The latest Spike Lee joint is getting you riled up in good and grumpy ways. BlacKkKlansman is rating highly, John David Washington and Adam Driver both make a solid Ron Stallworth, and that Kwame Ture lecture is everything. But the film seems to be a problematic fave for some of you. “It makes heeeeeavy (and extremely unsubtle) use of dramatic irony for uncomfortable, out-of-place laughs,” writes Demi. “A giant mess of moments that bounce from joyful to tense as shit,” reckons Ian. And don’t get Boots Riley started (’cos he already finished).

“I’m a softie for movies where everyone involved is clearly at the top of their game,” writes SpeedInUpToStop of Crazy Rich Asians, a film we are so definitely here for. “I’ve never heard white audiences have this reaction to a rom-com. We’re so used to representation, nothing excites us,” says Sara. Even David Ehrlich is in love, particularly with the last three scenes, which “make for as satisfying an ending as [he’s] ever seen in a romantic comedy”.

The Happytime Murders—the newest addition to the puppet sex genre—is directed by none other than Brian Henson, of the original Muppet mafia family. We’re happy to hear that this R-rated felt-fest was directly inspired by our favorite revolting puppet film of 30 years earlier, Peter Jackson’s Meet the Feebles (read on for a recent review of that masterpiece).

Based on as true a story as BlacKkKlansman, director Chris Weitz’s Operation Finale stars Oscar Isaac as famed Mossad agent Peter Malkin, in his quest to bring Nazi officer Adolf Eichmann to trial. Wait, that Chris Weitz? Uh-huh.

The ultimate hunters are heading back to Earth next month thanks to Jacob Tremblay triggering an alert. Whether or not you’re into a new addition to the franchise, The Predator has some strong links with its earlier incarnations. Agent Keyes’ son appears in this instalment, and he’s played by none other than Gary Busey’s son, Jake. And the whole shebang is led by writer and director Shane Black (Iron Man 3, The Nice Guys) who played foul-mouthed Hawkins in the original 1987 Predator. Fun fact: that film was almost directed by New Zealand’s Geoff Murphy!

“The Meg has a distinct problem with finding its genre; it’s not a horror, a comedy, or an action—but a mishmash of many genres. It was attempting to take the angle of a self-aware “bad” shark movie; unfortunately Meg often takes itself too seriously to earn the passing grade. The character development between Statham’s character and co-star Li Bingbing was the real horror of this film, not the Megalodon. The moment this film attempted to make us ‘feel’ for characters we didn’t care about was the moment things became choppy. Let’s be honest, all anybody really wants out of these films is to see a giant shark do ridiculous things in funny ways, and it simply doesn’t do that.” —moviegainz

“The Meg is the silly action packed blockbuster this garbage-pile summer season needed. It doesn’t take itself seriously at all, but rather focuses on minute details and developing its fairly plain-Jane action movie characters. The biggest achievement is in the excitement and goofy content packed into each encounter with the Megladon. Is this an Oscar contender? Absolutely not, but as far as summer blockbusters go, I haven’t had more fun in a theatre this year.” —Charlie Fox

“There is also a scene where the lead character faints when she finds out one of her secret love letters has gotten out. Like, she actually faints. Like a damsel in distress. This all seemed a bit much for me.” —Sean Upton

“I could point out all the missing parts but I understand that the movie couldn’t be eight hours long (although I’m not opposed to that idea). I found the cinematography beautiful (I find everything beautiful so not your most reliable source) and I liked the way the movie was made (again I love everything so not the best critic). So thank you to everyone who made this movie possible and thanks for making a fresh and wonderful teen rom-com (or whatever you want to call it) that is as heartwarming as the ones from the 80s.” —soraiamartins

“Tarkovsky’s expanses here are breathtaking in their cold beauty and atmospheric horror, and his massacre sequence is wildly mounted. The terror of nature and the man-made world force confrontation with superficial, cloistered faith, which [is] subsequently reshaped and, ultimately, reaffirmed by confrontation. In an odd way it’s a reminder that true faith was accelerating the contradictions well before Karl Marx suggested it as a bedrock of communism. The glory of God is not omnipresent, it must be rigorously sought out, and constantly subject to revision.” —Jake Cole

“I have actually been to San Dimas before and Bill & Ted is one of those movies that actually gets the spirit of the place right without actually being filmed there. For example, there is no such thing as the San Dimas Mall, but I’m pretty sure most Inland Empire malls still look like the one in Bill & Ted. I point this out because you kind of have to buy into the fabled suburban setting of Bill and Ted’s San Dimas in order for the movie to work. The plot in this film is sometimes beyond daft, but it also feels like a suburban daydream.” —theculturalsurf

“Looking at this thing from a distance, it’s clear that what works for Jackson is what he tries to land conceptually, both with an audacious gratuity and a penchant for having advanced puppet handlers do everything for him… Meet the Feebles remains one-of-a-kind by [the] sheer audacity of the depraved image alone. At least, it will safely remain that way for another week. I think Jackson will have some other gems to fall back on if the greater audiences forget about this one anyway. Though I’ll be damned if The Happytime Murders has anything that stands up to that Deer Hunter sequence.” —Sebastian Torrelio

“I feel that getting a job is a huge detriment for one’s creativity. You’re often required to give yourself completely over, and this can be draining both mentally [and] physically. And what can be draining about a job is that you’re often repeating the same activities frequently, and repetition can hinder your creativity. And I feel that this is the main theme The Brothers Quay effectively explore in Institute Benjamenta.” —CharlesJimenez

Combining her two greatest passions—pasta and movies—Justine is compiling a mega-list of films with great pasta/noodle scenes. Don’t click if hungry.

Also don’t click if hungry (or if you don’t like watching girls eating boys).

An important list highlighting the delightful sub-genre of disembodied but quite living body parts.

For those who’ve been following BBC film legend Mark Kermode’s fantastic Secret Cinema series, we have the related Letterboxd lists.

And finally, because Father’s Day is coming up soon in the South Pacific (our home base), here’s a lovely list of Good Dads. Oh hey John Corbett…