Movie Reviews | The Last Movie Guy

The Perfect Neighbor (2025): America’s Fractured Mirror

In 2005, the state of Florida passed the “Stand Your Ground” law — legislation now in effect in several U.S. states — which allows a person to use force (even lethal force) in self-defense without any obligation to retreat first if they believe their life or physical integrity is in danger. Unlike other self-defense laws, this one does not require the threatened individual to attempt to flee or avoid confrontation before using force.

Eddington (2025): A Dark Western From Ari Aster

Posted on October 23 by Hugo Pagan Soto

Eddington marks the fourth feature film by director Ari Aster, a filmmaker with a brief yet potent body of work. Aster has achieved what many directors spend their entire careers chasing — a distinctive voice. His style, atmosphere, and the unsettling tone that permeates his stories are unmistakable. His macabre humor seeps through even in the most disturbing moments. With Aster, there is never a middle ground — he draws sharp lines and forces the audience to choose a side.

House of Wax (1953): The Birth of a Legend

Posted on October 21 by Hugo Pagan Soto

Hollywood’s obsession with remakes is nothing new. Long before André De Toth’s House of Wax (1953), the legendary Michael Curtiz —yes, the same man behind Casablanca— had already explored this story in Mystery of the Wax Museum (1933). De Toth took Curtiz’s film as a foundation but had to tone down the macabre and sexual elements of the original to comply with the strict Hays Code, which governed Hollywood from the 1930s through the late sixties. Decades later, the gruesome allure of the tale would be revived once again in House of Wax (2005), directed by Spanish filmmaker Jaume Collet-Serra and starring, among others, Paris Hilton, offering a bloodier and more commercial reinterpretation of the classic horror story.

Good Boy (2025): Horror Seen Through a Dog’s Eyes

Posted on October 16 by Hugo Pagan Soto

Ben Leonberg’s decision to make his dog, Indy, the protagonist of his horror film Good Boy (2025) is not exceptional. The list of canine leads is long and covers almost all cinematic genres. In horror cinema, we can mention the classic Cujo (1983), based on the Stephen King novel. However, if we want to consider how Leonberg uses the dog’s perspective as an absolute resource for his narrative, perhaps we should recall Au Hasard Balthazar (1966) by the great Robert Bresson. The concept of Good Boy takes a different course but ultimately relies entirely on the artifice of using the dog’s point of view from start to finish.

The Smashing Machine (2025): The Rise and Fall of an MMA Legend

Posted on October 8 by Hugo Pagan Soto

There is a striking contrast between the Mark Kerr we see crushing opponents inside the ring and the smiling, distracted Mark Kerr riding a carousel like a child. That powerful juxtaposition reveals the complexity of the inner battle Kerr fights. The Smashing Machine (2025), directed by Benny Safdie, explores a fragment of the life of one of the pioneers of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) — his meteoric rise and brutal downfall. With an almost documentary tone, Safdie exposes the humanity of a figure who is both sweet and bitter, inspiring and tragic.