It is time for a round up of new films seen on streaming services other than Netflix this month.

We start this month with Amazon Prime

Role Play
It seems like every other film I see features an assassin, so often they are a family man or woman with a spouse and kids who know nothing of their secret life and they always have a reason to validate their criminal lifestyle. Role Play ticks all those boxes and features a terrific Kaley Cuoco as Emma, the hit woman.

It starts really well with Emma and her husband Dave (David Oyelowo) meeting Bob (Bill Nighy), who is in the same line of work as Emma, in a hotel bar. Bob is killed later that night, Emma disappears and Dave is taken in by the police for questioning in a very amusing scene. But from then on, the story slowly fizzles out, becoming less interesting the longer it goes on.
Rating: 5.5 out of 10

How Six Friends Made Their First Movie and Didn’t Kill Each Other
Fifteen years or so ago, when I first discovered podcasts, one of my favourites was called Oscar Oscar. It concerned the Academy Awards and was hosted by the affable Jason O’Brien. That show ended when O’Brien needed to concentrate on his career in the film industry, primarily as a documentary maker. His latest looks back at his debut feature, Killing Christian from 2005.

For reasons that this film makes clear, I have not seen Killing Christian but that did not stop this being a mostly fascinating insight into the perils of low budget film making, especially at the various times things go badly wrong. It could have done with some more recent interviews with the participants to add some perspective, though.
Rating: 7 out of 10

Freelance
Ex-special forces operative Mason Pettis (John Cena) is stuck in a desk job when he reluctantly takes on a freelance job to provide private security for journalist Claire Wellington (Alison Brie) as she interviews the a ruthless dictator, Juan Venegas (Juan Pablo Raba). But when a military coup breaks, the unlikely trio must figure out how to survive.

I cannot claim that there is anything in Freelance that I haven’t seen before, but that did not stop me enjoying it. The mixture of quite graphic violence and more mild comedy works pretty well and Cena, in a career high, and the terrific Brie spark off each other well.
Rating: 7 out of 10

The Marsh King’s Daughter
Two years before Helena (Daisy Ridley) was born, the Marsh King abducted her mother, and she spent her childhood in captivity. Now convinced he will try to take her daughter, Helena sets out to thwart him. It may be marketed as a thriller, but until the final confrontation, The Marsh King’s Daughter is more of a slow burn character study.

So much so, in fact, that the violent ending does not sit well with the rest of the movie. I found it reminiscent of both Leave No Trace and Where the Crawdads Sing, so it did not feel terribly original. It does feature excellent performances by Ridley and Brooklynn Prince as the younger Helena.
Rating: 5.5 out of 10

Over on Sky Movies:

Arthur’s Whisky
Recently widowed Joan (Patricia Hodge) discovers that her late husband invented an elixir of Eternal Youth and shares it with two friends Linda (Diane Keaton) and Susan (Lulu). This is an unoriginal but reasonably enjoyable body swap comedy featuring game performances from all three leads.
Rating: 6 out of 10

One More Shot
This sequel to 2021’s One Shot sees Scott Adkins return as Navy Seal Jake Harris who has to escort Amin Mansur (Waleed Elgadi reprising his role) safely after he lands at an airport. Like the original, One More Shot has been filmed to look like a single continuous take. I think this is a better effort than the first film.

Co-writer and director James Munn keeps the action sequences coming fluidly and with few lulls. Adkins is a limited actor but suits this role and Tom Berenger chews the scenery nicely.
Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Finally, films that can be rented on the usual services

On The Line
The inventive On The Line from Writer-director-producer Oliver Pearn is set entirely in telephone exchange on the island of Alderney in 1964. Victoria Lucie stars as Agnes, an operator who takes a call from a confused elderly woman in a nursing home called Shirley (Harriet Walter) calls in from a nursing home sounding frightened.

Shortly after she takes a call from Martha (Joanne Rogers), a nurse from that establishment who hints that she’s been kidnapped. Agnes is the only character we see, with everyone else talking over the phone, so there is an obvious comparison to be made with Locke from 2013 and I was also reminded of the BBC radio drama Life Lines. On The Line is not as good as either of those, but Pearn maintains the tension pretty well and Lucie is terrific.
Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Punch
A young girl celebrating her last night out in her south of England hometown is stalked by a mysterious killer in a Mr Punch mask. The low budget is evident at times and the acting quality is variable, but writer / director Andy Edwards shows a lot of promise. Mr Punch is a scary character, an out of season, worse for wear, seaside resort – most of the filming was in Hastings – is a perfect setting and Kierston Wareing is pretty good as the final girl.
Rating: 6.5 out of 10