Features
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Wednesday, Dec. 13, 2023
Review: Cord Jefferson Makes Directorial Debut With "American Fiction"
Jeffrey Wright's Thelonious "Monk" Ellison is at the end of his rope at the beginning of " American Fiction, " a crowd-pleaser that's both funny and smart in its satire of race, media, artists, identity politics and even Hollywood. It opens in theaters this week. A classic frustrated artist, Monk...
Thursday, Dec. 7, 2023
Review: Director Yorgos Lanthimos' "Poor Things"
It is sickly hilarious to make a movie in which so much consensual sex is had, often so gleefully, that is not the least bit sexy. Though Bella Baxter's insatiable libido might be her guiding light at first in "Poor Things," sexual liberation (or "furious jumping," as she calls it) is only part of...
Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2023
Review: Hayao Miyazaki's "The Boy and the Heron"
When Hayao Miyazaki's "The Boy and the Heron" premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September, the filmmaker Guillermo del Toro said in his introductory remarks: "We are privileged enough to be living in a time where Mozart is composing symphonies." You might be tempted to call...
Thursday, Nov. 30, 2023
Review: "Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé"
In Beyoncé's concert film, she describes her recent Renaissance World Tour as being run like a machine: From lighting to set design, the superstar had a hand in everything production-related to ensure her stadium tour exceeded expectations after four years of preparation. As a perfectionist,...
Wednesday, Nov. 22, 2023
Review: Bradley Cooper's "Maestro"
Bradley Cooper's "Maestro," a high-wire act of a biopic, leaps constantly between on stage and off, flying through Leonard Bernstein's very public life as a conductor while diving into his more private marriage to Felicia Montealegre. How each side of Bernstein's existence interacts with the other...
Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2023
Review: Writer-Director Emerald Fennell's "Saltburn"
Two years ago Emerald Fennell stood on the Oscars stage hoisting her writing trophy for "Promising Young Woman," a scathing look at rape culture and a balancing act of wit, style, shock value, audacity, great acting and pitch-black humor — plus a timely #MeToo message. That's a lot for a debut film...
Monday, Nov. 20, 2023
Review: Walt Disney Animation's "Wish"
Walt Disney Animation's "Wish" is stunning to look at with textured and rich watercolor-inspired animation and easter egg treasures for audiences nostalgic for the classics. But it is also more concept than story: A strained and forgettable attempt to pay homage to the studio's 100 years. The...
Monday, Nov. 20, 2023
Review: Director Aki Kaurismäki's "Fallen Leaves"
In a movie year rife with grand, three-hour opuses from auteur filmmakers comes a slender 81-minute gem that outclasses them all. Aki Kaurismäki's "Fallen Leaves," short, sweet and utterly delightful, is the kind of movie that's so charming, you want to run it back the moment it's over. Kaurismäki...
Thursday, Nov. 16, 2023
Review: Ridley Scott's "Napoleon" Starring Joaquin Phoenix
For such a famed historical figure, Napoleon has made only fleeting appearances in movies since Abel Gance's 1927 silent film. Stanley Kubrick had grand designs for a Napoleon epic that went unmade. (Steven Spielberg is attempting to revive those plans as a series ). Napoleon and his bicorne hat —...
Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023
Review: Director Todd Haynes' "May December"
There is hardly a false note in " May December, " an audaciously self-aware, mischievously funny and emotionally complex drama that defies simple categorization. Filmmaker Todd Haynes, working from a script by newcomer Samy Burch, deftly mixes cheesy movie of the week tropes with the psychological...