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Film reviews

Highest 2 Lowest Review

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This film directed by Spike Lee with Denzel Washington in the lead is one that makes for a masterclass in filmmaking success. Highest 2 Lowest is what I consider to be one of the best films of 2025. It has a dramatic sense of power and irony that moves in a direction that creating its own force of nature. Lee’s directing is like the setup of a play of power and triumph–one where millionaires and the music industry find themselves in a battle of ransom to the highest peaks. Instead of suspenseful tones of action, it follows more along the lines of politics weaving back and forth with egos fighting to come to an agreement. With Lee, fans know that he is one to paint the portrait with the writing on the wall. It is fresh “writing on the wall” all over in Highest 2 Lowest.

The film centers on a music mogul named David King (Washington). He is all about money and thriving on the power of creativity via words and wisdom. His wife is Pam King (played by Illfenesh Hadera) and his family friend is Paul Christopher (played by Jeffrey Wright). The life of New York is golden and glamorous with King fully living the high life of the music industry. All that changes in a heartbeat when his son Trey (played Aubrey Joseph) is kidnapped. It is a ransom situation that gets political and ethical. A moral dilemma is presented with much authority associated.

The film is mesmerizing because of its set-up. It feels like a Shakespeare production. That is because the many moments of suspense will have Washington pontificating on authority and business while also dealing with finding the means to get around a ransom. Not only that, but also assuring that his life continues to be glamorous and successful with his family. Lee brings in that brotherhood and fatherhood vibe with many lines of wisdom throughout the hard and aching moments of the powerful crime. The New York streets boil down the mood of anxiousness with an artistic form of continuity that is one-of-a-kind in Highest 2 Lowest.

The dynamic between Washington and Wright is also the major component of staying connected in Highest 2 Lowest. There is a background of writing that establishes what a close relationship looks like while dealing with a hard situation. But also, the ransom scenario has its moments where it competes—because money is the key to getting out of the conflict. Ultimately resolution is all in the hands of the business perspective of Highest 2 Lowest and Lee’s directing creates a road that presents this vividly in Highest 2 Lowest.

To retrace my words of why I love this movie, it is because I love how Washington can play a man of success and a man dealing with a complicated situation.  At the same time, he presents a serious side but is also mentally prepared to go down with the irreparable consequences. Music, money, family, hardship—greed and success does not bring good people with it sometimes. The portrait of jealousy lies within, but the voice of fighting to keep going strong via politics is where Highest 2 Lowest shines. Four out of four stars for Highest 2 Lowest.

 

Film reviews

Echo Valley Review

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When it comes to relationships between parents and their children there is a sense of comfort and empathy surrounding that bond. There is also that time when a parent chooses to push themselves to the limit to protect their children. Directed by Michael Pearce, Echo Valley is a film with a rough dynamic that feels real and vigorously carries the weaving component of detrimental stress. It takes place in a vast landscape that is on a farm setting. Livelihood is a bucolic aspect of this scene, but then that gets interrupted by turmoil between a mother and a daughter. Kate (Julianne Moore) is the mother and Claire (Sydney Sweeney) is the daughter. A dynamic of hardship that rattles love to a level that is one of a heartache. 

Kate lives her life on a farm where she trains horses. Her daughter Claire is coming back for a visit and she is notorious for drugs and lots of other mischievous behavior. Kate has always bailed Claire out of her problems, but this one gets very out of hand. There is a life-threatening accident involving drugs, betrayal and debt which puts Claire in trouble and Kate along with her.  Kate does not have to involve herself, but she chooses to protect her daughter.

The writing and continuity of lies creates an unsettling atmosphere. Claire’s error is one that boils the screen with the anxiety it provokes. This is because one dangerous man comes around to settle for Claire’s mistakes. His name is Jackson, played by Domhnall Gleeson. He is a manipulator and not a good person—a dealer that lies and tries to turn the table by putting Claire’s mess onto Kate to clean up. Despite it all being Claire’s bad choices, Kate chooses to take much of it into her own hands. Motherly dedication is one that is brutally portrayed and captivating. Moore digs deep here to play a mother that will not be messed with.

Echo Valley carries uniqueness that displays how a trail of lies can also have its gains for good and bad intentions. Kate uses it for “good” and Jackie uses it for “bad.” However, it all comes down to the choices of Kate as well. The farm setting poses the threat of their livelihood being at risk and the chance of Claire falling into despair. The screenplay is written with depth that keeps mingling the anxiety to the core of Echo Valley. I keptdesperately wanting Kate to be the good mother and Claire to find a way to get her act together. The directing of Pearce creates these two sides to make its audience feel the hardship of their relationship carried to immersive heights in Echo Valley.

Moore and Sweeney bring the mother and daughter duo of love and sacrifice to an artistic level of achievement. The film has its moments of trying too hard to become dramatic with an abusive context. I will say some of it kept its pacing, but at the same time, the light can come sooner in many incidents.  I told myself in these moments that it always gets worse before it gets better. Regardless, there is light, but there is also patience and repetition to be cultivated before “light” can shine brighter for resolution in Echo Valley. Three out of four stars.

 

 

Film reviews

Blitz Review

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Director Steve McQueen knows how to bring in real-life events to make audiences feel the impact. He did so with Hunger (2008), Shame (2011), and 12 Years a Slave (2013). He has had other projects, but these previous films and his newest feature Blitz illustrate the challenge of battling reality no matter what the cost. Blitz is a historic tale where peril is a risk that must be dealt with to survive. London during World War II provides the setting in which a deep form of barely controllable tough love is at play. However, the story is more focused on those running for their lives than the historical aspects of the film itself. McQueen’s use of disconnect eventually finding a path to reconnection is done well in Blitz. McQueen also wrote the screenplay, and this time around, it feels like he used a different approach as a director when creating this drama.

The plot of the film takes place in the 1940s. There are a group of Londoners experiencing the dangers of the British Capital Bombing during the war. The main character is Rita (played by Saoirse Ronan), and she puts her son George (played by Elliott Heffernan) on a train as the times are tumultuous. George escapes the train and finds himself facing various hurdles. When Rita finds out George is missing, the search process for home and love does not come easy in Blitz.

The harsh times the characters are living in are filled with uncertainty which translates into a mind-boggling feeling for theaudience. Ronan is the concerned mother taking the necessary steps to try and find her son. Heffernan is the young boy scared for his life, but also hoping to find those who he can trust to help him navigate the uncharted territory he never imagined he would have to endure. George meets an African American soldier named Ife (played by Benjamin Clementine), and he helps George a lot. Jack (played by Harris Dickinson) is an English soldier who is of some assistance to Rita. The film also reveals the obstacles caused by racism and segregation during that era.  Some characters have a sense of entitlement that causes Blitz to have more unnerving moments amid the ever-present dangers. 

This is not a masterpiece, but it is solid film filled with emotions. Blitz lacks McQueen’s normal intensity and is a lot lighter than his previous projects. The subject matter is heavy, but primarily geared on finding peace with the loved ones and resolution to endure the perils that the story reveals. The period of World War II is important, but the story focuses more on the impact on innocent lives than zeroing in on warfare scenes. This is a drama where all may feel lost, but there is still a chance for restoration. In the end, it is about staying the course and never giving up. Two-and-a-half out of four stars for Blitz.