The Damned (1948)

2026 ranks highest in Oscars history for its representation of minorities in all categories, and that’s definitely something to be celebrated.

In all honesty, “Black and Blue” is a satisfying experience, complete with solid craftsmanship. With the help of cinematographer Dante Spinotti, Deon Taylor (the director) creates a murky, lived in atmosphere.

These confines won’t really encourage you to read the film as a metaphor for the nerve-inducing experience we’ve all been through over the last year, however — and in the interest of maintaining your dignity, you probably shouldn’t. While the sociopolitical commentary may have worked for the similarly-themed Buried (2010), in which we find Ryan Reynolds on his own buried alive in the Middle East, but this futuristic take on the premise is best left as a piece of distracting entertainment. Nevertheless, the atmosphere is no less suffocating, literally and dramatically.

The film didn’t have to be as long as it is. It just dragged on and on with scenes that had no substance. Every so often we get an action scene, and even those isn’t that fun.

This list was made with the intention of celebrating comedic craft and a love of seeing more women of colour and newcomers on the scene.

The sequel following The Son of Bigfoot explores Adam's conflict of discovering his true identity as he tries to save a wildlife preserve.