 |  |
Our Hero, Balthazar
Oscar Boyson‘s dark, complex, and grossly timely film, Our Hero, Balthazar, has arrived to jar you. Affluent Manhattan private school student Balthazar finds himself taking advantage of the cultural tragedy of mass shootings for validation and attention he’s missing from his absent mother. When his efforts to impress his activist crush fail, Balthazar concocts a demented plan.
Void of any real feelings, his apathetic worldview is fueled by pills, money, and online dopamine hits. When a scholarship classmate, Eleanor, rejects his creepy attempts to connect, Balthazar decides to make a move so dangerous that he couldn’t possibly understand the ramifications. Balthazar’s over-the-top TikTok videos pique the interest of a random commenter. To gain her affections, he sets out to “save a potential school shooter,” or so he claims. But really he’s playing God.
Enter Solomon, the face behind the computer screen. Solomon exists in the shadow of his pyramid-scheming, supplement-hawking father. Catfished by Balthazar, Solomon decides that having a friend is more important than harming a genuine connection. As the tension ramps up between bravado and action, the relationship proves deadly on every level.
Asa Butterfield is haunting as Solomon. At first glance, he seems to embody the red pill manosphere, toxic masculinity persona to the nth degree. But the lack of control and loneliness manifest in people-pleasing and big talk to hide feelings of failure and to please his scumbag father.
Jaeden Martell delivers a breathtaking performance in the titular role. His ability to move through the spectrum of emotions within the same beat is chilling. Balthazar is a manipulative asshole, often manic. His tunnel vision energy is very ADHD presenting, and yet to discern between diagnosis and entitlement is all shades of grey. Martell is a chameleon. It is an award-worthy turn, and I hope people are paying attention.
Butterfield and Martell are an exhilarating pair. Emotionally, they are the same person. Watching them bounce off one another is a masterclass. Both characters are part victim and part product of their environment. The give and take is dazzling.
The score is unforgettable, moving between upbeat after-school special (this is a compliment), death metal riffs, and quieter, deeply sinister pieces. The handheld camerawork is incredibly immersive. It makes you an unwitting accomplice to every moment.
Boyson and Ricky Camilleri‘s script is a freight train. Tackling AI, influencer and incel culture, political theatre, poverty, gun regulation, and media culpability, Our Hero, Balthazar, will permanently imprint on your brain. Between cinephiles, activists, and traumatized generations of kids and adukts, the film will undoubtedly trigger every feeling imaginable. It’s an impressive feat of storytelling and a candid look at our reality. Our Hero, Balthazar, is a prime example of how essential the art form of filmmaking is.
Our Hero, Balthazar Trailer:
Rotten Tomatoes Certified-Fresh Pitch-Black Comedy Available for Digital Rental and Purchase August 11, 2026 from WG Pictures and Radial Entertainment
| The film stars Martell, Butterfield, Chris Bauer (“The Wire,” “True Blood”), Jennifer Ehle (“Pride and Prejudice,” Saint Maud), Anna Baryshnikov (“Dickinson,” Love Lies Bleeding), Noah Centineo (To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before, “The Recruit”), Becky Ann Baker (“Girls,” “Freaks and Geeks”), Avan Jogia (“Twisted,” “56 Days”) and Pippa Knowles. |
| Runtime: 96 Minutes | Rated R |
Then Came You manages to bypass the usual rom-com tropes and fleshes out a story about kids navigating a real emotional journey. Asa Butterfield has a naturally emo kid look about him but has the sincere chops to shine in every role that’s thrown his way. He appears genuinely grounded on screen and that makes him easy to watch. If you’re not crying at the end of this film you may have no soul. There is more than meets the eye Butterfield’s backstory which makes for an honest to goodness tug at the heartstrings in the end. The shining star of the film is undoubtedly Maisie Williams. Her comic timing and natural snark own you from the very first scene. I need her to be cast in all the things from here on out. Our two leads have a wonderful chemistry that builds organically. It reminds me of the dynamic of Anna Chlumsky and Macaulay Culkin in My Girl, which is clearly a compliment. Then Came You is simply a lovely film that can be enjoyed by a wide audience.
![MissPsRGB[1]](https://i0.wp.com/reelnewsdaily.com/wp-content/uploads/MissPsRGB1.jpg?resize=678%2C1004)
10,000 Saints follows three screwed up young people and their equally screwed up parents in the age of CBGB’s, yuppies and the tinderbox of gentrification that exploded into the Tompkins Square Park Riots in New York’s East Village in the 1980s. This film is essentially the story of how small life connections become the ties that bind a group of estranged friends and family. It’s quite extraordinary and a brilliant translation of Eleanor Henderson‘s New York Times best-selling novel. After the loss of his best friend Teddy, Jude is sent to live his absentee father, Les. Reconnecting with Les’ girlfriend’s daughter, Eliza and straight edge punk singer and brother of Teddy, Johnny, the three embark on a path that was thrust upon them. 
You must be logged in to post a comment.