John Wick 5 starring Keanu Reeves confirmed alongside two more movies

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

John Wick appeared to kick the bucket in Chapter 4, but we never saw a body, just a wounded man and then his grave.Given the film franchise’s box office success, Lionsgate soon confirmed that John Wick 5 was in the works.In the meantime, we’ve got Ballerina, a spin-off starring Ana de Armas set between Chapters 3 and 4.As a result, Keanu Reeves is returning to cameo in the new film, which is out this summer.In recent interviews, the titular star has been asked about resurrecting his assassin and now Lionsgate has confirmed he will star in John Wick 5 alongside announcing two other movies.During their slot at CinemaCon in Las Vegas last night, the studio confirmed that Reeves and director Chad Stahelski have decided on the story they want to tell in John Wick 5. If that wasn’t enough, Reeves will also voice his hitman in an anime prequel set before the first film’s events. This movie will chart his “Impossible Task” that allowed him to retire from the underworld of assassins.As for the third film, Donnie Yen’s Caine, the blind assassin from John Wick Chapter 4, is getting his own spin-off – as teased in the end credits of the last movie. Release dates for three newly announced John Wick movies remain to be confirmed. But in the meantime, From the World of John Wick: Ballerina hits cinemas on June 6, 2025.

From Manya Wilkinson to David Szalay: new books reviewed in short

Arts & Culture, Books

Operation Bowler: The Audacious Allied Bombing of Venice by Jonathan Glancey

The Second World War was no respecter of historical significance. The ancient cities of Coventry, Dresden, Caen, Rotterdam and Lübek were among those pulverised by enemy bombing. One exception, however, was Venice, a place so culturally precious that it had an aura of its own. Nevertheless, in spring 1945, as the Allies pushed northwards through Italy, Venice was in real peril: a storied past had not saved the monastery of Monte Cassino a year earlier.

In Operation Bowler, Jonathan Glancey, a historian and biographer of machines (the Spitfire, Concorde), unpicks the meticulous planning of Wing Commander George Westlake to ensure that Venice’s German-held harbour could be immobilised in a bombing raid but the city itself left unharmed. A large part of the book is given over to the unfolding Italian campaign as the Allies inched closer to Veneto before launching into the attack itself. On 21 March, 64 fighters and dive bombers massed over Ravenna and began the raid as Venetians on balconies watched and shouted “Bravo!”: only one aircraft was lost. It is a remarkable story, told with detail and panache. As Westlake noted in his log: “Whole show successful.”By Michael ProdgerOneworld, 336pp, £22. Buy the book

Flesh by David Szalay

David Szalay’s sixth novel follows the Booker-nominated All That Man Is, a “piercing portrayal of 21st-century manhood”. Flesh began with the author’s interest in being “as honest as possible about what it’s actually like to be a male body in the world”. We meet this body, István, as an isolated, fatherless 15-year-old drawn into a sexual relationship with an adult neighbour in a nameless Hungarian town. His emotional and experiential parameters are thus defined: tumultuous yet empty decades race by in pared-back narration and monosyllabic dialogue, “no” mostly leads to “OK” and an all-encompassing sense of control-lessness, of total alienation, pervades. Szalay conveys this atmosphere effortlessly.

An exploitative society fosters uncommunicative, unmoored men by rewarding these qualities, corrupting through the projection of its own self-serving impulses. An understanding of a man’s nature as beholden to demands beyond his willpower makes sense in this context. But something in me is deeply suspicious of accepting a man’s inherent unaccountability. Is it my prejudiced view as a woman?By Sydney DiackJonathan Cape, 368pp, £18. Buy the book

Lesbians: Where Are We Now? By Julie Bindel

Since being “outed” in 1977 at the age of 15, Julie Bindel has fought to improve the lives of women. In this personal, passionate memoir-cum-cultural commentary, she describes navigating her way through taunts of “dirty lezzer” and sexual and physical assaults, to taking pride in her sexuality. Help came from “lesbian heroes” and a “wonderful society of fabulous women”.

Today, she argues, a “new version of lesbian hatred” is here, and this time old prejudices are “dressed in progressive clothing”: gender identity trumping biological sex, she believes, poses a great threat to lesbianism. Stonewall (Europe’s largest LGBTQ+ rights charity) receives the most savage criticism in Lesbians. Bindel cites a controversy in which a leaked email from the organisation’s then CEO in 2021 suggested the debate around lesbians not wanting to sleep with trans women was “analogous to issues like sexual racism”; Bindel equates this line of thinking to “pressure to have sex with men”. Where gender identity services are concerned, I have come across testimonies in my own research of same-sex attracted girls who have come to believe they’d be better off being trans men instead of lesbians. Progressives should take note.By Hannah BarnesForum, 208pp, £20. Buy the book

Lublin by Manya Wilkinson

In this well-paced and humorous story, three Jewish boys set off on a 100km journey from Mezritsh, near the Poland-Belarus border, to the city of Lublin, hoping to sell the “Uncle’s” brushes: the success and money-driven Elya, vulgar Ziv who promotes workers’ rights and extraordinarily pious Kiva with a big secret. Beneath the jokes lie the socio-political issues Jews faced in Russian-occupied Poland in 1907. 

Following an increasingly suspicious map, the boys are taken through sun-scorched fields and forests where they are tempted by a demoness, a Russian village that they were advised to avoid and a not-so-joyful Jewish wedding. Throughout their journey, Lublin almost becomes a symbol of hope, with each expecting to find in it something they desire, be it riches or a glue-on beard. Manya Wilkinson dips into both the present and future, blending adventure with historical fiction to create a sharp, unique tale. You never know what might befall the boys next – or what terrible new joke Elya will come up with – and are left to wonder if they will ever reach Lublin.By Zuzanna LachendroAnd Other Stories, 160pp, £14.99. Buy the book

[See also: From Russell Shorto to Xiaolu Guo: new books reviewed in short]

Topics in this article :
Book reviews , Magazine , Reviewed in short

This article appears in the 02 Apr 2025 issue of the New Statesman, What is school for?

From Manya Wilkinson to David Szalay: new books reviewed in short

Arts & Culture, Books

Operation Bowler: The Audacious Allied Bombing of Venice by Jonathan Glancey

The Second World War was no respecter of historical significance. The ancient cities of Coventry, Dresden, Caen, Rotterdam and Lübek were among those pulverised by enemy bombing. One exception, however, was Venice, a place so culturally precious that it had an aura of its own. Nevertheless, in spring 1945, as the Allies pushed northwards through Italy, Venice was in real peril: a storied past had not saved the monastery of Monte Cassino a year earlier.

In Operation Bowler, Jonathan Glancey, a historian and biographer of machines (the Spitfire, Concorde), unpicks the meticulous planning of Wing Commander George Westlake to ensure that Venice’s German-held harbour could be immobilised in a bombing raid but the city itself left unharmed. A large part of the book is given over to the unfolding Italian campaign as the Allies inched closer to Veneto before launching into the attack itself. On 21 March, 64 fighters and dive bombers massed over Ravenna and began the raid as Venetians on balconies watched and shouted “Bravo!”: only one aircraft was lost. It is a remarkable story, told with detail and panache. As Westlake noted in his log: “Whole show successful.”By Michael ProdgerOneworld, 336pp, £22. Buy the book

Flesh by David Szalay

David Szalay’s sixth novel follows the Booker-nominated All That Man Is, a “piercing portrayal of 21st-century manhood”. Flesh began with the author’s interest in being “as honest as possible about what it’s actually like to be a male body in the world”. We meet this body, István, as an isolated, fatherless 15-year-old drawn into a sexual relationship with an adult neighbour in a nameless Hungarian town. His emotional and experiential parameters are thus defined: tumultuous yet empty decades race by in pared-back narration and monosyllabic dialogue, “no” mostly leads to “OK” and an all-encompassing sense of control-lessness, of total alienation, pervades. Szalay conveys this atmosphere effortlessly.

An exploitative society fosters uncommunicative, unmoored men by rewarding these qualities, corrupting through the projection of its own self-serving impulses. An understanding of a man’s nature as beholden to demands beyond his willpower makes sense in this context. But something in me is deeply suspicious of accepting a man’s inherent unaccountability. Is it my prejudiced view as a woman?By Sydney DiackJonathan Cape, 368pp, £18. Buy the book

Lesbians: Where Are We Now? By Julie Bindel

Since being “outed” in 1977 at the age of 15, Julie Bindel has fought to improve the lives of women. In this personal, passionate memoir-cum-cultural commentary, she describes navigating her way through taunts of “dirty lezzer” and sexual and physical assaults, to taking pride in her sexuality. Help came from “lesbian heroes” and a “wonderful society of fabulous women”.

Today, she argues, a “new version of lesbian hatred” is here, and this time old prejudices are “dressed in progressive clothing”: gender identity trumping biological sex, she believes, poses a great threat to lesbianism. Stonewall (Europe’s largest LGBTQ+ rights charity) receives the most savage criticism in Lesbians. Bindel cites a controversy in which a leaked email from the organisation’s then CEO in 2021 suggested the debate around lesbians not wanting to sleep with trans women was “analogous to issues like sexual racism”; Bindel equates this line of thinking to “pressure to have sex with men”. Where gender identity services are concerned, I have come across testimonies in my own research of same-sex attracted girls who have come to believe they’d be better off being trans men instead of lesbians. Progressives should take note.By Hannah BarnesForum, 208pp, £20. Buy the book

Lublin by Manya Wilkinson

In this well-paced and humorous story, three Jewish boys set off on a 100km journey from Mezritsh, near the Poland-Belarus border, to the city of Lublin, hoping to sell the “Uncle’s” brushes: the success and money-driven Elya, vulgar Ziv who promotes workers’ rights and extraordinarily pious Kiva with a big secret. Beneath the jokes lie the socio-political issues Jews faced in Russian-occupied Poland in 1907. 

Following an increasingly suspicious map, the boys are taken through sun-scorched fields and forests where they are tempted by a demoness, a Russian village that they were advised to avoid and a not-so-joyful Jewish wedding. Throughout their journey, Lublin almost becomes a symbol of hope, with each expecting to find in it something they desire, be it riches or a glue-on beard. Manya Wilkinson dips into both the present and future, blending adventure with historical fiction to create a sharp, unique tale. You never know what might befall the boys next – or what terrible new joke Elya will come up with – and are left to wonder if they will ever reach Lublin.By Zuzanna LachendroAnd Other Stories, 160pp, £14.99. Buy the book

[See also: From Russell Shorto to Xiaolu Guo: new books reviewed in short]

Topics in this article :
Book reviews , Magazine , Reviewed in short

This article appears in the 02 Apr 2025 issue of the New Statesman, What is school for?

Group wants certain books banned from Rockford Public Schools library

Arts & Culture, Books

“This is a crime, a felony.”Representing the group Parents and Taxpayers Against Pornography in Rockford Public Schools, Helen Brinkman says the 14 titles they want banned violate state law that prohibits dissemination of harmful pornographic material to minors.“This is an abomination. It’s a sin. They all talk about having sex underage.”But the attorney for Rockford Schools, Steve van Stempvoort, says the books are not part of the sex education curriculum and are not required reading.“A library book is just in the library. Nobody has to check it out. Nobody has to read it if they don’t want.”And while the books may not appeal to everyone,“Each of these books has received a literary award.”A lower court ruled the books are not, as a whole, harmful to minors and dismissed criminal disseminating pornography charges against Rockford administrators. Now the book ban group is asking the state Court of Appeals to reverse that decision.“There is no right under the law for the school to disseminate these books in the library”“They just took little snippets out of the book. You have to analyze the book as a whole and determine if it lacks any serious literary, scientific, educational, political or artistic value.”

Group wants certain books banned from Rockford Public Schools library

Arts & Culture, Books

“This is a crime, a felony.”Representing the group Parents and Taxpayers Against Pornography in Rockford Public Schools, Helen Brinkman says the 14 titles they want banned violate state law that prohibits dissemination of harmful pornographic material to minors.“This is an abomination. It’s a sin. They all talk about having sex underage.”But the attorney for Rockford Schools, Steve van Stempvoort, says the books are not part of the sex education curriculum and are not required reading.“A library book is just in the library. Nobody has to check it out. Nobody has to read it if they don’t want.”And while the books may not appeal to everyone,“Each of these books has received a literary award.”A lower court ruled the books are not, as a whole, harmful to minors and dismissed criminal disseminating pornography charges against Rockford administrators. Now the book ban group is asking the state Court of Appeals to reverse that decision.“There is no right under the law for the school to disseminate these books in the library”“They just took little snippets out of the book. You have to analyze the book as a whole and determine if it lacks any serious literary, scientific, educational, political or artistic value.”

‘Primitive War’ Official Trailer – A Vietnam War Movie Gets Invaded by Dinosaurs!

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

They call it “high concept.” In the upcoming Primitive War, soldiers in Vietnam do battle with prehistoric dinosaurs, and the teaser trailer for the action/horror/sci-fi movie has arrived.
Debuted by THR this morning, watch the teaser trailer for Primitive War below! “This ain’t no walk in the park,” the trailer promises, taking a shot at Jurassic Park in the process.
On that note, it’s awesome to see filmmakers outside the Jurassic franchise playing with dinosaurs, as that’s something we haven’t seen enough of over the years. The high concept approach to the material here reminds us a bit of the 2023 movie 65, which saw Adam Driver going up against dinosaurs. And it looks like Primitive War has enough of a budget behind it to make the dinosaur action look pretty damn good, which gives us hope for this one.
Expect Primitive War to stomp our way sometime in Summer 2025.

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The upcoming monster movie from writer/director Luke Sparke (Occupation Rainfall, Bring Him To Me) adapts author Ethan Pettus’ sci-fi military novel, first published in 2017.
Jeremy Piven (“Entourage”), Tricia Helfer (“Battlestar Galactica”, “Lucifer”), Ryan Kwanten (“True Blood,” Glorious) and Nick Wechsler (“The Boys“) headline Primitive War.
Primitive War is described as “An action-packed war film that pits battle hardened soldiers against the greatest predators that ever walked the earth.”
The official synopsis: “Vietnam. 1968. A search and rescue team known as Vulture Squad is sent to an isolated jungle valley to uncover the fate of a missing Green Beret platoon. As they hunt through the primordial depths of the valley, they discover ancient horrors that not only threaten to unravel their minds, but to end their lives as well. Dinosaurs have somehow been unleashed! When the casualties mount, the men of Vulture Squad must abandon their human nature and give in to their savage instincts in order to survive…the Primitive War.”
Anthony Ingruber (Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny), Aaron Glenane (Interceptor, Danger Close), Carlos Sanson Jr (Bump, Legacies), Ana Thu Nguyen (Mortal Kombat 2), Adolphus Waylee (Nautilus), Richard Brancatisano (The Messenger), Marcus Johnson (Talk to Me) and Jake Ryan (Savage, Underbelly) also star.
Primitive War is presented by Sparke Films in association with Let it be Entertainment and producers Carly Sparke, Carmel Imrie, Luke Sparke, Geoff Imrie and Alex Becconsall.
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‘Primitive War’ Official Trailer – A Vietnam War Movie Gets Invaded by Dinosaurs!

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

While 1928’s Steamboat Willie is the clear inspiration for Screamboat, Steven LaMorte’s movie also feels in the spirit of another vintage Walt Disney short: The Mad Doctor. That 1933 cartoon, which shows signs of parody, saw Mickey Mouse endure a series of booby traps and come close to death, all while trying to rescue the beloved Pluto the Dog from a sadistic scientist. Of course, this all turned out to be all part of Mickey’s vivid nightmare. It just goes to show that even before this relatively recent subgenre of public-domain horror came into being, Disney and its creator were fully capable of grotesque and disturbing imagery. Here in Screamboat, LaMorte is, in a way, acting on those impulses.
Although Screamboat is based on a ‘toon that isn’t categorized as horror, it doesn’t lack in weird and somewhat unsettling imagery. Who can forget Mickey playing a mama pig’s nipples accordion style, or swinging a cat by its tail? In general, Mickey was rather aggressive with all the animals there. Nevertheless, that comedic rudeness is intact in LaMorte’s twisted adaptation, only now with the dial cranked up to eleven. It’s cartoonish violence but with actual blood, entrails and death to look upon. It’s enough to make a Disney purist rage and a Disney objector snicker.
Like all of these public-domain movies, Screamboat doesn’t shoot for the moon; it runs with the slasher format because that’s the quickest and easiest way to debase the source material, not to mention draw an audience. The attraction is always that transformation of beloved icons into killing machines. By now, though, the ire over these movies has eased up a bit, due to their general inability to meet expectations — be it low or high ones — and because of the increasing desensitization to the formula. Even Screamboat’s antagonist is following in the footsteps of Winnie-the-Pooh’s dreadful counterpart in the Blood and Honey series; the Willie here (played by the Terrifier franchise’s David Howard Thornton) was pure and kind before mankind’s neglect left him corrupted and homicidal.
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In its favor, though, Screamboat eagerly aims to please and gives its target audience exactly what they wanted. It’s what if Jason Takes Manhattan actually delivered on its setup and kept the carnage to the ideal location of a boat at sea, rather than retreat and leave for shore. And after booking a genuine and non-digital ferry — one owned by Colin Jost and Pete Davidson, by the way — this movie gives its feral star plenty of room to go ape on a sizable crowd of paper-thin yet highly characterized victims. The kills don’t always live up to the most imaginative of the collection, however, LaMorte gets points for enthusiasm and design. If only the rest of the movie had the same sense of precision.
It goes without saying that Screamboat is a very low-budget production; that fact is evident in just about every part of the movie. The gory slaughter understandably gets top priority, and some might find Willie’s bizarre getup to be cheap but charming. Even still, money can’t quite fix the problem that is prevalent with this whole horror niche. Screamboat, much like its ilk, acts on an opportunity first and fills in the gaps later. It’s almost as if they make it all up as they go along. And many times over, reaching the finish line is a drag. David Howard Thornton’s gusto aside, this movie wears itself out long before the third act. Surely a good twenty or so minutes could have also been cut out for an almost equal yet more streamlined experience.
It would be a mistake to overthink Screamboat or overlook its appeal as subversive slapstick, however, like so many comedy bits out there, this movie loses its novelty sooner than later.
Screamboat releases in theaters on April 2, 2025.

Image: Screamboat poster courtesy of DeskPop Entertainment.

‘One of the best going’: Helensburgh Book Festival hailed a success

Arts & Culture, Books

The three-day event showcased the power and joy of reading for pleasure as well as supporting health and wellbeing.

Helensburgh Community Hub, Jean’s Bothy mental health hub and Helensburgh and Lomond Carers Centre teamed up to organised the weekend.

Award-winning crime writer Callum McSorley, who was part of the line-up, said: “Had such an incredible time at Helensburgh Book Festival at the weekend. One of the best going. It’s wonderful.”

Suzy Aspley, who won the Bloody Scotland pitching competition and has gone on to become a published author, said: “What a smashing community event with loads of great people, panels, readers, writers and bookworms.”

And Adam Farrer, whose novel Broken Biscuits and Other Male Failures, was discussed at Jean’s Bothy with local author and mental health advocate Graham Morgan, called it “an incredible literary festival”.

Some of the Vonunteers and organisers of the events and st the Helensburgh Book Fair

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Valentina with Suzy Aspley before doing their Q&A

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Gill Simpson, development manager of Helensburgh Community Hub, said: “It was an amazing weekend and we are just blown away by how well it was received by audiences and authors alike. There was such a lovely buzz about the Hub throughout.

“And people gave us such lovely feedback about the ethos of the festival as well as how interesting the different events were.

“It’s also really important to us that those who were unable to come to events maybe because they struggle to get out of the house or don’t feel happy in crowds can join in as well, so we filmed two of the main events and will be posting them in ‘chapters’ over the coming days so that more people can benefit from the incredible authors and speakers who took part.

“I think the Helensburgh Book Festival is now firmly in the calendar as an annual Helensburgh event and we hope it’s just going to go from strength to strength.”

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

There were workshops to create graphic novels, write poetry and fantasy, a visit from the Play, Talk, Read bus for youngsters, and a walk, talk and read event.

Katrina Sayer, development manager of Jean’s Bothy, said: “We were delighted to welcome three very different authors into Jean’s Bothy over the weekend.

“The mix of Adam Farrer’s hilarious but moving talk, a sensory poetry experience with Shane Strachan and a therapeutic walk with Chris Carse Wilson was the perfect combination to explore our mental health and wellbeing through books.”

Caroline Swain, from Helensburgh and Lomond Carers Centre, added: “The fantasy and graphic novel workshops at Helensburgh & Lomond Carers Centre were a huge success, engaging both young and older participants.

“We’ve had fantastic feedback from our carers on the variety of talks and workshops available over the weekend. It’s been great collaborating for the third year with Jeans Bothy and Helensburgh Hub to bring this fantastic book festival together.”

‘One of the best going’: Helensburgh Book Festival hailed a success

Arts & Culture, Books

The three-day event showcased the power and joy of reading for pleasure as well as supporting health and wellbeing.

Helensburgh Community Hub, Jean’s Bothy mental health hub and Helensburgh and Lomond Carers Centre teamed up to organised the weekend.

Award-winning crime writer Callum McSorley, who was part of the line-up, said: “Had such an incredible time at Helensburgh Book Festival at the weekend. One of the best going. It’s wonderful.”

Suzy Aspley, who won the Bloody Scotland pitching competition and has gone on to become a published author, said: “What a smashing community event with loads of great people, panels, readers, writers and bookworms.”

And Adam Farrer, whose novel Broken Biscuits and Other Male Failures, was discussed at Jean’s Bothy with local author and mental health advocate Graham Morgan, called it “an incredible literary festival”.

Some of the Vonunteers and organisers of the events and st the Helensburgh Book Fair

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Valentina with Suzy Aspley before doing their Q&A

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Gill Simpson, development manager of Helensburgh Community Hub, said: “It was an amazing weekend and we are just blown away by how well it was received by audiences and authors alike. There was such a lovely buzz about the Hub throughout.

“And people gave us such lovely feedback about the ethos of the festival as well as how interesting the different events were.

“It’s also really important to us that those who were unable to come to events maybe because they struggle to get out of the house or don’t feel happy in crowds can join in as well, so we filmed two of the main events and will be posting them in ‘chapters’ over the coming days so that more people can benefit from the incredible authors and speakers who took part.

“I think the Helensburgh Book Festival is now firmly in the calendar as an annual Helensburgh event and we hope it’s just going to go from strength to strength.”

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

Helensburgh Book Festival (Image: Ross Gardner)

There were workshops to create graphic novels, write poetry and fantasy, a visit from the Play, Talk, Read bus for youngsters, and a walk, talk and read event.

Katrina Sayer, development manager of Jean’s Bothy, said: “We were delighted to welcome three very different authors into Jean’s Bothy over the weekend.

“The mix of Adam Farrer’s hilarious but moving talk, a sensory poetry experience with Shane Strachan and a therapeutic walk with Chris Carse Wilson was the perfect combination to explore our mental health and wellbeing through books.”

Caroline Swain, from Helensburgh and Lomond Carers Centre, added: “The fantasy and graphic novel workshops at Helensburgh & Lomond Carers Centre were a huge success, engaging both young and older participants.

“We’ve had fantastic feedback from our carers on the variety of talks and workshops available over the weekend. It’s been great collaborating for the third year with Jeans Bothy and Helensburgh Hub to bring this fantastic book festival together.”