![‘Bird’ Review: Andrea Arnold’s Disappointing Shift Into Magical Realism [Festival du Nouveau Cinéma 2024]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5816af52e6f2e15be207b0cd/1729966715231-RY70K6BXW6YBTW0ZHBSD/ezgif-6-aa2baecb29+%281%29.jpg)
Andrea Arnold turns her social realist lens into a magical one with ‘Bird’ and fails at drawing any meaningful arcs on its central characters despite a constantly assured stylistic touch.
Read More
![‘The Seed of the Sacred Fig’ Review: Mohammad Rasoulof’s Act of Defiance [Festival du Nouveau Cinéma 2024]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5816af52e6f2e15be207b0cd/1729372008016-V0L185Q36CFK7495MKE8/ezgif-5-095c126ddb.jpg)
Mohammad Rasoulof confronts and rejects state propaganda in his daring and courageous The Seed of the Sacred Fig and makes the most critical piece of political media of the decade so
Read More
While ‘Goodrich’ is nothing completely unique, it flourishes due to the charisma and gravitas of Michael Keaton, resulting in a tried-and-true kind of family drama, amplified by scattered moments of genuine resonance along the way.
Read More
Sebastian Stan continues to do great work in the independent sphere with an often engrossing, though underwhelming, character study in Aaron Schimberg’s ‘A Different Man’.
Read More![‘The Life of Chuck’ Review: A Charming Cosmic Study of the Human Spirit [TIFF 2024]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5816af52e6f2e15be207b0cd/1726013384850-8Q0GVKY3623K5IGP767G/Screenshot_2024_08_28_at_10.01.28_AM.jpeg)
Novelist Stephen King and director Mike Flanagan are both maestros of horror, but ‘The Life of Chuck’ shows the tremendous sensitivity both men have towards life, love and humanity. [TIFF 2024]
Read More
While 'His Three Daughters' contains strong performances from its trio of lead actresses, writer/director Azazel Jacobs puts them in cyclical situations that never fully forms an emotional center with the event they’re going through.
Read More![‘Hunting Daze’ Review: Ricci Gives one of the Year’s Best Performances in Surreal Thriller [Fantasia 2024]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5816af52e6f2e15be207b0cd/1723147220305-7XS02F5EDHO66S8GZLYD/Hunting_Daze_01.jpg)
Nahéma Ricci gives another towering lead performance in Annick Blanc’s ‘Hunting Daze’, an often surreal thriller that, while terrifically intriguing, loses itself in its second half.
Read More
Sean Wang’s feature directorial debut, 'Dìdi' (弟弟), is a poignant, often painful coming-of-age tale that anyone can relate to, with a towering lead turn from Izaac Wang.
Read More
Lily Gladstone continues to prove why they’re one of the best actors working today in ‘Fancy Dance’, a deeply moving and compassionate character drama.
Read More
While ‘The Bikeriders’ is competently photographed, director Jeff Nichols seems too busy riffing on Martin Scorsese’s ‘Goodfellas’ than craft a compelling character drama.
Read More
Zendaya gives the best performance of her career in Luca Guadagnino’s ‘Challengers’, an electrifying sports drama with dazzling bravura tennis sequences that beg the trip to the IMAX theater.
Read More
While ‘The Old Oak’ isn’t as powerful as Ken Loach’s previous two films, its lead performances from Dave Turner and Ebla Mari intensify its dramatic impact and result in a must-see.
Read More
With a magisterial lead performance from Deniz Celiloğlu and an ever-gripping visual style, Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s 197-minute ‘About Dry Grasses’ may be the best film of his career.
Read More
While Lashana Lynch’s supporting portrayal of Rita Marley breathes life into ‘Bob Marley: One Love’, Reinaldo Marcus Green’s latest biopic joins the pantheon of empty spectacles designed to sell records.
Read More
Nikolaj Arcel’s ‘The Promised Land ‘ contains one of Mads Mikkelsen’s greatest performances inside an old-school, but always riveting, character drama.
Read More
While ‘The Kitchen’s sociopolitical underpinnings could’ve used more meat around the bone, its technical direction from Daniel Kaluuya coupled with lead performances from Kane Robinson and Jedediah Bannerman make it a worthwhile watch.
Read More
Even those not fans of wrestling will laud The Iron Claw for its deeply human story, towering lead performance from Zac Efron and Holt McCallany at the height of his character acting powers. It may not be the easiest movie of the year to watch, but it’s one of the most impressive from a storytelling and acting perspective.
Read More
‘The Zone of Interest’ contains two masterfully calculated performances from Christian Friedel and Sandra Hüller, who accompany Jonathan Glazer’s terrifying visual and aural nightmare.
Read More
‘Priscilla’ shows that perhaps Sophia Coppola lost interest in the project at some point; haphazardly representing a harrowing tale of physical and psychological abuse with stiff and unintentionally hilarious acting from its two leads and few redeeming qualities in its presentation.
Read More
‘Fingernails’ cannot save itself from being anything more than a ridiculously undercooked romantic drama despite impassioned performances from its lead actors. If it wasn't for them, the film might have been a disaster, but they save it from fizzling out any further.
Read More