Watch the whole thing HERE!
CAST: Dave Franco, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Mason Thames, Kiernan Shipka, Nicholas Braun, Peter Dinklage. Written, produced, and directed by Macon Blair.
REVIEW: Despite its title, “Idiots” is a smart cultural commentary that examines the haves and the have-nots.
Dave Franco and O’Shea Jackson Jr. play unemployed odd couple Mark and Davis. Mark’s poor impulse control cost him his call centre job while the earnest and awkward Davis was cut loose from his church after subjecting the Bible Studies kids to a screening of Lars von Trier’s “Antichrist,” mistakenly thinking it was an educational movie about the life of Jesus.
To make ends meet they take jobs as drivers for a shady transport service. “You know what we do here? Drive rich kids to rehab.” It’s a tricky gig with lots of loopholes. Chief among the one-sided rules were the provisos that they, and they alone, would be legally responsible for their cargo from the beginning of the trip until drop off and they won’t be paid until the job is over.
Their first assignment pairs them with Sheridan Kimberley (Mason Thames), an amoral trust fund kid who’ll do anything to avoid going to rehab. A delay caused by a flat tire sends them off on an odyssey that sees the unlikely trio up against Irina (Kiernan Shipka), an exotic dancer who makes house calls, a militia that includes Peter Dinklage and Pricka Bush Da Werewoof (Nicholas Braun), a lycan-obsessed SoundCloud rapper who is convinced the drivers have kidnapped the troublemaking teen. “That kid made a fool of me,” Mark, “and I will take his scalp for that. And that is not a metaphor.”
“Idiots” isn’t exactly a buddy comedy. It’s not consistently funny enough to earn that title.
Instead, it’s a dark, unpredictable look, with some funny, raunchy moments, at privilege, inequality and decency. Director and screenwriter Macon Blair isn’t afraid to play some scenes for sheer comedic shock value, but he’s also unafraid to weave some bleak social commentary in the story’s fabric.
Mason Thames plays Sheridan Kimberley as the poster boy for toxicity, a smirking rich kid whose consequence free behaviour has made him an internet sensation with one million followers. Sociopathic and remorseless, he forces the “idiots”—Mark and Davis—to confront their place on the food chain. Despite despicable behavior, Sheridan is insulated by money against any repercussions. Mark and Davis, however, are left to pay the price for Sheridan’s actions.
The social commentary isn’t subtle but Thames, best known for his work in “The Black Phone” and the live-action “How to Train Your Dragon,” doesn’t play Sheridan as a moustache twirling baddie. Instead, he’s even more insidious, someone who feigns vulnerability, who lies and cheats through a smile.
The secret sauce, however, is the relationship between Mark and Davis. Polar opposites, there is comedy to be mined from the differences, but it is in the unlikely bond that grows between them that the movie finds its heart.
“Idiots” feels stretched in its final third, but up until then is a sporadically funny socially aware reinvention of the buddy comedy.
On the Saturday May 9, 2026 edition of The Richard Crouse Show we meet YouTuber, actor, screenwriter, comedian, and musician Jasmeet Raina. His series “Late Bloomer,” a dramedy about a millennial Sikh content creator balancing online ambitions, family expectations, community pressures, and personal growth, is in its third season on Crave right now. Critics call it funny, heartfelt, and eye-opening.
He rose to fame in the late 2000s/early 2010s on YouTube with sharp, satirical sketches about growing up in a Punjabi immigrant family in Guelph, Ontario. His irreverent humor on culture, family, and identity earned him millions of views and a loyal following but he stepped back from YouTube around 2018, to created, write, produce, and star in the semi-autobiographical “Late Bloomer.”
Then, we’ll meet actor Shamier Anderson. He’s best known for roles like Deputy Marshal Xavier Dolls in Wynonna Earp, Trevante Cole in Invasion (Apple TV+), and the memorable Mr. Nobody / The Tracker in John Wick: Chapter 4. He’s also involved in initiatives supporting Black Canadian talent, like co-founding awards and events with his brother, actor Stephan James.
Today we’re talking about how he made the switch from law enforcement to acting, studying kung fu and his latest role, playing controversial Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson. “Hate the Player: The Ben Johnson Story” is a satirical comedy miniseries for Paramount+ and GameTV that focuses on Johnson’s 1988 Seoul Olympics 100m gold medal win (and world record), the subsequent doping scandal that stripped him of it, and a “definitely-not-biased” retelling that explores the legacy, the pressure, and perhaps the bigger picture of athletics in that era.
Finally, we spend some time with Nicholas Braun. You’ve seen him in supporting roles in films like “The Perks of Being a Wallflower,” “How to Be Single” and “Zola,” although the 6’7″ actor is best known as the awkward, ambitious Cousin Greg Hirsch on Crave’s “Succession,” a role that earned him three Primetime Emmy nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series.
Today, we’re talking about his latest project, “The Sheep Detectives,” a new, all-star whodunnit comedy now playing in theatres, about a flock of sheep attempt to solve a murder mystery.
You heard me right. This bizarre but crowd-pleasing murder mystery for the whole family that could have been titled “CSI: Livestock.” Murder, talking sheep and philosophy intertwine to create echoes of “Babe: A Pig in the City” and “Old Yeller.”
Nicolas Braun plays Tim, the only, and rather clumsy, police officer in a small town, who investigates the murder of the local shepherd played by Hugh Jackman, as a flock of crime-solving sheep try to crack the case first.
Listen to the whole thing HERE!
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I join CTV NewsChannel anchor Renee Rogers to talk about the new releases in theatres, including the bloody “Mortal Kombat II,” the family murder mystery “The Sheep Detectives” and the road trip “Omaha.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to make your bed. Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about the bloody “Mortal Kombat II,” the family murder mystery “The Sheep Detectives” and the road trip “Omaha.”
Watch the whole thing HERE!
I sit with “The Sheep Detectives” star Nicholas Braun to talk about the family friendly film and whether or not any real sheep were used on the film.
Watch the whole thing HERE!
SYNOPSIS: In “The Sheep Detectives,” a new, all-star whodunnit comedy now playing in theatres, a flock of sheep attempt to solve a murder mystery.
CAST: Hugh Jackman, Nicholas Braun, Nicholas Galitzine, Molly Gordon, Hong Chau, and Emma Thompson with the voices of Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Bryan Cranston, Chris O’Dowd, Regina Hall, Patrick Stewart, Bella Ramsey, Brett Goldstein, Rhys Darby. Directed by Kyle Balda.
REVIEW: “The Sheep Detectives” is a bizarre but crowd-pleasing murder mystery for the whole family that could have been titled “CSI: Livestock.” Murder, talking sheep and philosophy intertwine to create echoes of “Babe: A Pig in the City” and “Old Yeller.”
Hugh Jackman is George, a sheep herder with an uncommon connection to his flock. Called a “grouchy-pants” by the locals in the village of Denbrook, on the farm he’s all sweetness and light to his sheep. He gives them names, dotes on them and reads them detective novels as bedtime stories, even though they can’t understand him.
Except they can.
Among themselves they speak English and spend their late nights discussing George’s murder mysteries, trying to guess who the killer will be.
When murder comes to the farm, there are suspects galore, but it is up to the sheep to become little wooly Columbos and crack the case.
Paced and performed like a family flick,” The Sheep Detectives” certainly has appeal for the whole clan. The cute CGI talking sheep and gentle humor should be appropriate for ages seven and up. Some of it is dark, like the story of a sheep who was raised on the carnival and there are some “Old Yeller” style realities that may be upsetting to very young children.
Still, despite the Ovine Agatha Christie elements, director Kyle Balda, best known for co-directing the Illumination films “The Lorax,” “Minions,” “Despicable Me 3” and “Minions: The Rise of Gru,” keeps the tone light and breezy, peppering the story with humor to offset any intensity the story offers up.
Populated with standard issue murder mystery characters, like “Successions” Nicholas Braun as bumbling cop Tim Derry, Nicholas Galitzine as cub reporter Elliot Matthews and Molly Gordon as a long lost relative, it’s the sheep who sell the story. Sure, Hugh Jackman brings warmth and a steely gentleness to the role of George, but it is the nimble voice work of Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Lily, the smartest sheep in the world, Bryan Cranston as a sheep with a tortured past and Chris O’Dowd as the curious Mopple, that add a human touch as they grapple with understanding he changing nature of their world, loyalty and take chances to find answers. These sheeple break away from the herd, bringing surprising commentary on the idea of “dumb animals” and the people who care for them.
“The Sheep Detectives” is a charming and clever film that adds layers to what could have been a simple story for kids.
SYNOPSIS: A screwball take on the rom com, “Spiltsville” begins when Ashley (Adria Arjona) blindsids her husband, the good-natured Carey (Kyle Marvin), by asking for a divorce. Looking for support, the heartbroken Carey turns to his best friend Paul (Michael Angelo Covino) and his wife Julie (Dakota Johnson), a move that inadvertently turns all their relationships upside down.
CAST: Dakota Johnson, Adria Arjona, Marvin, Covino, Nicholas Braun, David Castañeda, O-T Fagbenle, Charlie Gillespie, and Simon Webster. Directed by Michael Angelo Covino.
REVIEW: “Splitsville” uses a fiercely funny look at modern relationships as a vehicle for a close-up examination of self-discovery and acceptance.
Married for fourteen months, Ashley (Adria Arjona) and Carey’s (Kyle Marvin) marriage crumbled in just ten tumultuous minutes. She is a podcaster and life coach who says things like, “If it isn’t said, it can’t be put to bed,” he’s a laid-back guy with a penchant for Dad jokes— Still wanna go to the beach house? Are you shore?—who dreams of starting a family.
She’s looking for excitement, he’s booking pottery classes for them.
On the way to a beach house owned by their rich friends Paul (Michael Angelo Covino) and Julie (Dakota Johnson), they inadvertently cause a car accident, an event that prompts Ashley to admit that she’s been having affairs and no longer wants to be married.
At the beach house Paul and Julie offer up a mix of condolences, jabs—“You married a life coach, what did you expect?”—and a startling confession. The secret to their seemingly perfect union, they say, is an open relationship.
Over the next several years, bonds are tested as the four main characters discover the enduring nature of love and relationships, even when they go wrong.
If Neil Simon wrote about love in the 2000s, he might have come up with something like “Splitsville.” It’s silly and sophisticated, unafraid of male nudity but willing to seriously contemplate messy relationships with a mix of heartbreak and humor.
One sequence, an extended fight between Carey and Paul, is hilarious, but at its heart it’s fueled by raw, unchecked emotion, the consequences of jealousy and insecurity. It’s absurd, and knee slappingly funny, but it also hits the heart.
“Splisville” is a comedy, and often a farcical one, but underneath its comedy veneer is a carefully observed look at desire vs. romance.
SYNOPSIS: In “Saturday Night,” a new show business biography from director Jason Reitman, and now playing in theatres, tensions run high as producer Lorne Michaels and his not ready for prime-time gang of young comedians count down the minutes until the first broadcast of “Saturday Night Live” on Oct. 11, 1975.
CAST: Gabriel LaBelle, Rachel Sennott, Cory Michael Smith, Ella Hunt, Dylan O’Brien, Emily Fairn, Matt Wood, Lamorne Morris, Kim Matula, Finn Wolfhard, Nicholas Braun, Cooper Hoffman, Andrew Barth Feldman, Kaia Gerber, Tommy Dewey, Willem Dafoe, Matthew Rhys, and J. K. Simmons. Directed by Jason Reitman.
REVIEW: “Saturday Night” captures the anxiety, the humor and the sheer nerve it took to get the first episode of “SNL” off the ground. Chaos reigns for much of the movie’s run time as producer Lorne Michaels attempts to wrangle an unruly cast, a drug addled host (a terrific Matthew Rhys as George Carlin), indecision and a network executive (Willem Dafoe) who may, or may not, order a Johnny Carson rerun to air instead of Michaels’s disorganized counterculture circus.
Reitman captures the behind-the-scenes action with a restless camera that never seems to stop moving, rat-a-tat-tat Arron Sorkin style fast talking dialogue and meticulous recreations of the iconic “SNL” set and sketches.
Reitman’s biggest storytelling accomplishment, however, may be that he imbues the film with a sense that everything may come crashing down at any second. We know it won’t, of course—“SNL” celebrates 50 seasons this year—but the threat of imminent collapse hangs over frame.
Michaels’s high wire act is the film’s engine, but it’s the insights into the cast that provide the key to deciphering what made the original 1975 cast so compelling.
Cory Michael Smith captures “SNL’s” first superstar Chevy Chase’s comic ability, fueled by talent, ego and bluster. Dylan O’Brien’s take on Dan Aykroyd is eerily accurate vocally and physically, and Matt Wood puts John Belushi’s troubled genius routine front and centre. Lamorne Morris plays Garrett Morris, the lone Black performer in the original cast, as a searcher, looking for purpose in a show that appears to be rudderless.
The women in the boy’s club, Ella Hunt as Gilda Radner, Emily Fairn as Laraine Newman, and Kim Matula as Jane Curtin, are given less to do, but each has a moment amid the chaos. Hunt gets Radner’s buoyant, sunshiny personality, Fairn is all eagerness as Newman and Curtain’s one-on-one backstage chat with Morris is a funny, yet poignant, conversation about her place in this cast. Cumulatively, they are at their best in a recreation of a sketch where the women, as construction workers, ogle and objectify Aykroyd.
The large ensemble cast is rounded out by a scene-stealing J.K. Simmons as Hollywood legend Milton Berle and “Succession’s” Nicholas Braun in the dual roles of Andy Kaufman and Muppet master Jim Henson.
The film’s soul comes courtesy of the pairing of Gabriel LaBelle and Rachel Sennott as Michaels and his wife and “SNL” writer, Rosie Shuster. “We may be married,” she says, “but I’m not your wife,” and it is their bond, in whatever form it takes, that grounds Michaels as everything appears to spin out of control.
“Saturday Night” is a love letter to show business. It’s high energy nostalgic fun, told in almost real time, that captures the tenacity of the creative mind and the beginnings of a cultural institution.
