Monthly Archives: December 2023

The Colombian filmmaker Rodrigo García’s new Netflix movie is a big, inclusive family gathering for a family meal and a little family drama in rural Mexico. “Familia” isn’t a tale of any cosequence, and a bit of a letdown considering … Continue reading →

If we’ve learned anything from historical books and films such as “Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee” and “Killers of the Flower Moon,” it’s that there is rarely an avenging angel, a righteous man or woman who comes and saves … Continue reading →

Fans instantly get the pun in the title — a riff on “Destroy All Monsters,” for the rest of you. It’s got Alex Winter, ace documentarian and Eternal “Bill” from “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure,” and Kumail Nanjiani and Jon … Continue reading →

A big holiday musical based on a character by Roald Dahl is proving almost irresistable for filmgoers, as a decent Thursday and big Friday point to “Wonka,” the prequel to “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” raking in $39 million+ on … Continue reading →

“Freud’s Last Session” is a period piece about an imagined meeting between the Father of Psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud and an “Oxford don,” the emerging “Christian apologist” who would go on to write “The Chronicles of Narnia,” C.S. Lewis. Based on … Continue reading →

Grier is great in “The Color Purple.” And here he is again, in something more off-center and sly. Limited release March 22.

Thirty-six times over the past 65 years Egypt has submitted films to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences in the vain hope of winning an Oscar. And 36 times, Egypt has come up short, not even earning a … Continue reading →

“Women on the Edge” is a cheerfully dumb Argentine riff on agism, sexism and the horrors of cosmetic surgery that seems inspired by a pretty famous film by Pedro Almodóvar. Take away the heart, gay content, much of the edge … Continue reading →

Let’s go ahead and call the code on “E.R.” alumnus George Clooney‘s days of serving up nostalgic Americana as a director. “The Boys in the Boat” is that badly-botched. After “Monuments Men” and “Leatherheads” and a stumbling “Catch-22” series, maybe … Continue reading →

So will it be “Spider-Man: Across the Spiderverse” vs. “The Boy and the Heron” for the best animated feature Oscar this year? Anybody who really thinks “Elemental,” “Super Mario Brothers,” “Trolls Band Together,” “Wish” or “Chicken Run: Dawn of the … Continue reading →