The evils of Nazi Germany were so horrifying that World War II has provided an easy crop of go-to villains ever since Adolf Hitler was defeated. Few dramas have tried to truly tackle…
The work of Scottish director Lynne Ramsay is rarely devoid of fierce emotion. Her worlds are populated by characters who are trapped in environments where violence can erupt out of sheer hatred, or…
For most of its running time, Edward Berger’s “Ballad of a Small Player” features a startling performance by Colin Farrell, one that defines tension. Sweating, paranoid and boxed in, Farrell’s delivery fully…
Social events celebrate barely covert warfare in “Hedda,” writer-director Nia DaCosta’s compelling adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s classic 1891 play, “Hedda Gabler.” Tessa Thompson brings confident stagecraft to the screen to almost capture…
Rock biopics have been undergoing a new cinematic resurgence over the past several years. Some of the better ones make the creative choice of not attempting to encompass an artist’s entire life, but…
Doomsday will have to wait. Director Kathryn Bigelow sets up a nuclear scenario in “A House of Dynamite,” and forces fears to play out offscreen. Onscreen is a tense race to an…
The dying of the bees has long been an urgent environmental concern and a clear symbol of humanity’s peril. If we lose those miniature wonders of nature, then our very existence will start…
Part of the timeless brilliance of Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel “Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus,” is how all the fame goes to its monster. Hollywood has, of course, contributed to this aspect of…