2025 NFL Power Rankings: Week 13

 ()=Previous Ranking

1.(1) Los Angeles Rams (9-2) Week 13 opponent: Carolina Panthers

2.(3) Seattle Seahawks (8-3) Week 13 opponent: Minnesota Vikings

3.(4) New England Patriots (10-2) Week 13 opponent: New York Giants

4.(2) Philadelphia Eagles (8-3) Week 13 opponent: Chicago Bears

5.(7) Denver Broncos (9-2) Week 13 opponent: Washington Commanders

6.(8) Green Bay Packers (7-3-1) Week 13 opponent: Detroit Lions

7.(6) Indianapolis Colts (8-3) Week 13 opponent: Houston Texans

8.(9) Detroit Lions (7-4) Week 13 opponent: Green Bay Packers

9.(5) Buffalo Bills (7-4) Week 13 opponent: Pittsburgh Steelers

10.(11) San Francisco 49ers (8-4) Week 13 opponent: Cleveland Browns

11.(13) Chicago Bears (9-3) Week 13 opponent: Philadelphia Eagles

12.(15) Baltimore Ravens (6-5) Week 13 opponent: Cincinnati Bengals

13.(16) Kansas City Chiefs (6-5) Week 13 opponent: Dallas Cowboys

14.(14) Los Angeles Chargers (7-4) Week 13 opponent: Las Vegas Raiders

15.(12) Pittsburgh Steelers (6-5) Week 13 opponent: Buffalo Bills

16.(18) Houston Texans (6-5) Week 13 opponent: Indianapolis Colts

17.(17) Jacksonville Jaguars (7-4) Week 13 opponent: Tennessee Titans

18.(10) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-5) Week 13 opponent: Arizona Cardinals

19.(22) Dallas Cowboys (5-5-1) Week 13 opponent: Kansas City Chiefs 

20.(19) Carolina Panthers (6-6) Week 13 opponent: Los Angeles Rams

21.(21) Miami Dolphins (4-7) Week 13 opponent: New Orleans Saints

22.(23) Atlanta Falcons (4-7) Week 13 opponent: New York Jets

23.(20) Minnesota Vikings (4-7) Week 13 opponent: Seattle Seahawks 

24.(30) Cleveland Browns (3-8) Week 13 opponent: San Francisco 49ers

25.(24) Cincinnati Bengals (3-8) Week 13 opponent: Baltimore Ravens

26.(26) Washington Commanders (3-8) Week 13 opponent: Denver Broncos

27.(25) Arizona Cardinals (3-8) Week 13 opponent: Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

28.(29) New York Giants (2-10) Week 13 opponent: New England Patriots

29.(27) New Orleans Saints (2-9) Week 13 opponent: Miami Dolphins

30.(28) New York Jets (2-9) Week 13 opponent: Atlanta Falcons

31.(31) Las Vegas Raiders (2-9) Week 13 opponent: Los Angeles Chargers

32.(32) Tennessee Titans (1-10) Week 13 opponent: Jacksonville Jaguars

Week 12 Fantasy Football Winners and Losers: 2025 Edition

Quarterback

Biggest Winner: Jalen Hurts (Eagles)

The Eagles may've suffered one of the most crushing, confusing collapses of the 2025 season thus far against the Cowboys in Week 12 but at least Hurts got back in the good graces of his fantasy managers after back-to-back duds. Hurts was in peak dual-threat mode against the 'Boys anemic defense, throwing for 289 YDS and a score and rushing for 33 YDS and 2 TD's. He'll have another plus matchup when the Eagles return home to face the Bears on Friday afternoon.

Honorable Mentions: Dak Prescott (Cowboys), Matthew Stafford (Rams), Caleb Williams (Bears)

Biggest Loser: Lamar Jackson (Ravens)

While there was never any real danger of the Ravens losing to the Jets on Sunday, you wouldn't have known that by looking at the play of Jackson. The star QB had one of the most uneventful games of his career in a spot where he should've cleaned up, throwing for 153 YDS, rushing for only 11 YDS on 7 carries and failing to score a TD. About the only positive for Jackson was that he committed zero giveaways, which was good to see after his 2-INT performance against the Browns in Week 11. Jackson has been pretty unremarkable over the past 3 games and will have the difficult task of trying to right the ship on a short week as the Ravens will face the Bengals on Thanksgiving night.   

Dishonorable Mentions: Josh Allen (Bills), Brock Purdy (49ers), Jordan Love (Packers)

Running Back

Biggest Winner: Jahmyr Gibbs (Lions)

Gibbs was the main reason the Lions survived a scare from the 2-win Giants as he ripped off 219 YDS and 2 TD's on just 15 carries and acted as Jared Goff's security blanket in the passing game with a career-high 11 receptions for 45 YDS and another TD. He'll remain a top 5 option for the Lions huge Thanksgiving Day divisional clash with the Packers.  

Honorable Mentions: Emmanuel Wilson (Packers), Christian McCaffery (49ers), Derrick Henry (Ravens)

Biggest Loser: D'Andre Swift (Bears)

It was a tough day at the office for Swift against the Steelers as he not only was a complete non-factor (29 scrimmage YDS on 9 touches) in the victory but ceded the bulk of the backfield snaps to Kyle Monangai after losing a fumble early in the second quarter. Swift's standing in the Bears 1-2 backfield punch will be worth monitoring as they prepare to take on his former team in Philly on Friday.     

Dishonorable Mentions: Kyren Williams (Rams), David Montgomery (Lions), Jonathan Taylor (Colts)

Wide Receiver

Biggest Winner: Jaxson Smith-Njigba (Seahawks)

The most valuable fantasy receiver of 2025 so far by a mile was brilliant once again in Week 12, carving up the Titans for 167 YDS and 2 TD's on 8 receptions. He also gained 4 YDS on his sole backfield touch of the afternoon. JSN has arguably his toughest remaining matchup of the season in Week 13 against a Vikings secondary that has only allowed 3 100+ YD games and 8 TD's to WR this year.  

Honorable Mentions: Wan'Dale Robinson (Giants), Amon-Ra St. Brown (Lions), George Pickens (Cowboys)

Biggest Loser: Jordan Addison (Vikings)

J.J. McCarthy had the worst game of his terrible inaugural NFL campaign on Sunday in Green Bay and while nobody on the Vikings left this ugly affair smelling like roses, Addison suffered the most as he failed to catch his lone target. With McCarthy entering concussion protocol yesterday after reporting symptoms to team doctors on the flight back to Minneapolis and undrafted rookie Max Brosmer in line to make his first career start against the Seahawks, Addison is a clear sit for Week 13.  

Dishonorable Mentions: Stefon Diggs (Patriots), Emeka Egbuka (Buccaneers), Jameson Williams (Lions)

Tight End

Biggest Winner: Hunter Henry (Patriots)

Henry ended up being the only Patriot to truly feast against the Bengals bottom-ranked defense, putting together his best outing since Week 3 against the Steelers with an impressive 7/115/1 line. He'll look to become one of the proud few Patriots pass-catchers to have back-to-back impactful games in 2025 when they take on the Giants on MNF in Week 13.  

Honorable Mentions: Colston Loveland (Bears), Trey McBride (Cardinals), George Kittle (49ers)

Biggest Loser: Mark Andrews (Ravens)

Zay Flowers was the only one to put together a respectable performance (5/58) amidst Jackson's struggles against the Jets on Sunday, which means Andrews got left out in the cold-catching just 1-of-3 targets for 9 YDS and gaining 2 YDS on a pair of carries. If Jackson can get back on track, Andrews has a dream matchup against the Bengals in Week 13 that he should be able to exploit.

Dishonorable Mentions: Dallas Goedert (Eagles), Kyle Pitts (Falcons), T.J. Hockenson (Vikings)

Defense/Special Teams

Biggest Winner: Packers

As I mentioned above, J.J. McCarthy had an awful showing in Week 12 and the Packers defense is to blame for those struggles. The league's 5th ranked scoring defense completely disrupted the flow of the Vikings offense for 60 minutes, picking up 5 sacks, 2 INT's and a fumble recovery in a 22-6 victory. The Pack will look to steal another soul on Thanksgiving when they face a Lions offense that is currently in their most vulnerable state since they became a contending team in 2023.     

Honorable Mentions: Rams, Falcons, Browns

Biggest Loser: Lions

Did the Lions defense ultimately do enough to help their team win a game that they very easily could have lost? Yes. However, it was still a pretty dispiriting performance from a group that's looked great recently despite the rash of injuries they've endured in the secondary as they surrendered 27 points and only notched a pair of positive contributions on their fantasy stat sheet (1 sack, 1 INT) against the Jameis Winston-led Giants. The always unpredictable Packers offense presents a wild card of a Week 13 matchup that will definitely test the trust some owners have in this group.    

Dishonorable Mentions: Seahawks, Eagles, Chiefs

Thomas Haden Church Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked", a weekly series where I rank a franchise or filmography from worst to best and hand out assorted related superlatives. This week, I'm profiling the work of Thomas Haden Church-whose latest project "Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery" releases in select theaters on Wednesday and begins streaming on Netflix on December 12th. 

Thomas Haden Church's Filmography Ranked:

14.John Carter (D)

13.Spanglish (C)

12.George of the Jungle (C)

11.Rolling Kansas (C)

10.Hellboy (C+)

9.Spider-Man 3 (C+)

8.The Peanut Butter Falcon (B-) 

7.Daddy's Home (B-)

6.We Bought a Zoo (B)

5.Spider-Man: No Way Home (B)

4.Idiocracy (B)

3.Sideways (B)

2.Easy A (B)

1.Tombstone (B+)

Top Dog: Tombstone (1993)

There was a sneaky great run of westerns in the 90's and outside of Clint Eastwood's triumphant farewell to the genre that helped turn him into an international star with Unforgiven, Tombstone just might be the best of the bunch. George P. Cosomatos, who was previously best known for his work with Sylvester Stallone on Rambo: First Blood Part II and Cobra, brings a degree of pure action movie slickness that helps it stand out from other entries in the genre and the cast filled with beloved character actors from Kurt Russell to Bill Paxton to Sam Elliott to Val Kilmer to Michael Biehn help turn a collection of real-life gunslingers into larger-than-life figures worthy of being immortalized on the big screen.       

Bottom Feeder: John Carter (2012)

One of the most infamous bombs of the 2010's is also one of my least favorite movies from that decade. Pixar vet Andrew Stanton completely faceplanted with his live-action debut, which turns a seminal sci-fi text that has inspired generations of sci-fi writers/filmmakers into a convoluted, meandering epic that fails to parlay its impressive visuals into anything that's even remotely compelling. Stanton's second ever live action feature In the Blink of an Eye is currently in post-production, so it'll be interesting to see if he's learned anything from the failure of John Carter.   

Most Underrated: We Bought a Zoo (2011)

While We Bought a Zoo may be a minor entry in the (mostly) solid filmography of Cameron Crowe, it remains a heartfelt human story that's really enjoyable to watch. Returning to the world of light, warm crowdpleasers might be the ticket Crowe needs to punch to get out of the unemployment purgatory he's been stuck in for the last decade following the release of the obscenely awful Aloha.   

Most Overrated: The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019)

As inherently pleasant as this dramedy about a man with a Down Syndrome (Zack Gottsagen) who escapes from an assisted living facility in Georgia and heads out on the road with a down-on-his luck fisherman (Shia LaBouef) and his kindhearted caretaker (Dakota Johnson) to fulfill his dream of going to a wrestling school in North Carolina that's run by his idol (Haden Church), this story of found family and living out your dreams simply didn't move me in the way that it did a lot of other people. Perhaps I'll give it another shot one of these days and see if I just wasn't in the mood for it when I saw it in theaters.  

Michelle Monaghan Ranked

Welcome to "Ranked", a weekly series where I rank a franchise or filmography from worst to best and hand out assorted related superlatives. This week, I'm profiling the work of Michelle Monaghan-whose latest project "The Family Plan 2" begins streaming on Apple TV+ tomorrow. 

Michelle Monaghan's Filmography Ranked:

19.Playing It Cool (C)

18.Pixels (C)

17.The Bourne Supremacy (C)

16.Mr. & Mrs. Smith (C)

15.Machine Gun Preacher (B-)

14.Unfaithful (B-)

13.Sleepless (B-)

12.Eagle Eye (B)

11.Patriots Day (B)

10.Nanny (B)

9.Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (B)

8.Constantine (B)

7.MaXXXine (B)

6.Mission: Impossible III (B)

5.Due Date (B)

4.Mission: Impossible-Ghost Protocol (B+)

3.Mission: Impossible-Fallout (B+)

2.Source Code (A)

1.Gone Baby Gone (A)

Top Dog: Gone Baby Gone (2007)

Ben Affleck makes one of hell a first impression as a filmmaker with this gripping, emotional and surprisingly thorny noir mystery thriller about a Boston couple who work as private investigators (Casey Affleck, Monaghan) who are hired by another couple (Amy Madigan, Titus Welliver) to locate their missing 4-year-old niece (Madeline O'Brien). It's been a minute since I've seen this tremendous movie, so a rewatch is definitely in order.      

Bottom Feeder: Playing It Cool (2015)

Playing It Cool is a romantic comedy starring Chris Evans, Monaghan, Aubrey Plaza, Topher Grace, Ioan Gruffudd and Anthony Mackie. If you haven't heard of it, there's a good reason: It effectively got buried as it was an indie production that toiled around in the ether for a few years after it wrapped shooting until Vertical picked it up and quietly put it on VOD in the spring of 2015. While it's unfortunate that any movie would meet this fate, I can't sit here with a straight face and say that it deserved better. Plain and simple, it's an instantly forgettable watch that only staves off a worse fate because the solid cast genuinely does their best to try and elevate the flat material they had to work with.     

Most Underrated: Source Code (2011)

The downward trajectory of Duncan Jones' career over the last decade or so is kind of unfathomable given how good Moon and Source Code are. I'm particularly fond of Source Code as it blends high-concept sci-fi with the urgency and propulsion of a thriller, making it a uniquely intense, entertaining viewing experience. Jones will be making his return to filmmaking with the animated feature Rogue Trooper, which is in post-production and is currently expected to release sometime next year. Fingers crossed that he's able to get his groove back.    

Most Overrated: The Bourne Supremacy (2004)

While The Bourne Ultimatum-which is often cited as one of the greatest action movies ever made-is considerably more overrated in my book, I still have plenty of gripes with the second installment of the Bourne franchise. Supremacy was the installment where Paul Greengrass got his hands on the Bourne franchise and immediately sent the series spinning into the depths of mediocrity with its flaccid pacing and relentless use of choppy, quick-cut editing that went onto become the industry standard for action movies until John Wick came along a decade later and provided a much-needed shakeup with its long takes/fluid editing. I look forward to honoring Jason Bourne by forgetting to watch the next inevitable future reboot of this franchise.        

2025 NFL Power Rankings: Week 12

()=Previous Ranking

1.(2) Los Angeles Rams (8-2) Week 12 opponent: Tampa Bay Buccaneers 

2.(3) Philadelphia Eagles (8-2) Week 12 opponent: Dallas Cowboys

3.(1) Seattle Seahawks (7-3) Week 12 opponent: Tennessee Titans

4.(5) New England Patriots (9-2) Week 12 opponent: Cincinnati Bengals

5.(7) Buffalo Bills (7-3) Week 12 opponent: Houston Texans

6.(6) Indianapolis Colts (8-2) Week 12 opponent: Kansas City Chiefs

7.(10) Denver Broncos (9-2) Week 12 opponent: Bye

8.(9) Green Bay Packers (6-3-1) Week 12 opponent: Minnesota Vikings 

9.(4) Detroit Lions (6-4) Week 12 opponent: New York Giants

10.(8) Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-4) Weel 12 opponent: Los Angeles Rams

11.(12) San Francisco 49ers (7-4) Week 12 opponent: Carolina Panthers

12.(13) Pittsburgh Steelers (6-4) Week 12 opponent: Chicago Bears

13.(15) Chicago Bears (7-3) Week 12 opponent: Pittsburgh Steelers

14.(11) Los Angeles Chargers (7-4) Week 12 opponent: Bye

15.(16) Baltimore Ravens (5-5) Week 12 opponent: New York Jets

16.(14) Kansas City Chiefs (5-5) Week 12 opponent: Indianapolis Colts

17.(19) Jacksonville Jaguars (6-4) Week 12 opponent: Arizona Cardinals

18.(18) Houston Texans (5-5) Week 12 opponent: Buffalo Bills

19.(20) Carolina Panthers (6-5) Week 12 opponent: San Francisco 49ers

20.(17) Minnesota Vikings (4-6) Week 12 opponent: Green Bay Packers

21.(21) Miami Dolphins (4-7) Week 12 opponent: Bye

22.(22) Dallas Cowboys (4-5-1) Week 12 opponent: Philadelphia Eagles

23.(23) Atlanta Falcons (3-7) Week 12 opponent: New Orleans Saints

24.(24) Cincinnati Bengals (3-7) Week 12 opponent: New England Patriots

25.(25) Arizona Cardinals (3-7) Week 12 opponent: Jacksonville Jaguars 

26.(26) Washington Commanders (3-8) Week 12 opponent: Bye

27.(27) New Orleans Saints (2-8) Week 12 opponent: Atlanta Falcons

28.(28) New York Jets (2-8) Week 12 opponent: Baltimore Ravens

29.(29) New York Giants (2-9) Week 12 opponent: Detroit Lions

30.(30) Cleveland Browns (2-8) Week 12 opponent: Las Vegas Raiders

31.(31) Las Vegas Raiders (2-8) Week 12 opponent: Cleveland Browns

32.(32) Tennessee Titans (1-9) Week 12 opponent: Seattle Seahawks 

Week 11 Fantasy Football Winners and Losers: 2025 Edition

 Quarterback

Biggest Winner: Josh Allen (Bills)

Allen was able to shake off 2 ugly picks in the first half and put together one of the most dominant QB showings we've seen in the league this year (317 passing YDS, 3 TD's, 40 Rushing YDS, 3 TD's) in a shootout win over the Bucs on Sunday. The reigning MVP will get right back to work roughly 48 hours from now when the Bills take on the Texans in Houston on TNF.   

Honorable Mentions: Dak Prescott (Cowboys), Brock Purdy (49ers), Jordan Love (Packers)

Biggest Loser: Justin Herbert (Chargers)

Things couldn't have gone much worse for Herbert in Week 11 as relentless pressure from the Jaguars front and a complete lack of help from his rushing game led to him throwing for 81 YDS, which is a new career-low and an INT while adding just 21 YDS on the ground. He'll get a much-needed reprieve from the weekly beatings he's taking behind his garbage offensive line this week as the Chargers are on bye.   

Dishonorable Mentions: Lamar Jackson (Ravens), Caleb Williams (Bears), Joe Flacco (Bengals)

Running Back

Biggest Winner: Christian McCaffery (49ers)

It was an easy victory for the 49ers over the Cardinals and CMC's play was a big reason why the game was sealed up well before halftime. The star running back only needed 18 touches (13 carries, 5 receptions) to rack up 121 YDS and 3 TD's and largely ceded his backfield work to Brian Robinson Jr. in the second half of this laugher. Next up for McCaffery is a meeting with the Panthers and their middling defense.   

Honorable Mentions: TreVeyon Henderson (Patriots), Bijan Robinson (Falcons), Travis Etienne Jr. (Jaguars)

Biggest Loser: David Montgomery (Lions)

Montgomery was effective when he got the ball against the Eagles, averaging over 5 YDS per touch. There just wasn't action for him as Dan Campbell leaned heavily on Jahmyr Gibbs as his speed was one of the only things that gave the Eagles D trouble during this rough showing for the Lions typically high-flying offense and that caused him to finish the game with just 37 scrimmage YDS. While Montgomery's usage rate has been all over the place this season, he should see more action against an undermanned Giants team that has really struggled to contain the run through 11 games.   

Dishonorable Mentions: Quinshon Judkins (Browns), Ashton Jeanty (Raiders), R.J. Harvey (Broncos)

Wide Receiver

Biggest Winner: Tetairoa McMillan (Panthers)

The Panthers rookie broke his 4-week TD drought in spectacular fashion by not only finding the endzone twice but setting new career-highs in receptions (8) and receiving YDS (130) over the Falcons. It was really encouraging to see McMillan finally take advantage of his huge target share and he'll have a real shot to put together another monster performance in Week 12 against an injury-depleted 49ers secondary that has gotten lit up over the past few weeks.    

Honorable Mentions: Michael Wilson (Cardinals), George Pickens (Cowboys), Nico Collins (Texans)

Biggest Loser: DeVonta Smith (Eagles)

It was finally Smith's turn to get punished by the Eagles passing games woes as he caught just 1-of-5 targets for 8 YDS in a win over the Lions. Smith will face the Cowboys and their stinky secondary in Week 12.  

Dishonorable Mentions: Ladd McConkey (Chargers), Ricky Pearsall (49ers), Quentin Johnston (Chargers)

Tight End

Biggest Winner: Trey McBride (Cardinals)

McBride painted another garbage time masterpiece against the 49ers, hauling in 10 catches for 115 YDS and a TD. Jacoby Brissett's favorite target will look to make it 3 100+ YD/1 TD outings in a row against the Jaguars this Sunday. 

Honorable Mentions: George Kittle (49ers), Travis Kelce (Chiefs), Mark Andrews (Ravens)

Biggest Loser: Kyle Pitts (Falcons)

Pitts was an afterthought in the Falcons passing attack against the Panthers, catching just 2-of-3 targets for 14 YDS as the Dirty Birds suffered yet another heartbreaking single digit loss in a game they should've won. With Drake London out indefinitely with a PCL sprain, Pitts should be in line for a huge usage bump and can confidently be fired up as a TE1 in all formats.

Dishonorable Mentions: Dallas Goedert (Eagles), Cade Otton (Buccaneers), David Njoku (Browns)

Defense/Special Teams

Biggest Winner: Steelers

Teryl Austin's group showed up big once again, embarrassing the Bengals offense in a 34-12 victory by logging 1 sack and 2 defensive scores in the second half (a pick-6 from Kyle Dugger and a fumble return by James Pierre). The Steelers will face the Bears-who've done a good job of minimizing giveaways and sacks this season-in Week 12. 

Honorable Mentions: Browns, Texans, Rams

Biggest Loser: Chargers

The Chargers didn't look like the top 10 defense they've been for the bulk of this season as Travis Etienne, Bhayshul Tuten and LeQuint Allen ran wild in a shocking 35-6 win for a Jags team that's looked like shit for much of the last month. An early pick of Trevor Lawrence-who wasn't overly sharp once again despite the large margin of victory-was the only highlight for Jesse Minter's unit. The Chargers will face a turnover-happy, largely inept Raiders offense when they return to action in Week 13.   

Dishonorable Mentions: Seahawks, Chiefs, Lions 

Quick Movie Reviews: Frankenstein, The Running Man, Now You See Me: Now You Don't, Keeper

Frankenstein: An adaptation of Frankenstein is the project Guillermo del Toro has been wanting to make for the entirety of his 30+ year career. Now that Netflix has given him the opportunity to make his dream a reality, it's kind of sad to say that del Toro's vision feels a little bit miscalculated. His take on Mary Shelley's classic novel is effectively a tale of two halves as the opening stretch detailing the origins of the tormented, egotistical surgeon Victor Frankenstein (Oscar Isaac) and his efforts to prove that he can bring the dead back to life is too stoic to be overly compelling while the second half where the focus shifts to Frankenstein's monster (Jacob Elordi) is a harrowing, emotional tale of a being trying to find beauty in a cruel world that he's cursed to stay in for eternity. Elordi-who only landed the role after Andrew Garfield dropped out-is remarkable in the role as he embodies the complex range of emotions the creature feels as he learns about his unnatural origins and s world that has labeled him as a bloodthirsty beast without even trying to understand his true nature. If the other aspects of Frankenstein outside of the top-notch cinematography and production design del Toro delivers on all of his films were in line with Elordi's thoughtful, astonishing craftsmanship, Frankenstein would've unquestionably landed at or near the top of the legendary director's filmography instead of the merely respectable middle where it ended up residing.  

Grade: B

The Running Man: A reboot of The Running Man couldn't have been timed better. Not only does Stephen King's novel take place in 2025, a dystopian world where authoritarian oligarchs control the government, media, etc. and the economy is so bad that the bottom 99% of society are willing to risk their lives for the entertainment of others in exchange for the slim chance of being able to enjoy a life where they don't have to worry about their ability to have access to medical care, food or housing isn't too far off from the reality we're currently living through. As fun as the cheesy 1987 version with Arnold Schwarzenegger is, Edgar Wright's version is an improvement across the board. The grizzled old school action-meets-blunt modern satire approach Wright uses is a great ode to the story 80's origins while taking aim at the increasingly dangerous actions of today's ruling class that are doing every they can to suppress the truth and sow division among the population so they can continue to live in blissful excess while pushing more people into poverty by the day. I'm not going to pretend that The Running Man' 25 has some masterful script, but there's still something to be said about a mainstream Hollywood movie actively confronting one of the biggest threats currently facing our world and preaching the importance of class solidarity as a means to fight it. That might not sound like much to most people but consider this: Paramount was taken over in early August by David Ellison's Skydance Media. Ellison's father Larry is the second richest person in the world and is actively seeking to help his son's company purchase Warner Brothers to further add to their family's growing media empire (they're also involved in the upcoming purchase of the American version of TikTok from Chinese company ByteDance). Would they even consider funding a movie like The Running Man? The answer is obvious and, that's why it's so awesome that Wright was able to release something serves as a giant middle finger to people like Hollywood's newest power players under the banner that now bares their company's name.

On top of its topicality, The Running Man represents a further elevation in Glen Powell's acting stock. Disgruntled everyman Ben Richards-who enters the titular game show where three contestants have the chance to win a billion dollars if they can survive 30 days while a group of elite mercenaries known as "The Hunters" (Lee Pace, Karl Glusman, James Frencheville, Joey Ansah, Alex Hoeffler, Greg Townley) attempt to kill them on live television in an attempt to pay for medical care for his sick infant daughter-provides the budding star with the ideal vessel to build out his range. Richards is a classic everyman action hero with rage issues that is also willing to do anything he can to have the backs of the people around him. Powell expertly balances the conflicting faces of Richards by knowing when he needs to be a hardened, resilient badass with a short fuse and when he has to lean into something more vulnerable or funny. The mix of his established snarky yet affable personality with something darker and meaner makes this his best performance in a blockbuster to date. 

In terms of the action, it's easily the most straightforward group of setpieces Wright has ever crafted. What drove the decision to dial back on his signature stylization is a mystery (the turnaround time on this one was super tight as shooting wrapped in March), but it was kind of a bummer to see these huge chases and fights assembled in a manner that don't reflect his established sensibilities. Wright and his second unit director Darrin Prescott are such pros that these sequences still manage to be solid and propulsive (particularly the bit with Michael Cera's oddball Maine-based revolutionary character), they just all happen to be begging to be staged in a more fluid, flamboyant manner. Nitpicks over the action aside, The Running Man is another winner for Wright and one of the best blockbusters of the year.                                           

Grade: B+

Now You See Me: Now You Don't: There's something beautiful about the Now You See Me franchise returning from a 9-year hiatus and sliding right back into its unapologetically silly groove without missing a beat. You wouldn't know that Ruben Fleischer is the third different director to take the reins of the magician heist series by how smoothly he assimilates to the series house style (heavily stylized illusions/tricks, snarky banter, absurd plot twists galore) and all of the newcomers (Justice Smith, Dominic Sessa, Ariana Greenblatt, Rosamund Pike) have a blast teaming up/squaring off against the recently reunited Horseman (Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Dave Franco, Isla Fisher-who returns to the fold after sitting out Now You See Me 2)-whose dynamic is just as strong now as it was in the first installment 12 years ago. By the time it's exhilaratingly dumb Abu Dhabi-set finale concluded, I was ready to break into a Cannes-worthy round of extend applause. Please let the powers that be at Lionsgate grant this franchise the opportunity to continue for as long as the creatives involved have an interest in making them.                  

Grade: B+

Keeper: I was on board with Keeper for the bulk of its runtime. Osgood Perkins establishes a really ominous atmosphere through eerie visuals, well-deployed jump scares and good fashioned isolation while Tatiana Maslany is solid as a woman having a really bad/weird time during a romantic getaway to her boyfriend's (Rossif Sutherland) family cabin. Then Keeper has to start providing answers to what the hell is going on in and around this cabin, and it goes from scary to silly in no time at all as it shatters the hypnotic ambiguity of its first two acts with a lengthy exposition dump that paves the way for a groan-inducing ending that stops Perkins' hot streak at Neon dead in its tracks. Perkins won't have to wait long to redeem himself for this misstep as he's currently in production on his next project The Young People-which will mark the fourth film he's made this decade.                

Grade: C