leaving his fate a mystery until later in the film.

Cut to present-day Atlanta, and Charissa (Malyah Glover) is struggling with her basketball skills, that is, until a former basketball standout and resident “old white guy” begins to help her develop her game to the next level. Officially selected for the Raindance Film Festival, Bygones aims to move audiences with its powerful message and plenty of heart.

McCounghtry makes the most of her budget on Bygones. She uses minimal locations and makes her basketball shots feel true-to-life and kinetic rather than overly choreographed. McCounghtry’s track “Big Dipper” plays well in the film, adding energy to the cookout scene (along with being a solid Atlanta hip-hop track).

Bygones overlapping stories and dovetailing timelines leave more than enough room for a feature, yet feel natural in a 26-minute run-time. Notably, there are some abrupt character beats that miss prevent the deeper emotions from marinating within the story, but nothing too distracting from the final message.

It’s tough to fault Bygones for its shortcomings. Indie filmmakers do not have the millions of dollars to create massive, dynamic basketball scenes or create a gripping championship game for viewers to witness at high stakes. The story itself is moving and socially relevant, something McCounghtry could run with in the future or leave in Bygones.

Those ingrained in the world of indie cinema will find plenty to enjoy in this short drama about so much more than basketball. Yet those outside of the indie world may not appreciate a film with such an indie feel in every frame.

Regardless of indie familiarity or community, Bygones succeeds in crafting a strong emotional arc for Chrissa and showcasing McCounghtry’s ability as a filmmaker. 

28 Years Later: The BRWC Review

The latest film by Danny Boyle and instalment in the now budding 28 Days Later franchise, 28 Years Later, continues Britain’s battle with the rage virus 28 years after the outbreak. However, zombie entertainment has changed dramatically since Danny Boyle and Alex Garland’s first venture into the undead in 2002. The Walking Dead made zombies a weekly ritual for households across the globe. The Last of Us made hordes of infected into prestige TV. Shaun of the Dead and Zombieland brought humor to the genre, and Train to Busan gave the genre more heart than any film to date. How can Danny Boye’s return to the zombie genre bring something unique into a world sprawling with tales of re-animated corpses and fights for survival when society falls?

As the title suggests, 28 Years Later picks up almost three decades after the initial fallout. Great Britain has been quarantined from the rest of the world, left to die among the infected while the world goes on living. Spike (Alfie Williams) is a twelve-year-old boy caring for his terminally ill mother, Isla (Jodie Comer), in a community on an island just off mainland Britain. His father, Jamie (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), is about to take Spike to the mainland for the first time and baptize him in the ways of surviving the rage virus. Father and son head into the wilds of the mainland, looking for supplies, but are stalked by a massive special infected known as “an alpha.” While the pair attempts to avoid certain death from the zombie berserkers, Spike begins a journey of self-discovery within the adrenaline of the apocalypse.

Spike and Jamie’s opening expedition is more of a preamble to the greater story in 28 Years Later. Upon their return to the community, Spike’s story becomes a story of relationships, primarily his relationship with his mother and her terminal illness. Danny Boyle does not shy away from exploring death at its most brutal and most emotional throughout the narrative. Asking viewers to “memento mori” or “remember death.” Boyle showcases death, ranging from frenetic zombie carnage to a beautiful, peaceful journey to something new. Like Ralph Fiennes’ character, Dr. Kelson, Boyle leaves room for memorializing those lost, even in a nihilistic world ravaged by the living dead.

Performances in 28 Years Later shine throughout the cast. Jodie Comer of Killing Eve acclaim gives a heartbreaking performance as Isle, filling the character with all the love and emotion of a mother dying before her child’s eyes. Isle, suffering from horrible memory loss, often loses time, creating even greater heartbreak for the young Spike. Alfie Williams never loses a step acting across titans like Ralph Fiennes. Williams gives Spike the determination needed for a character hellbent on saving his mother, yet conflicted by the sins of his father. Taylor-Johnson gives grit to Jamie and brings some of the best zombie kills in the film, including some of Boyle’s best zombie kills yet. And Fiennes is as superb as ever as the isolated Dr. Kelso, building monuments and weaving philosophy in his words within towers of bodies in what was once the great British countryside.

28 Years Later is a weirder yet appreciated choice within the larger canon of great zombie films. Spike’s journey is more than survival; it is a bloody, brutal, and no less moving coming-of-age story. From start to close, 28 Years Later is the story of Spike’s acceptance of a world that no longer exists, a world that only exists in a time before his birth. The narrative focuses on Spike’s journey to building himself into a person who can survive in the new world while honoring the lives of those who showed him love. Themes of life and death thrive throughout the story and are all told through a pounding primal score and Danny Boyle’s anarchist freeze-frame violence as zombies’ heads explode. Moments in the film feel weird, for weird’s sake. Still, all fit within the palette of Boyle’s filmmaking sensibility: the oozing style of Trainspotting with the emotional resonance of Slumdog Millionaire.

But how does Boyle and Garland bring something unique to the genre? What is left to say in the sprawling zombie apocalypse? 28 Years Later may not be what the fans expect, notably in a world that has seen the sprawling saga and spin-offs of The Walking Dead. Viewers wanting to see walls of zombies like in World War Z may not enjoy this third installment. But for those craving an artistic take on the zombie plague and a rich narrative filled with emotional nuance, 28 Years Later is among the best zombie media. It’s standalone enough for fresh audiences, but keeps the Garland-esque view of the societal collapse, combined with Boyle’s visual boldness.

The score builds on the visceral action, the characters and performances elevate an already strong narrative, and the zombies themselves are gruesome enough to make George Romero proud. 28 Years Later may not have been what the zombie film fans expected, but it is the zombie film 2025 needed. Boyle and Garland once again created a zombie classic, combining arthouse experimentation with the brutality of the rage virus, building a world with plenty of stories yet to be told, especially with two sequels already in the works. 

Lilo & Stitch: Another Review.

Disney’s live-action remakes have garnered a cynical reputation in the film world. For every critically beloved remake like 2016’s The Jungle Book, there is a plethora of straight-to-streaming messes like 2022’s Pinocchio. Even box-office juggernauts like 2019’s The Lion King and 2017’s Beauty & The Beast were met with eye-rolls from a critical community hoping for original stories from the House of Mouse. Yet these were all remakes of time-tested classics; remaking Lilo & Stitch was met with some skepticism, even though the film is more than 20 years old.

And how could a remake possibly recapture or reenvision the beauty of “Ohana,” the core idea that “family means nobody gets left behind.” Enter Dean Fleischer Camp; if any director can get the wholesome, mildly chaotic nature of Lilo & Stitch and the heart of “Ohana,” it’s the director who brought the world Marcel the Shell with Shoes On.

2025’s Lilo & Stitch mostly follows the format and narrative of the original. Lilo (Maia Kealoha) is a young orphan living in Hawaii. She is cared for by her older sister, Nani (Sydney Agudong), who does her best to provide for Lilo but is barely an adult herself.

Lilo, an outcast from kids her age, wishes on a star for something so pure it could melt even the most jaded heart, “a friend.” Lilo’s friend comes in the form of “Stitch,” a hyper-intelligent, ultra-destructive extra-terrestrial hunted by his creator and the alliance of planets. What follows are all the hijinks and Blake Snyder-esque “fun and games” as Lilo, Stitch, and Nani navigate life, aliens, and “Ohana” in a format faithful to the essence of the original but uniquely placed within the present-day box office.

The casting in Lilo & Stitch is as good, if not better, than any Disney live-action casting. Maia Kealoha is incredible as Lilo, shining throughout the comedic chaos of Stitch to the emotional beats playing off Agudong’s Nani. Agudong’s chemistry with Kealoha is apparent in every scene, as she plays Nani with the perfect balance of warmth, frustration, and hope needed to carry a character who sacrifices so much to provide for her little sister.

Zack Galifianakis as Jumba and Billy Magnessum as Pleakly provide all the wacky hilarity of a 2000s family comedy. A few character changes depart from the original, and a few characters are left out. But all changes made in Lilo & Stitch feel organic to the 2025 story while still maintaining the core themes of the original film.

For all the hangups with prior remakes, Lilo & Stitch hits far more than misses. Stitch as a character looks great, unlike the outdated CGI of 2022’s Pinocchio or the early trailers of Sonic. The soundtrack is like a terrific refresher of the original, still containing a few nods to Elvis, and is sure to keep the “Movie Surfers” generation happy with tracks like “Hawaiian Roller Coaster Ride.” Action sequences are seamless to the storytelling, and while some may not enjoy some of the character twists, all serve the story of this telling of Stitch’s adventures.

Casting, direction, soundtrack, and style in Lilo & Stitch all revolve around the core idea of “Ohana.” Just like in 2002 and now in 2025, “Ohana” is what makes Lilo & Stitch a classic worthy of revisiting. Camp’s retelling of the 2002 classic showcases Nani’s sacrifice, the unbreakable bond of sisters, the love shown to Stitch, and most of all, the message “that family means nobody gets left behind.” The first act has some uneven pacing, Jumba’s character arc will divide some fans, and wacky 2000s family humor is not for everyone.

However, 2025’s Lilo & Stitch grasps the heart of the source material better than any live-action remake in the Disney catalog, sharing a moving, hilarious, and chaotic story of love, acceptance, and most of all, “Ohana.” 

Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning – The BRWC Review.

A franchise now spanning four decades, Mission Impossible: Final Reckoning promises one last mission for Ethan Hunt and his band of covert agents. The journey began with Brian De Palma in the original spy thriller installment Mission Impossible. The franchise found new life with J.J. Abrams and Brad Bird before Christopher McQuirre turned the series into a masterclass in action filmmaking. Centered around Tom Cruise’s Hunt, Cruise, and McQuarrie have spent the latter half of the franchise creating stunts that rival and even surpass Buster Keaton, Michelle Yeoh, and the great Jackie Chan. But despite Ethan’s found family, incredible stunts, and an iconic theme song, can Cruise and McQuirre stick the landing? Will this be the finale of Hollywood’s adventures with Ethan Hunt and the IMF?

Final Reckoning picks up quickly after the events of Dead Reckoning, getting the audience up to speed on the rogue AI known as “The Entity.” Threatening to end all life on the planet and itself as a God, “The Entity” poses the biggest threat to Ethan Hunt yet. The world is closer to nuclear fallout than ever, and once again, Ethan Hunt and his team must do the impossible. Whether it’s free diving in the Arctic to find a nuclear sub, fighting nameless bad guys, or performing acrobatics on the wings of a plane, Final Reckoning is a vehicle for the superb stunt work of Cruise and his team.

McGuffins are plentiful in Final Reckoning. Ethan Hunt always has a new code, key, or disk to find, break, or steal. Yet, these McGuffins are a classic of the spy genre and allow the ensemble of Mission Impossible as a franchise to shine. Final Reckoning begins with a unified team of Ethan, Benji (Simon Pegg), Grace (Hayley Atwell), Luther (Ving Rhames), and Paris (Pom Klementieff) facing off against Gabriel (Esai Morales), all attempting to capture “The Entity.” When Ethan comes face-to-face with the superintelligence of deity-like AI, the IMF must race across the globe to stop Gabriel and the world’s end.

Performances in Final Reckoning play to everyone’s strengths. Cruise’s stunt work and physicality are as impressive as ever as the installment seems to ramp up each previous stunt under McQuarrie. Hanging on the side of an aircraft in Rogue Nation has turned into fighting on the wings of a small plane in Final Reckoning. Cruise puts everything into the role, continuing to better even himself, save for the base jump off a motorcycle in the previous film. Pegg remains quippy, and the lovable Benji, Atwell is electric as the charming pickpocket Grace, and Vic Rhames brings gravitas as always, even giving the film its emotional core. While Gabriel continues as a very one-note villain, Esai Morales still brings charisma to the role, and Pom Klementieff brings just a little anti-hero energy to the action.

More so than previous installments, Dead Reckoning feels like a farewell to the fandom. Easter eggs to prior installments line the story, and more than a few familiar faces rejoin for a seeming sendoff to Ethan Hunt. Yet, despite the heavy reunions and callbacks, the ensemble heists are absent from the narrative’s first half, sending Ethan to the depths of the Arctic and the team off to find a spy outpost. When reunited, the cast resumes their effortless chemistry, but without the sleek gadgets of prior films (unfortunately, little latex mask pulling, exploding gum, or suction glove wall-scaling). Still without the gadgets and gizmos, Cruise and McQuarrie keep the tension mounting as long-time favorite characters jeopardize their lives for “the ones we’ll never meet.”

Sitting in the shadow of the black vault heist in Mission Impossible, scaling skyscrapers in Ghost Protocol, Henry Cavill reloading his fist mid-fight in Fallout, and the epic motorcycle jump in Dead Reckoning is daunting. But once more, Cruise and McQuarrie prove that they and the IMF are up to the task. Final Reckoning leans into legacy in all the right places while remaining innovative in the genre of action filmmaking. The final does not quite hit the emotional resonance of James Bond’s farewell in No Time to Die, but after Final Reckoning, who’s to say this is the end for IMF? Would anyone be shocked to see a film set in the same universe labeled “A Mission Impossible Story”? John Wick has spin-offs, and Fast and the Furious has its share. Who knows, maybe Final Reckoning isn’t the end there is always a mission; it may just be up to a new team to “choose to accept it.”

Equal parts avant-garde musical and spy romance documentary, The Extraordinary Miss Flower is extraordinary in every sense of the word. The film is a performance documentary compiling the letters of Geraldine Flower and her lovers. Directors Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard set the letters and drama to music as each letter unfolds new layers in Miss Flower’s extravagant life. Icelandic singer-songwriter Emiliana Torrini lends her voice to Miss Flower as Miss Flower creates a dialogue between past and present in this art piece meets personal documentary.

Love letters between Miss Flower and her lovers begin as romantic correspondence. 60s sexy meets cool 90s-inspired indie from Torrini oozes throughout the art rock-esque look at a woman of mystery. But as the cast performs the letters, new wrinkles appear in the life of Miss Flower. A potential double life as a spy, voyages across the sea, love affairs, code-breaking, and drug use all follow as Miss Flower leaves a trail of excitement. The music blends with Geraldine as a person, creating a kinetic narrative, always keeping the viewer engaged up until the final frames; it’s Josephine Baker meets some 90s David Bowie, and it’s brilliant. 

Music plays a massive role in The Extraordinary Miss Flower. The use of Emiliana Torrini’s voice with the daring emotions of Miss Flower’s story adds depth to every letter. Gerladine’s life merits precisely the unconventional documentary treatment that Forsyth and Pollard present. She’s an unsung person of history, has a gripping story filled with romance and intrigue, and carries the perfect amount of “stranger than fiction” ambiance. Letters are read by familiar faces to the unconventional scene, such as Nick Cave, Richard Ayoade, and Alice Lowe (to name a few). All of these factors, thrown together through the building music, allow each story to pulse through the text, creating a Wong Kar-wai mood throughout the narrative. While some songs are stronger than others, each track conveys the characters at play and their place within the wilder world of Miss Flower.

The Extraordinary Miss Flower takes tons of influence from the stage, along with titans of film. Since the documentary is entirely performance-based and set within a studio, the story could work as well as a stage production. Music influences range from Icelandic indie music to The Cranberries, but all start within the realm of 90s alternative inspiration. Wes Anderson-esque moments of backstory on Geraldine fill the latter half of the film, adding a little extra quirk to a story brimming with experimentation. Each of these influences comes together to make a unique documentary experience, and one that more historical docs should consider.

Avant and unconventional describe The Extraordinary Miss Flower better than any words beyond “extraordinary.” The documentary injects a creative spirit into each frame, allowing the letters to flow like emotions in Miss Flower’s life. It may not be the most clear-cut way to learn about a person in history. But it’s engaging from start to close and feels organic to the person represented in the doc. The performances are incredible, the music gives gravity to each letter, and the direction is purposeful, pulling each element together to create a more authentic view of the late Miss Flower. Like Wong Kar-wai films, The Extraordinary Miss Flower is a movie you feel more than you think. The concept may seem strange, but the viewing experience is mesmerizing as two excellent directors introduce the world to a fascinating woman of history.