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Run & Gun Reviews

At best it's an average film.

Full Review | Original Score: C+ | Mar 8, 2022

Where to Watch

Ben Milliken (Ray) Brad William Henke (Billings) Janel Parrish (Faith) Richard Kind (Grayson) Alison Thornton (Tara) Mark Dacascos (Brando) Ari Barkan (Perry) Celestino Cornielle (Ninni) Angela Sarafyan (Maggie) Ashton Sol Casas (Julian)

Christopher Borrelli

After leaving a life of crime and violence, Ray is a reformed good guy who enjoys a quiet family life in the suburbs.

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Run & gun trailer shows funny action flick [exclusive].

Watch the trailer for Paramount's Run & Gun, about a criminal dragged back into a life of crime for one last job. The film premieres December 3.

Screen Rant has the exclusive trailer for the upcoming action film from Paramount  Run & Gun . The film is written and directed by Christopher Borrelli, making his directorial debut. He previously wrote The Witches  In the Woods and  The Vatican Tapes .  Run & Gun premieres in select theaters on December 3, on digital and On Demand on January 11, 2022, and will be available on DVD January 25, 2022.

Run & Gun follows Ray, a former criminal now just trying to enjoy a quiet life with his family in the suburbs. But when his past is discovered, Ray is blackmailed into one last job. After getting double-crossed, Ray finds himself on the run from ruthless assassins who want the mysterious package he has collected. With the lives of his family in danger, Ray's only hope is to use his deadly skills to survive.

Related: The 10 Best Action Movies Of The 2000s

Watch the exclusive trailer for  Run & Gun  below. The trailer shows the action that can be expected from the thriller. There is also a heavy dose of humor, with lots of jokes made at Ray's expense. The trailer hints that while Ray may be a former criminal, he's also just a guy who seems to find himself in some unlucky situations. See the trailer for  Run & Gun  below!

Run & Gun  stars Ben Milliken ( Bosch ) as Ray. The cast also includes Brad William Henke ( The Stand ) , Janel Parrish ( Pretty Little Liars ) , Mark Dacascos ( Hawaii Five-0 ) , Celestino Cornielle ( Bosch ) , Angela Sarafyan ( Westworld ), Alison Thorton ( Dare Me ), Hudson Yang ( Fresh Off The Boat ), Michelle Campbell ( Yellowstone ), Ari Barkan ( Big Dogs ), Rafael Cebrián ( Narcos ), and Richard Kind ( The   Goldbergs ) .

See the stylish poster for  Run & Gun below and read the official synopsis for the film:

After leaving a life of crime and violence, Ray is a reformed good guy, enjoying a quiet family life in the 'burbs. But when his past is discovered, Ray is blackmailed into one last job to collect a mysterious package. After a deadly double-cross, he finds himself wounded and on the run from ruthless assassins who will stop at nothing to get what he has. Now, with the lives of his loved ones hanging in the balance and danger at every turn, Ray's only hope is to draw upon his violent past to survive.

Next: Every Movie Coming To Theaters In December 2021

Run & Gun  premieres in select theaters on December 3, digital and On Demand on January 11, 2022, and will be available on DVD on January 25, 2022.

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Run & gun.

2022 Directed by Christopher Borrelli

After leaving a life of crime and violence, Ray is a reformed good guy, enjoying a quiet family life in the ‘burbs. But when his past is discovered, Ray is blackmailed into one last job to collect a mysterious package. After a deadly double-cross, he finds himself wounded and on the run from ruthless assassins who will stop at nothing to get what he has. Now, with the lives of his loved ones hanging in the balance and danger at every turn, Ray’s only hope is to draw upon his violent past to survive.

Ben Milliken Brad William Henke Janel Parrish Mark Dacascos Celestino Cornielle Angela Sarafyan Alison Thornton Hudson Yang Michelle Campbell Ari Barkan Rafael Cebrian Richard Kind

Director Director

Christopher Borrelli

Writer Writer

Executive producer exec. producer.

Chris Fenton

Production Design Production Design

Sarah Loeppke

Stunts Stunts

Al Goto Ed Duran

Primary Language

Spoken languages.

Spanish English Portuguese

Releases by Date

11 jan 2022, 04 mar 2022, 17 mar 2022, 06 apr 2022, 25 jan 2022, releases by country.

• Digital 18 VOD
• Digital 10 VOD

96 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by Dave Horwitz ★½ 4

None of the reviews of this movie mention that it is currently being featured as part of Delta’s in flight entertainment. There, along with Encanto and Spider-Man No Way Home can you watch this extremely low budget throwback crime caper(?) starring an Australian guy with such a familiar face you might briefly consider paying for wifi just to Google him, only to realize nope, he’s just a Guy With A Face. Seems like a weird choice, as Delta’s content library is pretty limited. How did this Redbox-ass movie wind up on the main entertainment page of one of the biggest airlines in the world (cut to an exhaustive and ignored investigative podcast).

This is a propulsive enough little indie actioner…

Review by chrisp ★★

pretty sure this actually made my flight  longer  idk how exactly but yeah

Review by kjdson ★★★

Your basic 90's throwback caper with a guy getting mixed up with some criminals and coming across dangerous and sometimes quirky people as he weasels his way out of danger.

The lead is all right, not familiar with him. Richard Kind and Marc Dacascos are entertaining. There's some entertaining bits. Nothing too exciting. Not a whole lot of action.

I was ready for a '2 days earlier' or some crap at the beginning but instead it went '2 years later' and while it had no real impact on the story I appreciated that it didn't bother with a nonlinear story. Made for an easier viewing experience.

Review by conor 1

this movie features a fake reality show called Crane Guys  which is just about seeing if some guys with a crane can lift heavy shit.  genius premise.  i don’t care about the rest of the movie.

Films Released in 2022 Ranked

Review by Filipe Furtado ★½ 1

A pretty dull throwback to late 90s offbeat thrillers. Overwritten, lousy action, some delusion that it is going for more than it is. Richard Kind and Mark Dacascos are cast as the guys blackmail the lead back into criminal life which s pretty good for a cheapie like this one and it has no idea what to do with them which is pretty much the movie in a nutshell.

Review by UltimateMovieRankings ★★★½

Run & Gun is not a well reviewed movie. So, I might be one of the few that actually liked it. I thought the twist and turns were interesting. I liked Ben Milliken made for a good hero. Some of the corners he gets backed into are fun. The late Brad William Henke makes a good villain. Richard Kind is also good in a very different role for him. Final thought: I liked it, and I am not ashamed to admit it.

Review by Michael Vazquez ★★½

Serviceable 90’s Tarantino caper with great performances from Brad William Henke (RIP) & Richard Kind.

Review by Dustin Baker ★★½

Inoffensive and small scaled, this works as a throwback to the era when video store shelves were inundated with would-be Tarantino riffs, and it works well enough as a snack version of a dark-comedic crime tale, not offering up much ingenuity, save for the fantastic bits with Richard Kind. Mark Dacascos shows up to lend some legitimacy and charm to the whole thing.

Review by Rose. 👽 ★½

Esperaba algo decente, pero ni eso. Lamentable. Vista en Netflix.

Review by Michael ★★★

"You're not Yosemite Sam. You're Wile E. Coyote."

For a movie called Run & Gun, it doesn't have much of either. This is an alright throwback to the mid to late 90s when everyone was trying to be the next Tarantino/Rodriguez. But it doesn't have the bite or ultra-violence but there is some fun, quirk, and charm. It also doesn't have a completed script. I don't know if they ran out of time or budget, but there are elements that feel unfinished or underbaked. Ben Milliken is the lead, and I'm unfamiliar with him, but he has a face that tricked me into thinking I was. But he carried this fine enough. It was odd seeing Richard Kind as a crime…

Review by Julia Grohlo🇨🇦 🇻🇳 ★★

Lol je ne pensais pas qu'on pouvait faire encore plus débile que le film/série MacGruber (parodie de MacGyver) Ambiance très 90's avec je crois le plot twist le plus incroyablement con de l'histoire du cinéma et je pense que le réal a voulu aussi imiter Tarantino

Review by MoVieManKev ★★★½

R is for Run and Gun on Paramount+

Ok, which one is Run and which one is Gun? I kid, I kid, this is a fun but fairly frivolous slice of retro comic action fluff that would've worked much better as a DTV flick from last century. Perhaps then Mark Dacascos would've had a bigger role.

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RUN & GUN

• Post author: Dennis Schwartz
• Post published: March 8, 2022
• Post category: Uncategorized

RUN & GUN

(director/writer: Christopher Borrelli; cinematographer: Adam Lee; editor: Chester Howie/Niven Howie; music: Zach Robinson; cast: Angela Sarafyan (Maggie), Mark Dacascos (Brando), Michelle Jubilee Gonzalez (Shoemaker), Richard Kind (Grayson), Jannel Parrish (Faith), Ben Milliken (Ray); Runtime: 96; MPAA Rating: R; producers; Matt Allen, Krista Suh, Conor Bailey: Paramount Pictures ; 2022)

“ At best it’s an average film. ”

Reviewed by Dennis Schwartz Christopher Borrelliin in his debut feature film is writer and director of this thriller (falsely advertised as an action film). Borrelli has several credits as a screenwriter on such films as Eloise and The Vatican Tapes. Ray ( Ben Milliken ) is a past criminal who has reformed and gone straight, living a quiet family life in the suburbs with his longtime girlfriend Faith ( Jannel Parrish ) and working as an insurance man. When his past is uncovered, he’s blackmailed to do one more job or his family will be killed. When spotted by past associates, the mobster Grayson (Richard Kind), he and his henchman go after him. To survive, Ray must act violently like he did in the past. The Salton Sea is used for Ray’s escape route. At best it’s an average film. There seems nothing special about it to make one see it.

REVIEWED ON 3/8/2022  GRADE: C+ 

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Run & Gun (The Ray) Ending Explained: What Are In The Tapes? | Netflix

Run & Gun (The Ray) Ending Explained: Run and Gun 2021 action thriller is now streaming on Netflix and it’s a one-time watch film if you wanted to watch the film for timepass then watch it.

The story follows Ray, a Criminal who has a dangerous past he wants to start a new life but his past doesn’t leave him.

Run and Gun follows the story of Ray an Ex mercenary who worked for a criminal boss Known as The Shoemaker, but due to some work problem The Shoemaker wanted to kill Ray with another person Lupe, Lupe also worked for The Shoemaker, but he lost her dog, so The Shoemaker wanted the two dead and send them to a desert where her henchmen can hang them.

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The henchmen first hang Ray, Ray act like he was was dead and then drops his Fake Rolex watch the henchmen go to him and take that Rolex watch, in that time Ray freed his hand and then cut the neck of The Henchmen, and henchmen died due to blood loss. Lupe then asks Ray to help him and asks him if he can give him a lift to America, Texas but Ray is going to California and wants to leave this violence. Then Ray pointed the gun towards Lupe and then the scene was cut.

Is Lupe Alive? And What Happened To Ray?

Yes, Lupe is alive, but he’s now in Jail, it’s probably because of other things. Ray helps Lupe and the two go to California. Ray now works for a Bank and he also has a girlfriend named Faith. Faith is a single mother, so she asks Ray if he wants a family or if he’s going to leave them Ray also wants a family, so he says yes that he wants a family, but Ray also had feared.

Ray got a call from Lupe from jail that someone knows about Ray and is following him. Ray becomes angry with Lupe because if The Shoemaker got to know about them, She can kill the close one of Lupe and Ray.

Who knows About Ray?

Grayson, a criminal, knows about Ray. Grayson is going to get an important package of a Shoemaker, so he wants Ray to save him from the shoemaker, Grayson gives another job to Ray, and Grayson wants Ray to poison his neighbor’s tree. Ray says no to him, He doesn’t want to poison a tree. Grayson shows him the video of Lupe where he’s bitten by the goons in Jail, So Ray has to poison the tree.

Perry is going to get that important package, but now he can’t go because he had a major accident on the road, so Grayson’s brother gave that job to Ray. Ray now needs to get that important package from Nini. Ray goes to that place and gets that package in exchange for Money. Ray takes the package and starts driving his truck, but after crossing half a Kilometre his tire is punctured.

Ray is now changing his tire when someone comes in the car and shoots Ray in his stomach. It is Nini and his Twin brother, who also wants that package. Ray then kills Nini’s Twin Brother and gets the car and leaves that place.

Nini shoots the car’s Petrol Tank, Petrol starts leaking from the car so Ray can’t go that long. Ray then hid that car in the bush. Ray found a Factory in that place and also found a place where he can hide the money and the package. Ray is bleeding and goes to that factory and finds a car.

He tries to break the glass but someone is there and it is Billings. Billings is living there, Ray asks him if he can give him that car and a phone he also can give him money for the car, but Billings says that he doesn’t own that car and he also didn’t have any phone.

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Billings asks him to come to the factory if he doesn’t have a gun because he’s bleeding and he doesn’t want any problem. Ray says there is no need to fear him. Billings takes him and asks him if he wants to remove that bullet from his chest because he can die from bleeding. Ray doesn’t have any other options so he says yes!

Billings removes the bullet and Ray offers him Money but Billings doesn’t want money, so he asks Ray to rest. Ray then sleeps for a minute and then asks Billings to open the door because he locked the door. Billings says he can’t do this because he wants money. If Ray has 20 Grands then he might have more, so Billings asks Ray to give him all his money. Ray doesn’t want to do that because he hides the money and package in one place.

Billings warns him and asks him to give all his money or he’s going to torture him. Ray tries to open the door but can’t, then he finds a shake bottle of Billings. Ray puts the poison in the Billings bottle. Then try to run away from that place in another way. Billings put traps all over the place, so Ray stuck in a trap.

Billings tried to shoot him but Ray kicked him and escaped from that trap. Nini founded Ray in that factory and asks him where is that package, Billings heard everything and kills Nini from behind, Ray got the chance and tried to escape from that place but he can’t run because his leg is hurt due to the trap and his stomach is also paining, so he hides in another place. Billings again warns him where the money is and that package, Now he also wants the package.

Billings then heard the cell phone ringing and found out that it was Ray’s phone. Nini got their phone of Ray after he escaped from that place. Faith is calling Ray, Billings answers it and says that Ray had a huge accident and he can’t walk because his leg is injured and she needs to come to that place.

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Ray didn’t want this, so he says to not harm faith he can give the money if Billings leaves him. Billings expected that because Ray hid the money and The Package at one place. Billings again asks Ray to tell him the hiding place otherwise he’s going to torture him.

Ray didn’t want Billings to get the package so he didn’t tell him the hiding place. Billings then come to that place and starts drinking Shake from the poison bottle. Ray thought Billings was going to die, but he survived.

Ray then goes to another place in that factory and finds an orphan girl who’s been there for 5 days, she’s been kidnapped by Billings. Billings is going to sell her, so a woman comes there to take her. Ray then promises her that he is going to help her, Ray then goes to the truck of those women and finds a bee bag there so he opens that bag and locks the truck. When that woman opens the truck and bees sting her, Meanwhile That girl escapes the place and finds Ray. Ray got the car keys and asked that girl if she could run.

Before they leave that place Ray puts a trap in there, That woman got trapped in that trap, That women ask for help from Billings. Billings gets the call from Faith and Faith again asks him about Ray, but due to the woman shouting, Billings can’t hear anything, So Billings kills him. Billings then answers that Ray is now good and running, and Faith replies that she’s coming.

Ray and that girl try to escape that place using a car, but it is a remote-controlled car and Billings stops the car using his remote key. Billings starts firing Ray asks That girl to run from that place. Ray hides in a small storeroom and watches that girl running, Billings is trying to shoot that girl and He succeeds in it.

Billings then asks Ray about his offer. Faith is coming to that place and if Ray didn’t tell him about the hiding place he’s going to kill her. Ray then tells him that he’s hiding Money and The Package in the junkyard car. Billings goes to his room and packs his things, Then he sees that Ray has destroyed his Toy collection.

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That makes Billings angry and now he Wants to Kill Rey. Rey is digging a hole in that store room because it’s full of sand and easy to dig. Billings comes with his truck and is now going to pull that storeroom. Billings pulls into the store room.

Ray saves himself by hiding in that hole and starts running from that place, Billings starts attacking him, then we see Grayson is there. Grayson is thinking that Ray is trying to betray him. Ray tells him the truth and where he is hiding that package and money. Someone already took that money from that place, Ray thinks it’s Billings, but he didn’t take that money. Grayson found movie tapes in that package and there is some movie in those tapes that means nothing.

Grayson asks Ray about where his money is because Tapes is trash now he wants his money, Grayson also phones Shoemaker, Shoemaker answers that call but doesn’t say anything. Grayson tries Ray behind cars and asks Perry to do a round.

Ray stuck to his answer and then we saw That girl who we think is dead but she was not. That girl is driving a car in Billings and she got the money. Then Ray laughs and Ties Grayson behind cars and gives a signal to Perry. Grayson’s brother tried to kill Ray, but Billings killed him. Ray now tries to run while Billings is firing, Ray goes to his truck and finds a gun and shoots it toward his ear, and then throws a bomb and Billings is now dead.

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Ray then calls Faith and asks her to not come here and tells her that He’s not going to leave him and he’s going to tell her the truth. Ray also adopted that girl. And Then the movie ends.

What’s In Those Tapes?

Grayson Founds has nothing in that Tape because it’s an old video tape, but after the movie ends and the credits start we saw a short credit scene where we see Ray find out about The secret things in Tapes and it’s some Bank Account Numbers. Ray didn’t want any problem so he asked Lupe to delete all of it.

Why Does Ninni Want That Package?

Ninni is actually working for Grayson’s Brother, Grayson’s Brother wanted to know about what’s in that box because he never saw his brother so excited about that package. He wants to send Perry, but his plan fails after he sends Ray there.

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‘Run & Gun’ Netflix Movie Review - A Halfway Decent Thriller

In one scene, Richard Kind as Grayson engages in a long monologue about the Mandela Effect and how time travelers or other beings are controlling us all. He further says that our world’s main timeline split after some event and we are all in another timeline. This is why the majority of people are remembering little details wrong. For example, Monopoly man actually has no monocle, Darth Vader didn’t actually say “Luke, I am your father,” there was a “Shazaam” movie with Sinbad, etc. His little nonsensical rant is the most excited I have been while watching this movie.

At this point, I wondered if this small-budget action thriller was going to attempt something fantastical. But even though the main plot of the movie is directly related to this rant, nothing happens. When Grayson finally takes a look at the package he paid $440 thousand for, he finds copies of “Kazaam” starring Shaqieul O’Neil where the title has been photoshopped to say “Shazaam”. It’s an unimpressive gag that just left me feeling meh. 

And this is pretty much how the entire movie made me feel, just meh. It sets up good scenes and mysteries but doesn’t go through with them effectively. At best, it’s a run-of-the-mill action thriller about a guy called Ray who gets involved with his life of crime one last time but then finds himself in trouble. 

Written and directed by Christopher Borrelli, Netflix’s “Run and Gun”, previously titled “The Ray,” is at best a decent action thriller. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel regarding the genre, but it’s a watchable film with a couple of gory and brutal scenes. I use the word ‘watchable’ because this could be a much better movie if it was written just slightly better. 

Starring Ben Milliken as Ray, Brad William Henke as Billings, and Richard Kind as Grayson in titular roles, “Run and Gun” features a shabby plot. Sometimes I had to rewind back to see if I missed a scene or not, because it feels like there should be more scenes connecting one scene to another. For example, in a scene, Ray is trapped in a flimsy metal hut, but he finds a shovel and digs himself a hole large enough to hide in. I sat there wondering how did a shovel appear in his hand? And how did he dig that fast with a gun wound on his midriff? 

There are no answers to such questions, so you just have to go with the flow. The characterization isn’t much better. Brad William Henke as Billings and Richard Kind as Grayson are the only two standout performances that I actually enjoyed watching. It’s borderline sad that the film fails to write its titular man as an interesting character. Yes, he seems like a cool guy, but neither the script nor the acting shows that adequately. Instead, it just feels like he’s graced with palpable plot armor and injected with a super serum because no matter gunshots or wounds, this guy just stands up and gets going. No other character is notable enough to mention. 

Overall, if you love getting more questions than answers from a film, watch “Run and Gun” on Netflix.

Final Score –  [5/10] Reviewed by - Ishita Chatterjee Follow  @dracone619  on Twitter Publisher at  Midgard Times

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Movie Review: A Gnarly, Greasy Portrayal of Gym Rats and Gun Nuts in ‘Love Lies Bleeding’

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One word comes to mind while watching Rose Glass’ gritty new thriller Love Lies Bleeding — greasy.

Set in a local community of gym rats and gun nuts, we see the ever-fascinating contradiction of people obsessed with working out — something that should be healthy — while simultaneously addicted to cigarettes, steroids or both.

Everyone in this movie looks like they need a bath or a trip to the dentist. Glass builds a gnarly universe for viewers who will either be sucked into the experience or too grossed out toward the end.

In 1989 small town Nevada, Jackie ( Katy O’Brian ) is an aspiring bodybuilder who stops in town on the way to Las Vegas from Oklahoma. It’s love at first sight when she and local gym manager Lou (Kristen Stewart) meet and instantly move in together.

But what starts out romantic, quickly turns dark when Jackie discovers her boss at the gun range is Lou’s psychotic father Lou Sr. (Ed Harris), and it was Lou’s scumbag brother-in-law J.J. (Dave Franco) who had hooked up with Jackie the day she arrived. Anna Baryshnikov plays a cringe inducing local with a desperate crush on Lou, and Jena Malone appears as Lou’s older sister.

Directed and co-written by England-based Glass, Love Lies Bleeding at first feels like a sportier update of the Wachowskis’ cult classic Bound (1996) before going a bit off the rails in the second half. Some editing and fantasy sequences seem like they would belong in an Alex Garland flick.

This is a movie that unfortunately peaks in the beginning and then progresses in an abstract way. Baryshnikov’s character seems mostly unnecessary and distracts from the leads. If Glass wants her audience to feel uneasy, then she mainly succeeds with the glaringly graphic violence and close-ups of Jackie shooting up steroids.

O’Brian — with her martial arts background —gives a strong performance in her first lead role, and Stewart is clearly comfortable in her typical tomboyish role, while Harris reminds us how effortlessly he can pull off sinister. 

Love Lies Bleeding is worth checking out for fans of the cast or of Glass’ sleeper hit Saint Maud (2019). And in case you’re wondering, Elton John’s classic 1973 track, “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding,” doesn’t make an appearance on the soundtrack.

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‘Civil War’ | Anatomy of a Scene

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“My name is Alex Garland and I’m the writer director of ‘Civil War’. So this particular clip is roughly around the halfway point of the movie and it’s these four journalists and they’re trying to get, in a very circuitous route, from New York to DC, and encountering various obstacles on the way. And this is one of those obstacles. What they find themselves stuck in is a battle between two snipers. And they are close to one of the snipers and the other sniper is somewhere unseen, but presumably in a large house that sits over a field and a hill. It’s a surrealist exchange and it’s surrounded by some very surrealist imagery, which is they’re, in broad daylight in broad sunshine, there’s no indication that we’re anywhere near winter in the filming. In fact, you can kind of tell it’s summer. But they’re surrounded by Christmas decorations. And in some ways, the Christmas decorations speak of a country, which is in disrepair, however silly it sounds. If you haven’t put away your Christmas decorations, clearly something isn’t going right.” “What’s going on?” “Someone in that house, they’re stuck. We’re stuck.” “And there’s a bit of imagery. It felt like it hit the right note. But the interesting thing about that imagery was that it was not production designed. We didn’t create it. We actually literally found it. We were driving along and we saw all of these Christmas decorations, basically exactly as they are in the film. They were about 100 yards away, just piled up by the side of the road. And it turned out, it was a guy who’d put on a winter wonderland festival. People had not dug his winter wonderland festival, and he’d gone bankrupt. And he had decided just to leave everything just strewn around on a farmer’s field, who was then absolutely furious. So in a way, there’s a loose parallel, which is the same implication that exists within the film exists within real life.” “You don’t understand a word I say. Yo. What’s over there in that house?” “Someone shooting.” “It’s to do with the fact that when things get extreme, the reasons why things got extreme no longer become relevant and the knife edge of the problem is all that really remains relevant. So it doesn’t actually matter, as it were, in this context, what side they’re fighting for or what the other person’s fighting for. It’s just reduced to a survival.”

By Manohla Dargis

A blunt, gut-twisting work of speculative fiction, “Civil War” opens with the United States at war with itself — literally, not just rhetorically. In Washington, D.C., the president is holed up in the White House; in a spookily depopulated New York, desperate people wait for water rations. It’s the near-future, and rooftop snipers, suicide bombers and wild-eyed randos are in the fight while an opposition faction with a two-star flag called the Western Forces, comprising Texas and California — as I said, this is speculative fiction — is leading the charge against what remains of the federal government. If you’re feeling triggered, you aren’t alone.

It’s mourning again in America, and it’s mesmerizingly, horribly gripping. Filled with bullets, consuming fires and terrific actors like Kirsten Dunst running for cover, the movie is a what-if nightmare stoked by memories of Jan. 6. As in what if the visions of some rioters had been realized, what if the nation was again broken by Civil War, what if the democratic experiment called America had come undone? If that sounds harrowing, you’re right. It’s one thing when a movie taps into childish fears with monsters under the bed; you’re eager to see what happens because you know how it will end (until the sequel). Adult fears are another matter.

In “Civil War,” the British filmmaker Alex Garland explores the unbearable if not the unthinkable, something he likes to do. A pop cultural savant, he made a splashy zeitgeist-ready debut with his 1996 best seller “The Beach,” a novel about a paradise that proves deadly, an evergreen metaphor for life and the basis for a silly film . That things in the world are not what they seem, and are often far worse, is a theme that Garland has continued pursuing in other dark fantasies, first as a screenwriter (“ 28 Days Later ”), and then as a writer-director (“ Ex Machina ”). His résumé is populated with zombies, clones and aliens, though reliably it is his outwardly ordinary characters you need to keep a closer watch on.

By the time “Civil War” opens, the fight has been raging for an undisclosed period yet long enough to have hollowed out cities and people’s faces alike. It’s unclear as to why the war started or who fired the first shot. Garland does scatter some hints; in one ugly scene, a militia type played by a jolting, scarily effective Jesse Plemons asks captives “what kind of American” they are. Yet whatever divisions preceded the conflict are left to your imagination, at least partly because Garland assumes you’ve been paying attention to recent events. Instead, he presents an outwardly and largely post-ideological landscape in which debates over policies, politics and American exceptionalism have been rendered moot by war.

‘Civil War’ Is Designed to Disturb You

One thing that remains familiar amid these ruins is the movie’s old-fashioned faith in journalism. Dunst, who’s sensational, plays Lee, a war photographer who works for Reuters alongside her friend, a reporter, Joel (the charismatic Wagner Moura). They’re in New York when you meet them, milling through a crowd anxiously waiting for water rations next to a protected tanker. It’s a fraught scene; the restless crowd is edging into mob panic, and Lee, camera in hand, is on high alert. As Garland’s own camera and Joel skitter about, Lee carves a path through the chaos, as if she knows exactly where she needs to be — and then a bomb goes off. By the time it does, an aspiring photojournalist, Jessie (Cailee Spaeny), is also in the mix.

The streamlined, insistently intimate story takes shape once Lee, Joel, Jessie and a veteran reporter, Sammy (Stephen McKinley Henderson), pile into a van and head to Washington. Joel and Lee are hoping to interview the president (Nick Offerman), and Sammy and Jessie are riding along largely so that Garland can make the trip more interesting. Sammy serves as a stabilizing force (Henderson fills the van with humanizing warmth), while Jessie plays the eager upstart Lee takes under her resentful wing. It’s a tidily balanced sampling that the actors, with Garland’s banter and via some cozy downtime, turn into flesh-and-blood personalities, people whose vulnerability feeds the escalating tension with each mile.

As the miles and hours pass, Garland adds diversions and hurdles, including a pair of playful colleagues, Tony and Bohai (Nelson Lee and Evan Lai), and some spooky dudes guarding a gas station. Garland shrewdly exploits the tense emptiness of the land, turning strangers into potential threats and pretty country roads into ominously ambiguous byways. Smartly, he also recurrently focuses on Lee’s face, a heartbreakingly hard mask that Dunst lets slip brilliantly. As the journey continues, Garland further sketches in the bigger picture — the dollar is near-worthless, the F.B.I. is gone — but for the most part, he focuses on his travelers and the engulfing violence, the smoke and the tracer fire that they often don’t notice until they do.

Despite some much-needed lulls (for you, for the narrative rhythm), “Civil War” is unremittingly brutal or at least it feels that way. Many contemporary thrillers are far more overtly gruesome than this one, partly because violence is one way unimaginative directors can put a distinctive spin on otherwise interchangeable material: Cue the artful fountains of arterial spray. Part of what makes the carnage here feel incessant and palpably realistic is that Garland, whose visual approach is generally unfussy, doesn’t embellish the violence, turning it into an ornament of his virtuosity. Instead, the violence is direct, at times shockingly casual and unsettling, so much so that its unpleasantness almost comes as a surprise.

If the violence feels more intense than in a typical genre shoot ’em up, it’s also because, I think, with “Civil War,” Garland has made the movie that’s long been workshopped in American political discourse and in mass culture, and which entered wider circulation on Jan. 6. The raw power of Garland’s vision unquestionably owes much to the vivid scenes that beamed across the world that day when rioters, some wearing T-shirts emblazoned with “ MAGA civil war ,” swarmed the Capitol. Even so, watching this movie, I also flashed on other times in which Americans have relitigated the Civil War directly and not, on the screen and in the streets.

Movies have played a role in that relitigation for more than a century, at times grotesquely. Two of the most famous films in history — D.W. Griffith’s 1915 racist epic “The Birth of a Nation” (which became a Ku Klux Klan recruitment tool) and the romantic 1939 melodrama “Gone With the Wind” — are monuments to white supremacy and the myth of the Southern Lost Cause. Both were critical and popular hits. In the decades since, filmmakers have returned to the Civil War era to tell other stories in films like “Glory,” “Lincoln” and “Django Unchained” that in addressing the American past inevitably engage with its present.

There are no lofty or reassuring speeches in “Civil War,” and the movie doesn’t speak to the better angels of our nature the way so many films try to. Hollywood’s longstanding, deeply American imperative for happy endings maintains an iron grip on movies, even in ostensibly independent productions. There’s no such possibility for that in “Civil War.” The very premise of Garland’s movie means that — no matter what happens when or if Lee and the rest reach Washington — a happy ending is impossible, which makes this very tough going. Rarely have I seen a movie that made me so acutely uncomfortable or watched an actor’s face that, like Dunst’s, expressed a nation’s soul-sickness so vividly that it felt like an X-ray.

Civil War Rated R for war violence and mass death. Running time: 1 hour 49 minutes. In theaters.

An earlier version of this review misidentified an organization in the Civil War in the movie. It is the Western Forces, not the Western Front.

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Manohla Dargis is the chief film critic for The Times. More about Manohla Dargis

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'Run Lola Run' Is Coming Back to Theaters for 25th Anniversary

Tom Tykwer‘s classic film will return in 4K this summer.

The Big Picture

• Run Lola Run celebrates 25 years with a 4K re-release in U.S. cinemas this summer, exploring cause-and-effect relationships in a thrilling way.
• The German cult classic follows Lola as she navigates three alternate universes to save her boyfriend, showcasing innovative storytelling and a catchy soundtrack.
• Sony Pictures Classics plans a nationwide reissue of Run Lola Run in June, honoring the enduring impact of this hi-tech thriller on new generations.

Lola is set for another run as Sony Pictures Classics' Run Lola Run is set to celebrate its 25th anniversary with a 4K restored version re-releasing in the U.S. cinemas this summer. Most people will remember this mind-bending tale that gave us a thrilling look at the cause-and-effect relationship. Led by Franka Potente as Lola and written-directed by Tom Tykwer the movie became an instant cult classic thanks to its innovative experimental style and catchy soundtrack. The re-release will be timed to the movie’s original domestic release, The Hollywood Reporter reveals.

The German thriller follows Lola, an athlete who needs to obtain 100,000 Deutschmarks in twenty minutes to save the life of her boyfriend Manni, who is in trouble with the local gangsters. In a unique story structure, Tykwer constructs the story in a video game style with three alternative universes, where Lola has three lives and her actions ultimately affect the outcome. The first two universes end in tragic "game over" scenarios while Lola has to get it the third time right.

“Over the past 25 years, Run Lola Run remains one of the most enduring Sony Pictures Classics titles of all time,” the studio said in a statement. “It is as timely now as when it first appeared in theaters in 1999. Our nationwide reissue in June is a celebration of this first hi-tech thriller presented as it deserves, to be seen and reseen on the big screen, and to continue to dazzle new generations of viewers.”

‘Run Lola Run’ Was an Instant Success

The movie was an instant hit among fans and critics for its storytelling, direction and performances. It garnered many accolades as well as was also selected as Germany’s entry in Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars, however, it was not ultimately nominated. The movie made over $22 million at the worldwide box office and became one of the highest-grossing non-English-language films ever at that time in the US and Canada. The movie has a 93 percent rating on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes .

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Run Lola Run will run in theatres this summer. Stay tuned to Collider for further updates.

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Pamela Anderson and Liam Neeson to star in Naked Gun remake

Baywatch star will return to the big screen in the remake of the 80s and 90s crime spoof, directed by the Lonely Island’s Akiva Schaffer

Pamela Anderson is headed back to the big screen for a remake of the Naked Gun, opposite Liam Neeson .

The Lonely Island alum Akiva Schaffer will direct the as-yet-untitled remake, based on the series of crime spoof comedies released in the 1980s and 90s, for Paramount. Schaffer, Doug Mand and Dan Gregor – the trio behind the popular Emmy-winning Disney+ movie Chip ’n Dale: Rescue Rangers – will pen the script.

Plot details are being kept strict lock and key, according to the Hollywood Reporter , but Neeson will play Frank Drebin, an inept and aloof police detective originally played by Leslie Nielsen, who improbably stumbles into solving the crime of the day. Anderson will play his love interest, in a role mixing sexiness and goofiness similar to the one originated by Priscilla Presley.

Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane and Erica Huggins will produce under their banner Fuzzy Door. Schaffer, the executive producer of such comedy series as I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson and Pen15, will also executive produce.

The remake marks a return to film stardom for Anderson, a former Playboy model who achieved international fame on the TV series Baywatch. The 56-year-old actor made her big-screen debut as the lead of Barb Wire, an adaptation of a Dark Horse Comics title that was savaged by critics and bombed at the box office. She went on to star in the show VIP as well as Scary Movie 3, as well as appearing in several reality shows.

More recently, Anderson was back in the spotlight as the subject of the Hulu series Pam & Tommy , starring Lily James as Anderson and Sebastian Stan as her ex-husband Tommy Lee. The series covers their notorious 1990s sex scandal, when a disgruntled contractor stole their private sex tape, which was then marketed and sold to millions without their consent. Anderson publicly opposed the series for rehashing her trauma , and turned the spotlight on her career via a well-received run on Broadway as Chicago’s Roxie Hart and the Netflix documentary Pamela, A Love Story .

Anderson is also set to star in Gia Coppola’s The Last Showgirl , playing a Las Vegas dancer trying to rebuild her life in her 50s opposite Jamie Lee Curtis, Dave Bautista, Brenda Song, Kiernan Shipka and Billie Lourd. It will be her first film role since 2022’s Alone at Night.

While filming details for Naked Gun are still under wraps, Paramount is eyeing a July 2025 release.

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Review | ‘The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare’ kept me captivated

Guy Ritchie , the mind behind “The Gentlemen,” returned with another soon-to-be classic war flick, collaborating with “Top Gun” producer Jerry Bruckheimer to bring “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” to the big screen.

The film, released on April 19, features a star-studded cast, including Henry Cavill, Alex Pettyfer , Eiza González of “Baby Driver,” Hero Fiennes Tiffin , and many more famous faces.

Based on a true story, the movie delves into the first special forces organization formed during World War II by former Prime Minister Winston Churchill . Made up of rogues and rebels, they agreed to take on a top-secret mission titled Operation Postmaster to help them win the war.

Though the film was a highly fictionalized account of these events, it was successful in fostering the overall mission as its focus instead of going off-script with unrealistic, Bond-style kills.

Although I’m not a history buff, I would say this film was effective in showcasing this specific WWII event; the film’s script was as poetic as it was digestible.

What made the film even more interesting was the secrecy of the mission, giving the film a spy movie-like texture.

One motif I noticed throughout the film was founder of the special forces organization Gustavus Henry March-Phillipps’ fascination with coats. He kept mentioning that he wanted one throughout the beginning of the movie, and I found it interesting that he chose to take a uniform from a Gestapo officer that he murdered.

He hated Adolf Hitler, so to flaunt Nazi pride like that while using it as an advantage against them illustrated his character’s unpredictability.

I also appreciated that the film was very eye-catching in terms of color. The saturation was used well especially during the party scene, so much so I was left wondering how nice it would have been to have attended it — a challenging feat considering the party was a life-or-death mission to keep the Nazis at bay.

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A scene that I found the most intriguing was the way one of the members of the team, Marjorie Stewart, played by Gonzalez, slipped up by singing a song in Yiddish instead of German to the main Nazi soldier she was seducing for information. What made things worse was that she didn’t even notice.

The shots kept panning from the leader’s face to Gonzalez and, as his smile faded upon hearing the Yiddish, it did not hit me that he realized her scheme until the very moment that he said: “We’ve caught ourselves a little Jew.”

I do not know German, so these English subtitles made the scene all the more poignant.

In terms of historical context, “The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare” enlightened me to an aspect of World War II that I was not previously aware of. The film is now playing in theatres.

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LOVE COURAGE AND THE BATTLE OF BUSHY RUN Movie

Posted: April 19, 2024 | Last updated: April 19, 2024

LOVE COURAGE AND THE BATTLE OF BUSHY RUN Movie Trailer HD - Plot synopsis: Set in 1763, following Britain's victory in the Seven Years’ War, the American Colonies are on the brink of chaos. Colonel Henry Bouquet, portrayed by Tom Connolly, leads a diverse army of Scottish Highlanders, British soldiers, and American volunteers against the siege led by Ottawa Chief Pontiac at Fort Pitt, Pennsylvania. With breath-taking battle scenes and powerful performances, this film not only captures the intensity of war but also highlights the human stories and bravery of those who stood at the frontier of history. Starring: Tom Connolly, Rachele Schank, John Michael Finley, Adam Baldwin, Edward Gelhaus, Jackson Hurst, Chris Mayers, Rachel Hendrix, Julian Curtis, and Delno Ebi. Directed by: Dave Alan Johnson & Larry A. McLean

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