REVIEW: Propeller One-Way Night Coach (2026 Film) - Directed by John Travolta

Images courtesy of APPLE TV 

Review by Jon Donnis

John Travolta's directorial debut arrives in an unusual package. Running for just 61 minutes, Propeller One-Way Night Coach could easily have felt slight or underdeveloped. Instead, it proves that a modest story, told with care and attention to detail, can leave a surprisingly lasting impression.

Based on Travolta's own 1997 children's novel, the film follows young aviation enthusiast Jeff as he and his mother Helen travel from New York to Los Angeles during the closing days of 1962. What begins as a simple cross-country flight gradually becomes a defining moment in both of their lives. Along the way they encounter memorable passengers, kind-hearted flight attendants and a series of unexpected experiences that shape Jeff's future.

One of the film's greatest strengths is its remarkable sense of authenticity. From the aircraft interiors to the uniforms, airport terminals and social attitudes of the era, everything feels lovingly recreated. The production never draws attention to its period detail for the sake of nostalgia alone. Instead, it uses the setting to immerse viewers in a vanished age of air travel, when flying still carried a sense of wonder and glamour.

The film also succeeds because of how carefully it observes its characters. Jeff's fascination with aviation could easily have become repetitive, but Clark Shotwell gives the role an earnest charm that makes his enthusiasm infectious. Through his eyes, every aircraft, every stopover and every interaction becomes an adventure. The script understands that childhood memories often attach themselves to seemingly small moments, and it builds much of its emotional power from that idea.

Kelly Eviston-Quinnett delivers a warm and understated performance as Helen. Her relationship with Jeff provides the emotional anchor throughout the journey. While she dreams of pursuing an acting career in Hollywood, the film never turns her ambitions into melodrama. Instead, it quietly explores a mother balancing her own hopes with the responsibility of raising a child.

Ella Bleu Travolta and Olga Hoffmann both leave strong impressions despite relatively limited screen time. Hoffmann's Liz brings unexpected emotional depth to the story, particularly through conversations that reveal her difficult past. Meanwhile, Ella Bleu Travolta's Doris embodies much of the film's gentle optimism. Her interactions with Jeff are sweet without becoming overly sentimental, and she becomes a key figure in shaping the boy's future.

What makes Propeller One-Way Night Coach particularly effective is its willingness to focus on ordinary moments. There are no villains, no major crises and very little conventional conflict. Instead, the film finds drama in human connection. A conversation during a flight. A broken toy aeroplane. A chance meeting between strangers. These moments accumulate naturally, creating a surprisingly rich portrait of lives crossing paths.

The humour is equally understated. Small observations, awkward encounters and Jeff's endless curiosity generate a steady stream of gentle laughs. The film never chases easy jokes, allowing its warmth and wit to emerge organically from the characters.

Perhaps most impressively, the story manages to cover an enormous emotional landscape within its brief running time. Themes of childhood wonder, ageing, ambition, loss, friendship, romance and legacy all find a place here. Yet the film never feels rushed. Travolta demonstrates a confident understanding of pacing, knowing exactly which moments deserve attention and which can be left implied.

That said, the film is not without shortcomings. Some viewers may find the narrative almost too gentle. The lack of significant conflict means that certain sections risk feeling episodic, drifting from one encounter to the next without a strong sense of momentum. While this approach suits the nostalgic tone, audiences looking for a more traditional adventure may find themselves wanting greater dramatic stakes.

The supporting cast is also so appealing that several characters feel underserved. Liz, in particular, could easily have supported a larger storyline, while some of the relationships introduced during the journey are resolved rather quickly. The film's short running time is admirable in an era of bloated family entertainment, but there are occasions when a little extra breathing room would have been welcome.

Even so, these criticisms do little to diminish the overall experience. Propeller One-Way Night Coach understands exactly what it wants to be. It tells a simple story with confidence, filling it with enough detail and emotional honesty that the characters linger in the mind long after the credits roll.

This is an easy film to enjoy. Its nostalgic atmosphere is deeply appealing, its performances are sincere and its recreation of a bygone era is consistently convincing. Most importantly, it proves that family films do not need excessive spectacle or unnecessary filler to leave an impact.

Propeller One-Way Night Coach is a charming, thoughtful and genuinely entertaining family adventure that captures the magic of aviation and the importance of seemingly ordinary moments. At just over an hour, it remains engaging throughout and should hold the attention of younger viewers while offering plenty for adults to appreciate.

Score: 8 out of 10

Out Now on Apple TV - https://apple.co/4x52DV3

REVIEW: Mortal Kombat II (2026 Film) - Starring Karl Urban

Review by Jon Donnis

Picking up the threads from the 2021 instalment, this sequel leans fully into the tournament chaos, throwing Earthrealm’s champions into a darker, louder, and more unashamedly video game version of interdimensional war. At its centre is Johnny Cage, a washed-up martial arts actor pulled into Raiden’s desperate defence of Earthrealm, and Karl Urban gives the role a wry, self-aware edge that helps hold the film together even when everything else is flying fists and fractured alliances.

The strongest part of the film is its action. The combat sequences land with impact, staged with a clarity and aggression that suits the source material. There is a rough, physical energy to the fights that feels intentionally old school, closer in spirit to 1990s martial arts cinema than modern glossy fantasy action. That choice works in its favour. The film never tries to sand down the brutality, and fans of the games will find plenty of familiar moves, characters, and finishing blows brought to life with a willingness to go as far as the material demands.

There is also a clear sense of fun running through the whole thing. Mortal Kombat II never takes itself too seriously, and that balance of gore and humour gives it a strange but effective rhythm. Johnny Cage’s presence adds levity without undermining the stakes, while the wider ensemble cast keeps the energy moving even when the story threatens to become overloaded. For fans of the franchise, the sheer density of characters and references will feel like a reward in itself, with more fighters and deeper cuts from the lore than any previous film in the series.

Visually and tonally, it embraces its identity fully. It is loud, bloody, and deliberately a bit rough around the edges, like a studio production that has decided polish is less important than personality. That aesthetic choice will not appeal to everyone, but it gives the film a distinctive texture that sets it apart from more restrained modern action releases.

That said, it is not without problems. The pacing is uneven, with stretches that feel slightly stretched out before snapping back into intensity. At around an hour and forty five minutes, it still manages to feel longer in places, particularly when the narrative shifts between multiple factions and betrayals. The story itself is dense, occasionally overstuffed, and can lose momentum as it juggles too many character arcs at once.

It is also very clearly a film that will divide opinion depending on familiarity with the source material. Fans of the games and the genre are likely to embrace its excess, while mainstream critics who are less invested in the franchise may find it noisy and chaotic. It does not make much effort to soften its edges or explain itself to newcomers, and that will inevitably narrow its appeal. (Basically ignore the mainstream critics, for what do they know).

Even so, the overall experience lands firmly on the positive side. Mortal Kombat II understands its identity, embraces its brutality, and commits fully to being a spectacle-driven martial arts fantasy. It is gory, it is playful, and it looks and feels like a throwback in the best possible way. Despite its uneven pacing, it delivers enough energy and entertainment to justify its existence.

On balance, it is a strong sequel that knows exactly what its audience wants and delivers it with conviction. A solid 8.5 out of 10.

Out In Cinemas Now!

PREVIEW: Burner (2026 Film) - Starring Kacy Owens and Akina Wylie

Preview by Jon Donnis

Burner arrives as a new female led action thriller from writer and director Robert Orr, set to make its UK digital debut on 1 June courtesy of Seven Tales. It follows a familiar but combustible setup, where a second chance at life is quickly threatened by the weight of a violent past that refuses to stay buried.

At the centre of the story is Kiki, played by Kacy Owens, who is released from prison and regains custody of her teenage daughter Lola Ray, played by Akina Wylie. Kiki is determined to stay on the straight and narrow, trying to build something stable after her release, with motherhood giving her a clear focus and a reason to move forward.

That fragile stability does not last long. Her violent drug dealing ex husband, played by James Oliver Wheatley, reappears and drags her back towards the criminal world she has tried to leave behind. His return brings immediate danger and the kind of pressure that threatens not just her freedom, but her relationship with her daughter as well.

As the situation tightens, Kiki is forced into a position where avoidance is no longer an option. The story pushes her towards confronting her past directly, with the suggestion that the only way out might involve destroying the ties that once defined her life, even if that comes at a heavy cost.

Burner positions itself as a fast moving, tension driven thriller built around survival, loyalty and consequence. With its focus on a mother fighting to protect her daughter while facing down a criminal past that refuses to let go, it is shaping up as a release that leans heavily into personal stakes and escalating danger.

On digital 1 June from Seven Tales  

Apple TV - https://apple.co/4oe0EKd

REVIEW: Animal Farm (2026) - Starring Seth Rogen, Gaten Matarazzo, Steve Buscemi and Glenn Close

Review by Jon Donnis

There was always going to be controversy around a new adaptation of George Orwell’s Animal Farm. The 1945 novella is one of the most famous political allegories ever written, a savage attack on authoritarianism (Stalinism) wrapped inside a deceptively simple story about rebellious farm animals. Trying to modernise it was already risky. Turning it into a family friendly animated comedy drama with a coming of age storyline was asking for trouble.

Andy Serkis’ version certainly looks polished enough on the surface. The animation is decent throughout, colourful and energetic without ever feeling particularly groundbreaking. It has the sort of glossy streaming era style that feels designed to keep younger viewers engaged, even during the more dialogue heavy moments. The voice cast also does a solid job with what they are given. Seth Rogen brings a smug arrogance to Napoleon that works surprisingly well, while Kieran Culkin’s slippery Squealer is probably the closest the film gets to capturing the manipulative spirit of Orwell’s original work. Kathleen Turner gives Benjamin some much needed gravitas, and Woody Harrelson’s Boxer has genuine warmth.

The biggest change comes through Lucky, the newly created piglet protagonist voiced by Gaten Matarazzo. The film positions him as the audience surrogate, caught between Snowball’s idealism and Napoleon’s corruption. It is a very obvious attempt to reshape Animal Farm into something more accessible for modern younger audiences, complete with emotional arcs, friendships, romance subplots, and a more hopeful ending. Whether that sounds appealing probably depends entirely on how attached you are to Orwell’s original vision.

That is where the film completely falls apart.

Serkis and writer Nicholas Stoller take Orwell’s razor sharp political allegory and sand down nearly every uncomfortable edge. The original story was bleak, cynical, and deliberately uncompromising in its condemnation of totalitarian ideology. This adaptation instead shifts focus toward generic corporate greed and modern billionaire corruption, replacing Orwell’s specific warnings about Communism with a far broader and far safer message about wealthy corporations and consumerism. Frieda Pilkington becomes the central villain looming over the story, while Napoleon’s descent into tyranny feels secondary by comparison.

The result is a film that often feels embarrassed by the source material it is adapting.

There is a strange sense throughout that the filmmakers wanted the cultural recognition of Animal Farm without actually wanting to engage with what Orwell wrote. The darker political themes are softened, the satire becomes muddled, and the story is constantly interrupted by sentimental moments designed to make the audience feel hopeful. Orwell never intended Animal Farm to be uplifting. That discomfort was the entire point.

The film also bends over backwards trying to modernise itself for contemporary audiences. In doing so, it loses the identity that made the novella endure for generations in the first place. Changing the foundations of such an iconic story in order to align with modern political tastes feels deeply misguided. Orwell’s novella was itself a direct criticism of far left ideology and authoritarian collectivism, yet this adaptation awkwardly sidesteps that history almost entirely. Instead of challenging audiences, it plays things as safely as possible.

Even structurally, the film struggles. The pacing is uneven, jumping awkwardly between comedy, political drama, emotional speeches, and disaster movie spectacle. The climax involving the collapsing dam and water tower feels more like something from a generic animated adventure than the tragic inevitability Orwell crafted. By the final scenes, with Lucky staring hopefully toward the stars, the film barely resembles Animal Farm at all.

There are occasional glimpses of what could have been. Benjamin’s scenes retain some of the bitterness and cynicism that the story desperately needs, and the gradual rewriting of the farm’s laws remains effective because it is one of the few ideas lifted directly from Orwell that still carries real power. But these moments are drowned beneath the film’s relentless need to soften every hard edge.

The only way to even try to enjoy Animal Farm is to pretend you have never heard of George Orwell or the original book. Viewed entirely on its own terms, it is a mediocre animated film with decent visuals and a talented cast. Viewed as an adaptation of one of the most important political novels ever written, it becomes something far more frustrating.

Why anyone thought this was a good idea is beyond me. It feels less like an adaptation and more like an attempt to reshape Orwell’s work into something ideologically safer and easier to market to modern audiences. In the process, it strips away nearly everything that made Animal Farm worth adapting in the first place.

A terrible film, barely worth a 2 out of 10.

Out on Digital now - https://apple.co/4uQc4X3

REVIEW: Ladies First (2026 film) Starring Sacha Baron Cohen and Rosamund Pike

Review by Jon Donnis

Ladies First, directed by Thea Sharrock, is a 2026 American comedy centred on Damien Sachs, an advertising executive whose life is turned upside down when he is thrust into a parallel world where women hold the dominant positions in society and business. Damien, played by Sacha Baron Cohen, begins as a powerful and self assured figure at the Atlas advertising agency, where he is on the verge of becoming chief executive. After manipulating a pitch meeting for a Guinness beer campaign aimed at women and being forced to promote a woman to cover his lie, he selects Alex Fox, a long serving but overlooked creative director played by Rosamund Pike. This decision sets off the chain of events that leads to his collapse into an alternate reality.

In this new version of the world, Atlas has been reshaped by reversed gender power structures. Alex Fox, who was previously a sidelined creative at the company, now occupies the senior leadership role Damien once held. Ruby, Damien’s assistant played by Emily Mortimer, has been promoted into an executive position. Felicity Chase, played by Fiona Shaw, is now the chief executive of the company, while Fred Powell, played by Charles Dance, has been reduced from senior leadership to a more subservient assistant role. Even Glenda, formerly a cleaning staff member, now sits as chair of the board. Damien struggles to understand this new order and is later told by a mysterious figure known as the Pigeon Man, played by Richard E Grant, that he must reclaim power within this world if he is to return home.

There are clear strengths in the film’s cast and its central premise. Sacha Baron Cohen fully commits to Damien’s descent from control into confusion, while Rosamund Pike gives Alex Fox a steady authority that grounds the more exaggerated ideas around them. The supporting cast, including Emily Mortimer as Ruby, Fiona Shaw as Felicity Chase, Charles Dance as Fred Powell and Richard E Grant as the Pigeon Man, helps to establish a recognisable corporate environment even when the narrative becomes increasingly surreal. The initial concept has clear satirical potential, and there are moments where the reversal of workplace roles creates a sharp, if fleeting, sense of comic tension.

The weaknesses become more apparent as the film progresses. The central idea is repeated rather than expanded, with Damien repeatedly placed into situations that mirror his earlier behaviour, which quickly becomes predictable. The comedy relies heavily on humiliation and reversal without introducing enough variation, and the tone settles into a familiar pattern of setup and correction. As a result, the satire loses some of its bite, and what begins as an interesting premise gradually flattens into a more conventional redemption story.

By the final act, Damien returns to his original world after another collapse in the parallel reality. Back at Atlas, he attempts to change his behaviour and make amends, including offering Alex Fox a more meaningful leadership role within the company. Alex’s campaign idea proves successful, while Damien steps back from his earlier arrogance and accepts a shift in outlook. The story closes with a sense of reset, while the Pigeon Man begins the process again with another man drawn into the reversed world.

Ladies First has a strong concept and an impressive cast, but it struggles to develop its premise beyond repetition. The gags fall flat as the one joke structure is stretched across feature length, and the comedy funnels into a predictable arc of comeuppance and redemption. It feels like a sketch idea expanded too far, with limited progression beyond the initial reversal concept. 

The film ultimately comes across as 40 years too late in its idea, relying on workplace gender reversal humour that no longer feels relevant. In a modern context, where women have already held the highest political offices, including three female Prime Ministers in the UK, and where claims around workplace inequality such as a gender pay gap are widely contested in the way the film frames them, the satire feels blunt rather than sharp. As a result it becomes uneven and predictable, never quite delivering on the sharper satirical potential it hints at early on. 

The result is a concept that should have worked better in another era, but here feels overstretched and underpowered. It scores a 4 out of 10.

Out Now on Netflix