Category Archives: Reviews, previews, profiles and movie news

What’s memorable about “Autumn Lights,” an erotic thriller set in posh accommodations in rural Iceland? Well, the nude scene depicted above, for starters. A couple of others. Some explicit sex. It’s tempting to revive that long retired label “soft-core porn” … Continue reading →

Here’s what I’ve been saying since “The Town.” Warner Brothers recognized, in Ben Affleck, their replacement for Clint Eastwood. He’s become a reliable box office star in front of and behind the camera. They’ve shoved him into a Bat costume, … Continue reading →

“Idioten!” If the sad Swedish comedy “A Man Called Ove” accomplishes nothing else, at least it’s taught us the Swedish word for “idiot.” “Idioten!” The title character, a walking/grumping antidote to the world’s stereotype of happy, friendly Swedes, uses it … Continue reading →

Diversity is once again front and center in the next “Star Wars” movie. But judging from the second trailer, “Rogue One” boasts a better cast, some genuine moments of pathos and sacrifice, and director Gareth Edwards (“Godzilla”) seems to have … Continue reading →

Why is it that every movie Paul Schrader has ever made plays like an invitation to put him on the couch? A screenwriter (“Taxi Driver”) and director (“Light Sleeper”) whose violent, moralistic melodramas play like peep shows of his id, … Continue reading →

Good scripts don’t over-explain. They leave mysteries for us to speculate about, mull over, mysteries that draw us in. “Little Sister” is slight, unfussy character study with a hint of such mystery. It’s about a 21 year-old novice nun estranged … Continue reading →

For reasons I can’t even fathom, I have made it a point to review every Nicolas Cage movie — even the hardest to locate, grade Z junk that nobody gets to. Maybe it has something to do with what he … Continue reading →

Hollywood’s ongoing fascination with Asperger’s and other points on the autism spectrum gets filmdom into trouble with “The Accountant.” Spinning the outward awkwardness, difficulty connecting on a human level symptoms of the condition to create a bookkeeper with computer-worthy numbers … Continue reading →

Kevin Hart can sell-out football stadiums, at least in his home town of Philadelphia. He can wear huge diamond-encrusted gold chains, a gold watch and bracelet, gold-topped sneakers, golden-zippered leather jacket and wield a gold-colored microphone when he does his … Continue reading →

Well, thank heavens for Rob Riggle. The least funny of the rotating crew of Col. Sanders in those TV commercials turns out to be the one comic saving grace of “Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life.” One of … Continue reading →