Las Palmas Film Festival Review: Ya-chuan Hsiao’s ‘Father to Son’
“The father’s strength lies in knowing when to ‘protect the heart by pretending to have no heart,’ and the moment when he chooses to do so is devastating.”
Review: John Krasinski’s ‘A Quiet Place’
“‘A Quiet Place’ masterfully builds tension, pays it off in unexpectedly satisfying ways and provokes genuine emotional investment in its characters with precious few traditional tools at its disposal.”
Review: Lynne Ramsay’s ‘You Were Never Really Here’
“Ramsay and Phoenix eloquently communicate the trappings of depression, and how it grips the sufferer.”
Review: Max Winkler’s ‘Flower’
“The story feints towards transgressive ideas but lacks the commitment for maximum impact.”
Review: Paco Plaza’s ‘Verónica’
“The shrieking masses are right on the money for once. Plaza’s tale of teen possession is powerfully scary.”
‘A Wrinkle in Time’ Missed the Stars but Aimed High
“‘A Wrinkle in Time’ is for kids, and I mean ‘made for kids’ in the supportive definition rather than the usual lazy and disparaging connotation that’s carelessly applied to more lukewarm family films.”
Review: Armando Iannucci’s ‘The Death of Stalin’
“In the end, the humor fades away in favor of political machinations, but the film’s killer gags are still numerable.”
True/False 2018 Review: Khalik Allah’s ‘Black Mother’
“Even if you do not believe in the soul, the film makes it impossible to deny the soul of a country, that which births us, grooms us, and to which we add as we live and die inside it.”
True/False 2018 Review: Cristina Hanes’ ‘António and Catarina’
“In ‘António and Catarina,’ the potential of youth contrasts the accumulated regrets of age.”
True/False 2018 Review: Beata Bubenec’s ‘Flight of a Bullet’
“Formally electrifying and ethically discomfiting at the same time, ‘Flight of a Bullet’ is a movie one could just as easily gawk at in wonder or endlessly debate over.”
Review: Philip Gelatt’s ‘They Remain’
“Suspense and tension aren’t strictly necessary to this kind of Lovecraftian horror, but even so, the film suffocates under the weight of its own portentousness.”
Review: Alex Garland’s ‘Annihilation’
“‘Annihilation’ is far from indecipherable, as it counts on its ability to be understood.”
Berlinale 2018 Review: Wes Anderson’s ‘Isle of Dogs’
“While messy in parts and offering more of a sprint than a narrative marathon, there is great heart and ferocious energy in this cartoonish caper.”
Berlinale 2018 Review: Laura Bispuri’s ‘Daughter of Mine’
“Messy and real, touching and convincingly brought to the screen, ‘Daughter of Mine’ is a joyous, heart and mind-expanding film.”
Review: Francis Lawrence’s ‘Red Sparrow’
“In post-Hunger Games mode, Jennifer Lawrence continues her streak of pushing the envelope.”
Berlinale 2018 Review: Cédric Kahn’s ‘The Prayer’
“‘The Prayer’ – and its strange mountain community – is oddly timeless or out-of-our-time.”
Berlinale 2018 Review: Christian Petzold’s ‘Transit’
“For those who didn’t think Petzold could improve after ‘Phoenix,’ you might have to reconsider after experiencing ‘Transit.’”
2018 Oscar-Nominated Short Reviews: Best Live Action Short Film and Best Documentary (Short Subject)
“While nearly all Oscar-nominated shorts are doomed to eventual obscurity whether they win or not, that’s the key to one’s artistic staying power.”
The Striking Punch of Subversion: Devashish Makhija’s ‘Ajji’
“‘Ajji’ successfully imparts the notion that it’s compulsory for victims to retaliate against extreme injustice by transforming into wolves.”
Sundance Film Festival Review: David and Nathan Zellner’s ‘Damsel’
“A tremendously fun movie, ‘Damsel’ reinvigorates the Western aesthetic even as it defies many of the genre’s story conventions.”