Review: A Cinematic Pressure Cooker Boils Over in Uncut Gems
Every once in a while—and it isn’t very often, I assure you—I ask a very simple favor of anyone who takes the time to read what I have to write […]
Interview: Jay Roach on Conflicts, Costumes and Creating a Character for Bombshell
For some, it may be tough to reconcile the idea that Jay Roach, the same man who directed all three Austin Powers films and both Meet the Parents movies, also […]
Review: Filmmaker Greta Gerwig Creates A New Classic in Fresh, Delightful Adaptation of Little Women
You may be thinking, for any number of reasons, that a new film adaptation of Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women is not a great idea, and therefore you aren’t planning […]
Review: Terrence Malick Explores the Beauty of Defiance in A Hidden Life
There is no denying that writer/director Terrence Malick has created some of the most evocative and moving films in history, since his earliest works Badlands and Days of Heaven. He […]
Review: Chained For Life Beautifully Balances Depth and Dark Comedy
One of the genuine pleasures of seeing nearly 200 films in a year (I’ll probably fall a half dozen short of that in 2019) is discovering truly independent gems like Chained […]
Review: By Over-Simplifying the Narrative, Bombshell Misses Its Mark
In the throes of the 2016 presidential campaign, as a nation geared up to elect a sexual predator, women in entertainment began speaking up and out against the bad actors […]
Review: Lost Holiday Loses Track of Its Own Characters, Mystery
Starring a collection of some of the more interesting names in indie filmmaking and directed by the Matthews Brothers (Michael Kerry and Thomas, who also co-stars in the film), Lost […]
Review: For the Cats Movie Adaptation, Best Not to Ask Why At All
The problem with Cats, the stage or movie musical, isn’t that it’s difficult to understand, as many may claim. The issue is figuring out the point of it. What life […]
Review: As It Ends an Era, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker Gets Too Nostalgic for Its Own Good
I think I went into this most recent (and supposedly final) Star Wars with the right attitude: I didn’t pin my hopes and dreams on the filmmakers bringing us back […]
Review: Knives and Skin Is a Chicago-made Surreal Coming of Age Tale
Not to be confused with Knives Out, though sharing some thematic DNA with Rian Johnson’s earlier film, Brick, Knives and Skin is a stylized, teen noir meditation on suburban stagnation, […]
Review: A Familiar Cast—And a Few New Faces—Play the Same Game in Jumanji: The Next Level
I went into the last Jumanji film, Welcome to the Jungle, with such neutral expectations that I was pleasantly surprised to discover a funny, energetic adventure comedy featuring an array […]
Review: A Moving Portrait of a Quiet Life in Colewell
The sophomore effort from writer/director Tom Quinn (The New Year Parade) is exactly the kind of movie that could easily get lost in the shuffle of awards-season contenders and bigger-budget […]