Kenneth Branagh presents a nostalgic ode to his childhood with exceptional turns from Jamie Dornan and Caitríona Balfe, while Sylvester Stallone plays a ...
[crime caper](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/mar/30/free-fire-review-ben-wheatley-brie-larson-cillian-murphy) from [Ben Wheatley](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/jun/13/ben-wheatley-early-on-the-pandemic-felt-like-a-time-for-getting-a-crossbow-ready-to-hunt-for-petroleum) revels in its focused absurdity – and has a fine eye for a 70s moustache. [Terrence Malick](https://www.theguardian.com/film/terrence-malick) created his [masterwork](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/sep/01/days-of-heaven-film-review), a ravishingly shot tale of tangled romance in 1916 rural Texas. His Protestant builder father ( [Jamie Dornan](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/jamie-dornan)), who has to go to England to find work, wants the family to quit an increasingly volatile north Belfast, but Buddy’s mother (an exceptional [Caitríona Balfe](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/jan/23/caitriona-balfe-star-of-belfast-on-family-late-fame-and-her-amazing-fan-club)) finds the ties to family and place difficult to abandon. The unprecedented, bizarre outpouring of national grief after Di’s fatal car crash nonplusses Elizabeth II (a note-perfect Helen Mirren), and her lack of public reaction causes disquiet. A film of gentle humour, light-touch eccentricity and zestful performances from the jolly Bannen and Kelly. Her new prime minister, Tony Blair ( [Michael Sheen](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/michael-sheen)), however, sees it is a critical moment for the monarchy. [Kenneth Branagh](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/kenneth-branagh)’s semi-autobiographical [drama](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/oct/12/belfast-review-kenneth-branagh-jamie-dornan-judi-dench) is an affectionate look back at his childhood, despite being set during the Troubles. Ian Bannen and David Kelly play two old friends in a small Irish village who discover the local recipient of a nearly £7m lottery win, the titular Ned, has died of shock at his good luck. To pass the time, he starts spying on his neighbours across the courtyard, and begins to suspect that one apartment owner has killed his wife. [Richard Gere](https://www.theguardian.com/film/richard-gere)’s labourer Bill realises the ailing landowner ( [Sam Shepard](https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2017/aug/01/sam-shepard-obituary)) has fallen for his lover Abby, who is posing as his sister, and sees the opportunity for a better life in promoting their union – but soon regrets his plan. It’s 1969, and tensions in Northern Ireland are starting to have an impact on the carefree life of nine-year-old Buddy ( [Jude Hill](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/apr/15/belfasts-jude-hill-all-the-celebrities-at-the-oscars-they-were-shaking-with-nerves)). Julius Avery’s film employs its action sparingly – more Luke Cage than Dark Knight – but it’s always fun to see Sly flex his muscles and grunt out his lines, and Pilou Asbæk keeps his crime boss Cyrus to naturalistic levels of badness.
And though he has appeared in a few superhero movies in recent years, Stallone hasn't led a comic book adaptation since the 1995 adaptation of Judge Dredd. That ...
Starr, who got his break as Bill Haverchuck on the [Freaks and Geeks cast](https://www.cinemablend.com/television/2562464/what-the-freaks-and-geeks-cast-is-doing-now) back in 1999, has continued to find success on the small screen, with appearances on Party Down, Drunk History, and Silicon Valley, to name only a few. [treacherous Euron Greyjoy](https://www.cinemablend.com/television/2471795/why-one-game-of-thrones-actor-specifically-pushed-to-have-character-die-offscreen) on the [Game of Thrones cast](https://www.cinemablend.com/television/2490856/game-of-thrones-what-are-the-cast-members-doing-now) in the HBO fantasy series’ final few seasons, quickly establishing himself as one of the show’s most evil villains. Though she doesn’t have quite as many credits to her name as other members of the Samaritan cast, Tatum has been part of some major projects in recent years. And don’t forget to check out our guide to all the other When he's not writing about movies or television, Philip can be found being chased by his three kids, telling his dogs to stop yelling at the mailman, or yelling about professional wrestling to his wife. His film credits include everything from voice roles in the likes of Despicable Me 2, Astro Boy, and The Secret World of Arrietty to live-action films including Ender's Game, The King of Staten Island, The Stanford Prison Experiment, Pitch Perfect 3, and Blast Beat. Starting things off is Sylvester Stallone himself, who takes on the role of a former superhero who reluctantly gets back in the crime-fighting game after an encounter with a young boy in trouble in Samaritan. During that same stretch of time, Polanco has landed roles in movies like The Cobbler, The Irishman, In the Heights, and most recently, DC League of Super-Pets, in which she voiced Green Lantern. Though this is first time playing a traditional superhero since taking on the titular role in 1995's Judge Dredd, Stallone has made appearances in Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. This includes major roles on The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story, Russian Doll, and When They See Us, to name a few. And though he has appeared in a few superhero movies in recent years, Stallone hasn't led a comic book adaptation since the 1995 adaptation of Judge Dredd. That all changes with Samaritan, Julias Avery's Amazon original movie, which sees Stallone take on the role of a retired masked vigilante who reluctantly comes out of the shadows.
Samaritan is now out on Prime Video and Sylvester Stallone's superhero movie has a big twist about Nemesis, so let's delve into it.
Before Nemesis slinks off into the night and a life of obscurity again, he watches as Sam is interviewed on live TV after the dramatic events. But the real truth is good and bad live in everybody's heart and it's going to be up to you to make the right choice," he tells Sam. Samaritan had the upper hand, but refused to kill Nemesis with the hammer. Attempting to do just that, Nemesis lured Samaritan into a trap by threatening the lives of people in Granite City at the local power station. 25 years later, Cyrus finds this hammer after breaking into the police evidence lock-up and decides to take on the mantle of Nemesis. Samaritan breaks into Cyrus's warehouse, but the villain gets the upper hand by using the hammer. I'm the bad guy." Nemesis created a hammer fuelled with his own hatred for Samaritan that became the only weapon that could defeat him. I'm not the good guy. In the movie's title sequence, we're told that Samaritan and Nemesis were twin brothers who ended up becoming sworn enemies. "If it was only bad people doing bad things, it'd be easy to get rid of them. But is Joe who Sam thinks he is?
There are so many holes in Samaritan's screenplay that the movie needs to move faster than it does if it is to outrun them.
It even has a twist that you should be able to predict during the opening credits, and the film doesn’t even do anything useful with that potentially interesting development. His evil is so over-the-top he feels ported over from “ [Robocop 2](/reviews/robocop-2-1990).” The way Sam feels about Samaritan is the way Cyrus feels about Nemesis, so much so that he wants to emulate him and destroy Granite City. Then, of course, there’s the scene in the trailer where Joe gets smashed to bits by a car driven by the folks he just beat up, and his body fixes itself. [Austin Butler](/cast-and-crew/austin-butler)’s Elvis from that [Baz Luhrmann](/cast-and-crew/baz-luhrmann) movie to hop over to Amazon from pay-per-view so he can stroll down the street singing “In the Ghetto.” This place is also crime ridden, with Sam committing petty theft with teenagers who work for the evil Cyrus ( [Pilou Asbæk](/cast-and-crew/pilou-asb%C3%A6k)). The bombastic score by [Kevin Kiner](/cast-and-crew/kevin-kiner) and [Jed Kurzel](/cast-and-crew/jed-kurzel) is just obnoxious and overbearing enough to almost convince you that this overwritten origin story should be taken seriously. Schut](/cast-and-crew/bragi-f-schut)’s screenplay, and to the animators who bring it to life.
Review: Sylvester Stallone finds nuance in superhero deconstruction 'Samaritan'. A bearded man examines a watch up close. Sylvester Stallone in the movie “ ...
[a well-plotted, action-packed throwback to ’80s blockbusters](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2022-05-12/top-gun-maverick-review-tom-cruise) but with better-defined characters, a richer emotional range and some of the best aerial combat sequences ever filmed. (At times the characters are dryly serious; at other times someone will throw in a “Jaws” quote as a wink to the audience.) By the end, “Maneater” has walked right up to the edge of being a fun, silly, “so bad it’s good” time-killer. [Sidney Poitier,](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2022-01-07/remembering-sidney-poitier) who also cast himself as a Civil War veteran leading wagon trains of freed slaves to a new life out west, alongside his wife (Ruby Dee) and a scheming reverend (Harry Belafonte). [institutional and cultural responses to the storm](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2022-08-11/five-days-at-memorial-review-apple-vera-farmiga-john-ridley), both before and after. The best way to describe the survival thriller “Maneater” is that it’s about two very different people — a grizzled fisherman named Harlan (Trace Adkins) and a vacationer named Jesse (Nicky Whelan) — who have to work together to kill an enormous shark that has eaten some of their loved ones. In between those “you are there” sequences, Russell fills in some of the details of his subject’s life, from his start as a pioneer of antivirus software to his end as a radical libertarian, surrounded by drugs, guns and chaos. It’s hard to separate the facts from the paranoid conspiracy theories when it comes to McAfee, which can make “Running With the Devil” feel a little scattered — like reading a bunch of fevered diary entries. And while McAfee was on the lam — as one of the most famous criminals in the world — multiple reporters started following him, chasing a strange story barreling toward a dark end. [John McAfee](https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2021-06-25/widow-antivirus-pioneer-john-mcafee-was-not-suicidal) was one of those mega-wealthy folks convinced he knew best how the world should work — and that unless the people in charge let him run things, he was under no obligation to follow their rules. The premise of “Samaritan” is the stuff of cartoons, but the actors makes the stakes feel real. [“The Boys”](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2020-09-03/amazon-the-boys-season-2-karl-urban-billy-butcher) and “Invincible” have stolen some of the movie’s thunder by doing their own deconstructing and reconstructing of caped-crusader mythology. [Sylvester Stallone](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/envelope/la-en-sylvester-stallone-20160211-story.html) plays Joe Smith, a garbageman in Granite City, a blighted, crime-ridden metropolis still reeling from the loss of its champion, Samaritan, in a battle to the death with his villainous brother, Nemesis.
An animated, comic-book-inspired opening turns out to be the best part of "Samaritan," a very by-the-numbers superhero tale that casts Sylvester Stallone as ...
About all that's left is the modest kick of seeing Stallone in this sort of setting, a novelty that only goes so far. ["Overlord"](https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/09/entertainment/overlord-review) ["Creed" films](https://www.cnn.com/2018/11/20/entertainment/creed-ii-review)
Fresh off new sequels saying "Goodbye, but also not goodbye" to Rocky and Rambo, Sylvester Stallone stars in an aging-superhero movie that seems designed to ...
Is Sam genuinely conflicted between taking up a life of crime and doing the right thing, mirroring the way Granite City’s citizens are divided between Samaritan and Nemesis? On top of the narrative confusion, the tenuous, distant spatial relationship between Sam’s original post and the interior of the hideout makes it seem nearly impossible for anyone to hear him whistling a warning, even if he could. The few moments in Samaritan that do recall more recent superhero movies are still a bit offbeat: Cyrus (Pilou Asbæk), the younger maniac who wants to claim the mantle of Nemesis for himself, sports both a philosophy and a coat that recall the Dark Knight Rises version of Bane. The movie’s superpower is the ability to inspire a litany of distracting questions in almost any scene, no matter how simple. Granite City owes more to the industrial decay of comics movies like The Crow — though it’s equally indebted to local-news scaremongering that depicts any and all cities as cesspools of crime, on the brink of total anarchy. The premise has an appealing directness, laid out in an illustrated prologue: Granite City was once the home of two brothers with superhuman strength and endurance, dubbed Samaritan and (sigh) Nemesis.
Latina actor Dascha Polanco says viewers will relate to the complexity of good versus evil in the new Amazon Prime movie "Samaritan" with Sylvester ...
And I’m proud to being able to have that opportunity,” she said. And the baton was passed on to me. And I’ll pass that on to my kids.” “Within the bad, within the good, you kind of find something that you relate to.” And my parents did their due diligence to bring me here,” she said, referring to her family’s migration from the Dominican Republic to the United States. When you get back up, that’s the hero within us,” she said.