More May Movie Reviews: Rating Four New Films

I’ve watched a good amount of movies in this May — so many that I think we’re due for another movie review post! Today, we’ll go over four newly streaming films that are extremely different from one another in terms of genre and tone. Depending on what you’re looking for, there just might be something you’re interested in with one of these titles.

In the Land of Saints and Sinners (2023)

Facing East Entertainment, 106 minutes

In the Land of Saints and Sinners is best described as a modern Western taking place in 1970s Ireland that stars Liam Neeson. If that one-line description sounds like a movie you might enjoy, you’re in luck, because the film pretty much delivers on what it sets out to do. This isn’t a great film by just about any means, and it’s not particularly memorable, but for this type of action flick, it’s above average.

Neeson’s character is a hitman looking to retire, and the actor fits the role excellently – he’s believable as a brutal killer, but also as an older man with an interest in gardening and books. His plans at retirement are put on hold when four members of the Irish Republican Army take refuge in the coastal town where Neeson’s character (named Finbar) lives.

The acting in the film, by basically the entire cast, is much better than you’d expect for this type of movie. The script itself isn’t great, but the performances elevate the film to another level. When you throw in some beautiful scenery, In the Land of Saints and Sinners isn’t a bad way to spend just over an hour and a half.

The movie does have some pacing problems, and combined with the lackluster dialogue, they prevent this from being anything more than simply a good Liam Neeson action movie. Is it forgettable? Probably. Is it still worth a watch? Sure, why not?

Grade: 7/10

Coup de Chance (2023)

Gravier Productions, 96 minutes

Woody Allen movies sort of fall into a genre of their own and Coup de Chance, the latest film by the now 88-year-old filmmaker, is no exception. The movie has mystery and thriller elements, romance, drama, and a bit of comedy too – mostly though, it’s simply best defined as a quintessential Woody Allen film.

The plot of the film centers around a woman named Fanny who lives in Paris with her wealthy husband, Jean. When Fanny bumps into an old high school classmate on the street, the two begin spending time together and developing feelings for one another.

As with many Woody Allen movies, one of the strengths of the film is its dialogue. Though the movie is in French, the dialogue is fast-paced and clever. The film goes along at a good clip and is never boring. Coup de Chance is also a very well-shot film and with beautiful scenes of Paris and the surrounding area, it feels almost like an advertisement to travel to the city.

In contrast with some of Allen’s other works, I found it pretty easy to see where the story was going. Despite being predictatble, I still really enjoyed Coup de Chance. This style of film feels distinct from the majority of movies being produced and that’s largely a good thing.

Grade: 8/10

Abigail (2024)

Universal Pictures, Radio Silence Productions, 109 minutes

Abigail is a horror-thriller about a group of criminals who kidnap the 12-year-old daughter of a wealthy businessman with the hopes of holding her for ransom. Of course, after the ragtag group gets the girl to the mansion where they hope to hold her things begin to spiral out of control, and we quickly realize that everything isn’t as it seems.

The team behind Abigail, Radio Silence, has been at the helm of other major recent horror movies like Scream (2022), Scream VI, and Ready or Not. They’re movies that all tend to have the same horror-comedy feel – they’re gory, but not too scary, with a mixture of comedic elements mixed in. To me, all of Radio Silence’s work tends to be largely just fine/okay and Abigail is no exception. (Though Ready or Not is definitely my favorite of the films they’ve created.)

Abigail isn’t quite scary enough to be great horror or funny enough to be very successful horror-comedy. It’s watchable, but it doesn’t totally deliver on a very creative setup. The third act of the film, in particular, stands out as being fairly weak.

I would recommend watching something like Ready or Not, or one of the first two original Scream movies, or even something like You’re Next, if you want to watch a film tonally similar to Abigail (but better). If you’ve already seen all of those though, and still just want something decent to sit through, you could do far worse than Abigail when it comes to recent horror films.

Grade: 6/10

Challengers (2024)

MGM, 131 minutes

Challengers, perhaps better known as “that tennis movie with Zendaya,” does a few things really well, but there are also aspects of the movie that I didn’t enjoy. It’s a movie that, as a whole, I feel pretty mixed on, though it’s definitely watchable.

The story is a simple one revolving around a love triangle between two male tennis players and a female player who projects to be the next big tennis superstar. Delving into what the movie does well first, the tension between these three characters is really palpable. Both male leads have good chemistry with Tashi, the character played by Zendaya. The acting, actually, is very good, and I thought it elevated the movie.

Unfortunately, the script itself doesn’t give the cast too much to work with. Challengers is very much a movie concerned with style over substance, and it goes a bit overboard in this regard. This film would’ve been much improved with more character scenes and fewer shots of seeing a tennis ball fly through the air in different ways.

One thing that surprised me was how much actual tennis is in this movie. It’s very much a tennis love triangle movie and not just a love triangle movie with some tennis as the backdrop. While Challengers is also too long (this movie should’ve been cut to an hour and forty-five minutes), it’s mostly fun, and well-made and acted enough for me to recommend, though just barely.