Entertainment
Controversial Director’s R-Rated, Very Graphic Thriller Goes All In On Star Power And Spectacle
By Robert Scucci
| Published
While I’m admittedly far from an expert when it comes to sword and sorcery films and video game lore, I’m an avid fan of B-movie schlock and just about anything Uwe Boll has his name attached to. This lack of knowledge about 18th century Romania and vampiric etymology works to my advantage when reviewing 2005’s BloodRayne because I’m not convinced Boll knows much about these things either. There’s a revenge arc, a smoking hot lead who knows how to seduce with her fangs and slice with a sword, Michael Madsen and Billy Zane showing up in some of their most bizarre roles to date, and production values in BloodRayne that cannot be denied. It’s absolutely worth your time if you want to see what a spectacular failure looks like.
Billy Zane has gone on record saying it was a “pleasure to work with such a decisive director,” and Michael Madsen, who referred to the final product as a “horrifying and preposterous movie,” didn’t mince words when he said he’d gladly work with Boll again if the opportunity ever presented itself. For my money, BloodRayne is leaps and bounds better than some of Boll’s previous video game adaptations, like the Christian Slater-starring Alone in the Dark that came out the same year.
That said, I can see why BloodRayne currently boasts a punishing 4 percent critical score on Rotten Tomatoes because everything you’ll read about it is true. It’s tragically hamfisted, fumbling its worldbuilding through dialogue-heavy exposition dumps and delivering some of the most baffling fight choreography you’ll ever lay eyes on. Uwe Boll is also one of the most passionate filmmakers to ever walk this Earth, and you can tell how sincerely he wanted to tell this story, which makes the whole disaster drip with unexpected charm. It’s a total mess, but you can tell a lot of heart went into its production.
Our Ballsy Heroine Is A Dhampir
BloodRayne, set in 18th century Romania, tells the tale of Rayne (Kristanna Loken), a vampire and human half-breed known as a dhampir. While she exhibits typical vampiric behavior when pushed to her limit, her genetics allow her to touch crucifixes, though holy water still poses a problem. She was conceived when her father Kagan (Ben Kingsley), the king of vampires, forced himself on her mother before eventually killing her. Naturally, Rayne is primed for revenge for being born under the circumstances, but we first meet her in captivity, working as a circus freak who sustains brutal injuries that are then healed when she’s fed goat blood.
Learning about Rayne’s existence and wanting to use her abilities against Kagan in his own crusade is Vladimir (Michael Madsen), a senior member of the Brimstone Society, a secret organization dedicated to one thing: killing vampires. Along for the ride are Katarin (Michelle Rodriguez), who distrusts Rayne because of her vampiric lineage, and Sebastian (Matthew Davis), who will eventually fall in love with Rayne with tragic results.
Rayne eventually learns of three sacred talismans and sets out to procure them before her father does. Possession of an eyeball, a rib, and a cross would allow whoever gathers them to become immune to holy water, crosses, and sunlight, respectively. Complicating matters are Katarin’s ties to her noble father, Elrich (Billy Zane), who secretly seeks power for himself while presenting himself as an ally to Kagan. We learn about all these moving parts through dialogue dumps, and a Fortune Teller (Geraldine Chaplin). From there, it’s up to us to decide whether any of this makes sense.
A Beautifully Shot Cinematic Disaster
While watching BloodRayne, I had two competing thoughts. First, the actual production quality is surprisingly strong for a 2005 release thanks to its $25 million budget. The sound design specifically is immersive, and some of the more intense sequences nearly blew my head off. Every sword clang and explosion feels deliberate, and you can tell a lot of care went into this aspect of the production.
My second thought was that all of this potential was wasted on some of the worst dialogue I’ve ever heard and fight choreography that makes absolutely no sense. In my mind, the cameraman was just spinning around during the fight scenes to make them look more elaborate than the actors were capable of pulling off. Some of the set pieces are equally preposterous, breaking the immersion entirely.
There’s even a scene with Rayne, Vladimir, and Sebastian walking down a cobblestone street where a bakery sign looks like it came straight from a Panera Bread. I guess they couldn’t get the “Ye Olde Bagel Shop” placard ready on time, which honestly would have been more authentic than what we see in the final cut. And don’t even get me started on Meat Loaf’s Leonid rolling around with a more nude side-women than any mortal man could realistically handle in a thousand lifetimes.
That said, BloodRayne is an absolute pleasure to watch if you’re into the kind of cinematic experimentation that Uwe Boll is known for. You can tell how much care went into this movie, but it’s all focused on the wrong things. I actually think it would play better with half the budget because the campiness would feel earned. The production values and execution are constantly at odds with each other here, making for a strangely fascinating watch.
If you’re interested in seeing a movie with genuinely great gore and creature effects but lacking in almost every other department, you can stream BloodRayne for free on Pluto TV as of this writing.
Entertainment
Maddies Secret trailer reveals John Early as youve never seen him before
Comedian John Early makes his feature directorial debut with Maddie’s Secret, an offbeat homage to melodrama that he wrote and headlines as its eponymous heroine.
As an aspiring food influencer, Maddie Ralph (Early) is passionate about her cuisine. And at first glance, she’s got a picture-perfect life: a loving husband (Eric Rahill), a devoted best friend (Kate Berlant), and a job at a culinary content studio called Gourmaybe. But as the title suggests, there’s a side to Maddie she can’t stomach sharing with her loved ones. And this secret could kill her.
Out of the movie’s premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival last fall, I cheered Maddie’s Secret, writing in my review for Mashable, “The film is silly and strange, but even amid campy bits, sincere. So, you’ll laugh at its parody elements, but may well be genuinely moved by Early’s commitment to this strange and splendid film.”
I also said “John Early is a better ingénue than Sydney Sweeney,” comparing Maddie’s Secret to another earnest (but less entertaining) TIFF offering, Christy. And I stand by it.
Maddie’s Secret opens in theaters in New York on June 19, and in Los Angeles on June 26.
Entertainment
Pride is almost here! Check out the best dating apps for LGBTQ women.
We know Pride is all year round, but there is something special about the month of June. We’re not there quite yet, but if you want a main squeeze for all the parades and parties, you gotta start looking now. How about on a dating app?
As a lesbian, you probably know all about them. Lesbian Americans (along with bisexual and gay Americans) are far more likely to have ever used dating apps than straight Americans: 51 percent to 28 percent, according to the Pew Research Center.
There are a few reasons why LGBTQ people might turn to online dating more quickly than straight folks. For one, you might live in an area without a thriving LGBTQ community, and in-person dating may be hard. If you don’t know other lesbians to begin with, how can you meet more IRL to date? (Sometimes, lesbian spaces can also be co-opted by The Straights.) Unfortunately, in-person dating may also be less safe, depending on where you live.
Hookup apps for everyone
AdultFriendFinder
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readers’ pick for casual connections
Tinder
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top pick for finding hookups
Hinge
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popular choice for regular meetups
Thankfully, we live in a time where we can find people like us with a few swipes. Lesbians are welcome on major dating apps, and there are also niche ones specifically for lesbians and other queer women and people. But which one to choose?
How to find the best dating apps for lesbians
Niche lesbian dating apps aren’t your only option for finding love.
Credit: Stacey Zhu / Mashable
In Mashable’s recommendations below, you’ll find both general dating apps and apps specifically for queer people. As the former appeals to the general population, you’ll find more users in these spaces. The caveat, however, is that when you swipe on other women, you might find those coupled with men who are looking for another woman to have a threesome with (aka unicorn hunters). No judgment here, but that’s probably not what you’re looking for. Then again, people of all types are on dating apps like Tinder and Hinge. You never know who you may come across.
Then there are apps specifically for the community, like HER and Lex. If you yearn for a smaller dating scene, head for these apps. While there’s no “Grindr for lesbians” — we go into why in the FAQ section — these apps are more so like stepping into your neighborhood lesbian bar than an app like Bumble.
You can also try multiple dating apps, as each one below has a free version. You can filter by the gender you identify with and are looking for, and sometimes, as with OkCupid, there are many options to choose from.
Diving into the dating pool isn’t easy, but the water’s fine. Check out our guide below for the full rundown of our recommendations and dating app reviews.
Entertainment
OpenAI rolls out ChatGPT 5.5 Instant as the new default model for everyone
Last week, OpenAI managed to stop ChatGPT from talking about goblins all the time. This week, there’s a whole new model for users to play with.
The company announced in a blog post on Tuesday that ChatGPT 5.5 Instant has begun rolling out to all users as the new default model for the popular AI chatbot. The new model is a follow-up to GPT 5.5, which was released in April.
GPT-5.5 Instant replaces 5.3 Instant, which will remain available for the next three months for paid users but will otherwise be sunsetted.
Unlike Claude Opus 4.7 from Anthropic and GPT-5.5, which are only available to paid customers, GPT-5.5 Instant is “available to everyone.” OpenAI says it should produce fewer hallucinations and better overall results for everyday ChatGPT usage.
“This update makes everyday interactions more useful and more enjoyable: stronger and tighter answers across subject areas, a more natural conversational tone, and better use of the context you’ve already shared when personalization can help,” OpenAI’s blog post said.
Mashable Light Speed
According to OpenAI, GPT-5.5 Instant produced 52.5 percent fewer hallucinated claims in internal testing than GPT-5.3 in “high stakes” topics like law, finance, and medicine. In addition, the new model “reduced inaccurate claims by 37.3% on especially challenging conversations users had flagged for factual errors.”
The company also says the new model is better at deciding when to use web search for a prompt and analyzing image uploads than before. The new model is also allegedly more concise in its answers, while also maintaining something of a personality in how it talks to the user. GPT-5.5 Instant should also be better at understanding and referencing context from a connected Gmail account and other integrations to provide quality answers.
And, again, most importantly, it should avoid mentioning goblins unless absolutely necessary.
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Disclosure: Ziff Davis, Mashable’s parent company, in April 2025 filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.
Maddies Secret trailer reveals John Early as youve never seen him before
Pride is almost here! Check out the best dating apps for LGBTQ women.
