Greetings again from the darkness. The husband and wife co-directing and co-writing team of Alex Huston-Fischer and Eleanor Wilson have delivered the pleasant surprise film of the year. It’s based on the 2008 short story, “The Wicker Husband”, written by Ursula Willis-Jones and it manages to be thoroughly entertaining while poking around into human psychology.
Oscar winner and actor-extraordinaire Olivia Colman stars as Fisherwoman. All folks in the village are known by their job or lot in life. No actual names are used. So, when I say Mrs. Tailor (Elizabeth Debicki, TENET, 2020) is the villain of the story, you immediately know what her husband does for a living. Fisherwoman, a disheveled and unkempt woman, not only lives a life of solitude, but she also is subjected to a relentless stream of cruel comments from those in the village. At the Bottlewasher’s wedding, a local custom involves not a bouquet, but rather shaken wicker eggs to determine the next bride-to-be. The magic egg rolls to Fisherwoman.
After absorbing the expected wisecracks and put-downs, she heads to the remote home of the mystical master Basketweaver (Peter Dinklage), and promptly orders ‘a husband’. One month later she is giddy at the altar as she and the Wicker Husband (Alexander Skarsgard) recite their vows. Wedding night exertions leave their bed in need of repair, and Wicker Husband simply asks for a hammer so that he may fix the bed … a task he performs numerous times.
Fisherwoman and Wicker Husband develop a bond, and the entire village takes note when they share a dance at the Butcher’s wedding (lots of weddings for a small village). Love and respect within a marriage are admirable and necessary traits, but what we soon witness is the opposite end of human traits: jealousy, distrust, feelings of inadequacy, and a desire for comeuppance. By simply asking the question, “Do you love your wife?”, the Wicker Husband establishes himself as a noble creature, and that’s more than others can bear.
The film presents as brilliant social satire in the form of a fable, replete with romance and villainy. Although it’s set in a long ago small rural village, we immediately recognize the personality types and signs of emotions (good and bad). The acting here is superb. Olivia Colman delivers yet another performance that somehow stuns us. Peter Dinklage goes ‘Shakespearian’ and shines while working alone in his workshop. Richard E Grant jolts us as the bumbling town doctor in his only scene, and Alexander Skarsgard is totally believable as the object of desire buried under a spectacular skin of wicker.
As if the acting and story aren’t impressive enough, the technical aspects are superb. The wicker sound effects are familiar and spot on, while Weta Workshop’s prosthetic designer Joe Dunckley and lead makeup effects artist Sarah Rubano knock it out of the park on the wicker suit(s) and effects. Production designer Renato Cseh delivers an authentic feel to the village, while Oscar winning cinematographer Lol Crawley’s (THE BRUTALIST, 2024) work has been accurately described as folk art. This is surely a strange movie, yet it’s one that will grow an audience.
The film opens in theaters beginning October 23, 2026
Posted by David Ferguson 
Greetings again from the darkness. Shaun the Sheep is a British creation dating back thirty years or so. It’s through Aardman, the same imaginative studio as the brilliant ‘Wallace and Grommet’ characters and stories. Through multiple series and feature movies, we’ve come to know and love the claymation Shaun and his misadventures. This latest from co-directors Steve Cox and Matthew Walker, and co-writers Mark Burton and Giles Pilbrow, is yet another entry that will entertain adults and kids of all ages.
Greetings again from the darkness. For those of us who grew up belly-laughing at Looney Tunes, the characters are considered sacred ground, so a bit of anxiety hits when movies like SPACE JAM (1996) hit the big screen. This especially holds true for this latest from director Dave Green, since we know so many of the beloved characters will be on display. Samy Burch (MAY DECEMBER, 2023) adapted the screenplay from a 1990 article in “The New Yorker”, with an assist from James Gunn (SUPERMAN, 2025) and Jeremy Slater (FANTASTIC FOUR, 2015). The blend of animation and live action is reminiscent of the 1988 classic, WHO FRAMED ROGER RABBIT.
Greetings again from the darkness. Director Ben Gregor may have delivered the rarest of films in this day and age … one filled with adventure, goodness, and life lessons … and one the entire family can watch and enjoy together. Simon Farnaby (PADDINGTON 2, 2017) adapted the screenplay from Enid Blyton’s series of four books published between 1939 and 1951. Ms. Blyton passed away in 1968, yet she remains one of the best-selling authors of children’s books.
Greetings again from the darkness. Craig Gillespie previously directed I, TONYA (2017) and LARS AND THE REAL GIRL (2007), among other projects, and it’s perhaps those two films – both featuring odd outsiders – that motivated producer James Gunn to choose him to helm the feature film that brings DC’s Supergirl back to the big screen. The screenplay is by Ana Nogueira, and of course features characters originated by Jerry Siegel and Joel Shuster, with the key source material being the comic, “Supergirl: Woman of Tomorrow”.
Greetings again from the darkness. It’s been thirty-one years since I sat stunned in the movie theater after being first introduced to Woody, Buzz, and the entire gang of Pixar toys. It was the year BRAVEHEART won five Oscars and TOY STORY, which marked a shift in filmmaking, won none. That was Pixar’s first feature film and since there was no Animated Feature Film category at the time, the Academy didn’t really know what to do with it. Fortunately, John Lasseter (since fired) and Andrew Stanton certainly knew what to do, as this is the fifth film of the franchise, and they’ve managed to create cinematic magic with each one.
Greetings again from the darkness. Three-time Oscar winner Steven Spielberg readily admits to a lifelong fascination with life beyond Earth. Two of his most iconic films (plus a couple of others) dealt with just that topic: CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977) and ET: THE EXTRATERRESTRIAL (1982). Now, more than forty years later, he uses 79 years of collective data to question how humanity would react to full ‘disclosure’ of alien activity. What’s interesting is that Spielberg and co-writer David Koepp present the story as a high-octane action-thriller of conspiracy rather than in a traditional science fiction format.
Greetings again from the darkness. What a welcome relief it is to watch a movie designed specifically for kids. No double entendres or secret winks of wit … just a straight-forward movie to entertain kids and provide a simple life lesson about the importance of friendship. Of course, parents will recognize the title as that of the 2008 mega-bestselling kids book by Deborah Diesen.
Greetings again from the darkness. I became a Universal Monsters fan as soon as I reached the age where my parents would let me stay up to watch the later horror movies on Fridays and Saturdays. That love for the films and the stories and the monsters has only grown over the years, so you can only imagine the excitement I held for this film … especially on the heels of last year’s impressive FRANKENSTEIN from visionary Guillermo Del Toro. When my movie hopes and expectations reach this level, disappointment often follows; however, not this time!
Greetings again from the darkness. ‘Arco, phone home’. OK, that’s not actually a line of dialogue in this Oscar nominated animated feature film from w-d Ugo Bienvenu, co-director Gilles Cazaux, and co-writer and Felix de Givry … but the line sure fits. Taking place in the future, the film’s strong themes are family, friends, and coming-of-age.
