Frame 70 Reviews

Join Darryl as he dives into the archives for The World's Fastest Indian, the 2005 film from Roger Donaldson starring Anthony Hopkins as real life New Zealand speed record chaser Burt Munro. This From the Vault episode revisits Donaldson's decades long fascination with Munro's story and asks whether it still holds up as one of the most purely enjoyable underdog films of its era.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Darryl shares why Anthony Hopkins' performance as Burt Munro left him completely won over, the small vibrating mattress gag that stuck with him long...

Join Fraser as he reviews Resident Evil (2026), Zach Cregger's blood-soaked reimagining of the classic survival horror franchise, following an ordinary courier who stumbles into outbreak night in Raccoon City with no games knowledge and no idea what he's walking into.

This episode contains light spoilers.

In this review, Fraser shares why Austin Abrams' performance as the hapless Bryan left him rooting for the character from start to finish, why the maternity ward sequence might be the most disturbing scene he's witnessed in a horror movie in years, and why the zombie hail moment on the...

Join Fraser as he reviews Coyote vs. Acme (2026), the film Warner Bros nearly buried for a tax write-off before it found its way to cinemas through Ketchup Entertainment. Directed by Dave Green, this hybrid of live-action and classic Looney Tunes animation follows Wile E. Coyote as he takes Acme Corporation to court, and Fraser digs into whether a project with a history this strange actually turned out to be worth the wait.

This episode is completely spoiler free.

In this review, Fraser shares why Will Forte's performance as the down-on-his-luck lawyer won him over, how...

Join Fraser as he reviews the full first season of Small Prophets, the 2026 BBC Two comedy drama from Mackenzie Crook, the creator of Detectorists, exploring whether this quietly strange story of grief, alchemy and homunculi lives up to its remarkable cast.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Fraser shares why Pearce Quigley's deadpan performance as Michael left such a lasting impression, how Lauren Patel's reaction to seeing the prophets for the first time became one of the season's standout moments, and why the room dedicated to Clea stayed with him long after the...

Join Darryl as he pulls Les Misérables (2012) from the vault, revisiting Tom Hooper's sweeping adaptation of the sung-through stage musical with Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway and Amanda Seyfried leading the cast, and reflecting on why this one has stayed so close to his heart ever since he first saw it in the cinema.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Darryl shares why Hugh Jackman's performance as Valjean is the best of his career, how Anne Hathaway's unbroken take of I Dreamed a Dream left him floored all over again, and w...

Join Fraser as he reviews One Night Only, the 2026 rom-com from director Will Gluck, starring Callum Turner and Monica Barbaro as two strangers racing against a wild one-night-a-year premise, to find out whether this unlikely pairing delivers one of the sweetest surprises of the year.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Fraser shares why the film's jingle-based soundtrack had him laughing out loud once he clicked to the joke, how the pizza shop scene became his standout Frame 70 Moment, and why Molly Ringwald turning up as the hero's mum had him grinning from...

Join Fraser as he reviews DTF St. Louis (2026), the HBO limited series created by Steven Conrad, for a look at this TV show that follows a St. Louis weatherman, his sign language interpreter, and the friendship, affair and murder investigation that quietly tie them together across seven tightly wound episodes.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Fraser shares why David Harbour's performance as Floyd left him completely floored, how the show's final twist involving a single line of sign language quietly wrecked him, and why he thinks Bateman and Harbour circling each other...

Join Darryl as he revisits The Boys from Brazil from 1978 in this From the Vault episode, Franklin J. Schaffner's Nazi-hunting thriller starring Gregory Peck as Josef Mengele and Laurence Olivier as the tired, dogged Ezra Lieberman, asking whether this strange, ambitious piece of seventies science fiction still holds up decades later.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Darryl shares why Gregory Peck's against-type turn as Mengele stands as one of the finest performances of his career, how the moment Peck and Olivier finally share the screen together delivers on decades of anticipation, and...

Join Darryl as he reviews Mutiny (2026), Jean-François Richet's action thriller starring Jason Statham as a framed security chief who goes undercover on a cargo ship crawling with human traffickers and corporate killers, and whether it stacks up as one of Statham's better outings or something more mid-table.

This episode contains light spoilers.

In this review, Darryl shares why the ship-set showdown between Statham and Roland Møller's captain made his screening audibly react, why Adrian Lester's supporting turn sent him straight back to revisit Hustle, and why the film's final callback to its own op...

Join Fraser as he reviews Cape Fear, the 2026 Apple TV limited series that takes on the classic Max Cady story with Javier Bardem, Amy Adams and Patrick Wilson leading the cast, and breaks down whether this new take holds up against nearly seventy years of adaptations of the same material.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Fraser shares why Javier Bardem's double performance as Max Cady left him completely convinced even as the show around him faltered, why the reveal of Nevaeh Valentine as Cady's own daughter was one of the few twists...

Join Darryl as he revisits Lucy (2014) for this From the Vault episode, digging back into Luc Besson's high-concept sci-fi thriller starring Scarlett Johansson and Morgan Freeman, and unpacking why a film built on a scientific myth still manages to hit so hard a decade on.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Darryl shares why Scarlett Johansson's gradual transformation from terrified hotel captive to something barely human floored him, how Choi Min-sik's near-silent menace as Mr. Jang stuck with him long after the credits, and why, as someone who doesn't usually gravitate toward sci-fi...

Join Fraser as he reviews The Last House, the 2026 Netflix film from director Louis Leterrier, following the Delgado family as they wake up sealed inside their own home during a relentless storm, and whether the streamer's latest survival thriller earns its two hour runtime.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Fraser shares why Ruth's slow-burn theory about the creatures becomes the smartest thread in the whole film, why the family's booby-trapped back half wins him over after a saggy middle stretch, and why one gut punch moment involving the family's elderly dog hit...

Join Fraser as he reviews Spider-Noir, the 2026 Prime Video series bringing Nicolas Cage's hardboiled take on Spider-Man to a shadowy, Depression-era New York, and whether this eight episode noir detective show lives up to the promise of that unforgettable Into the Spider-Verse voice performance.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Fraser shares why Nicolas Cage's mix of Bugs Bunny energy and Bogart style detective work completely won him over, why the drunken mask fight in a smoky dive bar is the standout scene of the season, and why finishing the show left him...

Join Darryl for this From the Vault episode, revisiting Salt, the 2010 espionage thriller directed by Phillip Noyce and starring Angelina Jolie as a CIA officer suddenly accused of being a Russian sleeper agent, and whether this lean, relentless chase through Washington still holds up as one of the best pure action showcases of its era.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Darryl shares why Angelina Jolie's balancing act between innocence and guilt left him completely convinced either way, why Liev Schreiber's conflicted mentor stuck with him long after the credits rolled, and why...

Join Fraser as he reviews The Invite, the 2026 dinner-party comedy from director Olivia Wilde, an English-language remake of Cesc Gay's The People Upstairs starring Wilde herself alongside Seth Rogen, Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton, and finds out whether this single-apartment, four-hander earns its place among this year's best A24 releases.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Fraser shares why Seth Rogen's quietly wounded dramatic turn caught him completely off guard, how the film's closing piano duet became his favourite moment of the whole year so far, and why he walked away wanting t...

A quick one from Fraser — Frame 70 now has a home outside the podcast feed. frame70.com is live, with written companion reviews for every episode, the new Frame Index rating system, the Frame 70 Wire for movie and TV news, and a coming up next section so you always know what's on deck. Plus a first look at what's landing over the next few months, including Whalefall, Clayface, Digger, Lanterns, Android and a new season of Reacher — and a look ahead to December, with Avengers Doomsday, Dune Part Three, and a Richard Curtis Christmas run leading into Love Actually.

Th...

Join Fraser as he reviews Star City (2026), the Apple TV series that spins the For All Mankind universe on its head by flipping the space race lens onto the Soviet side, tracing the cosmonauts, the KGB minders and the secretive machine behind the Soviet lunar triumph, and whether this first season earns its place alongside the parent show.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Fraser shares why Agnes O'Casey's performance as Irina left him completely hooked, how the Venus descent sequence gave him chills for days after finishing the season, and why by...

Join Darryl as he revisits The Notebook, the 2004 romantic drama from director Nick Cassavetes starring Ryan Gosling, Rachel McAdams, James Garner and Gena Rowlands, for this From the Vault look back at one of the most beloved love stories in modern film.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Darryl shares why James Garner's quiet devotion as the older Noah left him speechless, how the reveal that Allie wrote the notebook herself changed the way he saw the entire film, and why, having been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's himself, watching this story hit...

Join Darryl as he reviews Song Sung Blue, the 2025 film from director Craig Brewer that turns the real story of Milwaukee's own Neil Diamond tribute act, Lightning and Thunder, into a full blown musical drama starring Hugh Jackman and Kate Hudson, and asks whether their journey from bar circuit dreamers to genuine tragedy and triumph earns every tear it asks for.

This episode contains light spoilers.

In this review, Darryl shares why Kate Hudson's descent into grief left him floored, how the real Eddie Vedder and Pearl Jam connection turns out to be even more...

Join Fraser as he reviews Sugar (2024), the Apple TV show that returns for a stylish second season, following Colin Farrell's alien private investigator as he digs deeper into a case that starts to cost him more than he bargained for.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Fraser shares why Colin Farrell's performance as John Sugar keeps getting better with age, how he correctly called the season's final twist episodes before it happened, and why that last shot of the machine finally lighting up left him half annoyed and half grinning.

Thanks...

Join Darryl as he revisits The Beekeeper, the 2024 action thriller from David Ayer starring Jason Statham as a former operative turned vigilante, in this From the Vault look back at one of the most satisfying action movies of recent years.

This episode contains light spoilers.

In this review, Darryl shares why the film's opening scam sequence hit uncomfortably close to home given his own experience with fraud, what makes the shed fight one of his favourite action sequences in years, and why the quiet final moment between Verona and Adam Clay landed harder for him...

Join Fraser for his review of The End of Oak Street, the 2026 film from director David Robert Mitchell that turns the dinosaur movie into an eighties suburban nightmare, following an ordinary family whose street is torn out of time itself.

This episode is completely spoiler free.

In this review, Fraser shares why the creature effects left him floored, which raptor stalking sequence had him gripping the armrest, and why one gut-punch death scene is still rattling around in his head days later.

Thanks for listening to Frame 70 Reviews. New reviews every Monday, Wednesday...

Darryl turns to television this time, reviewing Alley Cats (2026), Ricky Gervais's new animated series for Netflix. It's a six-episode look at Gus, a foul-mouthed ginger stray, and his gang of feral cats trying to get a lost kitten home through a hard London street life.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Darryl shares why the Puke storyline had him laughing at something he probably shouldn't have, how hearing the After Life cast reunited in one room completely changed the way the show landed for him, and why the scene with an old cat...

Join Fraser as he revisits Interstellar, Christopher Nolan's 2014 space epic starring Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain and Michael Caine, in this week's From the Vault episode. It's a promise fulfilled after last week's Contact review, and Fraser digs into why this hard science fiction film still holds a place near the very top of his all time favourites.

This episode contains full spoilers.

In this review, Fraser shares why the water planet sequence is some of the most suspenseful filmmaking Nolan has ever cut, how the Matt Damon reveal still lands as one of...

In the tense seventy-two hours before D-Day, the fate of the largest seaborne invasion in history came down to something nobody could control: the weather. Pressure, the 2026 drama from director Anthony Maras, stars Andrew Scott as Group Captain James Stagg, the Scottish meteorologist entrusted with the most consequential forecast ever made, and Brendan Fraser as General Dwight D. Eisenhower, the man who had to act on it. Adapted from David Haig's acclaimed stage play, with Kerry Condon, Chris Messina and Damian Lewis rounding out the cast, it tells the one D-Day story the movies had never touched.

...

Directed by Taika Waititi and starring Sam Neill and Julian Dennison, Hunt for the Wilderpeople is the 2016 comedy adventure that became the biggest homegrown hit in New Zealand cinema history — the story of a rebellious foster kid and a grumpy bushman who become the unlikely targets of a national manhunt. One month on from the passing of Sam Neill, Fraser marks the loss of a New Zealand legend the only way that felt right: with Sam's most Kiwi film and a glass of Sam's own wine.

In this review, Fraser shares why he waited a month before re...

Directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey, Contact is the 1997 sci-fi classic based on Carl Sagan's novel — the story of a SETI scientist who picks up a signal from the star Vega and discovers there are layers upon layers of information buried inside it, including the blueprints for a machine built to carry a single passenger. In this From the Vault episode, Fraser winds the clock back nearly thirty years and talks through the whole film, start to finish.

In this review, Fraser shares why a film that felt painfully slow to a mu...

Created by Chad Feehan and starring Kelly Reilly, Cole Hauser and Annette Bening, Dutton Ranch is the 2026 Paramount+ series that continues the Yellowstone story, following Beth Dutton and Rip Wheeler as they leave Montana behind to build a new cattle empire in South Texas — straight into the path of a ruthless rival ranching dynasty.

In this review, Fraser shares why he went into this one nervous about spending nine full episodes with a character he only ever enjoyed in small doses, how a midway-season turn completely changed what he thought this show was, and why Annette Bening's Be...

Join Fraser as he reviews Spider-Man: Brand New Day (2026), digging into Destin Daniel Cretton's take on Tom Holland's Spider-Man four years after Peter erased himself from the world's memory, and whether this bolder, more mature chapter earns its place as one of the best entries in the franchise. This one's completely safe to listen to whether you've already seen it or you're still deciding.

This episode is completely spoiler free.

In this review, Fraser shares why Tom Holland's more isolated, grown-up take on Peter Parker might be his best performance in the role yet, how...

This week Darryl pulls a modern classic down off the shelf: Wolfgang Petersen's 1995 pandemic thriller Outbreak. When a deadly, Ebola-like virus is smuggled out of Africa and turned loose in a small California town, it falls to an army virologist (Dustin Hoffman) and his CDC ex-wife (Rene Russo) to stay one step ahead of it, and one step ahead of the people who would rather bury the truth than cure it. With Morgan Freeman, Donald Sutherland, Cuba Gooding Jr. and Kevin Spacey rounding out one of the great thriller ensembles of the decade, this is a film that plays...

Directed by Kane Parsons and starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Renate Reinsve, Lukita Maxwell and Mark Duplass, Backrooms is the 2026 A24 horror film that grows out of Parsons' own viral YouTube series. A furniture store owner falls through a crack in his own wall into an endless maze of yellow rooms that get everything almost right, and never quite manage to be real. The deeper he goes, the harder it becomes to tell which world he actually belongs to.

In this review, Fraser shares why the film's central idea, that the Backrooms builds its rooms the way someone draws...

Created by Bill Lawrence and Matt Tarses and starring Steve Carell, Charly Clive, Danielle Deadwyler, Phil Dunster and John C. McGinley, Rooster is the 2026 HBO comedy series that became the network's most watched new comedy in over a decade. Carell plays Greg Russo, a bestselling novelist who lands at a New England college campus to support his daughter through a very public marriage breakdown, and ends up staying for the semester.

In this review, Fraser shares why the show's best dynamic isn't the one on the poster, the on-screen moment that sent him straight back down The...

Ladyhawke (1985) is Richard Donner's romantic fantasy about two lovers cursed to never truly be together. By day, Isabeau is a hawk. By night, Navarre is a wolf. The only moment they ever share in human form is a fleeting sliver of dawn and dusk. Rutger Hauer and Michelle Pfeiffer star as the cursed couple, with Matthew Broderick as the thief who gets swept up in their fight to break the spell.

This week Darryl takes on a genuine eighties classic, and it's one that catches him off guard in more than one way. He's won over by...

Directed by Christopher Nolan and starring Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Anne Hathaway and Zendaya, The Odyssey is Nolan's sprawling adaptation of Homer's ancient epic poem, following King Odysseus on his ten year journey home after the fall of Troy. Shot entirely on IMAX cameras across five countries, this is a film carrying enormous expectation, and it has to be seen on the biggest screen possible.

In this review, Fraser shares why Tom Holland's performance completely surprised him, why the practically shot cyclops cave sequence left him feeling the sound in his chest, and why the film's cinematography...

Directed by Tom Kingsley and starring Nicola Walker and Jemaine Clement, Alice and Steve is the Disney Plus "wrong-com" that follows two best friends of twenty-five years whose bond implodes when Steve starts dating Alice's daughter. One of the more under-the-radar surprises of the year, this is a show that earns its chaos every step of the way.

In this review, Fraser shares why Nicola Walker's performance as Alice completely recontextualised what he thought he knew about her after years of watching Unforgotten, why Jemaine Clement's turn as Steve might be one of his most underrated, and...

Directed by Jerry Zucker and starring Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore and Whoopi Goldberg, Ghost is the 1990 supernatural romance that became one of the biggest box office hits of its era and has remained a firm audience favourite for more than three decades.

In this review, Darryl shares why Jerry Zucker's leap from Airplane! to Ghost is one of the more remarkable turns in Hollywood directing, why Whoopi Goldberg's Oscar-winning performance as Oda Mae Brown still holds up scene for scene, and why the pottery wheel scene remains, for him, one of cinema's truly unforgettable moments more than...

Directed by Curry Barker and starring Michael Johnston, Inde Navarrette and Cooper Tomlinson, Obsession is the 2026 supernatural horror phenomenon that turned a $750,000 budget into one of the biggest box office stories of the year. When a hopelessly awkward music store employee wishes for his longtime crush to love him more than anything in the world, he gets exactly what he asked for — and everything that comes with it.

In this review, Fraser shares why he paused the movie convinced Apple TV was showing him the wrong version, the brilliant directing choice around Nikki that became his Frame 70 Mo...

🎙️ AFTER THE CREDITS: MEET DARRYL

A quick one for you today. In this short After the Credits clip, we introduce you to Darryl — the newest voice joining the Frame 70 family. Darryl shares a little about who he is, his lifelong love of film and television, and why he's excited to bring his own take to the show.

This is just a brief, casual introduction — no reviews, no spoilers, just getting to know Darryl before his first episode drops.

Thanks for listening to Frame 70 Reviews. New reviews every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Every review in full a...

Directed by Antoine Fuqua and starring Jaafar Jackson, Colman Domingo and Nia Long, Michael is the long-awaited biographical film tracing Michael Jackson's journey from a young boy in Gary, Indiana to the biggest entertainer the world has ever seen. One of the most anticipated biopics in years, this is a film that carries enormous expectation on its shoulders.

In this review, Fraser shares why Jaafar Jackson's performance left him completely floored, what makes Colman Domingo's portrayal of Joe Jackson one of the standout turns of the year, and why the moment he got home from the cinema...

Directed by Richard Donner and starring Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Corey Feldman, Jeff Cohen and Ke Huy Quan, The Goonies is the 1985 adventure classic that sent an entire generation hunting for treasure. When developers threaten to bulldoze their neighbourhood, a group of young misfits discovers a pirate's map in the attic and sets off beneath the Oregon coast to find the fortune of One-Eyed Willy — with a family of criminals hot on their heels.

In this first From the Vault review, Fraser shares the Gremlins Easter egg hiding inside a single phone call, the real childhood Spielberg pr...