Monthly Archives: September 2018

“MDMA” is a lurid, over-sexed, drugged–out soap opera set at the tail end of the Go Go ’80s, when Reagan was King and “Molly” was his Queen. It may pass itself off as “cautionary,” but this is exploitation, the sort … Continue reading →

It’s actor Paul Dano’s feature directing debut, this sensitive coming-of-age-in-crisis drama starring Carey Mulligan, Jake Gyllenhaal and Bill Oxenbould as the kid. The wonderful and omnipresent Bill Camp is in “Wildlife” too, which earns limited release Oct. 19.

In Europe, they remember who the Evil Empire is, and why you don’t let them have a say in your elections. This has a fall opening in Europe, coming soon to the US — Thomas Vinterberg (“The Celebration,” “Far from … Continue reading →

All the upgrades, tech advances and iPhones since “Fear.com” (2002) came out, all the variations of “Friend Request” and “Unfriended: Dark Web” in computer-streaming/cell camera/web camera murder and the formula hasn’t changed. Not much, anyway. It’s still a lot of … Continue reading →

Every time you think “torture porn” is dead and gone, here comes another blood-and-bludgeoning tale to try and revive it. A famous, rich musician is tased and yanked into a van only to wake up lashed to a school desk … Continue reading →

A grandfather suffering through his “last party” at his home takes a break from posing for family photos to hunt down the missing face from the group shot. It’s his granddaughter, who could not be more than seven or eight. … Continue reading →

I had, quite frankly, written off that raving egomaniac Julian Schnabel after his last debacle. But if anybody is going to do “Vincent” justice, even with an actor who should have played him 25 years ago, it would be the … Continue reading →

It’s not secret that a documentary’s subject matter is more important to our reaction to it than its originality, “plot” and execution. We fill the theaters for political docs we agree with, be they from Dinesh D’Souza or Michael Moore. … Continue reading →

I was chatting with Jordan, one of my favorite cineplex managers at one of the busiest theaters in the entire Regal Cinemas chain, on my way in to see “Peppermint” and “The Nun” the other day, pondering what sort of … Continue reading →

A tactless/ruthless acting coach/stage director and a wounded, bipolar mother battle for an unstable young actress’s affections and soul in “Madeline’s Madeline,” an extremely disquieting drama about art, ego, fragility and cruelty. Whatever the mother’s concerns, to the director, this … Continue reading →