Skip to main content

Psycho Killer (2026)


Psycho Killer (2026)
is a religious-tinged detective thriller that leans far more into procedural tension than outright horror. Directed by Gavin Polone, who is better known as a producer than a filmmaker, the movie benefits heavily from its screenplay by Andrew Kevin Walker, the writer behind Se7en. His fingerprints are all over this. The writing is sharp, layered with foreshadowing that only fully clicks at the end, and structured in a way that constantly feels like it is building toward something inevitable.

The gorgeous Georgina Campbell plays the detective tracking down the titular killer, and she carries the film with confidence. You'll remember her from Barbarian and recently Cold Storage. The script gives her plenty of emotional range to explore, from controlled professionalism to visible cracks under pressure. She handles the lore-heavy exposition well and grounds what could have been overwhelming backstory. It is another strong showing for her and proof she can anchor a thriller.

There is a small cameo from Malcolm McDowell, known for A Clockwork Orange, though he is used more as a narrative device than a full character. His scene exists primarily to underline how committed and dangerous the killer is.

James Preston Rogers plays the Psycho Killer and delivers a restrained but unsettling performance. He avoids caricature and instead opts for something colder and more methodical, which suits the detective-thriller tone.

Overall, Psycho Killer is good and will be a forgotten and hidden gem. It contains some horror elements, but it functions primarily as a tense investigative thriller with strong writing and a compelling lead performance. Result: B+

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Colony (2026)

Colony is written and directed by Yeon Sang-ho , the director behind the cult classic Train to Busan . While Train to Busan has become the more celebrated film, Colony shows how much Yeon has improved as both a writer and a director. The story is stronger, the filmmaking feels more confident, and the way he builds the world gives the movie more substance than I expected going in. Jun Ji-hyun is the clear standout of the cast. She does a fantastic job conveying emotion through subtle movements and expressions rather than relying on exaggerated acting. That is not surprising considering she is one of South Korea's best actresses, but she still manages to make the character feel grounded and believable. She carries much of the emotional weight of the film. I did not recognize many of the other actors, and unfortunately, none of them really stood out enough to make much of an impression. That is not necessarily a knock against the cast as much as it is a testament to how much Jun ...

Verity (2026)

Verity was a surprise for me. Normally, the authors who turn their books into movies that I actually enjoy are Stephen King or Michael Crichton , but Colleen Hoover has been doing surprisingly well with the last four movies adaptations from her work. One thing I appreciate about her writing is that she knows how to write male characters who aren't weak or simply there to be punching bags for feminist talking points. That alone makes the characters feel more believable and gives the story a better balance. Dakota Johnson plays an up and coming writer who is brought in to ghostwrite for Anne Hathaway's character. This is easily Johnson's best performance yet. She does a good job carrying the movie and making the character's uncertainty and curiosity believable as the mystery around the house starts to unfold. Anne Hathaway does not have a huge amount to do because of her character's condition, but whenever she is actually on screen, she brings the energy you wo...

Digger (2026)

Digger is directed by Alejandro G. Iñárritu and stars Tom Cruise as Digger Rockwell. Much like his name, there is a lot of symbolism and meaning packed into the film, along with plenty of references that brought a smile to my face. I went into this expecting it to be pretentious or outright bad because that was the prevailing opinion online before general audiences had even had a chance to see it. Anyone calling this movie pretentious clearly has not seen The Death of Robin Hood or Die My Love . Die My Love was so pretentious that my wife actually begged me to leave the theater, and I had to finish it another day. Digger , on the other hand, actually understands the difference between being ambitious and simply being self-important. Tom Cruise is great as Digger Rockwell, giving the character exactly the kind of larger-than-life personality the movie needs. There is so much going on beneath the surface that I found myself constantly looking for the symbolism and references hidden...