Puss in Boots: The Last Wish
It's been a long time since DreamWorks felt like the edgy alternative to Disney fare, but "Puss in Boots: The Last Wish" comes close to rekindling those sentiments with its bleeped profanity and light blue comedy.
New Movie Reviews
Movie reviews in theaters and on DVD & Blu‑ray
Emancipation
If there's anything that Will Smith regrets as much as slapping Chris Rock at this year's Academy Awards ceremony shortly before winning Best Actor, it's turning down the chance to star in "Django Unchained."
Avatar: The Way of Water
Although "Avatar: The Way of Water" is clumsy when it tries to be profound, it pushes the medium on a technical level and is sure to add another Visual Effects Oscar to the distinguished mantle of New Zealand's Weta Workshop.
Spoiler Alert
Neither excelling as a romance nor as a comedy, "Spoiler Alert" is left only to draw tears from its viewers. Without our emotional investment secured, those don't come either.
The Fabelmans
Writing has never been Steven Spielberg's forte, but he shows admirable restraint in telling his own story in "The Fabelmans", touching upon life's beauty and messiness in a way he hasn't quite before and with all the cinematic splendor you expect from him.
The Banshees of Inisherin
Beautifully shot, creatively constructed, and as thought-provoking as anything else released this year, "The Banshees of Inisherin"would be an excellent choice as the gold standard of contemporary cinema.
She Said
In a world without "Spotlight", "She Said" would be a striking procedural harking back to All the President's Men. As is, it stands as a partial reminder of why the movie industry has changed so dramatically in just the past five years.
Tár
"Tár" runs closer to three hours than two and its length is felt. And yet, one's attention is held by the compelling portrait of the complicated protagonist, richly brought to life by Cate Blanchett.
Till
You may wonder in light of what the Emmett Till case involves how anyone saw feature film potential in this story, let alone a film intended to receive wide release in theaters. And yet that question does not linger as Chinonye Chukwu digs into this ugly and painful chapter and unearths the opportunity it presents us to do better today.
Ticket to Paradise
With their chemistry is on point and their comic timing unfaltering, the diagonally billed still A-listers pull off material that would be utterly cringeworthy in the hands of the lesser talents you’d see cast on Hallmark or Lifetime.
Black Adam
The action is competent throughout and the screenplay does an adequate job of developing all these characters we don’t know. But for most of the runtime, “Black Adam” is joyless and routine.
Bros
It would be easy to rag on Bros as simply the calculated product of easily observed shifting trends. Alas, this movie is too good to be dismissed as that and better than the vast majority of romantic comedies being made.
Amsterdam
With no perms, disco, put-upon accents, and love triangle, Amsterdam does not have the same arresting quality that defined American Hustle, but it similarly and effortlessly sustains our interest and with its own eccentric arsenal of shrapnel art, a sometimes uncooperative glass eyeball, and potent pain-relieving eye drops. Russell is a master at mining human foibles and high-stakes interactions for both entertainment and emotion.
Smile
The problems start at the top, with a protagonist who is difficult to sympathize with. A horror movie heroine must only be endearing enough for us to not want them to die. Rose somehow never comes close to clearing that low bar, leading you to suspect Bacon's last name got her this part (yes, her dad is Kevin).
The Good House
It’s hard to be disappointed in any major way by a film that is admirably honoring the theatrical tradition, giving something for the writers of AARP to cover, telling a story about older people that isn't just aging and Viagra jokes, and giving roles of substance to talented veterans too good to stay on the fringes.
Don't Worry Darling
All that Don’t Worry has going for it comes to a screeching halt in its final act, with a twist that undermines the entirety of the film.
See How They Run
This light, diverting comic mystery is like a Poirot movie played for laughs or I guess what Knives Out was for many viewers. But instead of prominent sweaters and political soapboxing, first-time director Tom George and second-time screenwriter Mark Chappell run with wit, puns, character development, and a narrative that holds our interest.
The Silent Twins
Part psychological thriller, part coming-of-age drama, The Silent Twins is strange and compelling. The only way to wrap your head around the picture is to know that it is based on a true story.
Honk for Jesus. Save Your Soul.
No matter how good the lead actors are—and they for sure elevate this above the original short film from which multiple beats are directly taken—they can’t turn this uneven satire into a particularly rewarding or enjoyable comedy.
Three Thousand Years of Longing
Adapting A.s. Byatt’s 1994 short story “The Djinn in the Nightingale’s Eye”, Longing opens with our attentions fixed on Alithea Binnie (Tilda Swinton), a British academic in Istanbul to speak at a literary conference. There, a decorative lamp she obtains from an antiquities marketplace is revealed to hold a Djinn, or, to those of us that grew up with Aladdin, a genie. Alithea’s Djinn (Idris Elba) is a formidable presence who barely fits inside her nice hotel room.
Press Release
Disney / Pixar WALL·E: The Criterion Collection 4K Ultra HD & Blu-ray
Pixar’s high-water mark of digital animation—a prescient vision of a dystopian future within a dazzling pop-science-fiction love story.
Pinocchio (2022)
Disney+ Day brings the studio’s latest live‑action reimagining of an animated classic. Director Robert Zemeckis brings Walt’s second feature film into the fold with a cast that includes Tom Hanks, Cynthia Erivo, Luke Evans, and Joseph Gordon‑Levitt as the voice of Jiminy Cricket.
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Where the Crawdads Sing
Delia Owens’ bestselling novel tells the story of a girl who raises herself in the marshes of North Carolina and finds herself on trial for the murder of one of her two significant loves. Daisy Edgar‑Jones and David Strathairn head the cast of this coming‑of‑age drama.