Tag Archives: Reviews

Documentary Review: Mr. Navel Gazing “How To” Kvetches through “The History of Concrete”

“The History of Concrete” is an amusing amble through that construction material’s lineage, especially as it pertains to New York. And New Yorkers. It’s by doc filmmaker/essayist John Wilson, which should tell you its light tone and short-attention-span aimlessness, if … Continue reading →

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Movie Review: A Buddy Comedy (?) with Organ Donation and a Big Body Count — “Runner”

The distributing studios may sweat over the fact that MGM’s “Runner” showed up on streaming just as Angel Studios’ “The Runner” was trotting into theaters. One stars Gal Gadot as a lawyer/mother sprinting across London to murder a prosecution witness … Continue reading →

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Netflixable? “Husbands in Action” serve up Korean Goofballs in a Kidnapping Caper

If you watch one screwball Korean action comedy this year… Damn. I just can’t pull the trigger on that sort of endorsement for “Husbands in Action,” a dopier-than-dopey kidnapping caper that “TV-MA” rating or not, seems aimed at kids. It’s … Continue reading →

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Documentary Review: A Classic Film, Controversy, and Wounded Turkish Pride — “Midnight Return: The Story of Billy Hayes and Turkey”

There was a time when movies could create an international furor that could last for years — decades, even. If you think North Korea’s war on Sony over “The Interview,” racist YA sci-fi fans fuming over the fact that Black … Continue reading →

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Netflixable? DeNiro, Monaghan and Scott need answers from “The Whisper Man”

Crackling performances and a twisty plot that mixes melodrama with suspense recommend “The Whisper Man,” a new thriller based on an Alex North novel. It’s “Silence of the Lambs” paying homage to “The Slender Man,” a tale of fathers and … Continue reading →

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Documentary Review: A Filmmaker Father Reckons with the Loss of his Son — “Remake”

The grim finality of loss hangs over legendary filmmaker Ross McElwee’s “Remake.” A meditation on grief, guilt and an obsession to honestly and frankly document one’s life and share it with the world, it may not be the last film … Continue reading →

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Classic Film Review: The First Person Diary Doc is born on “Sherman’s March” (1986)

It’s hard to remember how “out there” Ross McElwee’s landmark “personal journey” documentary “Sherman’s March” was in 1986. A confessional, cutesie, creepy and revealing snapshot of the South and one privileged movie maker’s revisiting of his romantic past and revelation … Continue reading →

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Movie Review: You Can’t Spell Heartache without “H is for Hawk”

Almost all of us missed “H is for Hawk” when it was shown in “select cinemas” last winter. And we’re all the poorer for it. This sublime, understated film — based on a memoir by Helen MacDonald — is another … Continue reading →

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Movie Review: Black Teen faces the trials of being a “Mississippi Scholar”

Earnest, preachy and melodramatic to a fault, “Mississippi Scholar” is exactly the sort of movie that the independent cinema was born to create. Director and co-writer Marcus Bleecker’s film may traffic in tropes and cliches. But it has a vivid … Continue reading →

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Movie Review: Cumming and Kin “Drive Back Home” in The Bad Ol’Days for Canada’s Gays

“Drive Back Home” is a road comedy with a queer history subtext and a hard, melodramatic flourish saved for its finale. It’s about a prodigal son and an estranged family that he fled the moment he was old enough to … Continue reading →

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