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2/4
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The Marvels
(2023)
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Mark Keizer
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A jumble of personal and interpersonal conflicts, tiresome talk of quantum bands and jump points, and left field attempts at humor that play like discarded ideas from the Guardians of the Galaxy series.
Posted Nov 10, 2023
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2/5
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She Came to Me
(2023)
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Mark Keizer
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With its surfeit of characters and storylines, She Came to Me lays a lot of pipe in the service of very little humor or insight.
Posted Oct 06, 2023
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3/4
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Flora and Son
(2023)
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Mark Keizer
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Carney once again argues with warmth, honesty, cheeky humor, and a lack of sentimentality that music can connect even the most physically and emotionally distant of souls. It may sound corny, but dammit if Carney doesn’t make it sing.
Posted Sep 21, 2023
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2.5/5
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The Inventor
(2023)
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Mark Keizer
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One almost feels guilty for disliking The Inventor since it has so much going for it.
Posted Sep 15, 2023
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3.5/4
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Ernest & Celestine: A Trip to Gibberitia
(2022)
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Mark Keizer
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A work of Gallic, pastel-colored rebellion designed as a lovely little kids film.
Posted Aug 31, 2023
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3/4
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Dreamin' Wild
(2022)
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Mark Keizer
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Veers away from our expectations and towards something more downbeat yet also lovely and emotionally attuned.
Posted Jul 31, 2023
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3/4
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The Beanie Bubble
(2023)
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Mark Keizer
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A distinctly American story of guts, genius, delusion, and well-earned comeuppance.
Posted Jul 21, 2023
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Wonderwell
(2023)
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Luke Y. Thompson
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Wonderwell is the sort of film that may require a rewatch once you realize what it’s up to – there are definitely some dead spaces that first time around, but as fables go, it’s at least a worthy attempt.
Posted Jun 26, 2023
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Traveling Light
(2021)
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Luke Y. Thompson
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It’s the kind of oddly noncommercial drama usually made by first-time filmmakers with few resources, maximizing their hometown and the actors they know personally for all they’re worth.
Posted May 26, 2023
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Yellow Bird
(2022)
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Luke Y. Thompson
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Jerris’ script superimposes a lot of forced, shticky business that works against the identification we want to have with Jake. Then again, this type of comedy would work against pretty much anything, because it’s just not funny.
Posted May 25, 2023
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3/4
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Wild Beauty: Mustang Spirit of the West
(2023)
|
Tim Cogshell
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Indeed, one of the first misnomers that the documentary corrects is that horses are not native to North America – they are.
Posted Apr 27, 2023
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Backwards Faces
(2022)
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Luke Y. Thompson
|
Backwards Faces deserves wider distribution; it’s an early contender for best movie of the year. Fans of Everything Everywhere All at Once who want to see more movies like that, but not the same as it, should particularly appreciate its charms.
Posted Apr 18, 2023
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Bad Romance
(2022)
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Luke Y. Thompson
|
...full of self-consciously clever references and twists but crucially lacking in empathy.
Posted Mar 18, 2023
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Knights of Swing
(2022)
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Luke Y. Thompson
|
That it’s a labor of love doesn’t inherently make it great, but the obvious commitment of everyone involved at least keeps it watchable. That said, if you aren’t being paid, you may find better uses of two and a half hours.
Posted Feb 24, 2023
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It Came Upon a Midnight Clear
(2020)
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Luke Y. Thompson
|
If your friends made a movie like this, you’d enjoy it with them over a couple of beers...If nobody’s bringing this or the beer to your place gratis, though, you might find the evening wanting.
Posted Feb 02, 2023
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Unconformity
(2021)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
Seeing the ins and outs of these lives is rewarding, yes, but figuring out every detail is less important than watching how these folks deal with the particular adversities that come up,
Posted Feb 02, 2023
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Happy Fkn Sunshine
(2022)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
Fans of the Trailer Park Boys are most likely to feel the vibe of Happy FKN Sunshine, a sweary slice of Canadian lower-class aspirations, scams, drug deals, and dysfunctional families.
Posted Jan 18, 2023
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Everything Everywhere All at Once
(2022)
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Luke Y. Thompson
|
Lots of movies and shows entered the multiverse this year, but there was nothing remotely like this one
Posted Jan 13, 2023
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Entergalactic
(2022)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
Combining the attempts to capture urban life in animation of Ralph Bakshi with the visual flair and graffiti art inspiration-made-3D of Into the Spider-Verse, Kid Cudi’s collaboration with director Fletcher Moules is a radical burst of energy
Posted Jan 13, 2023
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Decision to Leave
(2022)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
I miss sick and twisted Park Chan-wook, but if being more restrained gets him wider acclaim and Oscar nominations, I hold no resentments.
Posted Jan 13, 2023
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Crimes of the Future
(2022)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
Welcome back to body horror, David Cronenberg. We’ve missed you. And sure, you can bring Viggo Mortensen along.
Posted Jan 13, 2023
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Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths
(2022)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
Like Fellini’s 8-1/2 or Charlie Kaufman’s Synecdoche, NY, it’s a cinematic, magic-realist autobiography rooted as much in dreams and hopes and media creations as reality. It’s also the first time he’s really shown a sense of humor about himself
Posted Jan 13, 2023
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The Divine Protector: Master Salt Begins
(2022)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
Master Salt ought to be wackier than it is, rather than just oddly conservative at times, yet inconsistently.
Posted Oct 31, 2022
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3/4
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The Accursed
(2022)
|
Tim Cogshell
|
"...while walking a well-trod path for movies in the demons-and-witches genre, [The Accursed] still manages to boil with toil and trouble. Bad news for its less fortunate characters but great for lovers of classic blood and gore."
Posted Oct 13, 2022
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Everybody Dance
(2022)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
Everybody Dance is the kind of movie you’d have to be a Bond villain-level sociopath to beat up on.
Posted Oct 11, 2022
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The Valet
(2022)
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Luke Y. Thompson
|
The Valet wants to be a showcase for Derbez, but it’s a much more impressive vehicle for Weaving, who usually favors action and horror.
Posted Sep 02, 2022
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Take the Night
(2022)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
This is indeed a night I want to take in, but I’d rather find another story in progress within this environment than the one at hand.
Posted Aug 24, 2022
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Unboxed
(2022)
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Luke Y. Thompson
|
Katherine Diaz is someone who merits discovery. If this leads to something bigger for her, it was worth it.
Posted Jul 26, 2022
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4/4
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Elvis
(2022)
|
Wade Major
|
Elvis may well be Luhrmann’s best and most commercial film to date.
Posted Jun 29, 2022
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By Night's End
(2020)
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Luke Y. Thompson
|
Whited’s goal with By Night’s End was to prove he could be trusted to make a movie, and potentially earn bigger budgets for his other scripts. But this is no throwaway test – on its own terms as a movie, it’s a solidly entertaining thriller-in-a-box.
Posted Jun 26, 2022
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3/4
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Terror on the Prairie
(2022)
|
Wade Major
|
...below the surface, it’s a grueling — and often gruesome — meditation on the lingering self-inflicted wounds left by the the American Civil War in far-flung locales like frontier Montana and beyond.
Posted Jun 20, 2022
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Peace by Chocolate
(2021)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
No doubt it’s glossing things over a bit for the sake of a good story, but there’s definitely a sense of national pride and not-undeserved one-upmanship at play here.
Posted Jun 17, 2022
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3/4
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What Is a Woman?
(2022)
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Wade Major
|
...the film takes a decidedly Roger & Me approach to answering its titular question, finding the answer as elusive as Moore did General Motors CEO Roger Smith.
Posted Jun 10, 2022
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3/4
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Moon Garden
(2022)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
It feels at times like watching a magic show – you sort of think you might know how the trick was done, but then it pulls out a new angle and you’re pleasantly stumped.
Posted Jun 02, 2022
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Wheels
(2014)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
In a movie clearly meant to be his calling card, Warren boldly resists clear redemption arcs and actor vanity for a down-and-dirty story thats not trying to offer role models to anybody.
Posted Mar 10, 2022
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2.5/4
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Death on the Nile
(2022)
|
Mark Keizer
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A lumbering vessel that could have used more horsepower but it stays afloat by virtue of being an old-fashioned whodunit fully loaded with tantalizing clues, shocking twists and shifty-eyed suspects.
Posted Feb 11, 2022
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2/4
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Moonfall
(2022)
|
Mark Keizer
|
Moonfall is weapons-grade nonsense that severely tests our desire to go along for the ride no matter how ridiculous it gets.
Posted Feb 10, 2022
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American Insurrection
(2021)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
The second act of the movie is so intent on a slow-burn that it takes forever to get to the good stuff. Hang with it, however, and you'll find the movie sticks the landing solidly.
Posted Jan 29, 2022
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Single Mother by Choice
(2021)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
When the 13 minute making-of offers better characters, drama and comedy than the actual product, something clearly needs adjusting.
Posted Dec 19, 2021
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Hide and Bleed
(2021)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
The brotherly duo evidently have a gift for creating atmosphere on a budget. Beyond that, they'd appear to be as good as their collaborators at any given time - a situation that can cut both ways.
Posted Nov 28, 2021
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Beyond Paranormal
(2021)
|
Luke Y. Thompson
|
It's fundamentally unclear whether writer-director Matteo Ribaudo actually thinks this is scary, or is some sort of spoof.
Posted Nov 24, 2021
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2/5
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Spencer
(2021)
|
Ray Greene
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A Big Mac of tabloid analysis served on a sterling silver tray. It isn't that the emperor wears no clothes, but that the clothes are the circus wardrobe of the Daily Mail and The Express. "Spencer" is a movie that feeds on the corpse it seeks to sanctify.
Posted Nov 19, 2021
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2/5
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Red Notice
(2021)
|
Mark Keizer
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One senses that instead of a script, the filmmakers worked off a binder containing reams of Netflix data and instead of storyboards there were pie charts.
Posted Nov 17, 2021
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3/5
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Finch
(2021)
|
Mark Keizer
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A dystopian coming of age story with puppy dog eyes that willfully avoids all the surprise, suspense and danger expected in the genre and then defies you to reject it.
Posted Nov 10, 2021
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2/5
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Eternals
(2021)
|
Mark Keizer
|
Marvel has taken a director of rare sensitivity and forced her into the superhero grinder, where only flecks of her emotionally textured, magic-hour romanticism remain.
Posted Nov 03, 2021
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2/4
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Eternals
(2021)
|
Wade Major
|
Where Kubrick and Clarke took seriously the idea that human evolution may be prompted by alien intercession, Eternalsmakes the whole thing part of some gargantuan, intergalactic eugenics experiment wrapped in pop-philosophy and popcorn-authoritarianism.
Posted Oct 30, 2021
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1/5
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Venom: Let There Be Carnage
(2021)
|
Mark Keizer
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The visual bludgeoning that passes for a climactic battle, set during Cletus and Shriek's wedding, is essentially two CGI workstations fighting each other in a cathedral.
Posted Oct 02, 2021
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3.5/4
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No Time to Die
(2021)
|
Wade Major
|
...quite likely the most satisfying Bond film ever made, and it is absolutely the right film - Bond or otherwise - for this moment in time.
Posted Sep 29, 2021
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3 of 4
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Mulan
(2020)
|
Ray Greene
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MULAN the Remake is an unintended requiem for a time where Cantonese language masterpieces flourished to the metronomic tick of optical sound. I don't yearn for that time exactly, but I do salute the cortege as it rumbles past.
Posted Sep 13, 2021
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3.5 of 4
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The Influencer
(2021)
|
Ray Greene
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A full-throated, giddily energized movie that transcends, argues with and implodes the formulas through subversive comedy, assured farce, and a low-budget filmmaker's sheer force of will.
Posted Sep 13, 2021
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