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You Hurt My Feelings
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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This is a movie for grown-ups– and that’s a good thing.
Posted Jun 02, 2023
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Sanctuary
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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The result is a film as cracklingly smart, as devilishly funny, and as alive as any you’re likely to see this year.
Posted Jun 02, 2023
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Master Gardener
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Master Gardener is pretty damn far from feel-good entertainment in the Frank Capra vein, but it suggests that, even in a world as bleak as Schrader’s, self-destruction is not necessarily preordained.
Posted May 19, 2023
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Wild Life
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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As corny as it sounds, it is as if the Tompkins were trying to save the world so they could continue to live in it together.
Posted May 17, 2023
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Confessions of a Good Samaritan
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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Confessions of a Good Samaritan does not answer the question of why people do or don’t give organs– Lane would probably be in the running for a Nobel if it did– but it’s as funny, fascinating, and heartfelt a doc as you’re likely to see.
Posted May 02, 2023
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Little Richard: I Am Everything
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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The way it frames its subject– a Black, queer, handicapped musician who towers over 20th century popular culture– is both distinctly modern and refreshingly frank.
Posted Apr 21, 2023
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Beau Is Afraid
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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It’s a hell of a thing– easily the wildest film you’re ever going to see on an IMAX screen– and proof that Aster is one of the most unique filmmakers working today.
Posted Apr 21, 2023
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Renfield
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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It still can’t keep from getting in the way of itself with endless action set pieces, watering down a great premise into yet another crypto-superhero slugfest.
Posted Apr 14, 2023
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Rebel
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Rebel is a film which, once seen, is not soon forgotten.
Posted Apr 07, 2023
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Smoking Causes Coughing
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Does any of this amount to more than a series of deadpan non sequiturs? Not really, but if you’re looking for a profound or cohesive plot, Quentin Dupieux might not be the director for you.
Posted Apr 07, 2023
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Spaghetti Junction
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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Spaghetti Junction captures a wondrously dreamlike vision, making the outskirts of Atlanta feel like a liminal fantasy world.
Posted Apr 07, 2023
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Paint
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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The result is the worst of both worlds: sweetness which rings hollow, and gross-out gags which pull their punches.
Posted Apr 07, 2023
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Tetris
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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Though its pleasures may be surface level, they are undeniable, and the whole thing pings and whizzes as infectiously as a classic Game Boy game.
Posted Mar 31, 2023
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Enys Men
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Enys Men will almost certainly be a divisive film [...] but for fans of the genre it will be like settling into a cozy, haunted cottage.
Posted Mar 27, 2023
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Mister Organ
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Mister Organ is an early contender for the most jaw-dropping and entertaining doc of the year, moving briskly and never outstaying its welcome.
Posted Mar 25, 2023
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The Unheard
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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The Unheard is a superb slice of all-enveloping dread.
Posted Mar 23, 2023
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Inside
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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Willem Dafoe is a national treasure, and Inside gives him a long overdue gallery exhibition.
Posted Mar 17, 2023
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Scream VI
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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Scream VI succeeds in developing its new cast of characters, but is ultimately largely indistinguishable from the films it’s meant to send up.
Posted Mar 10, 2023
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The Quiet Girl
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Make no mistake: The Quiet Girl is a very sad film, leading up to an ending so bittersweet that it’s almost difficult to watch. But, crucially, it’s never depressing.
Posted Mar 03, 2023
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The Outwaters
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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As a genre, found footage is not generally known for its daring visual sense, but The Outwaters is legitimately striking.
Posted Feb 10, 2023
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Knock at the Cabin
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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The result it both one of the most thrilling films of the director’s career and, crucially, one of the most human.
Posted Feb 03, 2023
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Infinity Pool
(2023)
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Oscar Goff
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It is an utterly wild piece of work, filled with enough outrageous ideas, visuals, and set pieces to float several films.
Posted Jan 27, 2023
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Turn Every Page: The Adventures of Robert Caro and Robert Gottlieb
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Turn Every Page captures not only the passion that drives a great writer, but the thrill that comes from reading one.
Posted Jan 24, 2023
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Skinamarink
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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You’re not just frightened for the characters; watching Skinamarink, it’s easy to feel scared of the movie itself.
Posted Jan 13, 2023
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M3GAN
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Is this a case of overeager ballyhoo? Of course– how could it not be?– but M3GAN is still a great bit of silly fun, and the platonic ideal of January Horror.
Posted Jan 06, 2023
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Babylon
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Babylon is essentially Singin’ in the Rain remade as The Wolf of Wall Street, and it is every bit as exhilarating and exhausting as that sounds.
Posted Dec 23, 2022
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The Whale
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Whatever the intention, the effect is one of “pay the nickel, see the freak.”
Posted Dec 21, 2022
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All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Simultaneously timely and timeless in the issues it confronts.
Posted Dec 10, 2022
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White Noise
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Baumbach [...] drops his bored and overeducated characters into a world that swirls around them, making their ennui and obsessions over minutiae all the more hilarious.
Posted Dec 02, 2022
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A Couple
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Sophia Tolstoy died over a hundred years ago, but her perspective feels startlingly modern: she’s every brilliant, talented young woman constantly overlooked in favor of her (male) better half.
Posted Dec 02, 2022
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The Inspection
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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A lyrical snapshot of a very strange period in its director’s life.
Posted Nov 23, 2022
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Bad Axe
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Bad Axe won’t be the only film of its kind, but it will be hard to top in potency.
Posted Nov 18, 2022
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Meet Me in the Bathroom
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Like its subjects, the film is agreeably scuzzy and occasionally unfocused, but it just might make you want to pick up a guitar and search for an abandoned loft in which to bash out some chords.
Posted Nov 11, 2022
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All Jacked Up and Full of Worms
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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All Jacked Up and Full of Worms is a work of gutter psychedelia, and should ideally be watched after midnight on a cruddy VHS on your staticky basement TV.
Posted Nov 09, 2022
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Armageddon Time
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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The resulting film, while visually gorgeous and clearly very personal, is oddly airless, and can’t quite seem to grapple with the story it sets out to tell.
Posted Nov 08, 2022
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The Banshees of Inisherin
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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In classic Irish fashion, The Banshees of Inisherin is outwardly warm and inviting, yet harbors a decidedly prickly core.
Posted Nov 02, 2022
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The Good Nurse
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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While the story of The Good Nurse is intrinsically engrossing, visually it’s about as exciting as a hospital waiting room.
Posted Oct 26, 2022
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Slash/Back
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Innuksuk and her talented young stars have crafted a heartfelt and perfectly thrilling tale of friendship, Inuit culture, and, yes, grotesque monsters from outer space.
Posted Oct 21, 2022
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Triangle of Sadness
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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It’s brash, vulgar, often gleefully mean-spirited, and about as subtle as a brick through the window of Neiman Marcus– and it’s exactly what I needed to see.
Posted Oct 14, 2022
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Tár
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Tár is something new, an insightful, mordantly funny look at power and the state of culture today.
Posted Oct 13, 2022
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Smile
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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It’s derivative pulp, but it’s pretty darn good derivative pulp.
Posted Sep 30, 2022
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Blonde
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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The result is oppressive and repetitive, and nobody’s idea of a good time.
Posted Sep 28, 2022
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Don't Worry Darling
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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All of its ambition and considerable craft can’t overcome the fact that there just isn’t a lot of movie rattling around in there.
Posted Sep 23, 2022
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Moonage Daydream
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Moonage Daydream is the story of a life, but it’s also a grippingly effective portrait of creative restlessness, and anyone who has ever pursued a muse of their own will likely be moved to tears.
Posted Sep 16, 2022
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Pearl
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Pearl may legitimately be one of the best-looking films of the year.
Posted Sep 16, 2022
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Barbarian
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Barbarian has to count as one of the biggest surprises of the year, and I eagerly await the reactions from people approaching it with no idea what they’re getting into.
Posted Sep 09, 2022
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Orphan: First Kill
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Orphan: First Kill is every bit as satisfyingly twisted as its predecessor, and certainly counts as the most gloriously demented horror surprise since Malignant.
Posted Sep 01, 2022
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Bodies Bodies Bodies
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Bodies is, at its core, a rather broad comedy, built on a strong and well-picked ensemble.
Posted Aug 10, 2022
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My Old School
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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The former students are delightful enough that it would likely make for entertaining cinema to hear them talk about anything; it’s a boon, then, that they happen to have a hell of a story to tell.
Posted Jul 29, 2022
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Nope
(2022)
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Oscar Goff
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Nope is that rarest of Hollywood beasts: a layered, piercingly smart original film which also functions perfectly well as a beat-the-heat summer thrill ride.
Posted Jul 21, 2022
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