A story of any kind — adaptation, original, or otherwise — that features an animal, usually sparks one specific question: does the animal make it?! To quell this particular concern, the dog in director Chris Sanders’s (How to Train Your… Read More ›
In Theaters
Writer/director Stella Meghie’s “The Photograph” asks her audience to look beyond the frame and love completely.
Writer/director Stella Meghie’s (Everything, Everything) new film, The Photograph, is a drama/romance depicting two love stories (one in the past, one in the present) connected by a picture. That description just scratches the surface of Meghie’s tale which examines not… Read More ›
“VFW” balances excellence on one end and absolute batshit crazy on another.
When it comes to the new world of film production, the world has been seeing a lot of big name companies saying “screw it” and making their own films rather than sitting around while putting out other companies’ films on… Read More ›
“A Simple Wedding” subverts rom-coms expectations by focusing on self-love.
There’s something about a wedding that feels oddly restorative. Symbolically, it’s a new beginning, one in which two families are coming together to form something new, something larger, and, potentially, something stronger than what was before. This romantic notion of… Read More ›
“The Lodge” is opening its icy doors. Do you dare go in?
Horror as a means of directly confronting human trauma is not a new concept that suddenly sprang out of nowhere with Hereditary. If anything, it’s arguably the basis for all horror dating back to the very beginning. What’s better for… Read More ›
“Birds of Prey (and the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn)” takes these broken wings and learns to soar.
The last time audiences saw Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn, she was being freed from Black Gate prison by The Joker (Jared Leto) in David Ayers’s Suicide Squad. That was in 2016 when hopes were high that a group of DC… Read More ›
As long as we sing “The Song of Names,” the lost will not be forgotten.
Never forget. These are the words that every Jew learns at a young age in our modern era. They signify a persistent vigilance and the vigorous act of remembrance. It is not enough to know that a thing happened, it… Read More ›
Rising director Kantemir Balagov paints a haunting picture of human need with his Oscar-shortlisted film, “Beanpole”.
With just one other feature film under his belt (Closeness, 2017), Russian director Kantemir Balagov takes on a challenge with his second feature, Beanpole. The film packs a complex story of female friendship and desire that requires precise characterization and… Read More ›
Writer/director Erica Tremblay’s short film “Little Chief” remarkably showcases the relationship between a teacher and their students. [Sundance Film Festival]
Short films don’t get the wider credit that they should get. Anyone can make a short film and post it on YouTube, hoping someone will find it and love it, but short films have an advantage where most Hollywood/studio released… Read More ›
Bloody mayhem, gangsters, and wisecracking bystanders are the tip of the iceberg in Guy Ritchie’s “The Gentlemen.”
When it comes to Guy Ritchie films, the mileage varies depending on where you were introduced. If you came in during the era of his early works, specifically his first two features Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) and… Read More ›
Upending conventions by combining trends with personal style, Richard Stanley creates the next best midnight horror movie in “Color Out of Space”.
I have a small connection with Richard Stanley which makes viewing Color Out of Space feel like a strangely touching moment. Stanley’s new film, based on the short story by H.P. Lovecraft, is his first feature film to be produced… Read More ›
“Jay and Silent Bob Reboot” is a family affair and we’re all invited!
1994 low budget comedy Clerks is writer/director Kevin Smith’s first film and the foundation for a 25-year strong series of films, comics, a cartoon, and a cartoon television show that have entertained literal generations of audiences. Dubbed the “View Askewniverse”… Read More ›
While lacking the depth and emotional nuance of previous Holocaust films, “Quezon’s Game” honors the past by bringing a nearly forgotten story to light.
As early as 1945, two years before the liberation of Auschwitz, filmmakers began to grapple with the challenge of preserving Holocaust memory on screen. Directors like Mark Donskoy and Wanda Jakubowska took great risks with their films, The Unvanquished (1945)… Read More ›
An unexpected rambunctious adrenaline ride, “Bad Boys for Life” is the just break you need from the winter doldrums.
When a film releases a new addition to a franchise a decade or more after the last entry, there’s good reason to be skeptical about the quality. Often, what worked before doesn’t connect due to changes in the cultural landscape,… Read More ›
Unconventional and super trippy, “The Wave” is an unexpected time travel comedy.
Time travel movies are, honestly, very hit and miss. Granted, there are exceptions (i.e., Terminator or Back to the Future), but time travel seems to get a bad rap, and for good reasons, because it could be considered Hollywood’s way… Read More ›
“Like A Boss” is a celebration of the bonds we share with the family we choose.
Originating from the mind of Danielle Sanchez-Witzel (My Name Is Earl, Whitney) and featuring the direction of Miquel Arteta (Beatriz at Dinner, Duck Butter) comes Like A Boss, a love story about friendship, loyalty, and faith centered around two lifelong… Read More ›
Though often uncomfortable, “Three Christs” is a moving, thought-provoking film exploring the detriments of mental illness and the positive power of humanity.
Director Jon Avnet and co-writer Eric Nazarian helm the new IFC Films production, Three Christs, showcasing a star-studded cast including Richard Gere, Peter Dinklage, Walton Goggins, Bradley Whitford, Charlotte Hope, and Julliana Margulies. Adapted from Dr. Milton Rokeach’s published psychiatric… Read More ›
The echoes of the past in “Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker” will have you laugh, cry, gasp, and cheer like you’re a kid again.
As written two years ago, Star Wars fans are notoriously hard to please. It seems as though, with every new release, the Fandom finds some aspect to develop disdain for as though these films are serious dramas and not space… Read More ›
Tom Hooper’s adaptation of Broadway hit “Cats” is more the cat’s meow than the dog’s bullocks.
The play Cats is a strange and mysterious thing. Lacking a typical narrative, the story unfolds as each cat introduces itself in song and details of a larger undertaking are revealed upon each new tune. By and large, though, Andrew… Read More ›
Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of “Little Women” masterfully captures the timelessness of the novel with a top-level ensemble cast.
Published in 1868, Louisa May Alcott’s novel Little Women continues to be read, studied, and poured over by readers of all ages and stripes. Alcott’s story of the four March sisters is timeless in nature, despite being anchored in the… Read More ›