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The Passengers of the Night
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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This is a lovely, perceptive film.
Posted Sep 15, 2023
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Our Body
(2023)
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Diane Carson
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With a straightforward approach, the camera records dialogue among doctor, nurse and patient, most often in respectful medium distance shots.
Posted Sep 07, 2023
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Return to Dust
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Its heartbreaking and heartwarming empathy for these two captivating individuals leads me to already put it on my Top 10 List for 2023.
Posted Aug 31, 2023
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Streetwise
(2021)
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Diane Carson
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Streetwise delivers intense alienation.
Posted Aug 31, 2023
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Between Two Worlds
(2021)
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Diane Carson
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Cinematographer Patrick Blossier adds a documentary feel with unintrusive camerawork complemented by the art direction which captured the poetry of hard work.
Posted Aug 31, 2023
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Golda
(2023)
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Diane Carson
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The cast advances every delicate nuance, with Helen Mirren as Golda, the anchor of every scene.
Posted Aug 31, 2023
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Bobi Wine: The People's President
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Bobi Wine: The People’s President is a tribute to a fearless advocate for democracy and yet another tragic tale of power run amok.
Posted Aug 24, 2023
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KOKOMO CITY
(2023)
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Diane Carson
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[Director D. Smith’s] achievement is memorable and significant.
Posted Aug 24, 2023
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The Five Devils
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Enigmatic, at times compelling, but ultimately puzzling and disappointing.
Posted Aug 18, 2023
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Plan 75
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Lest this sound too somber, know that the tone and staging are thoughtful, even heartening.
Posted Aug 11, 2023
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Afire
(2023)
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Diane Carson
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The symbolic setting, a clearing surrounded by woods, enhances the dreamlike atmosphere. Cinematographer Hans Fromm masterfully frames characters as they watch, often surreptitiously, through windows.
Posted Aug 02, 2023
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The Lesson
(2023)
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Martha K. Baker
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It is enjoyable right up until the moment a viewer says, "Hold the phone." Once that thought enters the critical mind, it's hard to crawl back into the set-up.
Posted Jul 19, 2023
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Past Lives
(2023)
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Diane Carson
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As Nora, Greta Lee, gives a complex, nuanced performance that understates and fully reveals the depth of her emotions.
Posted Jul 12, 2023
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Werckmeister Harmonies
(2000)
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Diane Carson
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Mesmerizing, haunting, deeply moving.
Posted Jun 29, 2023
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Asteroid City
(2023)
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Diane Carson
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A who’s who of... actors contribute fabulous, droll interpretations to characters’ encounters and collisions. Deriving maximum comic effect from all this, director Anderson presents his skewed humor as if nothing could be more natural or normal.
Posted Jun 21, 2023
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Elemental
(2023)
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Diane Carson
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Technically, the colors are breathtaking, neon and vibrant as the personas shape shift. Thomas Newman’s music adds a breezy score. And the voice talent handles the witty dialogue with ease.
Posted Jun 14, 2023
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The Thief Collector
(2022)
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Martha K. Baker
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Complex and stinging, and funny and innovative.
Posted Jun 01, 2023
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The Innocent
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Rarely do films maintain the delicate balance between comic and serious moments for their entire storyline. And yet French director Louis Garrel does just that in his third feature The Innocent, an ironic title as amusing as it is playful.
Posted May 31, 2023
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The Eight Mountains
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Directors Felix van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeersch visualize four decades of a profound relationship between two men.
Posted May 31, 2023
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Stonewalling
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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The claustrophobic impact defines every scene, undermining autonomy, emphasizing limited agency.
Posted May 26, 2023
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Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie
(2023)
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Martha K. Baker
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Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie is a marvel on many levels, starting with the short kid who became a superstar and ending with an honest and grateful man who cannot hold still.
Posted May 25, 2023
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Twilight
(1990)
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Diane Carson
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A complex, fascinating perspective informs every scene.
Posted May 12, 2023
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Passion
(2008)
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Diane Carson
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Throughout the film’s two hours running time, these twenty-year-olds grapple with contradictory emotions as they vacillate between an external persona designed to protect themselves and an internal one of insecurities and emotional need.
Posted May 12, 2023
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Air
(2023)
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Diane Carson
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Air presents a thrilling, behind-the-scenes drama of this gripping, equitable and profitable business deal.
Posted May 12, 2023
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Walk Up
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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A handful of characters... share wine and food as they converse, talking and talking and talking with a static camera watching from medium long shot. As in real life, the casual exchanges reveal a world of psychological attitudes and cultural attributes.
Posted May 04, 2023
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Showing Up
(2022)
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Martha K. Baker
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If just showing up claims more than half of the road to success, then Kelly Reichardt proves the cliche in Showing Up, a film that balances the starry with the earthy.
Posted Apr 28, 2023
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Tori and Lokita
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Through the heartwarming, defiant loyalty between Tori and Lokita (a perfect title since they unconditionally stick together), the Dardennes communicate their characteristic empathy for disenfranchised individuals without sentimental indulgence.
Posted Apr 13, 2023
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The Lost King
(2022)
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Martha K. Baker
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Hawkins perfectly portrays this fragile woman, toughened by the overbearing professors of Leister University. Coogan is believable as her supportive ex. Mark Addy plays one of the few men on her side.
Posted Mar 29, 2023
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Matter Out of Place
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Hope comes from the many efforts to clean up our mess: Volunteers for a Clean Homeland work on beaches, a line of volunteers scours the desert, scuba divers gather tires and debris from the ocean, a recycling plant and an incinerator process refuse.
Posted Mar 23, 2023
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Geographies of Solitude
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Lucas serenely communicates her love of Sable Island, its unique appeal reinforced by the cinematography and the music.
Posted Mar 23, 2023
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Moving On
(2022)
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Martha K. Baker
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Its flaws as a tragi-comedy are visible, but its stars, script, and especially its purposes make it worthy.
Posted Mar 23, 2023
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The Quiet Girl
(2022)
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Martha K. Baker
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As in Keegan's novels, every word, every crystalline scene counts in The Quiet Girl. Each must be heard and seen with precision. When that cookie is set on the table in an insert shot, it is not just a cookie. It is a stealth symbol. It is everything.
Posted Mar 15, 2023
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Only in Theaters
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Only in Theaters elucidates the dire prospects for immensely rewarding, but financially unprofitable, exhibition of independent and foreign productions.
Posted Mar 02, 2023
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Pacifiction
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Scrutinizing De Roller’s interactions with Indigenous locals, wealthy power brokers, a Jehovah Witnesses minister, exploitive outsiders, and more, the multifaceted nature of this isolated community comes to vivid life.
Posted Feb 23, 2023
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One Fine Morning
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Thanks to Hansen-Løve’s honest, sensitive writing, this female-driven film brilliantly avoids stereotypical pitfalls that too often feel manufactured and predictable.
Posted Feb 23, 2023
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Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
(2000)
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Diane Carson
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Crouching Tiger is feminist, erotic, and mythical, all at the same time.
Posted Feb 15, 2023
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To Leslie
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Casting is superb, with Allison Janney, Stephen Root, Andre Royo, and, exceptional in his role, Marc Maron as Sweeney.
Posted Feb 08, 2023
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Let It Be Morning
(2021)
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Diane Carson
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Shot in a straight-forward style that segues from restricted shots to more expansive ones, with complementary but unintrusive music, the skilled, delicately balanced satire rests on a goldmine of metaphors.
Posted Feb 08, 2023
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You People
(2023)
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Martha K. Baker
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You People doesn't work because it works too hard.
Posted Feb 03, 2023
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No Bears
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Panahi is a phenomenal talent, and I don’t use that word loosely. He is endless inventive with breadth and depth. He makes films that engage the intellect and the emotions, those rare gifts that the more I think about them, the more the layers peel back.
Posted Feb 02, 2023
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Saint Omer
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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An hour into this two hour film, I felt I had grasped the essentials, but the last hour includes some unexpected scenes that add introspective commentary.
Posted Jan 27, 2023
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All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Director Laura Poitras expertly interweaves that Sackler story into Nan Goldin’s commendable life as artist and activist.
Posted Jan 27, 2023
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Close
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Director Dhont presents the developing crisis with sensitive restraint, letting the emotional impact emerge from reaction shots and silences.
Posted Jan 27, 2023
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Matinee
(1993)
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Diane Carson
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Throughout Matinee, director Dante delivers this retro 60s world in a thoroughly entertaining, brisk 99 minutes.
Posted Jan 19, 2023
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Broker
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Throughout this kaleidoscopic story, Kore-eda presents an implicit commentary on bureaucracy and social ills, incorporating unpredictably humorous moments with a deft touch.
Posted Jan 12, 2023
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American Murderer
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Villains, especially fascinating con artists, often dominate a film’s dramatic focus. They’re the dynamic, mesmerizing characters with charisma, or how else would they succeed? ... These ideas govern writer/director Matthew Gentile’s American Murderer.
Posted Jan 12, 2023
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Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical
(2022)
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Martha K. Baker
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Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical thrives on color, song and dance, impressive acting, and cunning camera work.
Posted Jan 06, 2023
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EO
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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It is among the best films of the year.
Posted Jan 06, 2023
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Corsage
(2022)
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Diane Carson
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Vicky Krieps triumphs in a stunning performance with complex physical and emotional registers, often within one scene. She animates every moment, verbally and nonverbally.
Posted Jan 05, 2023
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A Man Called Otto
(2022)
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Martha K. Baker
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If you saw the Swedish version, the American version repeats the sadness swirling with the hopeful. It's a story about loneliness versus community, neighbors, and the village it takes. And it's sweet and dear.
Posted Jan 05, 2023
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