“Playing with of-the-moment vocabulary familiar on college campuses, the latest ‘Black Christmas’ upends several slasher conventions, even if the film is a step down from the director’s excellent ‘Always Shine.'”
“In a weird way, Flanagan might have inadvertently made the best X-Men movie to date.”
“Despite the warmed-up leftovers, ‘Zombieland: Double Tap’ manages to locate a few bright spots, and none are more appealing than Zoey Deutch.”
“Rob Grant’s ‘Harpoon’ exudes all the sly confidence of a well-prepared and half-in-the-bag wedding table orator.”
“Esterhazy’s direction is consistently flat and uninspired given the nonstop opportunities for twisted weirdness, but the failure of ‘The Banana Splits Movie’ can be pinned almost entirely on the sawdust-packed script…”
“As a kind of grown-up ‘Clue’ in reverse, complete with the tribute appearance of a pepper-box revolver, ‘Ready or Not’ also lays out a motley assortment of Colonel Mustard and Mrs. Peacock-worthy opponents hell-bent on dispatching Grace prior to sun-up.”
“An efficient script and commanding central performance from Sarah Bolger produce a memorable film with mostly intelligently drawn characters.”
“From a technical perspective, ‘Feedback’ is extremely potent for long stretches. However, in aspiring to be relevant to current affairs, the film eschews effective simplicity for confused complexity.”
“Although ‘Come to Daddy’ slightly loses while accelerating to its conclusion, the splatter of dark comedy and dysfunctional father-son dynamics is always engaging and frequently smart.”
“‘Midsommar’ is all steak, no sizzle, and no real lessons are learned other than, maybe, ‘Screw your mansplaining boyfriend.’”
“Hazarika’s is a voice that comes from outside of the Bollywood canon and reverberates sharp and hard throughout the cinemascape of the country. May it grow only louder.”
“‘Alien’ is a gift that keeps on giving, and ‘Memory: The Origins of Alien’ unwraps so many colorfully wrapped boxes of various shapes and sizes.”
“Eggers is persistent in never revealing his hand, but I’ve got a hunch he’s hiding a royal flush.”
“‘Happy Death Day 2U’ is a light sci-fi movie with the thinnest veneer of horror, and your enjoyment of the film will depend on your willingness to accept its geeky premise and nonexistent scare factor.”
“‘Lords of Chaos’ is a nasty little treat: involving, fascinating and often shocking.”
“‘Velvet Buzzsaw’ is nicer to look at than a urinal signed ‘R. Mutt,’ but like Duchamp’s ‘Fountain,’ I won’t be rushing to see it again anytime soon.”