Capsule Reviews: 'The Last Voyage of the Demeter' & 'Untold: Jake Paul the Problem Child'

This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the films being covered here wouldn't exist.

by Philip Price

The Last Voyage of the Demeter

Photo: Universal Pictures

At the very least, “The Last Voyage of the Demeter” is the best Dracula movie of the year, but at its best André Øvredal's (“Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark”) take on Bram Stoker's chapter about the bloodsucker's maiden voyage is a carefully crafted and brutally striking horror story. Though kind of a given how this will go, Øvredal and his team dress it up pretty fantastically. It’s hard to derive any deliberate meaning, but the level of craft involved in both the aesthetic and atmosphere lend more than enough tension and thrills for viewers to remain engaged on this journey. I especially appreciate how the film leaned into its R-rating by not holding back on the savagery of the situation; almost to the point I wished they'd leaned a little further. Still, the skill and technique Øvredal employs to tell a well-worn story in a familiar manner makes me eager (and hopeful) he'll be able to continue telling these types of stories in such an effective fashion.
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“The Last Voyage of the Demeter” is currently in theaters. 

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Untold: Jake Paul the Problem Child

Photo: Netflix

Having no prior familiarity beyond the headlines with the Paul brothers (Jake and Logan) this was going to serve as something of a litmus test for how much I could tolerate. The conclusion: while I definitely wouldn't hang out with either of these dudes the fact Jake, immediately after his first fight with a pro boxer and getting repeatedly hit in the head, has the foresight to say, "Can we cut that? I don't want any of that footage on YouTube. This is just for the doc shit with Netflix." Because he knows the "doc shit with Netflix" will be used as a promo for whatever his next fight might be is just some incredible, next-level promoter-type shit. Respect.
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“Untold: Jake Paul the Problem Child” is streaming on Netflix.