It’s rare to get 40 minutes into a film and realize you are watching the worst movie of the year with zero chance at redemption in the remaining hour. Equally appalling is how the multidimensional talent of Toni Collette (“Hereditary,” “The Sixth Sense”) and risk-taking director Catherine Hardwicke (“Twilight,” “Miss Bala“) could produce something at […]
This film is just what you hope it will be; an inspiring story of a horse and its owners coming into their own through a bit—or perhaps a considerable amount—of trauma. Additionally, it’s based on a true story. I like the way the movie opens with Jan (Collette), a middle-class woman in Wales, working several low-level jobs,
“Stowaway” is less of a space thriller and more a study of humanity. Adapted from the short story, Joe Penna the director of “Arctic” (2018), a diverse cast, and the Oscar nominated composer Volker Bertelmann (“Lion”, “Summerland”) collaborate on one of the most surprising new films this year. On the outset this looks like another
To better understand Charlie Kaufman, I would refer you to his Oscar-winning film “Adaptation.” Tasked with adapting a novel, Kaufman (“Being John Malkovich”) ended up writing about his own struggles with the process resulting in an extraordinary film that won Meryl Streep a Golden Globe nomination and Chris Cooper an Oscar. “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind” is
Rian Johnson has found time between “Star Wars” films to drop a savvy whodunnit mystery. “Knives Out” is the latest fan service flick from this fanboy filmmaker. The writer/director has assembled one of the year’s most impressive casts to reinvent “Clue” or modernize “Murder on the Orient Express.” In fact, Johnson even compares Daniel Craig’s
After focusing on people in their twilight years in films like “I’ll See You in My Dreams” and “The Hero,” promising new writer/director Brett Haley has shifted his focus. “Hearts Beat Loud” is first and foremost a father/daughter “dramedy.” It is also a film about music and a story about difficult choices. Haley and screenwriting
There is going to be a lot of talk about “Hereditary,” which is the type of film that exists to disturb, bother, and create conversation. First-time feature filmmaker Ari Aster floored audiences when “Hereditary” debuted at Sundance earlier this year. It’s not simply that his film is frightening or distressing; it’s the quality of his writing,
Here is a film that is constructed entirely around a dinner scene that speaks volumes about the class system. In the previews, this dinner party scene is set up like a Notting Hill or Love Actually moment. Madame, with a short running time of 90 swift minutes and peculiar alternating point of views, fail to
What might look like another film about the world of an autistic individual struggling with the everyday norms of life, is actually a love letter to Star Trek fans. Please Stand By (the title is explained within the film) offers Dakota Fanning (American Pastoral) a role reversal from I Am Sam, the film that introduced
Don’t be fooled by that all-star cast, or even the lure of a having a real female Jason Bourne type film (Sorry Atomic Blond, you failed). Unlocked is directed by Michael Apted, who, if you know anything about his films: Chasing Mavericks, Enough, The World is Not Enough, are all forgettable. Unlocked is slightly more