‘Bad Shabbos’ Revels in Its Black Comedic Soul
A dead body adds to the lively mix of family dysfunction and the pressure of making a good impression in Dan Robbins’ affable black comedy, Bad Shabbos.
Film Review
Department Q Film ‘Boundless’ Unravels
Jussi Adler-Olsen’s Department Q crime thriller The Hanging Girl unravels in its 2024 film adaptation by Ole Christian Madsen, Boundless.
‘Nothing But a Man’ Is an Unflinching Drama of Marriage and Racism
Nothing But a Man is about battling discrimination on an uneven playing field but also about tenaciously preserving friendships and families.
The Eerie Beauty in Horror Film ‘I Saw the TV Glow’
With horror film I Saw the TV Glow, Jane Schoenbrun creates an eerie, emotional journey into the intersection of identity and popular culture.
Debut Drama ‘Mabel’ Rejects the ‘Matilda’-Like Dream of Childhood
Nicholas Ma’s humorous, warm and sensitive directorial feature debut, Mabel, embraces the messy uncertainty of life, for children and adults.
Detective Fantasy ‘You Never Can Tell’ Spoofs Film Noir
Fantasy, comedy, romance, reincarnation, animals and murder are ingredients for You Never Can Tell, a whimsical story with spoofs of film noir.
‘Sometimes I Think About Dying’ Keeps the Popcorn in the Bucket
Rachel Lambert’s sensitive and observant comedy drama Sometimes I Think About Dying isn’t a film that will turn popcorn into projectiles.
The Jungian Shadow Looms over Indigenous Drama ‘We Were Dangerous’
The Jungian shadow looms over We Were Dangerous, a dramatic and rebellious drama about moral panic and juvenile and sexual delinquency in 1950s New Zealand.
The Abortion Discord Sewn into Faded ‘Blue Denim’
Today’s discord and desperation over abortion in America has roots in Philip Dunne’s faded Blue Denim, one of the first Hollywood films to address the issue.
Alex Garland’s ‘Civil War’ Refuses Righteousness
Alex Garland’s Civil War refuses righteousness. Instead, it takes a hard, unflinching look at the true costs of war for everybody and everything it touches.
Hell and Limbo Are Reimagined in Sci-Fi Horror ‘Desert Road’
The same lack of control and uncertainty that hounds Kafka’s Josef. K haunts the lost protagonist in Shannon Triplett’s sci-fi horror Desert Road.
‘Robot Dreams’ Quietly Encourages You Not to Be Afraid
Pablo Berger’s animated Robot Dreams is a near-perfect marvel of silent cinema nearly a century after talkies ended the silent era.