VV Double Review (2/2): Macon Blair’s ‘The Toxic Avenger’ (EIFF)
“‘The Toxic Avenger’ isn’t unpalatable to the mainstream, but it quickly becomes evident why the film was left on the shelf for a couple of years.”
VV Double Review (1/2): Macon Blair’s ‘The Toxic Avenger’
“Blair’s ‘The Toxic Avenger’ does what a great reboot should do — the film carves its own path, in every sense of the word, while paying homage to what came before and taking some big swings along the way.”
EIFF 2025 Review: Sepideh Farsi’s ‘Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk’
“As a cinematic epitaph for an extraordinary young woman, ‘Put Your Soul on Your Hand and Walk’ more than captures the spirit of Fatima Hassouna.”
EIFF 2025 Review: Jean-Pierre Dardenne and Luc Dardenne’s ‘The Young Mother’s Home’
“After a few missteps since ‘Two Days, One Night’ became an unlikely crossover success, the Dardennes brothers are back on track with ‘The Young Mother’s Home.’ It’s their simplest, most open hearted work to date…”
EIFF 2025 Review: Ondine Viñao’s ‘Two Neighbors’
“Sadly, ‘Two Neighbors’ turns out to be one of those parties where the people don’t really mix and the event seems to drag on forever.”
EIFF 2025 Review: Jan-Ole Gerster’s ‘Islands’
“‘Islands’ smoothly makes the transition from a romantic drama to an understated thriller, and it’s utterly intoxicating.”
Review: Zach Cregger’s ‘Weapons’
“Cregger is less interested in the ways in which his characters rise to the occasion in ‘Weapons’ and more concerned with how they fall short at the worst possible moment.”
Review: Audrey Lam’s ‘Us and the Night’
“Even when Lam’s dialogue falters in its poetic consistency, her down-to-earth editing and dedication to minimalism hits the mark, as ‘Us and the Night’ embodies true-blue independent filmmaking.”
Review: Sophie Brooks’ ‘Oh, Hi!’
“‘Oh, Hi!’ positions Gordon as the next Lena Dunham, Greta Gerwig or maybe — to quote Will Ferrell’s Frank from ‘Old School’ (2003) — ‘something really cool that I don’t even know about.'”
Review: Paul Etheredge’s ‘The Other’
“‘The Other’ is a massive technical achievement with some real heart, and Etheredge fortunately avoids bland metaphors about racism.”
Review: James Gunn’s ‘Superman’
“Gunn’s first ‘Superman’ outing makes the grade.”
Review: Morihito Inoue’s ‘Hotspring Sharkattack’
“There’s a madcap charm to ‘Hotspring Sharkattack,’ a real sense of DIY ingenuity and, crucially, fun, which makes the film impossible to resist.”
Open Roads: New Italian Cinema Review – Francesca Comencini’s ‘The Time It Takes’
“Cinematic productions like ‘The Time It Takes’ show that theatrical movies can have a profound effect on people who want to know more about the medium and the craft of filmmaking.”
Short Film Review: Laura Checkoway’s ‘The Cat Man Eshete’
“‘The Cat Man Eshete’ is more of a psychological character study — one worthy of repeat viewings, especially for immigrants — than a traditional documentary short about trauma and redemption.”
Review: Christopher Smith’s ‘Consecration’
“‘Consecration’ is a disjointed affair with sparks of interest scattered throughout that nonetheless ends up as a middling entry into the newly popular religious horror sub-genre.”
Saving Seconds of Time: On Rachel Elizabeth Seed’s ‘A Photographic Memory’
“Some minor continuity issues in ‘A Photographic Memory’ point to the first-time director’s lack of experience, yet they oddly work in favor of the established mood and tone via the (mostly) outstanding editing.”
Review: Sean Byrne’s ‘Dangerous Animals’
“Byrne paces ‘Dangerous Animals’ perfectly, hitting all the scariest beats with the requisite care and attention to detail…”
Review: Tom DeNucci, Seth Koch and Rick Lazes’ ‘Knock Out Blonde: The Kellie Maloney Story’
“‘Knock Out Blonde’ isn’t the kind of documentary that wants to paint a complicated picture of its subject — which, paradoxically, would be the kind of boundary-pushing representation we need now.”
‘All Happy Families’ Review – A Gently Chaotic Portrait of Multigenerational Family Life in Chicago
“‘All Happy Families’ is a warm family drama. What the film lacks in originality, it makes up for in sincerity.”
‘Pavements’ Review: Director Alex Ross Perry Innovates Rock Doc Cinema for the Future
“Perry fully (and successfully) commits to various comedic bits in ‘Pavements’ while documenting Pavement’s 1999 break-up and eventual 2022 reunion.”