“The United States vs. Billie Holiday” profiles a music icon while exploring the very real power of a statement made through song. Lee Daniels tells this story with flashes of melodrama,…
In “The Father,” Anthony Hopkins becomes a heartbreaking portrait of a man feeling reality slip away. Hopkins joins other thespians of a certain age who have been exploring stories about dementia.
“Cherry” gets overloaded telling what should be a fairly simple, direct story. It’s based on the acclaimed novel by Nico Walker, who turned his experiences as a combat medic in Iraq and…
Two old foes reunite in “Tom and Jerry,” an updated version of the Hanna-Barbera cartoon that combines classic animation with live action. While some things stay the same –– Thomas Cat and…
The opioid crisis, a dire situation that has touched many Americans, is front and center in writer-producer-director Nicholas Jarecki’s second feature, the timely thriller “Crisis.” Comprised of three different narratives set…
“Nomadland” is both a requiem and journey, lamenting a country that is no more while taking in the freedom of the open road. This is a vast nation full of wondrous landscapes.
Rosamund Pike once again taps into her evil side in “I Care a Lot,” a dark comedy that turns into an unnerving thriller. Pike stars as Marla Grayson, a career con…
A writer who is blocked in more ways than one finds inspiration from the beyond in “Blithe Spirit,” a supernatural period comedy based on the 1941 play of the same name by…
There is an endlessly fascinating story buried somewhere in “Silk Road.” Ross Ulbricht is like the misfit version of Mark Zuckerberg. While other innovators marked the aughts and 2010s with the emergence…
Ever since his breakthrough role in “Manchester by the Sea” earned him an Oscar nomination, Lucas Hedges has been steadily delivering impressive performances, playing a wide range of roles in films like…
“Judas and the Black Messiah” looks back at a particular moment in time when a generation was swept up in the fervor of a revolutionary epoch. Today we live in an era…
“Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar” makes no attempt to take itself too seriously or justify its existence beyond the sheer desire to bring out the laughs. The screenplay alone…
The family in Lee Isaac Chung’s entrancing “Minari” undergo many of the classic moments we associate with stories of the immigrant experience. Unlike many other movies however, their dreams are so…
Suburban life is not all it’s cracked up to be in the dark comedy “Breaking News in Yuba County.” Allison Janney leads an all-star ensemble in this feature that satirizes the…
“The Mauritanian” is telling two stories, one of which works to riveting effect. The other is more of a standard, but well-acted legal drama. But some movies elevate their worth even further…
Here we have winter’s most gorgeous argument. “Malcolm & Marie” has the look and texture of being stuck in a sumptuous locale with two attractive people bickering, and you’re just a bystander.
Salma Hayek becomes Owen Wilson’s unlikely guide through an alternate reality in Amazon’s trippy sci-fi “Bliss.” Wilson stars as Greg, a recently-divorced dad working a thankless office job. Because much…
“A Glitch in the Matrix” goes beyond being a mere documentary. A sensory experience, it is the kind of work where after the end credits roll you may walk outside and see…