Review: Alexandra McGuinness’ ‘She’s Missing’
“More mood piece than cohesive story, it’s impressive chiefly in how McGuinness mirrors the desolate bleakness of the protagonists’ lives with the parched cinematography of their surrounding landscape.”
Review: Greta Gerwig’s ‘Little Women’
“Greta Gerwig continues to exercise her command of cinematic storytelling with ‘Little Women,’ a perfectly wrapped and beribboned Christmas gift as welcome as a steaming cup of cocoa after a frosty skate around the local frozen pond.”
Review: Meryam Joobeur’s ‘Brotherhood’
“A sharply-shot film, ‘Brotherhood’ effectively uses the short running time to question familial responsibilities/motives, and the central performances make Joobeur’s planned feature adaptation even more intriguing.”
Review: Ico Costa’s ‘Alva’
“A showcase of the potent purity of visual expression, ‘Alva’ concerns itself with consequence, more specifically the consequences we attribute to ourselves, as well as those we put upon others we can never truly know.”
Review: Clint Eastwood’s ‘Richard Jewell’
“‘Richard Jewell’ is, for the most part, a captivating recreation of a man’s journey through hell and back. Its strong acting and character relationship dynamics are the main selling points, as Eastwood’s sense of direction and pacing are the best they have been in a long time.”
12 Angry Films: Sidney Lumet on Justice #6 – ‘Prince of the City’
“‘Prince of the City’ is a taxing, draining experience, but one that is ultimately rooted in very real despair; the system, it argues, has failed. If these characters are the products of the American criminal justice system, then it ought to be blown up.”
Jennifer Kent Sings a Bloody Song in ‘The Nightingale’
“Jennifer Kent’s ‘The Nightingale’ will not attract the same cult following or breadth of widespread fan devotion as ‘The Babadook,’ but her latest marks significant progress in the filmmaker’s command of story and cinematic language.”
Why She Fights: On ‘So Proudly We Hail!’ and Female Camaraderie
“While a number of combat films released in 1943 focus almost exclusively on the male war effort, ‘So Proudly We Hail!’ finds nobility, heroism, anger, racism, sacrifice and camaraderie in its female characters.”
Review: Adam Egypt Mortimer’s ‘Daniel Isn’t Real’
“With ‘Daniel Isn’t Real,’ Mortimer stands by his choices and doesn’t wobble. The result is a film that’s harmonious and undiluted, if prickly and divisive.”
Love on the Run: Melina Matsoukas Makes Convincing Debut with ‘Queen & Slim’
“The desperate need to locate hope and light (and maybe even love where those things are in short supply) recommends ‘Queen & Slim,’ especially at a time of frustration and division.”
‘The Curse of the Cat People’: Val Lewton’s Groundbreaking Introduction of Childhood Fantasy
“Lewton’s insights into both childhood and adult inner personal conflicts are legacies which deserve recognition in the foundational history of horror, both for psychological thrillers and fantasy films.”
Review: Marielle Heller’s ‘A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood’
“Who is going to argue with the casting of Tom Hanks? Even so, the reason I don’t care for most fictionalized biopics lies in the imitation of one well-known person by another.”
London Korean Film Festival: Seeking Family and Identity in Four Female-Directed Debuts
London Korean Film Festival: Serena Scateni on ‘Young-ju,’ ‘A Bedsore, ‘A Boy and Sungreen’ and ‘Yukiko’
Review: Todd Haynes’ ‘Dark Waters’
“‘Dark Waters’ may have a downbeat climax, to the degree that may not be considered a climax at all, yet it’s a film made to inspire action, to underline the idea that this crisis is a modern one — it’s still happening, and it’s not resolved.”
Bong Joon-Ho’s ‘Parasite’ Infiltrates Year-End Best Movies Lists
“Like the Master of Suspense before him, Bong effortlessly blends the horrific and the comic en route to the icebox talk that has viewers questioning their own attitudes and beliefs through the unanswered mysteries of the story.”
Karyn Kusama’s ‘Destroyer’: The Question of Identity
“Kusama skillfully reinterprets the stylistics of classic film noir to explore the genre’s timeless and heady themes: obsession, loneliness, guilt and (most of all) identity…”
Sharing the Cinematic Bathwater: From Wim to Jim
“In retrospect, a film can seem so intentional, with every artistic choice so deliberate, that you can’t imagine it being any other way. But these movies that last for generations are often shaped by whims and circumstance.”
12 Angry Films: Sidney Lumet on Justice #5 – ‘Dog Day Afternoon’
“By creating such a sympathetic, human subject, Lumet deepens the impact of his institutional critique of the justice system; its dehumanizing effect on American society seems all the more tragic when Sonny is its victim.”
Review: Mike Flanagan’s ‘Doctor Sleep’
“In a weird way, Flanagan might have inadvertently made the best X-Men movie to date.”
Review: Noah Baumbach’s ‘Marriage Story’
“At once riveting and entertaining, while inciting in the viewer visceral and arduous self-reflection, ‘Marriage Story’ is an uncompromising and deeply affectionate reflection on what pulls us apart and yet what keeps us bound together despite it all.”