‘They Shall Not Grow Old’ Film Review: Peter Jackson’s Groundbreaking Documentary Brings WWI to Vivid Life
Screening in U.S. theaters Dec. 17 and Dec. 24, Jackson uses digital technology to breathe new life into old footage
movie reviews
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‘Capernaum’ Film Review: Lebanon’s Oscar Entry Unflinchingly Examines Childhood Poverty
Director Nadine Labaki unsparingly presents the struggle of abused and abandoned children seeking a better life
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‘If Beale Street Could Talk’ Film Review: Barry Jenkins Grapples With James Baldwin’s Prose in Powerful Drama
The film shows glimmers of the artistry of “Moonlight,” but it also has difficulty translating Baldwin’s novel to the big screen
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‘Roma’ Film Review: Alfonso Cuarón’s Intimate Epic Proves Less Is More
This intimate tale of a housekeeper in early-70s Mexico proves the “Gravity” director doesn’t need a sprawling canvas to tell a powerful story
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‘Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse’ Film Review: Clever Superhero Saga With Animated Arachnids
Audacious and funny, this thrilling cartoon version lets various versions of Spider-Man out to play
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‘The Mule’ Film Review: Clint Eastwood Drives for the Cartel in Thoughtful, Bumpy Crime Tale
Based on a true story about a 90-year-old drug mule, Eastwood’s latest star-director outing is a fascinating exercise in his strengths and faults
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‘Mortal Engines’ Film Review: Dazzling Sci-Fi Fantasy Takes Big Risks and Succeeds
Based on Philip Reeve’s novel about futuristic moving cities doing battle, this thrilling visionary tale is the best kind of bonkers
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‘Mary Poppins Returns’ Film Review: Emily Blunt, Lin-Manuel Miranda Languish in the Shadow of Giants
The stars give their all to a never charmless (but often charm-adjacent) movie that slavishly follows in the original’s footsteps
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‘Bird Box’ Film Review: Sandra Bullock Battles Her Fears in Thoughtful Thriller
Meditations on motherhood and on mankind’s future make Susanne Bier’s latest not your average post-apocalyptic tale
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‘Once Upon a Deadpool’ Film Review: Ryan Reynolds Cleverly Milks Cash Cow a Second Time
It’s a PG-13 “Deadpool 2,” but the highlights are new interstitials with Reynolds and Fred Savage
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‘Bumblebee’ Film Review: Michael Bay’s Exit From the Director’s Chair Leads to the Best ‘Transformers’ Yet
Director Travis Knight imbues an ’80s-style “magical friend” movie with coherent action and rich characters (including the robots)
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‘The Marriage’ Film Review: Kosovo’s Oscar Entry Spins a Tale of Gay Love in Wartime
The titular nuptials overshadow the movie’s genuinely interesting romance, much to its detriment
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‘Dumplin” Film Review: Jennifer Aniston and Danielle Macdonald Deserve Trophies for Elevating Sentimental Dramedy
This YA adaptation feels occasionally outdated and predictable, but the stars (and the Dolly Parton songs) make it pretty lovable anyway
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‘Divide and Conquer: The Story of Roger Ailes’ Film Review: Fox News Kingpin Disgusts and Illuminates in New Doc
Knits together a narrative of political genius, manipulation, vengeance, harassment and downfall that explains a lot about where we are now
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‘Mary, Queen of Scots’ Film Review: Saoirse Ronan and Margot Robbie Make Worthy, Regal Adversaries
Josie Rourke, in her screen directorial debut, makes this historical piece more inclusive than most, bolstered by Beau Willimon’s smart script
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‘Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle’ Film Review: Andy Serkis’ Mo-Cap Mastery Makes a Mixed-Bag ‘Jungle Book’
This bloody, not-for-kids retelling of the Kipling tale bloats itself with extra characters and subplots
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‘Ben Is Back’ Film Review: Julia Roberts Goes for Broke in Another Troubled Teen Movie
Lucas Hedges also stars in the family drama about drug addiction, which was directed by his father Peter Hedges
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‘Back Roads’ Film Review: Alex Pettyfer’s Directorial Debut Follows a Twisty Path
The actor isn’t afraid to go dark with this tale of family pain and secrets
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‘Vox Lux’ Film Review: Natalie Portman’s Rock Fable Is a Bit of a Mess, But Maybe That’s the Point
The film raises questions about the blurry intersection of fame and tragedy, but it occasionally dips into cliché
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‘Tyrel’ Film Review: Jason Mitchell Elevates So-So Social Satire
Writer-director Sebastián Silva tiptoes to the edge of inflammatory ideas about race but then shrinks back rather than diving in
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‘The Possession of Hannah Grace’ Film Review: Shay Mitchell Is Bored in a Morgue in Dull Thriller
There’s a morgue and a restless corpse, and that’s kinda it for this scare-free horror movie
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‘Bathtubs Over Broadway’ Film Review: Ebullient Doc Sheds Light on Musicals Aimed at Corporate America
It’s a wild look at song-and-dance extravaganzas aimed at Xerox salesmen, yes, but it also celebrates post-irony
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13 Christmas Movies That Definitely Aren’t for Kids (Photos)
“Anna and the Apocalypse” isn’t the only film that brings an R-rated sensibility to the holiday season
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‘Anna and the Apocalypse’ Film Review: Zombies, Musicals and Christmas Make a Merry Mash-Up
Delightfully shaggy and low-budget, this cheeky indie marries song, dance, the undead, and the holidays
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‘People’s Republic of Desire’ Film Review: Doc Takes a Chilling Look at China’s Live-Streaming Culture
Instant stars and instant has-beens are made in the virtual world, in a terrifying glimpse at what might be the future of human interaction
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‘Elliot the Littlest Reindeer’ Film Review: Horse Dreams of Christmas Glory in Muddled Cartoon
You’ll find yourself going down a spiral of the film’s skewed internal logic as a distraction from the lack of plot
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‘Everybody Knows’ Film Review: Penélope Cruz, Javier Bardem Shine in Strong, Disquieting Thriller
Asghar Farhadi’s dark drama stars Penelope Cruz and Javier Bardem, who have rarely gone to these emotional extremes in their work together
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‘Never Look Away’ Film Review: ‘Lives of Others’ Director Returns With Bold Tale of Art and Love
Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck tells a slow but beautiful story set in Germany in the middle of the 20th century
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‘Happy as Lazzaro’ Film Review: Alice Rohrwacher Charts the Course of a Holy Fool
Rohrwacher’s fable, the second of this year’s competition films from a female director, is both transporting and maddening
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‘Write When You Get Work’ Film Review: Finn Wittrock’s Romantic Caper Crumbles
Writer-director Stacy Cochran tries melding the rom-com with a heist flick, but neither the writing nor the acting sells either genre
