Review: Alice Waddington’s ‘Paradise Hills’
“One can’t help but wonder how Waddington might reinvigorate other sci-fi tales with her fairy tale stylings.”
Review: Alexa-Jeanne Dubé’s ‘SDR’
“Based on ‘Oui mais non’ and ‘S.D.R.,’ Dubé seems fully capable of tackling various genres, and taking the medium forward into the future.”
Review: Ciro Guerra’s ‘Waiting for the Barbarians’
“‘Waiting for the Barbarians’ is utterly removed from anything of Italy, and yet echoes the most vulgar and despicable parts of film culture.”
Review: Ruben Fleischer’s ‘Zombieland: Double Tap’
“Despite the warmed-up leftovers, ‘Zombieland: Double Tap’ manages to locate a few bright spots, and none are more appealing than Zoey Deutch.”
Review: Marianne Métivier’s ‘She Who Wears the Rain’
“‘She Who Wears the Rain’ shows how lucid dreaming engagement can help people cope with mental health issues.”
Review: Milena Lurie’s ‘Entangled’
“‘Entangled’ feels like a clunky ‘Love in New York’ story during the first hour, but ultimately transforms into a moving tale about self-love and acceptance.”
Review: Pietro Marcello’s ‘Martin Eden’
“In ‘Martin Eden,’ the games that Marcello plays with form and structure coalesce into an immensely moving film, which — grounded by the standout turn from Marinelli — offers a new direction for the stale “Great American Novel” adaptation.”
Julia Hart Powers Up with ‘Fast Color’
“‘Fast Color’ deserves a close look…”
Review: Daniel Kremer’s ‘Overwhelm the Sky’
“Mesmerizing and immaculately-structured, ‘Overwhelm the Sky’ is an ambitious indie epic that doesn’t waste a single minute.”
New York Film Festival Review: Edward Norton’s ‘Motherless Brooklyn’
“‘Motherless Brooklyn’ may not be a sterling example of traditional noir, but its subtext is gripping in its own way. The victim of this crime story isn’t a dead man or a damsel in distress, but the spirit of a city.”
Review: Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon’s ‘The Addams Family’
“The most devoted fans will appreciate the authenticity of the character design, which sticks closely to the look of the classic illustrations.”
Joanna Hogg Directs a Dazzling Honor Swinton Byrne in ‘The Souvenir’
“‘The Souvenir’ is essential viewing for devoted cinephiles.”
London Film Festival Review: Marco Bellocchio’s ‘The Traitor’
“It wouldn’t be surprising to see ‘The Traitor’ filed in the Dad-canon of crime cinema alongside other European films like ‘Mesrine’ or ‘The Baader Meinhof Complex’ — films where the context is too wide to sufficiently cover…”
Review: Rob Grant’s ‘Harpoon’
“Rob Grant’s ‘Harpoon’ exudes all the sly confidence of a well-prepared and half-in-the-bag wedding table orator.”
Review: Todd Phillips’ ‘Joker’ Is Aggressively Decent
“‘Joker’ is what so many controversial films turn out to be: it’s fine — neither masterpiece nor trash fire, well-executed in some parts and poorly thought out in others.”
Lynn Shelton Goes South in ‘Sword of Trust’
“Shelton convincingly alternates between the absurd misadventures of the core quartet and the well-observed moments of confessional pathos during which the audience sees the characters as humans doing their best to get along in the world…”
Review: Henry Alex Rubin’s ‘Semper Fi’
“‘Semper Fi’ leans heavily on male codes of honor but doesn’t fully explore the motivations for the primary players, a group of Marines trying to re-acclimate to life in upstate New York. As a result, the final act suffers.”
Open City Docs Fest Review: Lei Lei’s ‘Breathless Animals’
“Despite the 68-minute duration, ‘Breathless Animals’ might feel occasionally redundant, especially when the animation creates psychedelic vibes, but its many sketches of a woman’s life make up for any minor flaws.”
Review: Steven Soderbergh’s ‘The Laundromat’
“A great magician never reveals his tricks, and Soderbergh far too nakedly shows the craft in ‘The Laundromat,’ whereas a narrower focus, with the human consequence of the Panama Papers in clear sight, could have beguiled, incited and entertained in equal measure.”
Review: James Gray’s ‘Ad Astra’
“‘Ad Astra’ joins the likes of ‘Gravity’ and ‘Interstellar’ as one of Stanley Kubrick’s starchildren.”