Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die

The first time I had heard of Good Luck, Have Fun, Don’t Die (GLHFDD) was a trailer for it in front of my theatrical screening of Return to Silent Hill. Its concept and style of humor immediately piqued my interest, and my own familiarity with some of director Gore Verbinski’s previous work certainly helped. Although I didn’t end up seeing it in a theater, I was able to eventually watch it through streaming, however I had to rent it through Amazon Prime due to the Hulu/Disney+ option hitching up only on the device I intended to watch it on. Not only was I thoroughly entertained by the execution of its premise, it also provided some interesting commentary on the state of technology that made me think about my own usage of it.

007 First Light (PS5)

As a fan of the Hitman games, the idea of IO Interactive tackling a James Bond game sounded like a match made in heaven. Although Bond himself isn’t a mercenary, his status as a secret agent lends itself well to a gameplay style emphasizing infiltration and stealth without undercutting his license to kill. Although IOI made it clear that such a game wouldn’t play exactly like the World of Assassination trilogy, I still felt excited for what they could do with the property, currently under the ownership of Amazon MGM (there’s even an exclusive skin for buying the game through Amazon, naturally). The final game, 007 First Light (First Light), managed to live up to my expectations, capturing the world of James Bond in a new and exciting way. Its cinematic direction, however, is a double-edged sword in places.

Stubs - Supergirl

Supergirl (2026) starring Milly Alcock, Matthias Schoenaerts, Eve Ridley, David Krumholtz, Emily Beecham, David Corenswet, Jason Momoa. Directed by Craig Gillespie. Screenplay by Ana Nogueira, Based on Characters from DC. Produced by Peter Safran, James Gunn. Run time: 108 minutes. Color. USA. Superhero

Supergirl aka Kara Zor-El (Milly Alcock) with her best friend, Krypto.

 

Something that Supergirl has in common with John Wick is that nobody hurts her dog. Just like Wick slayed a whole hell of a lot of people because someone killed his dog, Supergirl aka Kara Zor-El (Milly Alcock) goes on a revenge tour when her dog Krypto is left incapacitated by Krem of the Yellow Hills (Matthias Schoenaert), the leader of the Brigands, a rowdy group of space pirates. Along the way, she picks up Ruthye Marye Knoll (Eve Ridle), a youing woman who has witnessed Krem kill her father, mother and brother, and is out for her own revenge. Add to that Kara has just three days to find Krem, who has stolen her spaceship, and return with the antidote to save Krypto, a daunting task.

Supergirl is based on DC comics and utilizes characters that would be well-known to longtime readers. How accurate it is to the comics themselves is not something I'm equipped to answer.

The film has not opened as well as had previously expected, but some of the blame on that can be the rather lackluster intro Superman (2025), which is supposed to have kicked off a revival of the DC Universe under the leadership of James Gunn. But some of it has to do with the film itself.

Stubs - Toy Story 5

Toy Story 5 (2026) voices Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack, Conan O'Brien, Scarlett Spears, Greta Lee, Shelby Rabara, Mykal-Michelle Harris, Craig Robinson, Frank Welker. Directed by Andrew Stanton. Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Kenna Harris Produced by Lindsey Collins, Jessica Choi Run Time: 102 minutes. Color. USA Animated, Adventure, Comedy

The toys are back in town and it’s good to see them.

Honestly, I was a little nervous about this film, based on fears that the Toy Story franchise would eventually run out of steam. But after 31 years, I’m happy to say that it can still make me cry.

Mortal Kombat II (Film)

Note: This review contains spoilers for Mortal Kombat (2021).

Back in 2021, during the height of the COVID-19 Pandemic, Warner Bros. released their first film in a rebooted Mortal Kombat film series, simply titled Mortal Kombat (MK). As this release occurred as part of a day-and-date theatrical and streaming film slate for that year, I watched it through HBO Max and liked it enough (with a much more positive view on a rewatch), though I was unsure if it would ever materialize. Sure enough, this year saw the release of Mortal Kombat II (MKII), which received a better critical response (64% on Rotten Tomatoes vs 55% for the original), though with a shaky box office return that may put the prospect of a third film in jeopardy. Nevertheless, I actually watched this one in a theater, albeit a few weeks late, and walked away wishing for the potential third film.

Stubs - The Sheep Detectives

The Sheep Detectives (2026) starring Hugh Jackman, Nicholas Braun, Nicholas Galitzine, Molly Gordon, Hong Chau, Emma Thompson; voices: Brett Goldstein, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Chris O’Dowd, Regina Hall, Patrick Stewart. Directed by Kyle Balda. Screenplay by Craig Mazin. Based on Three Bags Full by Leonie Swann. Produced by Lindsay Doran, Tim Bevan, Eric Fellner. Run Time: 109 minutes. Color. USA/UK Comedy, Mystery.

I’m a big fan of mysteries, but I don’t think I’ve ever heard of one in which a flock of sheep help solve a murder. But that’s the plot of The Sheep Detectives, a new film that’s currently in release. And, while it may sound far-fetched, the film is very much worth watching, and in fact, I’m looking forward to seeing it again.

The Devil Wears Prada 2

In a more risk-averse post-pandemic Hollywood climate, decades-long gaps between movie sequels are more common. This is especially true for films under the Disney umbrella, with The Devil Wears Prada 2 (distributed by 20th Century Studios) strutting down the runway 20 years after the original The Devil Wears Prada from 2006. Despite the passage of time between productions affecting both the returning cast and the world that their characters inhabit, this is one case where the using the same passionate crew results in a follow-up that manages to stand with the original as a natural next step rather than fall painfully short.

Mercy (2026)

Having a narrative unfold on screen in real time takes a lot of planning and coordination to pull off properly, which may be why it’s rare enough to be notable. Even more difficult is carrying that through an entire film or TV episode, with notable early examples being Alfred Hitchcock’s 1948 thriller Rope and Robert Wise’s 1949 boxing drama The Set-Up. When I first heard about the recent 2026 film named Mercy, the premise sounded vaguely interesting, but I wasn’t sure about seeing it until confirming that it unfolds in real time, which made me thinks of the aforementioned films that I had been exposed to when I was younger. Though I missed the theatrical window, it being an Amazon MGM distribution meant I was able to watch it for free on Amazon Prime Video (now with ads after the introduction of Prime Video Ultra). While I enjoyed it and thought critic reviews were a little harsh, I feel like I might have felt differently had I watched it outside of a streaming platform.

Exit 8 (Film)

When the independent Japanese game The Exit 8 (JP: 8番出口) by Kotake Create was released in 2023, it made a big splash on the indie game landscape, inspiring numerous other games to put their own spin on its unique anomaly hunting mechanics. This popularity would eventually lead to it getting a Japanese live-action film adaptation, titled Exit 8 (JP: 8番出口), directed by Genki Kawamura, in 2025. The existence of the film adaptation intrigued me even as someone who hadn’t played the game but knew about it, more so when distributor Neon gave it a limited (sub-only) US theatrical run earlier this week. Not knowing when I’d have another chance to see it, I managed to secure tickets for the most convenient screening within my area and found it to be well worth the effort.

God of War: Sons of Sparta

Note: The review contains spoilers for God of War: Sons of Sparta and God of War: Ghost of Sparta. 

The God of War series is no stranger to having canon installments developed by other studios outside of Santa Monica Studio, but not a full original console game. Such is the case with God of War: Sons of Sparta (Sons of Sparta), a PS5 exclusive co-developed by Mega Cat Studios, the studio behind Five Nights at Freddy’s: Into the Pit. Unusually for the series, let alone for its high profile, the game was shadow-dropped on the PlayStation Store during the February 2026 PlayStation State of Play. Although the release was sudden, I still got the game on release day, though it took a while to finish due to my own personal endurance. Upon completing it and reaching the post-game, I thought it was a worthy entry in the series, but not without some questionable design choices.

The Super Mario Galaxy Movie

Note: This review contains spoilers for The Super Mario Bros. Movie.

The success of 2023’s The Super Mario Bros. Movie, grossing over $1 billion on a $100 million budget, would naturally justify a sequel, announced one year later and released in 2026. Despite animation studio Illumination’s track record for the inconsistent quality of their output, I still enjoyed The Super Mario Bros. Movie (in spite of its flaws) and felt growing hype as the sequel, The Super Mario Galaxy Movie, drew closer, enough that I finally played the original game that it was based on, Super Mario Galaxy. Although some skepticism and negative critic reviews popped up during the lead-in to the film’s release, I felt that I should see first-hand how it shaped up compared to the original. Unfortunately, for every enjoyable element, there is something that holds it back from greatness.

Hoppers

As I said in my review of Elio, Pixar’s track record has proven rather hit and miss in the 2020s, complete with Elio itself finishing its theatrical run as a box office bomb that maybe made its $150 million budget back. This made me less enthusiastic about their follow-up film, Hoppers, at least at first. The more I saw the trailers, however, the more my curiosity got the better of me and I ended up watching it on opening weekend. Although I didn’t have high expectations going in, I had a genuinely good time and walked away with a willingness to actually rewatch a recent Pixar film later, which rekindled some hope for the studio’s future.

Iron Lung (Film)

It’s not uncommon for online video content creators to branch out into film, whether acting or directing. Less common, however, is a content creator not only writing, directing, starring in, editing and executive producing their own independent feature, but also adapting a video game. Such is the case with Iron Lung, which represents Mark “Markiplier” Fischbach’s feature directorial debut and adapts the 2022 indie horror game of the same name by David Szymanski. As a fan of Markiplier, I followed the status of the production throughout, including how conflicts with shooting times prevented him from appearing in the original Five Nights at Freddy’s film. I also witnessed the splash that Iron Lung made closer to release, with a small theatrical rollout brought on by independently distributing the film quickly ballooning to the point that major theater chains like AMC and Regal picked it up, the latter even offering an exclusive (3D printable) popcorn bucket. I was hyped enough to be a part of something so unique, regardless of the quality, that I bought tickets for an early screening the day they went live. Fortunately, Markiplier managed to put his money where his mouth is and create a very solid, if imperfect, big screen debut.

Return to Silent Hill

Among the more well-known film adaptations of video games, Silent Hill (2006), directed by Christophe Gans, is one of the more divisive ones. Critics at the time didn’t like that much, though fans and general audiences have had a more mixed response. When I saw it for myself at the time that I had immersed myself in the Silent Hill franchise, I did find some genuine criticisms, but otherwise found it one of the better adaptations, especially for its time. Although Silent Hill would stay on the small screen after the disastrous Silent Hill: Revelation (2012) (Revelation), directed by M. J. Bassett, the surprise announcement of a full Silent Hill revival in 2022 included another film, an adaptation of Silent Hill 2 (SH2) titled Return to Silent Hill (Return), with Christophe Gans returning to the director’s chair. In fact, this project acted as the catalyst internally for the series revival, as Konami thought that a film project alone wouldn’t satisfy fans. Now, over three years later, Silent Hill has finally returned to the big screen and, as someone who loved both the original SH2 and the remake, I went in to this one cautiously optimistic. However, while Return did meet my expectations, at least improving over Revelation, it unfortunately fell short where it mattered most.

Megadeth: Behind the Mask

For the last 41 years, Megadeth have created a legacy as one of the “Big Four” of thrash metal, alongside Anthrax, Slayer and Metallica. Although Dave Mustaine, the band’s founder and only constant member, hasn’t created an empire on the same level as Metallica, the band who famously kicked him out, serving as the catalyst for the creation of Megadeth, he has still found great success in his own right, including sixteen albums and contributions to several film and video game soundtracks, plus tours that regularly sell out in the thousands. In that time, Mustaine has also been through a lot physically, including a successful battle against throat cancer and, most recently, Dupuytren's contracture, which has affected his ability to play guitar. Before closing the book on Megadeth, however, Mustaine has decided he’ll go out on his own terms, including a seventeenth and final studio album, Megadeth, and an extensive global farewell tour. Part of the buildup to the final album’s release included Megadeth: Behind the Mask, an immersive feature that’s both an extensive interview regarding the band’s 40-year history and a world premiere listening party for Megadeth, complete with Mustaine’s own track-by-track reflections. A unique film for sure, but one that did its job remarkably well.