Singin’ in the Hurricane: Damien Chazelle Takes Us to Wild, Old Hollywood in ‘Babylon’
“‘Babylon’ goes big and refuses to be ignored, even if a much better, much shorter movie exists somewhere inside the messy sprawl.”
Review: Lorcan Finnegan’s ‘Nocebo’
“Lorcan Finnegan’s ‘Nocebo’ works as a companion piece to his previous feature, ‘Vivarium’ (2019), but doesn’t match the overall quality… though it is undeniably one of 2022’s great tickle movies.”
Sequels Don’t Suck: 25 Years Later, ‘Scream 2’ Is More Potent Than Ever
“‘Scream 2’ hints at our future obsession with true crime and the spectacle of pushing victims to relive their trauma over and over (a full two decades before these ideas would become mainstream).”
Review: Elvis Mitchell’s ‘Is That Black Enough for You?!?’
“If you can’t live without the movies, ‘Is That Black Enough for You?!?’ is one of the year’s essential experiences.”
Review: Antoine Fuqua’s ‘Emancipation’
“‘Emancipation’ packs more of a punch than other successful Apple dramas, such as ‘CODA’ and ‘Causeway,’ primarily because of a sharp script by William N. Collage and sensational lead performances by Smith and co-star Ben Foster.”
Interview: ‘Christmas Bloody Christmas’ Filmmaker Joe Begos
‘Christmas Bloody Christmas’ Interview: Joey Keogh discusses the 2022 Shudder movie with filmmaker Joe Begos.
Review: Joe Begos’ ‘Christmas Bloody Christmas’
“‘Christmas Bloody Christmas’ is on a bigger scale than virtually everything else Begos has done to date, with terrific stunts and locations, and it’s heartening to witness his continued growth.”
Shifting Landscapes: Jerzy Skolimowski’s ‘Deep End’ and ‘The Shout’
“Skolimowski imbues his films with his signature iconographic sense of obscurity and mystique; both ‘Deep End’ and ‘The Shout’ grapple with the tensions brought about by characters suddenly entering (and quickly coming to terms with) new environments.”
Conspicuous Consumption: Noah Baumbach Takes on ‘White Noise’
“Admirers of Baumbach will smile at the ways in which ‘White Noise’ embodies his longtime preoccupations and simultaneously points toward bold new possibilities.”
Review: Angela Tucker’s ‘A New Orleans Noel’
“‘A New Orleans Noel’ is one of the year’s best holiday movies.”
A Portrait of the Portrait Artist: Laura Poitras and Nan Goldin Get Together for ‘All the Beauty and the Bloodshed’
“Goldin’s openness and forthrightness extends to her advocacy on behalf of so many others who, like herself, struggled or continue to struggle with opioid addiction.”
Review: Noah Segan’s ‘Blood Relatives’
“‘Blood Relatives’ is constantly in conversation with past vampire works without feeling the need to signpost its references. Segan is confident in the material, both onscreen and off.”
Maria Schrader Dramatizes a Contemporary Reckoning in ‘She Said’
“Condensing, combining and streamlining are expected elements of movie storytelling, but ‘She Said’ works toward a composite that validates as many facts and details as possible within the limitations of the feature film format.”
Review: Jon Michael Simpson’s ‘Hi I’m Blake’
“‘Hi I’m Blake’ has a profound, encouraging lifeforce, especially when Jeff McQuitty and Hanan Townshend’s hard-hitting crescendos complement the subject’s perseverance.”
Review: Scott Friend’s ‘To the Moon’
“‘To the Moon’ is the rare low-budget indie that delivers the goods across the board.”
Review: Amy Bandlien Storkel and Bryan Storkel’s ‘The Pez Outlaw’
“In ‘The Pez Outlaw,’ the Storkels include enough material centered on the durable and enchanting romance between Glew and wife Kathy to keep viewers firmly on his side.”
Review: Ryan Coogler’s ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’
“‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’Â is a superhero movie with a lot to say and do, paced well for a film over 160 minutes long, but it still dumbs itself down at times because either the director or studio simply doesn’t trust the audience.”
Review: Matt Sauter’s ‘Dylan & Zoey’
“Acting coaches should take a look at Dylan & Zoey’s bathroom monologue scene… this is the type of cinema that I’m always looking for.”
Mystical Ennui: Peter Cook at a Distance
“Peter Cook was never able to bridge the distance between his personal world and his many creations, and one gets the impression that he derived a certain satisfaction from keeping people guessing.”
Review: Lena Dunham’s ‘Catherine Called Birdy’
“Dunham delivers the most polished and confident feature of the four she has made so far…”