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Kim Hughes
Tomatometer-approved critic
Movies reviews only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
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Reptile (2023) |
This sleek and noirish whodunit-slash-police procedural is a showcase for Benicio Del Toro but it's incredibly twisty, both a strength and a weakness. - Original Cin
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| Posted Sep 21, 2023
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Strays (2023) |
Profane, outrageous, slapstick and funny in that distinctly stoner-friendly way, Strays also conveys a powerful message about the importance of companion animal care. Nicely done. - Original Cin
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| Posted Aug 18, 2023
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North of Normal (2022) |
A lovely and engaging film elevated by strong performances. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jul 28, 2023
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Barbie (2023) |
Fabulous looking, superbly acted yet deeply troubling... and brought to you by Mattel. Coincidence? - Original Cin
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| Posted Jul 21, 2023
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The Miracle Club (2023) |
Picturesque and genuinely heartfelt if a smidge corny, this Irish-set dramedy serves mainly as a showcase for Laura Linney, Kathy Bates, and Maggie Smith. But they are enduring stars for a reason, and together they bring verve to this gentle story. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jul 14, 2023
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Maggie Moore(s) (2023) |
There is a palpable on-screen conviviality among the film’s highly familiar players, but not enough spark to catch fire in this likable but forgettable whodunit. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jul 04, 2023
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No Hard Feelings (2023) |
Jennifer Lawrence's high comic wattage ensures this silly but fun romp is very enjoyable. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jun 23, 2023
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Squaring the Circle (The Story of Hipgnosis) (2022) |
Anton Corbijn’s hugely entertaining feature documentary about the British design house behind some of rock’s most iconic album covers is unmissable, and salted with extraordinary recollections from members of Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and more. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jun 08, 2023
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Bones of Crows (2022) |
Its subject is urgent and vital, but Bones of Crows is a tough watch, knowing that this poignant drama draws from the real-life experiences of survivors of Canada’s dreaded residential schools. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jun 01, 2023
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Chevalier (2022) |
Historical restoration is a noble aim, and the percolating madness of the pending French Revolution heightens the drama. Yet in its eagerness to set the story straight, the film feels weirdly rigid, narratively predictable, and occasionally overstated. - Original Cin
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| Posted Apr 19, 2023
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A Thousand and One (2023) |
Strong performances abound in this 90s-era family drama which resists a tidy conclusion, for better or worse. - Original Cin
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| Posted Mar 29, 2023
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Joyride (2022) |
Olivia Colman’s Irish road movie offers outsize charm, - Original Cin
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| Posted Feb 28, 2023
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Guitar Lessons (2022) |
Despite committed performances from its cast and gorgeous exterior shots, the story, such as it is, is predictable and stilted. - Original Cin
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| Posted Feb 24, 2023
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Cat Daddies (2021) |
This doc about American men and the felines they love is very sweet but it lacks the gravitas necessary to support its premise that there’s something weird about guys who dig cats. - Original Cin
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| Posted Feb 17, 2023
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Million Dollar Pigeons (2022) |
A genuinely fascinating peek inside the insular, rarefied, high-stakes and apparently back-stabbing world of pigeon racing. - Original Cin
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| Posted Feb 02, 2023
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A Man Called Otto (2022) |
Not ground-breaking but sturdy, tender, and ably supported by Tom Hanks’ reliably strong, unfussy performance. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jan 11, 2023
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Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody (2022) |
Nowhere near as dazzling as its subject, the film's rigidly formulaic biopic approach sinks it, despite solid and committed performances all around. - Original Cin
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| Posted Dec 23, 2022
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REVIVAL69: The Concert that Rocked the World (2022) |
This terrifically engaging doc salvages and frames a unique piece of Toronto rock and roll history. - Original Cin
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| Posted Dec 17, 2022
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Ticket to Paradise (2022) |
Writer-director Ol Parker’s breezy comedy crackles with energy and is gorgeous to behold but the wattage of its leads makes it hard to be swept up in fictional storytelling. - Original Cin
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| Posted Oct 20, 2022
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Rosaline (2022) |
This smart, snappy rom-com hits all the right comedic notes, expertly framing Kaitlyn Dever's dazzling performance. - Original Cin
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| Posted Oct 13, 2022
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Blind Ambition (2021) |
Blind Ambition doesn’t rewrite any rules about documentary filmmaking. But if one subscribes to the adage that the story is the thing, then it’s hard to beat. The Zimbabweans' wine saga is incredible, a rousing immigrant story begging to be told. - Original Cin
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| Posted Oct 07, 2022
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Sidney (2022) |
One expects a film produced by Oprah Winfrey to be inspirational. And of the many flattering adjectives applicable to director Reginald Hudlin’s heartwarming documentary Sidney, about the late actor Sidney Poitier, "inspirational" is chief among them. - Original Cin
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| Posted Sep 29, 2022
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Blonde (2022) |
A superb Ana de Armas is the only reason to see this tirelessly exploitative biopic, which underserves both its star and its subject. - Original Cin
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| Posted Sep 22, 2022
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The Territory (2022) |
There are scant reveals in The Territory. The story it tells — of environmental assault, mistreatment of Indigenous people, corrupt government and business — is woefully familiar. But the brutality of it all never ceases to amaze. - Original Cin
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| Posted Aug 19, 2022
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Fall (2022) |
Equal parts ludicrous and thrilling, director Scott Mann’s towering drama is edge-of-your seat stuff even if strong suspension of disbelief is essential. - Original Cin
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| Posted Aug 11, 2022
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Ali & Ava (2021) |
Low-key and lovely if a bit short on dramatic umph, Barnard’s Ali & Ava is effectively a straight-up love story albeit one eyeballing bigger themes. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jul 28, 2022
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Where the Crawdads Sing (2022) |
Though faithful to its source material, this filmic adaptation of Delia Owens’ smash novel fails to spark, with the story’s more improbable aspects glaring in the proverbial light of day. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jul 15, 2022
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Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, a Journey, a Song (2021) |
While this documentary thematically follows the remarkable trajectory of Cohen’s ‘Hallelujah,’ it winningly highlights the grace of its songwriter along the way. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jul 12, 2022
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The Forgiven (2021) |
McDonagh’s sumptuous version of Lawrence Osborne's 2012 novel is utterly faithful, capturing its resonant ruminations on social inequity, racism, and cultural tourism in a sweeping Moroccan desert Sheltering Sky novelist Paul Bowles would recognize.
- Original Cin
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| Posted Jun 30, 2022
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Mr. Malcolm's List (2022) |
It’s derivative, yes, but period drama-romance Mr. Malcolm’s List is good-natured, entertaining, and elevated by a committed and fabulously diverse cast. Jane Austen would approve. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jun 29, 2022
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Brian and Charles (2022) |
This delightful, Sundance-approved comedy about the importance of friendship soars on its kooky premise and committed performances. - Original Cin
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| Posted Jun 16, 2022
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Freakscene: The Story of Dinosaur Jr. (2021) |
Tirelessly reverential, this middling rock doc fails to adequately explain the band’s legacy or status. - Original Cin
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| Posted May 31, 2022
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Sundown (2021) |
Director Francos quietly thrilling follow-up to the controversial New Order is an about-face but a riveting one, exploring its protagonists slide into another kind of life for reasons that must be teased out by the viewer. - Original Cin
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| Posted Apr 07, 2022
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The Last Tourist (2021) |
It won't win any awards for subtly, but the documentary makes the case for why contemporary tourism is untenable and must be rethought by anyone boarding a plane. - Original Cin
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| Posted Mar 31, 2022
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Turning Red (2022) |
Writer-director Domee Shi's giddy animated debut feature offers a sweet and upbeat look at coming of age in an undisguised Toronto. - Original Cin
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| Posted Mar 11, 2022
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Jockey (2021) |
The perfect confluence of a great story brilliantly told and beautifully performed, Jockey is superb. - Original Cin
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| Posted Mar 03, 2022
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Cyrano (2021) |
Beautifully written, acted, and directed, this latest rendition of Cyrano elevates both its source material and its powerful themes. - Original Cin
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| Posted Feb 25, 2022
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The Matrix Resurrections (2021) |
Wildly convoluted if visually appealing and elevated by its committed case. - Original Cin
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| Posted Dec 22, 2021
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The Tender Bar (2021) |
Neither committed performances nor George Clooney's guiding hand can elevate this middling coming-of-age story. - Original Cin
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| Posted Dec 17, 2021
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Nightmare Alley (2021) |
Gorgeous to look at but emotionally inert, director Guillermo del Toro's update of the 1947 noir thriller checks all the boxes (great cast, beautiful cinematography) but doesn't connect as powerfully as it should. - Original Cin
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| Posted Dec 16, 2021
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Being the Ricardos (2021) |
Sorkin's snappy and unconventional biopic hits all the right notes, making Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz seem at once pointedly human and even more ground-breaking than ever. - Original Cin
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| Posted Dec 11, 2021
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Harry Chapin: When in Doubt, Do Something (2020) |
Though workmanlike and sentimental in approach, director Rick Korn's knock-kneed ode to the "Cat's in the Cradle" singer is worth watching to marvel at its subject's achievements. - Original Cin
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| Posted Dec 05, 2021
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C'mon C'mon (2021) |
This usual film, which observes a tender, budding relationship between an uncle and his nephew, offers serious chemistry between its leads and lots to think about. It is, however, slow. - Original Cin
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| Posted Nov 25, 2021
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Encanto (2021) |
Encanto is dazzling, enchanting, and powerfully elevated by its fealty to authentic Colombian culture. - Original Cin
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| Posted Nov 21, 2021
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The Capote Tapes (2020) |
Wonderful if weirdly maddening, this doc captures Capote almost by accident. - Original Cin
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| Posted Oct 25, 2021
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The Electrical Life of Louis Wain (2021) |
Director Sharpe's biopic on the long-forgotten but strangely influential Victorian-era artist is a study in loveliness, and beautiful to behold. - Original Cin
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| Posted Oct 22, 2021
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Mass (2021) |
This sobering, emotional story about a school shooting as delivered through a parental lens soars on excellent performances. - Original Cin
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| Posted Oct 15, 2021
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The Velvet Underground (2021) |
Writer/director Todd Haynes' feature-length doc on New York City's most influential musical export is a must-see for fans even if the absence of Lou Reed's contemporary voice is keenly felt. - Original Cin
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| Posted Oct 15, 2021
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The Guilty (2021) |
This Hollywood remake offers considerably more bluster than the Danish original, but Jake Gyllenhaal is very watchable as the cop desperately managing an unseen, unfolding drama on a 911 call. - Original Cin
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| Posted Sep 23, 2021
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The Protégé (2021) |
This fun (if bruising) actioner gains all kinds of gravitas from its committed stars and action sequences. - Original Cin
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| Posted Aug 20, 2021
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