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Now Playing: The Amateur

A classic revenge tale

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A classic revenge story is always good entertainment. The history of cinema is rife with iconic tales such as Oldboy, John Wick, and Jackie Chan’s The Foreigner. It’s satisfying to watch bad guys get their comeuppance in spectacular fashion. Today, we’re adding The Amateur to that illustrious list.

The Amateur features Rami Malek as Charles Heller, a prolific cryptographer working for the CIA. After his wife Sarah (Rachel Brosnahan) is murdered during a hostage situation in London, Heller goes on a personal quest to exact revenge on his wife’s killers.

A unique protagonist

It’s not an entirely fresh story, given its prevalence in the various examples listed above. However, it does differ by showcasing a protagonist with a unique skillset. Charles Heller is not an ordinary guy or a super assassin. Instead, he’s a precocious super hacker who makes up for his lack of physical skill with smarts and adaptability.

Rather than wowing with gunplay, Heller impresses with a MacGyver-like ability to sneak out of deadly situations. Without the pressure of life or death, he goes even harder, bordering on outright sadism to trap his targets in situations that the Hitman franchise might takes notes of. Each plot beat comes with a sense of curiosity: What insane trap is Heller building now?

At first, it was concerning that the film sets Heller up as an invincible hacker. The first acts of the film barely shows its hacking prodigy as a physically weak specimen. In fact, Heller very quickly makes it known that he has no field training, despite being a CIA agent. However, he doesn’t get beat up. He always manages to escape relatively unscathed.

To be fair, Heller does mess up often in the early parts of his campaign. For example, a botched poisoning sees him release his target before completing his mission. There are various times he acts out of emotion, rather than a more logical sense of self-preservation. In another assassination attempt, he pushes through with his original plan, despite his enemies already discovering what he’s up to.

It’s only through his companions (such as Inquiline, a clandestine hacker played by Catriona Balfe) or sheer luck that he escapes his mistakes. However, a switch does flip in the second half where he turns from an awkward assassin into a more capable killer.

The makings of a good revenge film

That said, it doesn’t always feel like there are any stakes to his survival, except for losing the ability to avenge his wife. This is common in revenge plots where the protagonist loses their reason for living and goes on a suicidal mission. However, these films often compensate for the lack of stakes with either pure action (as in John Wick) or a deeper conspiracy (as in The Foreigner).

The Amateur does a bit of both. It comes with an assortment of tense scenes and chases, despite the lack of guns and one-on-one fights. It also comes with a deeper conspiracy that goes to the very roots of the CIA. Right before he goes AWOL, Heller discovers that the mercenaries he’s hunting after is affiliated with Deputy Director Alex Moore (Holt McCallany) who runs illegal black ops missions outside the purview of the CIA. Heller blackmails Moore into training him enough to hunt for his wife’s killer.

Though he does get enough training, he finds himself being chased after by two more parties: the corrupt side of the CIA and a cleaner side of the agency who wants to root out the corruption. Coupled with Heller’s own chase, these do seem like a lot going on for a full-length movie. Thankfully, none of these elements overstay their welcome. CIA agents don’t randomly pop up to ruin Heller’s success. And yet, the film still neatly ties everything together in a nicely wrapped package.

Overall, The Amateur doesn’t reinvent the wheel of revenge films. It does, however, place a slightly more unique role as its revenge seeker. It’s enough to create intrigue for the entire runtime. Either way, the film is very watchable as a way to turn off your mind for a while.

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Samsung Sound Tower, Sound Sessions: When great sound meets great music

OPM takes the spotlight

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October 29, 2025

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Samsung Sound Tower | Sound Sessions

I grew up surrounded by OPM. I spent years dreaming of being in a band and listening to songs I wish I wrote, which is why I appreciate it when brands highlight local talent instead of relying on specs alone. Samsung’s new Sound Towers arrive with that same approach—powerful audio paired with an even stronger push for Filipino music.

Instead of a standard tech launch, Samsung turned the debut of its latest Sound Towers into a celebration of OPM. Guests didn’t just hear product features; they heard live performances from Over October and The Itchyworms. For anyone (like me) who grew up with the latter, hearing their songs carried by deep, room-filling audio felt like the perfect match between familiarity and innovation.

Built for people who live through music

The ST50F and ST40F are made for moments when sound needs to fill a space and set the tone. The ST50F comes with a telescopic handle, built-in wheels, and up to 18 hours of battery life. You can bring it anywhere and still get the same bold, thumping sound. Its custom bass modes and adjustable party lights let you shape the atmosphere until it matches the playlist.

The ST40F leans into creativity. It has built-in DJ sound effects and samplers, plus ports for microphones and guitars for instant jam sessions. And when you want something bigger, Group Play links up to ten Sound Towers into a shared soundstage that feels like a small concert.

Both towers work with the Samsung Sound Tower App, so you can adjust settings, control the lights, or switch into Karaoke Mode straight from your phone.

Where hardware becomes a platform

Samsung followed the launch with Samsung Sound Sessions, an ongoing digital series that highlights top Filipino artists. The pilot features Over October, with more acts—including The Itchyworms—set to take the stage next.

The idea is simple: pair great music with great audio, then let the artists carry the experience. Instead of showing what the Sound Towers can do, Samsung lets you hear it through musicians you already connect with. For OPM fans, it turns the hardware into a platform that amplifies talent rather than eclipsing it.

Sound built to bring people together

Samsung’s new Sound Towers bring back the feeling of sharing music—whether it’s a weekend gathering or a living room turned into a stage. They can be loud and energetic or warm and intimate. They match the many moods and eras of Filipino music.

Price and Availability

Sound Tower MX-ST50F

Sound Tower MX-ST40F

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Crash Bandicoot is reportedly getting a Netflix adaptation

Netflix is all about adaptations now.

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October 28, 2025

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Netflix’s strategy these days involves turning all our beloved franchise into, arguably, hit-or-miss adaptations. Though Arcane and One Piece are darlings in the adaptation space, there are also a bunch that Netflix had higher hopes for. Still, the success of the previous two titles have caused a wave of adaptation plans for the platform. Now, it’s possible that Crash Bandicoot is joining that list.

According to What’s on Netflix, the platform is quietly working on a series based on the wumpa-munching marsupial. The series is reportedly helmed by WildBrain Studios, a Canadian studio responsible for Sonic Prime, also on Netflix.

Speaking of, the success of the Sonic the Hedgehog films paves the way for an adaptation based on Crash Bandicoot. After all, if one adaptation about an anthropomorphic animal who constantly finds himself against a comical evil genius is a success, then another could be, too.

Crash Bandicoot’s resurgence is arguably dwindling. The Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, which remasters the first three games, is still the best way to play the series, but it was released all the way back in 2017. In 2020, Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time came out but didn’t make that much of an impact on the series. A fifth entry was eventually cancelled.

However, this isn’t Crash’s first time entering the world of adaptations. The marsupial previously appeared in Skylanders Academy, also on Netflix.

SEE ALSO: Crash Bandicoot 4: It’s About Time review: Worth the 22-year wait

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Netflix is adapting Catan into films and shows

Asmodee is involved as well.

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October 22, 2025

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Image source: Catan

While video game adaptations are booming, movies based on board games have had a less-than-stellar reputation. For example, 2012’s Battleship and the Jumanji reboots are straddling the edges of watchability. On the bright side, 2023’s Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves slowly opened the possibility of a good movie based on the tabletop experience. Now, Catan and Netflix are taking advantage of the crack opened by Dungeons & Dragons.

In tabletop parlance, Catan is the so-called gateway drug for other board games. It’s the default option for players who want to try something new outside of the boilerplate Monopoly or Cards Against Humanity. The eventual hope is to open the doorway to more complex games in the future.

Today, Netflix announced that it will adapt Catan into a series of films and shows. The platform is partnering with the game’s publisher Asmodee for the projects.

As with all of Netflix’s announcements for future projects, this one doesn’t have a clear storyline yet. To be fair, the world of Catan has its own lore told through expansions and other media. It’s just not a story that’s easily digestible by simply playing the game. And, if someone can make a story — albeit a middling one — out of Battleship, then so can Catan.

Catan, as a media project, will be produced by Asmodee’s Darren Kyman, Catan Studio’s Pete Fenlon, and the creator’s sons, Benjamin and Guido Teuber.

SEE ALSO: KPop Demon Hunters is now Netflix’s most-watched movie

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