Ad Astra (2019) Film Review
There are two breathtaking sequences from James Gray’s “Ad Astra”, the most probable of futuristic dystopias, which will always stay with me.
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Category: Archival Posts
Take Shelter (2011) Film Review
It boasts a tremendous performance by Michael Shannon as a quiet man, raising a family, who has horrific nightmares and daytime visions of a meteorological disturbance followed by a feeling that we (the Earth) are being visited by something alien.
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Under The Skin (2014) Film Review
Guys with erect penises walking downward into a transparent ooze, confused, as Scarlett walks on another level above them.
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Quo Vadis Aida (2020) Film Review
Aida knows the horrific fate that awaits her husband and two sons if they are found and, for two hours, you watch as she frantically tries to get them out.
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Undine (2020) Film Review
Christian Petzold’s direction is so seductive, and the two leads are so effective, that you fall easily for “Undine’s” charms.
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Dear Comrades (2020) Film Review
Andrei Konchalovsky’s Searing Indictment of a little-known Khrushchev Era Massacre is his best work in years.
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Dance of the Forty-One (2020) Film Review
Ignacio de la Torre was the son in law of Mexico’s president for life and dictator Porfirio Díaz’s. But he was leading a double life with his lover Evaristo.
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Great Freedom (2021) Film Review
Meise directs what must be some of the most beautiful and heartfelt scenes ever captured on film between two men in love.
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Flee (2021) Film Review
I left “Flee” with that “floating-on-air feeling” that you get after seeing something special. After seeing a masterpiece.
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Drive My Car (2021) Film Review
As Yusuke drives into Hiroshima, the opening credits’ role forty minutes into the film. We realize that what we have seen so far is just a prelude to the main story.
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The Little Things (2021) Film Review
A Great Cast Cannot Save Director John Lee Hancock’s Sleazy Mixture of Forensics and Violence.
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The Hand of God (2021) Film Review
Memories of Fellini and the Taviani Brothers at their peak. It’s his “Amarcord” (I remember). It’s also his “La Dolce Vita.”
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Parallel Mothers (2021) Film Review
Now, ” Live Flesh” has dropped to the number two position. “Parallel Mothers” is the new movie at the top of my treasured Almodóvar catalog.
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CODA (2021) Film Review
There is Ruby/Emilia’s gorgeous voice. Every time she sings it’s a treat. And you’re willing to overlook a lot of small faults when she soars.
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The French Dispatch (2021) Film Review
“The French Dispatch” is the anthesis of cinema. The boredom felt by the viewer is amplified by the feeling that ennui was the desired effect!
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Fully Realized Humans (2021) Film Review
Jess Wexler and Joshua Leonard have such a natural chemistry that I assumed that they were a couple in real-life.
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The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021) Film Review
“The Tragedy of Macbeth” is filled with brilliant touches. The major reason to see this movie is Kathryn Hunter who plays all three witches.
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The Power of the Fog (2021) Film Review
“The Power of the Dog” is one of the best films of 2021. Campion directs with an expert hand assisted by Ari Wegner’s cinematography and Jonny Greenwood’s memorable score.
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Spencer (2021) Film Review
Stewart is simply amazing in the role channeling all that star power into a Diana, you feel you know instantly.
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Passing (2021) Film Review
You cannot take your eyes off Ruth Negga’s Claire, a Black woman who can pass for White in New York in 1929.
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Nightmare Alley (2021) Film Review
Del Toro’s “Nightmare Alley” disappoints. Cate Blanchett’s performance becomes a pastiche and Bradley Cooper sleepwalks through it.
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Licorice Pizza (2021) Film Review
“Licorice Pizza” and the gay stereotype. Here is a mincing queen with movements so exaggerated he could have Tourette’s syndrome.
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Jockey (2021) Film Review
Collins and Parker have a wonderful rapport based on their shared love of horses, and there might be something deeper between them.
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Tick, tick…Boom! (2021) Film Review
Although we know the eventual outcome, there is no great tragedy awaiting us at the end of the movie. In fact, it is a celebration of life.
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Shiva Baby (2021) Film Review
Finally, a toast, amid all this great food, to four extraordinarily talented actresses: Sennott, Draper, Gordon, and Argon.
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Pieces of a Woman (2021) Film Review
How can an actress who is pushing ninety be the mother of an actress in her late twenties or early thirties? Not impossible, but implausible.
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The Worst Person in the World (2021) Film Review
Time stands still as Julie leaves Aksel, frozen in the kitchen as he pours her a cup of coffee, and runs through the streets of daytime Oslo.
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West Side Story (2021) Film Review
West Side Story is Spielberg’s Triumph! Of course, it is Anita who is the real star of the movie and Ariana DeBose is astonishing.
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The Green Knight (2021) Film Review
David Lowery’s enthralling “The Green Knight”. Alicia Vikander does double duty as a peasant girl, and the mistress of a mysterious household.
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Happening (2022) Film Review
The weeks pass and Anne begins to “show'”. Time is running out. Any attempt at a back street abortion is becoming increasingly dangerous.
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Hit the Road (2022) Film Review
The film begins with one of the most memorable opening scenes in recent memory. It’s a glorious and inventive piece of true cinema magic.
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The Tale of King Crab (2022) Film Review
The directors are extremely cine-literate. However, their references never seemed forced and I basked in their cinematic vision.
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The Outfit (2022) Film Review
The first half of the film is by far the most nuanced. It relies on Rylance’s near-great, subtle performance to convey the smallest details.
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