Magazine Dreams

Killian Maddox dedicated himself to bodybuilding and dreams of one day leaving his mark on the sport and the world. With a traumatic childhood and struggling to connect with others, Killian forges forward toward his goal with reckless abandonment.

This movie takes a very artistic approach to bodybuilding. The story has many different things occurring quickly, with little backstory given to the protagonist, making it a challenge to follow. The two-hour and four-minute runtime is wild, from intense lifting to posing to twists and unexpected turns. This movie is not for everyone but might be worth a stream for someone looking for something different and artistic.

Wow saw this at Sundance. Honestly had no idea what this was going in. This was intense! Jonathan Majors is great, no surprise there. He is totally believable as Killian, a probably somewhat developmentally disabled amateur bodybuilding competitor. It ranges from cringeworthy to edge of your seat to weird to shocking to horrifying. Such an amazing performance.

The cinematography was claustrophobic and off putting and the music was often jarring, with dramatic shifts that mirror Killian's mental state.

I don't want to give any spoilers, but this wouldn't be one to take your grandma to. It gave me Nightcrawler vibes in the way it just keeps escalating and getting more frantic and surreal, mixed with a little Bullhead. Unless that sounds like something your grandma would be into, in which case, take her, she'll love it!

What can I say , movies to me are meant to take me out of reality and transport me into other worlds as I escape my own issues and problems , not to mention battles with reality.

That being the case this movie does just that although it specifically took me into a place that mad me very uncomfortable not in a bad way just in a way that I wanted a lil more payoff that I feel I didn't get .

Majors does a great job carrying this weight around and giving ,I believe an honest and compelling performance. It just needed a tiny bit more action at certain spots that could have taken this movie to the next level . Again a worth while movie theater experience.

Jonathan Majors is incredible in this. His performance is so powerful, it pulls you in and makes you really feel what his character is going through. There are a bunch of scenes that hit hard emotionally, and it's all because of how committed he is.

The movie dives into some really heavy and complex themes, and when it works, it really works. But the last act gets a bit messy. It tries to cover too much at once, especially when it comes to unpacking such a complicated and violent character. It feels like the movie loses focus a bit near the end.

Still, it's absolutely worth watching for Majors alone and the bold ideas it tries to explore.

This is one of those films one should be prepped for an intense experience and I'd compare it to Tom Hardy in Bronson or Deniro in Taxi Driver.

The main reason to see this film is the star Jonathan Majors that carries this film beyond the obvious Art imitates Life which is sad because the guy can act.

The subject and plot is all over the place on this twisted journey but it's worth it.

The director Elijah Bynum is definitely talented even if the plot meanders it still keeps one bolted to your chair witnessing vast layers of body obsession, mental illness, child abuse and steroids abuse but much like downward spiral films like Bad Lieutenant there is a point to this mad journey.

The dream hallucinations mixed with violent reality creates a bizarre scenery that might feel scattered to some yet this director has talent. And Jonathan Majors carries this film along with deep emotional expressions with eye and vocal detail that makes one either believe this is his true self or one heck of an acting job.

Hopefully this actor gets his personal issues in check and balances his anger as he might be the next Tom Hardy / Denzel Washington.

Go into the film with some expectations of a wild emotional rollercoaster ride as it's definitely not light weight film.

Very curious to see what this director does next as he seems to have a talent for attracting great actors esp his last film Hot Summer nights with Timothee Chalamet and Maika Monroe was also well done.

7 stars for star actor.