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Elizabeth Weitzman
Tomatometer-approved critic
Movies reviews only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
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The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023) |
The action scenes remain well-shot and tightly edited, and even without the provocative political energy of the Katniss years, the cultural parallels between Panem’s world and ours retain their unsettling power. - Time Out
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| Posted Dec 01, 2023
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Let It Be Morning (2021) |
Kolirin has a sense for the bleakly surreal, and an ability to balance even the darkest experiences with empathetic shades of gray. - TheWrap
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| Posted Feb 06, 2023
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The Man in the Basement (2021) |
Because Le Guy’s adroit script brings the past into the present so realistically (Fonzic might as well use the term “crisis actors”), “The Man In the Basement” is often almost unbearably fraught. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jan 29, 2023
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Food and Country (2023) |
Reichl's ambitions are far greater, which is both the movie’s boldest asset and eventual undoing. Director Laura Gabbert tries to cover all of Reichl’s interests, which leaves her with (at least) five movies’ worth of material. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jan 24, 2023
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The Stroll (2023) |
Lovell and Drucker fill out the picture with vivid footage that brings us back to the late 20th century. Noirish animation from LA shop AWESOME + modest evocatively recreates some of the women’s alternately wry and wrenching stories. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jan 24, 2023
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Scrapper (2023) |
What happens next isn’t any great surprise: these two lost souls are actually soulmates. But Regan, who also wrote the script, has so much empathy for them that she convinces us their story needs to be told.
- TheWrap
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| Posted Jan 23, 2023
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Young. Wild. Free. (2023) |
When a film revisits stories, characters and locations so similar to ones we’ve seen before, it requires a particularly strong point of view to rise above the realm of homage — or cliché. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jan 23, 2023
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A Still Small Voice (2023) |
Lorentzen’s camera sits quietly and nonjudgmentally so that his soft-spoken subjects can explore and express the grandest themes imaginable: what it means to live, and how we learn to die. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jan 22, 2023
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The Disappearance of Shere Hite (2023) |
Newnham is blessed with a surfeit of footage, and she makes the most of it, building a damning if now exhaustingly familiar case of societal misogyny. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jan 21, 2023
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Shotgun Wedding (2023) |
The story is perfunctory, the editing haphazard and the tone inconsistent. There’s too much violence for the escapist rom-com the dialogue suggests, and not enough adventure for the “Die Hard in Paradise” plotting. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jan 19, 2023
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Joyride (2022) |
Why would Olivia Colman waste her time with such a pandering project? - TheWrap
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| Posted Dec 22, 2022
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Nelly & Nadine (2022) |
“Nelly & Nadine” isn’t just a war movie but also a touching family history, an unforgettable romance and, above all, a magnificent tribute to the power of persistence in art, life and love. - TheWrap
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| Posted Dec 15, 2022
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To the End (2022) |
One of the subjects of “To the End” notes that she wants to “speak things into existence.” It’s a painfully poignant wish, representative of the blend of optimism, desperation, and determination that powers the entire film. - TheWrap
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| Posted Dec 08, 2022
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Darby and the Dead (2022) |
This is not a great look for a modern movie aimed at girls, even one with production standards that call to mind a tween sitcom pilot. Indeed, there is little worse than a script built on contempt for its own characters. - TheWrap
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| Posted Dec 01, 2022
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Disenchanted (2022) |
The original dared to push back, to think a little differently, to admit that it was time for Disney to evolve. Its follow-up goes in the other direction, searching for safety in easy familiarity. - TheWrap
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| Posted Nov 19, 2022
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Bar Fight! (2022) |
It mostly seems as though someone came up with the concept while out drinking with buddies of their own. But “Hey, wouldn’t this make a great movie” ideas often look better on a napkin than a screen. - TheWrap
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| Posted Nov 09, 2022
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Dear Zoe (2022) |
Too much of “Dear Zoe,” though, feels factory-designed to engineer emotion rather than aiming to earn it organically. - TheWrap
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| Posted Nov 03, 2022
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Holy Spider (2022) |
Yes, Saeed has been exposed to cruelly patriarchal mores, but the fetishistic way in which the killings unfold take us well past any social statement. - TheWrap
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| Posted Oct 27, 2022
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Brainwashed: Sex-Camera-Power (2022) |
As a substitute for a Feminist Film Studies 101 class, “Brainwashed” gets the job done a lot more quickly and cheaply than if you registered for grad school. - TheWrap
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| Posted Oct 20, 2022
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The Swimmer (2021) |
The movie keeps us guessing, as cinematographer Ofer Inov shows off particularly impressive skills with so many deft fluctuations in tenor. - TheWrap
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| Posted Oct 06, 2022
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Art & Krimes by Krimes (2021) |
Although the film is structured as a straightforward biography, Nahmias has infused it with an artistic sensibility as well, gathering a team that has clearly been meticulously chosen. - TheWrap
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| Posted Sep 29, 2022
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Bandit (2022) |
That he captivates so many of his victims is only understandable because he’s played with so much elan by Duhamel. (It may occur to you while watching that the star would have made a great, old-school Bond.) - TheWrap
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| Posted Sep 20, 2022
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About Fate (2022) |
The women are nuts, the men are clueless and the production is so cheap you could pass the time spotting every mistake no one bothered to fix. - TheWrap
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| Posted Sep 09, 2022
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Pinocchio (2022) |
Grim, psychosexual fairy tales like “Pinocchio” can still be effective, of course, if the tellers respect the primal feelings and fears they evoke. But if they hedge with warmth or whimsy, the results curdle quickly. - TheWrap
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| Posted Sep 08, 2022
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Loving Highsmith (2022) |
Together, Highsmith’s former flames draw a compelling portrait of underground life in the mid 20th century, as we learn how each influenced the author both personally and professionally. - TheWrap
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| Posted Sep 01, 2022
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The Good Boss (2021) |
It’s mesmerizing to watch such a powerful actor underplay so effectively. The more familiar Blanco feels, the more unsettling he becomes. - TheWrap
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| Posted Aug 26, 2022
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Three Minutes - A Lengthening (2021) |
It is the silent moments, when Stigter allows us to watch the film in awe, that hit the hardest, and it’s particularly effective when we are required to sit with our own thoughts and observations of the images. - TheWrap
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| Posted Aug 17, 2022
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Bloom Up: A Swinger Couple Story (2021) |
Rouge (making his first documentary) seems unsure where to go beyond the initial, and hardly groundbreaking, notion of following a polyamorous couple around for a while. - TheWrap
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| Posted Aug 11, 2022
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Claydream (2021) |
Through copious clips of studio work and bittersweet interviews with Vinton, his former colleagues, and his family members, we get a sense of both his strengths and weaknesses. - TheWrap
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| Posted Aug 04, 2022
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Mija (2022) |
The film’s best scenes are, in a way, the flip side to its weaker ones: the closeness between Castro and her subjects lessens their objectivity but strengthens their intimacy. - TheWrap
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| Posted Aug 03, 2022
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Medusa (2021) |
It would be easy to define her film as “Suspiria” by way of “Carrie,” if you ran it through a “Heathers” wringer, but that would undermine the impassioned creativity she brings to her project, which feels deeply personal. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jul 28, 2022
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From Where They Stood (2021) |
We can, thanks to movies like this one, continue to bear witness. But we will never truly know the reality he tries so hard to unearth, and that remains our burden to hold. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jul 14, 2022
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Both Sides of the Blade (2021) |
This tension between Denis’ cinematic imagination and the characters’ quotidian lives winds up feeling less nervy than frustrating. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jul 07, 2022
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Unfinished Business (2022) |
Emotional, affecting, and aptly-titled, “Unfinished Business” serves as a spirited and inspiring introduction to both of its subjects. But it’s simply not big enough to encompass so many heroes all at once. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jun 19, 2022
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Abandoned (2022) |
A listless thriller that can’t find its footing. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jun 15, 2022
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Broadway Rising (2022) |
Director Amy Rice wisely expands the story beyond the stage stars, making the impactful case that behind the bright lights lies an entire ecosystem essential to the city. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jun 14, 2022
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Civil: Ben Crump (2022) |
We walk away grateful that his clients have an advocate, while wondering if there is any chance at all for this nation to lessen his load. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jun 13, 2022
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Battleground (2022) |
Offers a truly eye-opening glimpse into a remarkably focused movement. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jun 12, 2022
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1982 (2019) |
Mouaness directs his debut feature with a sensitive hand, even if his script, based on his own experience, could have used a lighter touch. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jun 09, 2022
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The Phantom of the Open (2021) |
But if we learn anything from Maurice, it’s that everyone deserves points for effort. And a few good swings are worth cheering, even if you do, ultimately, settle into the middle of the pack. - TheWrap
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| Posted Jun 02, 2022
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Happening (2021) |
Diwan’s fly-on-the-wall direction, echoed by Laurent Tangy’s ultra-tight cinematography and the production’s naturalistic lighting and sound, draws us into the suffocating immediacy of every passing day. - TheWrap
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| Posted May 05, 2022
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Hello, Bookstore (2022) |
Its soul-affirming enough just to spend time with this tight-knit community and its beloved literary refuge. - TheWrap
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| Posted Apr 28, 2022
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The Duke (2020) |
Happily, Michell is more interested in the grifter than the grift. And Broadbent, expanding luxuriously into his ideal leading role, is absolutely delightful. - TheWrap
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| Posted Apr 21, 2022
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Dual (2022) |
Stearns first two movies earned their adoration the hard way, challenging audiences with pitch-black humor and an off-kilter tone. While "Dual" goes for the jugular as well, it doesnt cut nearly as deep. - TheWrap
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| Posted Apr 14, 2022
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All the Old Knives (2022) |
A stiffly somber Pine, entombed in turtlenecks and long scarves, is introduced like hes in one of those perfume commercials celebrities try to keep hidden overseas. Despite a few moments of tense intrigue, the rest of the film too often follows suit. - TheWrap
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| Posted Apr 07, 2022
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We Feed People (2022) |
His hands-on contribution to literally millions of global citizens is genuinely astounding in its generosity, innovation, and practical application. But the movie itself can come across as less cinematic than advertorial. - TheWrap
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| Posted Mar 19, 2022
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Cheaper by the Dozen (2022) |
The comic setups are as old as the original source material. Frenetic pacing substitutes for entertainment. - TheWrap
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| Posted Mar 17, 2022
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Huda's Salon (2021) |
Follows close behind Asghar Farhadis iA Hero/i and Mehdi Barsaouis iA Son/i in turning seemingly straightforward situations into impossibly complex moral mazes of the Middle East. - TheWrap
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| Posted Mar 03, 2022
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I'll Find You (2019) |
“I’ll Find You” is an ideal diversion for those who like their cinematic escapism with heavy doses of music and love. - TheWrap
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| Posted Feb 25, 2022
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Ted K (2021) |
Even as Stone brings us right to the edge of Teds mind as he documents the brilliant passion curdling into narcissistic madness he knows that we cant fall into the ravine with him. - TheWrap
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| Posted Feb 16, 2022
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