LFF 2025 Review: Rian Johnson’s ‘Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery’
“‘Wake Up Dead Man’ transforms into something more impactful by sincerely and non-judgmentally attempting to grapple with faith from an atheist’s perspective.”
Building the New Queer Canon #7: Carmen Emmi’s ‘Plainclothes’
“‘Plainclothes’ isn’t necessarily a kinky film — it just does better than most tales of life in the closet to explain why this can be more alluring than coming out and finding somewhere to make these connections in the open.”
Review: Bill Fishman’s ‘Waltzing with Brando’
“‘Waltzing with Brando’ suffers from a sluggish rhythm and lack of narrative drive because it focuses on the wrong character and the wrong aspect of the subject’s life.”
Review: Cosima Spender’s ‘Andrea Bocelli: Because I Believe’
“As politics continue to divide people via blinding shades of blue and red, Andrea Bocelli transcends above the madness by communicating what’s in his heart.”
Busan International Film Festival Review: Anoop Lokkur’s ‘Don’t Tell Mother’
“‘Don’t Tell Mother’ is an assured debut, less concerned with plot points than with the tremors of lived moments rippling through its gently stirring narrative.”
Review: Sara Zandieh’s ‘Doin’ It’
“‘Doin’ It’ is caught in the bind of being too obnoxious for adults and too unrelatable for younger viewers.”
Review: Paul Thomas Anderson’s ‘One Battle After Another’
“In ‘One Battle After Another,’ the political is inextricable from the personal, in a way that transcends a mere commentary on Trump’s America.”
Review: Justin Tipping’s ‘HIM’
“Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of ‘HIM’ is that Tipping is clearly a talented visual stylist, but his keen eye never quite helps the screenplay transcend various cliches.”
Review: Jimmy Warden’s ‘Borderline’
“Just like a Hollywood actor or actress who doesn’t quite know when to stop performing amongst family members and friends, ‘Borderline’ is frequently annoying yet always entertaining and unpredictable.”
Review: Racheal Cain’s ‘Somnium’
“‘Somnium’ is rather predictable, as first-time feature filmmakers like Cain tend to prioritize visual design over the nuts and bolts of their script.”
TIFF 2025 Review: Benny Safdie’s ‘The Smashing Machine’
“The biggest problem with ‘The Smashing Machine’ is that Safdie simply doesn’t bring anything new to the table in terms of style or ideas.”
TIFF 2025 Review: Gianfranco Rosi’s ‘Below the Clouds’
“With ‘Below the Clouds,” Rosi makes it clear that history and the present interact every day.”
An Interview with ‘Ghich Pich’ Filmmaker Ankur Singla
‘Ghich Pich’ Interview: Dipankar Sarkar discusses the 2025 movie with filmmaker Ankur Singla.
Know the Cast: ‘Weapons’
‘Weapons’ Cast: A Vague Visages guide for every actor and character in Zach Cregger’s 2025 movie.
Know the Cast: ‘Deep Cover’
‘Deep Cover’ Cast: A Vague Visages guide for every actor and character in Tom Kingsley’s 2025 Amazon movie.
Building the New Queer Canon #6: Ethan Coen’s ‘Honey Don’t!’
“Aside from the half-assed plotting, the biggest flaw of ‘Honey Don’t!’ is that even with Cooke’s involvement, the sexuality of the protagonists lacks any sort of perceptive depth, with no inter-character dynamic feeling more lived-in than the plot needs it to be.”
Know the Cast: ‘The Wrong Paris’
‘The Wrong Paris’ Cast: A Vague Visages guide for every actor and character in Janeen Damian’s 2025 Netflix movie.
TIFF 2025 Review: Óliver Laxe’s ‘Sirāt’
“What I really appreciate about ‘Sirāt’ is Laxe’s constant bucking of expectations.”
TIFF 2025 Review: Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke’s ‘A Useful Ghost’
“As interesting as ‘A Useful Ghost’ is in concept, it’s a typical film by a talented debut artist and storyteller, one with a litany of ideas but no clear voice that brings them together.”
Know the Cast: ‘The Thursday Murder Club’
‘The Thursday Murder Club’ Cast: A Vague Visages guide for every actor and character in Chris Columbus’ 2025 Netflix movie.