I missed this biopic when it was newsworthy and later when it won two Academy Awards — for Jessica Chastain’s performance as the title character, and for the extensive makeup and hairstyling she endured — but have finally caught up […]
Continue reading »Category: Recent Releases
Sisu (2022) ☆ ☆ 1/2
Quentin Tarantino is supposedly going to retire from filmmaking following his tenth feature film, which is now in pre-production. For those viewers who seek to find another like him, I hereby recommend Finnish writer-director Jalmari Helander, whose latest film is […]
Continue reading »The Marvels (2023) ☆ ☆
The Marvel Cinematic Universe has continued beyond the epic Endgame story, but none of their newer stories have had much of an impact. That trend continues with its newest, The Marvels, a female-centric adventure teaming Captain Marvel with two compadres and Nick […]
Continue reading »Finch (2021) ☆ ☆ 1/2
When is the end of the world not so bad? When Tom Hanks is there to walk us through the desolation, entertain us with his robots and point to a possible future. The end of the world occurs in Finch, and […]
Continue reading »Women Talking (2022) ☆ ☆ ☆
I finally caught up to one of last year’s most interesting dramas, and will be reviewing others of this period in the weeks to come, before this year’s upcoming awards season. I have missed quite a few important, acclaimed projects […]
Continue reading »Agent Game (2022) ☆ ☆
This is one of those cynical espionage tales where the characters are known only by their last names, nobody is to be trusted, friendly fire is all too common and truth is completely subordinate to agenda. It is not a […]
Continue reading »The Holdovers (2023) ☆ ☆ ☆
I felt great anticipation for this movie because its preview demonstrated the look of the 1970s, back when so many great films were being made; because it is from Alexander Payne, a very gifted writer-director; and because I really enjoy […]
Continue reading »Heist 88 (2023) ☆ ☆ 1/2
Heist and / or caper films have been a staple of cinema since the 1950s. This one is pretty decent because it is character-driven and very precise in its details, which makes the whole thing more convincing. It is the […]
Continue reading »The 355 (2022) ☆ ☆
A great many action movies have been made over the years. This one looks to be different because its protagonists are all strong women. That fact is not exactly new anymore, as femme fatales have been kicking butt just like […]
Continue reading »A Haunting in Venice (2023) ☆ ☆ ☆ 1/2
When Kenneth Branagh began his quest to bring Belgian detective Hercule Poirot back to the big screen, I was happy but discouraged. Happy because Poirot is an amazing, complex, fussy character who deserves more big screen attention than he has […]
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