Hello, Yahoo readers! My name is Brett Arnold, film critic and longtime Yahoo editor, and I’m back with another edition of Trust Me, I Watch Everything.
This week, Black Phone 2 hits theaters alongside Good Fortune, the directorial debut of comedian Aziz Ansari.
At home, you can rent or buy the Colin Farrell-Margot Robbie vehicle A Big Bold Beautiful Journey or the most recent installment of The Strangers horror films.
There are plenty of options on streaming services you’re already paying for, including a new Netflix true crime documentary The Perfect Neighbor and a moving documentary about the lives of Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara, directed by their son, Ben Stiller.
Read on, because there’s more, and there’s always something for everyone!
🎥 What to watch in theaters
My sort-of-recommendation: Black Phone 2
Why you should maybe see it: Black Phone 2 is a bold and ambitious sequel that takes the budding franchise into a more supernatural direction. The vibes may feel a bit too familiar to fans of the Nightmare on Elm Street movies.
In the film, bad dreams haunt Gwen, who is now 15, as she receives calls from the black phone and sees disturbing visions of three boys being stalked and killed at a winter camp. Accompanied by her brother, Finn, they head to the camp to solve the mystery, only to confront the Grabber (Ethan Hawke) — a killer who’s grown even more powerful in death.
The original movie, based on the Joe Hill short story, was a sleeper hit, unexpectedly becoming one of the biggest horror hits of 2021. The more surreal and dreamlike sequel, further unencumbered from sticking to any sort of text, is an improvement, even if it still feels like it owes a lot to Freddy Krueger. I’m torn between appreciating the very clear homages and being annoyed that it’s so blatantly a rip-off.
The biggest surprise is how little the Grabber is actually in the movie; the story is way more focused on Finn and Gwen. Hawke delivers what is almost entirely a vocal performance, to the point where you may wonder if he was ever actually under the mask on set. He’s appropriately menacing in the role, even if the prop does a lot of the heavy lifting.
Its message about surviving trauma would likely go down easier if every horror movie in the past decade weren’t also about that, but if you are invested in these characters, it’s effective enough. The film’s best asset is its texture; the analog, grainy look that differentiates the dream sequences from reality is striking, and the merging of these two worlds is compelling visually.
Black Phone 2 is a case where the atmosphere, look and feel of the movie are strong enough to make up for whatever it lacks on a story level, though the degree to which it wants to be a Nightmare on Elm Street sequel mostly just left me wanting the real thing.
What other critics are saying: The reaction is mixed-positive. Benjamin Lee at the Guardian writes, “Black Phone 2, like M3gan 2.0 before it, is a needlessly long and hugely unconvincing argument for the birth of a new franchise. The next time it rings, I recommend not answering.” Variety’s Peter Debruge, however, calls it “remarkably scary, considering the deliberate pace … which I credit to how all bets are off when dealing with dreams.”
How to watch: Black Phone 2 is now in theaters nationwide.
My bonus recommendation: Good Fortune
Why you should see it: Good Fortune has its heart in the right place, which goes a long way in making up for the clunky plotting, familiar insights and lack of a true lead character. Thankfully, there are plenty of laughs along the way and a particularly terrific and charming performance by Keanu Reeves.
In the writer-director debut of comedian and actor Aziz Ansari, a well-meaning but rather inept angel named Gabriel (Reeves) meddles in the lives of a struggling gig worker Arj (Ansari) and Jeff, a wealthy capitalist (Seth Rogen).
The movie is incredibly class conscious, so much so that it comes off as didactic. It more often than not tells, rather than shows us, how the rich have it easy and the poor are barely hanging on by a thread. Its anger feels righteous even if it’s all fairly obvious stuff. It never comes off as too preachy because it’s more interested in making you laugh.
The idea of an angel who is bad at his job sounds one-note, but by the time Gabriel is attempting to show Arj that his life is worth living, A Christmas Carol-style, and failing miserably, you realize how much comedy is inherent in the premise. It’s even funnier that the plot kicks into motion because Reeves tries to impart a “being rich isn’t all it’s cracked up to be” lesson, and it turns out being rich does make life easier, and Arj would much rather stay in that reality.
Good Fortune is formulaic and owes a lot to films like Wings of Desire and A Life Less Ordinary and even Trading Places, but the marketplace should absolutely welcome old-fashioned high-concept comedies such as this.
What other critics are saying: It’s a mixed bag! The AP’s Lindsey Bahr says “it ambles around between absurdity, social realism and Apatow-esque antics trying to find its groove. And yet nothing is ever quite laugh out loud funny, which is shocking considering the people involved, and its messages are essentially toothless.” Michael Rechtshaffen at the Hollywood Reporter dug it, praising Reeves specifically, writing “summoning those deadpan days of Bill & Ted’s Excellent Adventure and Parenthood, Reeves’ determined but out-of-his-depths Gabriel consistently scores as the film’s comedic secret weapon.”
How to watch: Good Fortune is now in theaters nationwide.
But that’s not all…
Julia Roberts and Andrew Garfield in After the Hunt. (Amazon MGM Studios/Courtesy of Everett Collection)
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After the Hunt: The performances are largely great across the board in the latest film from the prolific Luca Guadagnino — Julia Roberts! Andrew Garfield! Michael Stuhlbarg! — but the script is so contrived and meant to inspire discourse that the whole thing ends up feeling like a rather empty provocation, from the Woody Allen font right up top all the way through the end credits. Get tickets.
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Truth & Treason: This latest effort from Angel Studios is an inspiring and thrilling true story of a group of teenagers in Nazi Germany who dared to defy the regime and expose the truth of Hitler’s evils. The kids are/were alright! Get tickets.
💸 Movies newly available to rent or buy
My not-quite-a-recommendation: A Big Bold Beautiful Journey
Why you should maybe skip it: They don’t make movies like this one anymore: a big-budget studio film full of magical realism, a sort-of-surreal romantic fantasy. And if the box office receipts are any indication, we won’t be getting another one any time soon.
Sarah (Margot Robbie) and David (Colin Farrell) are single strangers who meet at a mutual friend’s wedding and soon, through a surprising twist of fate, find themselves on a funny, fantastical adventure together where they get to relive important moments from their respective pasts and possibly get a chance to alter their futures. The problem is that the characters are ciphers and not really people.
It works on a script level, and the story is at its most involving when it gets emotional and honest about Sarah and David as they revisit key moments from their lives. Farrell performing a full musical number in a childhood play is a highlight that makes you wish he were starring in a musical instead.
The issue is that outside of those moments, the movie feels like it’s going through the motions of what the audience is expecting. A Big Bold Beautiful Journey deserves points for trying something different, but it winds up feeling familiar all the same.
What other critics are saying: It’s a big miss. Tomris Laffly at Variety writes “the only destination A Big Bold Beautiful Journey approaches in the end is an unfortunate bore.” IndieWire’s Ryan Lattanzio calls it “miscalculated as a romance and a fantasy.”
How to watch: A Big Bold Beautiful Journey is now available to rent or buy on Amazon, Apple TV and other VOD platforms.
Bonus not-a-recommendation: The Strangers: Chapter 2
Why you should maybe skip it: The original plan for this reboot of the popular 2008 horror movie The Strangers was to release all three films in a new trilogy within weeks of each other, emulating the strategy Netflix deployed in 2021 for their Fear Street films.
The Strangers: Chapter 1, however, came out in May 2025, and it took nearly a year and a half for this next one to make its way to theaters. Rumor has it that it even underwent serious reshoots after fans were disappointed with the first installment.
Did those new sequences make any difference? Sadly, not really. The Strangers: Chapter 2 is so bad and boring, I was actively writing the Scary Movie-style parody of it in my head during every sequence. There’s at least one scene featuring a CGI animal that is actually indistinguishable from a spoof of itself.
There’s simply not enough story here. Instead, it feels like an elongated chase scene, clearly indebted to other famous horror sequels, such as the original Halloween II. It’s all more fun on paper than it is in execution here. There’s one extended sequence, in which our Final Girl (Riverdale‘s Madelaine Petsch) runs from one set piece to the next, that actually builds some decent tension, but it’s all in service of a whole bunch of nothing.
What other critics are saying: It’s not getting very high marks. Variety’s Dennis Harvey writes that a certain moment “jumps the shark” but adds, “What does work throughout, even when the pileup of our heroine’s brushes with death starts to teeter, is [director Renny] Harlin’s engineering of tense action.” RogerEbert.com’s Brian Tallerico says, “fter this one, I’m truly scared to answer the door for chapter 3.”
How to watch: The Strangers: Chapter 2 is now available to rent or buy on Amazon, Apple TV and other VOD platforms.
But that’s not all…
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The Senior: Michael Chiklis stars in this inspirational true story that, if it were made up, you likely would find it too far-fetched to believe. The actor plays Mike Flynt, who, at age 59, may be too old to be on a college football field, but that doesn’t stop him from joining the team anyway. It’s heartfelt enough to make you well up by the end and has some positive messaging about how it’s never too late to finish what you started, no matter how crazy it may seem. Rent or buy.
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Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie: If your toddler can’t get enough of the Netflix series, the theatrical feature film has already made its way to digital. There’s not much for parents here, though there’s a single joke from bad guy Kristen Wiig that got a laugh outta me! Rent or buy.
📺 Movies newly available on streaming services you may already have
My recommendation: The Perfect Neighbor
Why you should watch it: This harrowing and deeply upsetting documentary plays like a single-case episode of Cops, as it’s told in real-time entirely via police bodycam footage and 911 calls.
It’s a ripped-from-the-headlines affair about a seemingly minor neighborhood dispute in Florida that escalates into deadly violence. It feels both like something you shouldn’t be watching and also essential viewing for the reality of what “stand your ground” laws look like in practice.
It is an uncomfortable watch, full of that terrible tension that exists when the audience knows something horrible is about to happen that those onscreen are unaware of and unprepared for.
What other critics are saying: It’s got a rare 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. Robert Abele at the Los Angeles Times says it has the “potency of a horror movie,” and Jacob Oller at the AV Club says the film “stares helplessly at a perfectly ordinary American murder.”
How to watch: The Perfect Neighbor is now streaming on Netflix.
Bonus recommendation: 40 Acres
Why you should watch it: The always-great Danielle Deadwyler stars in this post-apocalyptic thriller about a Black family of Canadian farmers, descended from American Civil War migrants, defending their homestead against cannibals trying to seize their resources.
Its specific approach to the apocalypse — that it’s about food scarcity and the importance of farms in that future — makes it stand out, as does the terrific and dynamic gunplay that unexpectedly takes up the latter half. The focus on family is also very effective.
What other critics are saying: Most agree it’s worth your time! Rolling Stone’s David Fear writes, “She’s not better than the movie. Deadwyler just makes the movie better by every choice she’s making as an actor.” Amy Nicholson at the Los Angeles Times agrees, writing that “there’s not one false beat in Deadwyler’s performance.”
How to watch: 40 Acres is now streaming on Hulu.
But that’s not all…
Ben Stiller and Amy Stiller in Stiller & Meara: Nothing Is Lost. (Apple TV/Courtesy of Everett Collection)
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Stiller & Meara: Nothing Is Lost: This deeply personal documentary from Ben Stiller tells the story of his famous parents, beloved comedy duo Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. It feels like you’re watching some other family’s home movies, because you literally are, but since Jerry (and Anne and Ben) have been on our screens for so long, it still hits emotionally. It’s self-indulgent, sure, but that’s part and parcel with what it’s doing. Stiller bringing it all together to show how we all become our parents also feels pretty special. Now streaming on Apple TV.
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The Twits: The latest Roald Dahl affair from Netflix is its first effort at animating the author’s stories after the live-action Wes Anderson shorts and the Matilda musical. While the visuals are oddly striking — it’s computer animation that seems to be going for a stop-motion feel — the story here is strictly for toddlers. Now streaming on Netflix.
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I Know What You Did Last Summer: When it hit theaters, I wrote that I Know What You Did Last Summer is full of references to modern memes and pop culture staples in such a way that it feels even more like a Scream clone than it ever did. Worst of all, though, is that it’s poorly directed and awkwardly assembled. Skip it! Now streaming on Netflix.
That’s all for this week — we’ll see you next week at the movies!
Looking for more recs? Find your next watch on the Yahoo 100, our daily-updating list of the most popular movies of the year.
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