Mike (Channing Tatum) takes to the stage again, following a business deal that went bust, leaving him broke and taking bartender gigs in Florida. Mike heads to London with a wealthy socialite (Salma Hayek) who lures him with an offer he can’t refuse.

Brace yourself for the fire because Channing Tatum is bringing sexy back as ‘Magic’ Mike Lane one last time in one of 2023’s funniest cinematic releases with Magic Mike’s Last Dance. And he’s ready to go out on top with this one. Re-teaming with visionary filmmaker Steven Soderbergh, the two collaborators get to work on bringing flair and passion back to the big screen as Magic Mike has one last chance to make his dreams come true. And it will take everything of him as an artist, dancer and stripper to make it happen. Giving this film a more international scope, Soderbergh relocates the action from the heat of Maimi to the regal streets of London’s West End. And anything goes in this last chapter. Mixing together plenty of flesh with an intimate character study and love story, Magic Mike’s Last Dance is a film that swings for the fences and the entire creative team give it everything they’ve got.

Channing Tatum is once again front in centre as Mike Lane. But at the start of Magic Mike’s Last Dance it’s clear that the ‘Magic’ has been removed from his life and he needs something to spark it back up inside of him. That spark comes in the form of Salma Hayek’s Maxandra ‘Max’ Mendoza, a divorcee stuck in limbo, who is also seeking new passions in her life. And together the two of them fire it up. Within the narrative, Mike is seeking a bit of a do-over as the pandemic has shut down his dreams of a custom furniture business, and this time around, he throws himself on the line to deliver one hell of a show. Tatum again straddles the line between disarming charmer and sensual stud, and you can tell that he’s having a blast with this picture, and he delivers big on its energy.

Pairing off with Tatum this time around is the firey Salma Hayek as Max, a divorcee whose stuck in a rut and looking for something to inspire her passion once more. And she finds it with Mike. But while she whisks him away from Maimi to London to bring his talents to the stage, the lines between business and pleasure begin to blur. The role of Max gives Hayek a lot to play with in terms of character, and her conflicted emotions and habits lead to plenty of drama on screen. While she’s undoubtedly MILFy in the role and is definitely in charge of her sexuality and in reach of her own sensuality, notions of love and connection are complex subjects and this makes the drama that much more interesting. Hayek shares an excellent level of chemistry with Tatum and this makes the film that much more exciting and energetic, with her taking control of every single scene she’s in.

For those seeking flair, Magic Mike’s Last Dance delivers it, and both Soderberg and Tatum decide that it’s time to go big with the final act. Enlisting a troop of new talent, who all have serious moves, the heat is turned up for the final act, and there’s plenty of flesh on display for a very sizzling time. While I don’t want to spoil the tease too much I will say that the film’s opening number is an erotically charged moment shared between Mike and Max. And Tatum brings the grind. But it’s the third act’s epic 30-minute bombardment of testosterone-soaked dance goodness courtesy of Mike and the lads where this film delivers a bang. Culminating in the scintillating and sexy performance between Mike and ‘The Ballerina’, and set amidst a stream of overflowing water, this is a primal and passionate endnote of raw choreographed sensual expression and sexual energy, and damn does it get your heart working.

Magic Mike’s Last Dance embraces the spirit and energy of the previous films and dials it all up for the third film. There’s a great bit of comedy, along with a very fun surprise for fans of the original films. Ultimately Soderbergh and Tatum bring the film back to a real story of romantic drama and the need for connection. Both Mike and Max are two lonely individuals who are in need of connection, and while there’s plenty of fire and passion, Magic Mike’s Last Dance is at its core a sweet love story of two people finding real love together and this is what will make audiences truly smile.

As a cinematic experience, Magic Mike’s Last Dance is a fun, energetic, and firey piece of film and Mike gives it his all and goes out with one hell of a bang in this final feature. It’s a guaranteed great time out at the movies and your heart will be racing by the closing credits.

Image: Warner Brothers Pictures

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After the return of half the population in Avengers: Endgame ignites “the emergence”, the Eternals—an immortal alien race created by the Celestials who have secretly lived on Earth for over 7,000 years—reunite to protect humanity from their evil counterparts, the Deviants.

Fresh off her Academy Award-winning work on the dramatic Nomadland, director Chloé Zhao jumps headfirst into the Marvel Cinematic Universe and opens audiences up to a brand new cast of characters with The Eternals, a group of extraterrestrial gods who have a massive connection to the very foundation of the MCU and she gets to stretch her creativity as a filmmaker with this project to a very cosmic level. As a director, Zhao strikes the right balance between the massive scale and intimate emotion that works its way into Eternals and she uses a unique storytelling frame to explore the presence of the Eternals and their place both in the past and present on Earth and how they have shaped human existence from the shadows.

Zhao also leans heavily into the design aesthetic and storytelling of the great Jack Kirby; an artist who was a literal world-builder and who along with his collaborator Stan Lee helped to craft the entire Marvel Universe. The Eternals where his singular creation and Zhao revisits the unique design language that Kirby established when bringing these characters to life and by injecting Kirby’s unique rendering style into the project she truly marks Eternals out as a Marvel film that does not look like any other previous MCU films. Added to the unique look and feel of Eternals is its stunning visual effects and cinematography, and with the presence of its cosmic atmosphere and the arrival of the mighty Celestials, Eternals stands out as a very impressive visual specimen.

Eternals is a complete ensemble piece and Zhao has assembled quite the cast. Gemma Chan, Richard Madden, Kumail Nanjiani, Lia McHugh, Brian Tyree Henry, Lauren Ridloff, Barry Keoghan, Don Lee, Salma Hayek and Angelina Jolie make up this eclectic cast of characters and each brings their unique sensibilities and personality to this very diverse group of characters. Splitting the Eternals up into the ‘fighters’ who include Madden, Nanjiani, Ridloff, Lee and Jolie and the ‘thinkers’ who include Chan, McHugh, Henry, Keoghan and Hayek keeps the action and storytelling of the film’s narrative interesting, while also adding to the sense of family that the film builds on and the drama that comes with it. This pack of heroes is certainly the most unique mix that we’ve so far seen in the MCU and Zhao leans into each of the actor’s personalities and quirks to distinguish the Eternals from other more established MCU heroes.

Of particular note in Eternals is Richard Madden as the heroically stoic Ikaris. Standing tall and proud and presenting a considerable action man gravitas to his performance, Madden holds the attention of the screen as the high-flying Ikrais and proves that he has the chops to handle the role of the leading man. Madden brings a grand sense of power to his role as Ikaris and it’s a solid performance that marks him out as an actor to watch. He’s juxtaposed as Ikaris with the presence of Gemma Chan’s Sersi who is more reserved in her performance and who offers audiences a path into the world of the Eternals, and she brings a great maturity to her role and position as Sersi.

Breaking things up and bringing a fun sense of levity to the heavy drama of Eternals is Kumail Nanjiani as Kingo and this is Nanjiani as we’ve never seen him before/ Playing Kingo as an egotistical playboy who has embraced the opportunities that eternal life has granted him, Nanjiani has a blast really shifting things up and his outlook in the film has an important part to play in the narrative. Lia McHugh also marks herself out as a true revelation as Sprite, an ‘old soul’ who brings plenty of dramatic tension to the story and who holds her own with the older members of the cast. Angelina Jolie also really shifts things up as the warrior Thena, and she plays with plenty of heavy emotions and her role is marked by key feelings of trauma and loss. Kit Harrington also makes a very interesting cameo appearance as Dane Whitman, a human mortal who is guarding a dangerous lineage and the secrets that come with it, and who makes a keen impression on audiences.

Eternals is a real rush of a ride, and after a year of lockdowns and more smaller-scale forms of entertainment it’s so much fun to finally be back in front of a big screen and the epic reach that only the cinema can present. Zhao showcases an amazing level of dynamic action that will have your blood pumping and Eternals is an exciting time at the cinema for sure. From laser-energy battles with the hellish Deviants to the presence of the all-consuming force of the mighty Celestials, Eternals packs a hell of a lot of energy onto the big screen and the result is a very cool cinematic presentation, unlike anything we’ve ever seen from Marvel Studios on the big screen before.

Eternals is a Marvel film that takes risks and wins big with its narrative, visuals and universe expanding concepts and injects a host of fantastic new energy into the still-growing Marvel Cinematic Universe. It’s superhero cinema done big and bold and Marvel fans get one hell of a cool treat with this one.

Image: Walt Disney Pictures

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Four years after the events of the original film, bodyguard Michael Bryce (Ryan Reynolds) is on a company mandated sabbatical when Sonia Kincaid (Salma Hayek), the wife of hitman Darius Kincaid (Samuel L. Jackson) whom Bryce shares an uneasy friendship with, rescues him from an assassination attempt to rescue Darius. Due to his sabbatical, Bryce is not allowed to use firearms or lethal weapons of any kind and must use his wits and intelligence to save Darius and save the day.

Australian director Patrick Hughes returns to helm this much watch sequel to The Hitman’s Bodyguard, the film that took the world by storm and rewrote the very nature of what action-comedy could be. Now with Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard, Hughes really cranks up the volume and this time the action is gnarlier and the comedy is totally off the chain. And trust us when we say that action-comedy doesn’t get much better than this. Right from its opening moments, Hughes cranks everything up and soon the action gets heavy for former ace security expert Michael Bryce (Reynolds) as he is pulled kicking and screaming into another outlandish mission with the foul-mouthed assassin Darius Kincaid (Jackson) and his totally unhinged wife and lover Sonia (Hayek).

Right from the start Hughes puts his foot down and moment after moment the action of this film gets utterly crazy. Whether it’s a wanton path of destruction through the streets of Capri or an explosive yacht chase in the middle of Palermo, Hughes really goes over board with his unique mix of action and comedy. And the audience will get one hell of a rush because of it. While I’m a big fan of action as narrative, here we see action as comedy coming into its own, and Hughes continually throws an array of worsening situations as Reynold’s Bryce, who has to face them on with all his issues, while having to survive the presence of the flamboyantly dangerous Kincaid’s in the process.

Ryan Reynolds is back in top form as security expert Michael Bryce, and he’s in a hell of a funk when we meet up with him again. Carrying a deep sense of anxiety, he is literally ‘forced’ back into the bodyguard profession by the foul-mouthed and totally unhinged Sonia, and then you go in and mix ultimate ‘frenemy’ hitman Darius into the picture and you have one hell of a destructive threesome! Reynolds once again nails his comedic timing, and his talent for improvisation leads to uncontrollable laugh-out-loud moments. He also has to put up with the presence of two Kincaid’s now and this leads to plenty of questionable choices on behalf of Mr Bryce. And did we mention that his newfound sabbatical mindset and unique weapon choices also add to the hilarity.

Again sparring with Reynolds’ Bryce is Samuel L. Jackson’s Darius Kincaid, the most wanted hitman on the planet and one hell of an unpleasant, yet loveable assassin, and their ‘bromance’ has lost none of its fire. Again these two go head-to-head with one another, while also having to survive a host of murderous killers who are out to get them and Jackson proves yet again why he’s one of the best in the business. But aside from sparring with Bryce, Jackson’s Darius undergoes some serious character development here, mostly due to his wife Sonia’s desperate desire to start a family and you can be sure that this adds a whole new level of funny to Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard.

But stealing the entire movie is Salma Hayek as the foul-mouthed, psycho-would be baby mana Sonia Kincaid! Seriously Hayek completely owns this movie with her performance as Sonia, who we were only briefly introduced to in The Hitman’s Bodyguard, but whom now takes centre stage and who is unbelievably clucky this time around. Yes, she may be able to riddles any bad guy with bullets without a second’s hesitation, but mark my words when I say that Sonia is ‘crazy’ for a baby and this leads to so many memorable moments throughout this film. Without-a-doubt the two most hilarious moments of the film, which include the ‘Swing Scene’ and a ‘Burial At Sea’ scene come at the presence of Hayek’s Sonia and she completely makes this movie the out-of-control rollercoaster of fun that it is.

While there’s comedy aplenty in Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard, and I mean the most out-of-control, outlandish humour you can imagine, the action of Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard is also raised sky-high. Hughes and his team have a serious blast blowing Italy to hell and back. One minute you’re looking out at a beautiful vista over the Italian Riveria, the next minute Bryce, Darius and Sonia are ploughing through it in a minivan with guns blazing, helicopters whirling and rocket-propelled grenades exploding. Yep this is exactly the kind of movie you need in your life at the moment, and Hughes absolutely makes this a blockbuster spectacle in every single way possible.

Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard is an absolute standout blockbuster that audiences will fall in love with. With hilarious unhinged characters, insane action and some of the most inappropriately laugh-out-loud comedy you’ve ever seen, this is one film that is an absolute winner.

Image: Roadshow Films

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