Reviews
-
‘Ms. Purple’ Film Review: Justin Chon’s Haunting Family Saga Explores Coping With Loss
The impending death of their father forces two siblings to assess their own lives in this beautiful drama from the “Gook” director
-
‘Babyteeth’ Film Review: Australian Doomed-Teen Dramedy Hides Its Tougher Questions Behind Frills and Filigree
Director Shannon Murphy’s got style to burn, but an excess of it undercuts her characters and their dilemmas
-
‘It Chapter Two’ Film Review: Little Moments Terrify in Effective Horror Sequel
Pennywise’s impersonation of Beverly’s abusive father generates more scares than all the CG insects money can buy
-
‘Giants Being Lonely’ Film Review: Teen Baseballers Come of Age in the Shadow of Their Parents’ Errors
Venice 2019: Grear Patterson’s striking debut plays like a Terrence Malick memory piece without the distance of nostalgia
-
‘Before You Know It’ Film Review: Indie Comedy Collapses Under Its Own Weight
Director, star and co-writer Hannah Pearl Utt crams in so many characters and subplots that she can’t do any of them justice
-
‘Killerman’ Film Review: Liam Hemsworth Gets Amnesia in Forgettable Thriller
Malik Bader wants to pay homage to the gritty classics of the ’70s and ’80s, but he’s kept the toxicity while jettisoning the introspection
-
‘The Load’ Film Review: A Trucker Hauls Mystery Cargo Through War-Torn Serbia
Documentarian Ognjen Glavonić made a splash at Cannes with this austere, haunting look at lives under fire
-
‘Official Secrets’ Film Review: Kiera Knightley Stars In Middling Iraq War Whistleblower Drama
One woman’s courage in disclosing governmental corruption doesn’t always equate to explosive drama
-
‘The Fanatic’ Film Review: John Travolta Gives Stalker Dementia a Bad Name In Trash-Heap Thriller
Travolta and director Fred Durst turn fan lunacy into a freak show of bad acting and bad-faith cautionary showbiz horror
-
‘Overcomer’ Film Review: Sports-Centric Faith-Based Drama Preaches, Repetitively, to the Choir
The writing, the acting, even the lighting fails to turn the thudding messaging into something resembling cinematic entertainment
-
‘Jawline’ Film Review: Social-Media Influence Gets Tough But Compassionate Exploration in New Doc
One young man’s attempted rise to Instagram stardom becomes a fascinating look at a bizarre industry
-
‘Fiddler: A Miracle of Miracles’ Film Review: Joyous Doc Celebrates Long, Triumphant Journey of ‘Fiddler on the Roof’
The film celebrates the legendary musical, from its fractious original production to its 55-year status as a global mainstay
-
‘Jacob’s Ladder’ Film Review: Michael Ealy’s Powerful Performance Gets Lost in a Shabby Remake
This who-asked-for-it redo of the 1990 thriller spins a mystery that, this time, is both pointless and disappointing
-
‘Brittany Runs a Marathon’ Film Review: Jillian Bell Gets Welcome Showcase in Indie Comedy
Great casting (the ensemble includes Michaela Watkins and Lil Rel Howery) helps the film glide over the script’s bumpy parts
-
‘Vita and Virginia’ Film Review: Elizabeth Debicki Makes a Wonderful Woolf in a Bloomsbury Biopic That Falls Short
Debicki’s Woolf is written with far more depth than Gemma Arterton’s pouty Vita Sackville-West, and the film shortchanges both
