Palme d’Or winner SHOPLIFTERS is a radical deconstruction of family values in a world of dubious ethics. Set amid the throwaways of society, in this case Japan, it finds warmth and togetherness where we would least expect it, and from a family that is not so much scamming the system as they are a family… Read More »
THE FRONT RUNNER
a thoughtful, anarchically lively, film about the obligations of the candidate and the responsibilities of the press that force us to question both
CAN YOU EVER FORGIVE ME?
Based on Lee Israel’s memoir of the same name, it is not just an intriguing character study of a talented but difficult writer of one New York Time bestseller now on the skids, but also a perceptive consideration of writing as both an art and as a business.
HUNTER KILLER
The best thing I can say about HUNTER KILLER is that is it forgettable. This putative thriller of geopolitics and military bonding blows things up, sinks submarines, parachutes stoic guys through a thunderstorm, and fires endless automatic weapons, but when it’s all over, not much sticks beyond a nicely timed wrench catch, and the fortuitous… Read More »
BEAUTIFUL BOY
The devastation of drug addiction is passionately acted and masterfully told in BEAUTIFUL BOY, a film that is savagely tender in mood and execution. Based on the memoir of the same name by Bay Area journalist David Sheff (played by Steve Carrell), and Tweaked, the companion memoir by Sheff’s son, Nic ( played by Timothée… Read More »
BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE
Drew Goddard crafts tales that are multi-layered and philosophically challenging. From his days in the Whedon-verse to the deliciously exercise in meta-text, CABIN IN THE WOODS, there is always much more going on than the surface narrative. And so it is with BAD TIMES AT THE EL ROYALE, which may not be the flawless wonder… Read More »
THE PREDATOR
One comes to a Shane Black film with high hopes. They are not always rewarded, but when he comes through with films like KISS KISS BANG BANG, or the criminally underappreciated THE GOOD GUYS, the results are quirky, clever, and delightfully original. If you haven’t seen them, choose either, or both, instead of THE PREDATOR.… Read More »
A SIMPLE FAVOR
With A SIMPLE FAVOR, Paul Feig takes a very dark turn into neo-noir by way of a deliciously wicked social satire. There’s nary a hard-boiled detective in sight, but at the center of the film’s mystery, there is an enigmatic femme fatale to rival any from the golden age of that genre. The humor, courtesy… Read More »
THE NUN
The decline and fall of franchises is a phenomenon that is all too common, and yet still heartbreaking in its own way. For every James Bond or Star Wars, there are countless other series that started strong, usually with a film that was a one-off, the success of which led to studio bean-counters to push… Read More »
THE SPY WHO DUMPED ME
There is much that is very right with THE SPY WHO DUMPED ME. There is also much that is very wrong with it. It makes for an irksome cinematic experience in which one finds oneself rooting for the flick to pull itself together before the final credits. Spoiler alert, it doesn’t happen. The kitschy-coo title… Read More »
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