2021: Best Narrative Films of the Year
It’s the last day of the year, so naturally it’s time to unleash my Best of the Year list. As always, I was able to squeeze in about 10-12 additional […]
2021: Best Documentary Films of the Year
As is tradition around these parts, I separate documentaries into their own Best of the Year list, not because I feel they should be judged any differently than narrative films, […]
Review: Dark, Hazy and Filled with Drama, The Tragedy of Macbeth Is a Unique, Impressive Take on Classic Material
Like Orson Welles did nearly 75 years earlier, director Joel Coen (working without brother Ethan) has taken Shakespeare’s The Tragedy of Macbeth, stripped it down to essentials—minimalist set design, shot […]
Review: Often Delightful, Sometimes Heartbreaking, Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza Is One of the Year’s Best
I was too young in the early to mid-1970s to have any real appreciation or nostalgia for the era today; and I grew up on the east coast, nowhere near […]
Review: Jumping Back in Time a Century, a Bawdy, Unsophisticated The King’s Man Sets Up the Future of the Franchise
To be clear, this 100-years-earlier prequel to director Matthew Vaughn’s original 2014 Kingsman: The Secret Service (as well as its abysmal 2017 sequel Kingsman: The Golden Circle) does not portray […]
Review: In Resurrecting The Matrix, the Fourth Installment Feels Stale and Sadly Familiar
It’s astonishing that there are those criticizing how Spider-Man: No Way Home bends multiple Spider-Man universes in on themselves, but they don’t seem to have any issues with the latest […]
Review: Maggie Gyllenhaal Adapts The Lost Daughter into a Compelling, Devastating Exploration of Motherhood
Italian author Elena Ferrante (a pseudonym, no one actually knows who Ferrante is) has written 11 novels; her four-book Neopolitan series has sold millions of copies, been translated into dozens […]
Review: Red Rocket Showcases Sean Baker’s Signature Style and Simon Rex’s Strong Performance
One of the most interesting aspects of Sean Baker’s filmmaking is his ability to realize his unique vision under circumstances other, less-assured filmmakers would consider disadvantages. Baker (Starlet, Tangerine, The Florida Project) […]
Review: Visually Sharp and Compellingly Acted, The Novice Lacks a Fully Formed Narrative
First time writer/director Lauren Hadaway’s background in film work is primarily in the sound department, having worked as a dialogue editor on films like Ava Duvernay’s Selma and Quentin Tarantino’s The Hateful […]
Review: In Guillermo del Toro’s Noir Drama Nightmare Alley, Strong Performances Match a Bold Aesthetic
I’ve had enough conversations with director Guillermo del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth, The Shape of Water) over the years to know two things about him: 1) he has the soul of […]
Review: A Powerful Performance from Mahershala Ali Is at the Center of Sci-Fi Swan Song
The thrill of watching Mahershala Ali in any role has only grown over the last couple of years, so the prospect of getting two of him in one movie is […]
Review: Spider-Man: No Way Home Is Just Nostalgic and New Enough to be a Great Addition to the Superhero’s Canon
In my comic book reading patterns, Spider-Man was always my guy. Not because of his cool powers or even the similarities in our ages when I was reading his adventures. […]