Aarcflick

 Lately, it has become a cliché for indie horror films to revolve around social media influencers. *Deadstream*, *#AMFAD: All My Friends Are Dead*, *A Breed Apart*, and the aptly titled *Influencer* are just a few examples. More often than not, these films fall flat because they lack a message beyond pointing out the obvious: that some people will do crazy things just to get clicks. *The Influencer Project* is different. Real-life influencer Chiara King plays a fictionalized version of herself. She possesses the ego typical of someone with millions of followers interested in her every daily move. Chiara is paid to travel to Copenhagen and create ten posts promoting tourism in the country; a documentary crew accompanies her. Shortly after arriving, she begins receiving unsettling direct messages from a stranger calling himself "King Slayer." His messages threaten to kill her if she doesn't "stop talking." At first, she and her team dismiss it as nonsense, but Kin...

 Amir Bar-Lev’s film captures the dark drama that unfolded during an attempt to summit K2 in winter. Yet, the film grips the viewer without ever needing to reach those dizzying heights. Over the last decade, the mountaineering documentary has evolved into a genre unto itself. Spectacular films like *Free Solo*, *The Dawn Wall*, and the 2024 Sundance smash hit *Skywalkers: A Love Story*—which follows urban climbers scaling the world’s tallest, slenderest skyscrapers, a feat so perilous it rivals the ascent of natural peaks—rival the most vertigo-inducing action movies on the planet. Their appeal can be summed up like this: come for the heart-stopping vertigo, stay for the human drama... but stay, too, to explore the question: "What kind of person seeks out such an extreme sense of vertigo?" These films draw their allure from the "don't look down" premise—a sensation that is simultaneously awe-inspiring and terrifying. Director: Amir Bar-Lev Stars: Nirmal Purja, M...

 *The Scout* is about a woman who works as a location scout for films and television shows. She travels across various New York City neighborhoods looking for people willing to allow filming inside their homes. While watching the movie, I couldn't help but think about the film's own location scout, who did a magnificent job finding beautiful houses for the production. Although, come to think of it, if you find yourself thinking about the person in charge of finding locations, the movie might not be working quite right. Sofia (Mimi Davila) is scouting locations for an upcoming TV pilot. She leaves flyers on doorsteps with a phone number that interested parties can call for more information. When she receives a call, she arranges a visit to the person's home and takes photos of the interior to show the show's producers. Director: Paula González-Nasser Writer: Paula González-Nasser Stars: Rutanya Alda, Matt Barats, Mimi Davila There is no plot to speak of here. Instead, we...

 A little-known author is hired to write on behalf of a literary celebrity in a catatonic state, in an adaptation of a Colleen Hoover work that explores the stories we tell ourselves about others. Colleen Hoover, author of *It Ends with Us*, doesn't usually make a habit of painting women in a bad light (male writers have practically cornered that market since before the printing press was invented); that is why it is so curious that the latest film based on her books seems intent on convincing us that its protagonist—a grief-stricken mother left catatonic after a recent car accident, now requiring constant care from a stern Ukrainian nurse who tube-feeds her between diaper changes—is, in reality, a hellish harpy. Director: Michael Showalter Writers Nick Antosca, Colleen Hoover Stars: Anne Hathaway, Dakota Johnson, Josh Hartnett Faithfully adapted from Hoover’s 2018 bestseller of the same name, *Verity*—directed by Michael Showalter—is an absurd psychological thriller, as cold and a...

 *The Final Problem* may manage to stay one or two steps ahead of you, yet—beyond satisfying a basic curiosity—there is little here to leave you truly satisfied. Anyone who enjoys settling in for a good detective story will be intrigued by this classic premise: a confined space, temporarily cut off from the outside world, where dead bodies begin to turn up one after another. The characters cannot contact the police due to a storm and lightning strikes (which knock out the radio), so it falls to them—or one of them—to solve the mystery. Stars: Jose Coronado, María Valverde, Martiño Rivas  *The Final Problem*, based on the novel of the same name by Arturo Pérez-Reverte, is built on this foundation. It places an actor named Basil (José Coronado)—famous for playing Sherlock Holmes on screen—at the center of the murders. On the surface, the concept sounds entertaining: an actor tapping into his character's instincts to solve a problem (specifically, a murder) unfolding around him. ...

Rensil D'Silva shows a greater affinity for monotony than for his own story or characters. It is hardly surprising, then, that *Shaque* turns out to be so tedious. At the heart of *Shaque: Trust No One* lies the potential for a solid psychological thriller about a mother whose newborn is kidnapped—an ordeal that causes her to lose her grip on reality under extreme mental stress. To make matters worse, she is surrounded by a deceitful best friend, a backward-thinking mother-in-law, and an unfaithful husband. All the ingredients for social commentary and the exploration of subjective experience are present; however, doing justice to these elements required the touch of a skilled director.  Stars: Janhavi Bansal, AB Vampking, Harleen Sethi Rensil D'Silva—the man behind such "gems" as *Kurbaan*, *Ungli*, and *Dial 100*—is certainly not the right person if one is looking for subjectivity, style, or thought-provoking content. I do not mean to suggest that a director should ...

Wan, an elderly man suffering from dementia, becomes the prime suspect following a child's disappearance in the village. *Delusion* is undoubtedly a must-watch psychological mystery drama. What begins as an investigation into a missing child soon evolves into a story revolving around dementia, family secrets, superstition, guilt, and the gap between objective reality and public belief. The story unfolds in a quiet rural community where certain events bring an old local legend back into the spotlight. A child goes missing, and the prime suspect turns out to be Narong, an elderly man suffering from dementia.  Stars: Natapohn Phornprapha, Jes Jespipat Tilapornputt, Surasak Chaiyaat Legends surrounding *Phii Pong* add a layer of uncertainty, making it difficult to determine whether the threat looming over the town is supernatural, a criminal, or merely a superstition born of fear. Wan, Narong’s daughter, is a teacher who returns to the village to care for her father as his health rapid...