Salon.com

There is also something a tad self-congratulatory about the whole exercise... It is uncomfortable to watch any franchise indulge in this kind of horn tooting.

Posted Dec 15, 2018

2.5/4

Once Upon a Deadpool (2018)

A conceit that could have been charming instead comes across as crass.

Posted Dec 14, 2018

Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)

In some sense one might think of it as the mother recipe of the American Christmas special.

Posted Dec 14, 2018

Roma (2018)

Cuarón's film is quotidian and extraordinary at the same time. It is about change and how we adapt and grow. It is about love and sometimes the lack of it. It is a rapturous magnum opus, that is heartbreaking, devastating, and life affirming all at once.

Posted Dec 10, 2018

Ben is Back (2018)

By the time Ben and Holly are locked in a pieta-style tableau, with light shining from behind and above them, "Ben Is Back" has truly hit bottom. The elder Hedges needs to make amends.

Posted Dec 9, 2018

Vox Lux (2018)

Portman arrives in the film like a force of nature, tearing into her role with reckless abandon. Portman is so much fun to watch behaving badly that viewers may actually root for her to self-destruct; she is that entertaining.

Posted Dec 8, 2018

0/4

Adam Sandler's Eight Crazy Nights (2002)

There aren't enough creative Yiddish insults in the world to adequately express how much I hate Adam Sandler's "Eight Crazy Nights."

Posted Dec 1, 2018

2.5/4

Creed II (2018)

There was a great movie in "Creed II," one that peeked out every now and then beneath the suffocating blanket of clichés.

Posted Nov 23, 2018

3.5/4

Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018)

I am happy to say that the misogynists' worst fears were realized. This is very much a movie whose female characters are equal to their male counterparts...

Posted Nov 22, 2018

3.5/4

The Front Runner (2018)

"The Front Runner" comes along at a particularly relevant time in American political history.

Posted Nov 8, 2018

Mid90s (2018)

Eileen G'Sell

If Superbad launched an entire subgenre that mocks male insecurity, Mid90s reveals, almost tenderly, the devastation of trying to hide it.

Posted Nov 5, 2018

Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)

Erin Keane

Ideally, a film like this would attempt to add to, or to contextualize, a legacy. Instead, "Bohemian Rhapsody" tries to sanctify it, pack it in bubble wrap to protect it from causing, or being caught in, any friction.

Posted Nov 3, 2018

The Greasy Strangler (2016)

Erin Keane

The series promises to be a fitting showcase for Shipka's considerable talent...

Posted Oct 22, 2018

3/4

Halloween (2018)

In other words, like [Brad] Jones, I agree that this is the best Michael Myers-based "Halloween" movie since 1981's "Halloween II."

Posted Oct 19, 2018

3.5/4

CinemAbility (2018)

"CinemAbility: The Art of Inclusion" tells a Hollywood story that has long been overlooked.

Posted Oct 15, 2018

A Star Is Born (2018)

The problem is whenever Cooper turns the film away from his best asset (Gaga) and into a vanity production.

Posted Oct 8, 2018

3/4

Venom (2018)

Certainly I'm in a minority when it comes to my fellow critics, but I liked "Venom." Hell, if it wasn't for the sloppy and formulaic script, I might have even loved it.

Posted Oct 5, 2018

Aliens (1986)

Beyond dispute, however, is the film's timeless worth as a cathartic work, especially in terms of its accidentally commentary on the sexism of the corporate structure.

Posted Oct 4, 2018

2/4

The Nun (2018)

By overly relying on jump scares, "The Nun" uses a mechanical approach toward instilling fear rather than a more profound understanding of terror.

Posted Sep 22, 2018

0.5/4

Behind Enemy Lines II: Axis of Evil (2006)

It's still reasonably entertaining if efficiently made action films are your bag, though.

Posted Sep 18, 2018

Eldorado (2018)

Superb... [A] potent, heartfelt film.

Posted Sep 16, 2018

Cold War (Zimna wojna) (2018)

Luminously shot in black and white, with every frame artfully composed, Pawel Pawlikowski's powerful "Cold War"....casts a spell over audiences.

Posted Sep 16, 2018

Dogman (2018)

Matteo Garrone's unflinching character study... has a strong chance at the Oscars because of Fonte's expressive performance

Posted Sep 16, 2018

Birds of Passage (Pájaros de verano) (2019)

Outstanding.... "Birds of Passage" is closer in tone to "Narcos" than any telenovela.... Gallego and Guerra keep the story consistently absorbing as the action plays out and the bodies pile up.

Posted Sep 16, 2018

Girl (2018)

Dhost's nonjudgmental film doesn't traverse new territory for a trans film, and it features too much dancing, but it benefits from its authenticity.

Posted Sep 16, 2018

Border (Gräns) (2018)

This supernatural romantic thriller constantly shifts genres, but its slow burn approach keeps things intriguing. Abbasi establishes and maintains an unusual, internal logic that will satisfy viewers who go along with every strange twist.

Posted Sep 16, 2018

2.5/4

The Predator (2018)

Amid this cavalcade of slightly-above-mediocrity, there is the issue I mentioned earlier: The film's, um, interesting ideas about autism. (Full disclosure: I am autistic myself.)

Posted Sep 14, 2018

Fahrenheit 11/9 (2018)

Sophia McClennen

Moore's most powerful movie yet.

Posted Sep 7, 2018

RBG (2018)

At the same time, although West and Cohen get around to the version of Ginsburg that has become a meme for Millennials and a symbol of resistance, the greater part of the film celebrates her tireless determination.

Posted Sep 4, 2018

August 28th: A Day in the Life of a People (2018)

A shining miracle.

Posted Aug 27, 2018

2/4

The Happytime Murders (2018)

I've been on "Sesame Street." I know Elmo. Cookie Monster is a friend of mine. "Happytime Murders," you're no "Sesame Street" . . . and you're not "Avenue Q" either.

Posted Aug 24, 2018

Reunification (2015)

Arthur Chu

It's a documentary unlike any I've seen--a film very clearly put together to say things through the language of film that the filmmaker is uncomfortable saying any other way.

Posted Aug 8, 2018

3/4

Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)

Say what you will about "Avengers: Infinity War," but at least its story took risks. "Fallout" offers a highly predictable form of fun -- although it's still fun.

Posted Jul 27, 2018

2/4

Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017)

"Star Wars" is not "Breaking Bad," and the same narrative tricks that worked for the latter feel jarringly out of place in the former.

Posted Jul 27, 2018

Sorry to Bother You (2018)

It should throw the viewer for a loop, because it's a reflection of the insane times we live in.

Posted Jul 20, 2018

2.5/4

Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018)

Aside from a few flourishes of aesthetic inventiveness and a single moment of genuine wonder, "Ant-Man and The Wasp" doesn't do very much with its premise.

Posted Jul 6, 2018

Hannah Gadsby: Nanette (2018)

What Gadsby does in this unassuming sneak attack is disassembly of the artistry and trick of comedy itself.

Posted Jul 5, 2018

4/4

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018)

This is without question the best "Jurassic Park" sequel - smart, scary, and even emotionally powerful.

Posted Jun 22, 2018

3.5/4

Incredibles 2 (2018)

Do you remember when superhero movies were light-hearted popcorn fare instead of overwrought epics? "The Incredibles 2," which is absolutely delightful, recalls that time.

Posted Jun 15, 2018

Won't You Be My Neighbor? (2018)

Mary Elizabeth Williams

As Oscar winner Morgan Neville's timely, tear-duct lubricating documentary "Won't You Be My Neighbor?" makes clear, the easily parodied, often underestimated icon of children's television was a total badass.

Posted Jun 14, 2018

1.5/4

Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018)

Whenever "Star Wars" tries to develop one of the franchise's key characters, it whiffs. "Solo" is no exception, a disappointment on par with "The Last Jedi" and the prequels.

Posted May 25, 2018

Fahrenheit 451 (2018)

Where it truly falls short is in capturing the ways that literature helps us define our humanity and our individuality and life's meaning.

Posted May 21, 2018

3.5/4

Deadpool 2 (2018)

Just as Robert Downey, Jr. has become the definitive Iron Man, Ryan Reynolds is Deadpool. It's the role he was born to play and whenever he's on screen, the movie's inner classic shines forth.

Posted May 18, 2018

2/4

Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

"Avengers: Infinity War" isn't just a gussied-up mediocrity being widely mistaken for a good movie. It's also, at least arguably, a dangerous movie for anyone who cares about the future of American cinema.

Posted Apr 27, 2018

Olympia (1930)

Colin Fleming

Olympia makes sports universal in a startling way.

Posted Apr 11, 2018

3/4

Paterno (2018)

It hits home not only because the crimes it profiles are so heinous, so unconscionable, but because the entire subject is so agonizingly relevant today.

Posted Apr 5, 2018

Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert (2018)

Jesus Christ Superstar Live! diverges from television's holiday tradition of genuflecting before Hollywood history and its long-accepted and outdated vision of what religious figures look like.

Posted Apr 1, 2018

Mister Rogers: It's You I Like (2018)

By leading with the warmth of shared memory and endearment, producers JoAnn Young and John Paulson mold It's You I Like into experiential viewing that emphasizes intimacy.

Posted Mar 6, 2018

2.5/4

Death Wish (2018)