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The Color Purple
(1985)
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Patrick Taggart
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On second viewing, this nobly conceived film seems much less than the inspired failure it was first time around. I'm afraid it is something much more mundane. I'm afraid it is a bad movie.
Posted May 25, 2023
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An American Tail
(1986)
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Patrick Taggart
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For sheer beauty in its color and animation, Don Bluth's new An American Tail is hard to beat. In terms of originality, though, it's pretty much the same old Mickey Mouse.
Posted May 16, 2023
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Yentl
(1983)
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Patrick Taggart
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Yentl is not without its small sins, but this handsomely-produced film of an Isaac Bashevis Singer story is warm and passionate and, for most of its two-hour running time, tremendously moving.
Posted May 12, 2023
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3/4
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Crossing Delancey
(1988)
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Patrick Taggart
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What this delightful film is about, really, is finding one's own heart, about learning to hear the inner voice that provides insights untainted by cognitive power. Without a doubt, the project found the right director in Joan Micklin Silver.
Posted May 09, 2023
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Raiders of the Lost Ark
(1981)
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Patrick Taggart
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It is, in short, a reminder of the very reason we go to movies. With its larger-than-life, wide screen images, the rich stereo sound, films such as Raiders of the Lost Ark are what will save the movie theater business from the video invasion.
Posted May 04, 2023
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2/4
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Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
(1989)
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Patrick Taggart
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The Last Crusade has tons of action, noise and excitement, but there's so little logic, drive and heart in it that you may find your mind wandering.
Posted May 01, 2023
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The Bitter Tea of General Yen
(1933)
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Ruth Lewis
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Anyone who can enjoy love, battle, heart chills and hate in a picture, will like this one.
Posted Apr 24, 2023
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Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
(1984)
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Patrick Taggart
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Short Round turns out to be perhaps the pivotal character -- if not the workings of the plot, then in the way Raiders and Temple of Doom appeal to their viewers. [This] is a young boy's adventure seen through the eyes of a young boy.
Posted Apr 18, 2023
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3/5
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Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
(2008)
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John DeFore
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Though the filmmakers can't resist some 21st-century indulgences that don't really belong in the series' universe, [Skull] often lives up to the thrills moviegoers have come to expect, Pavlov-style, when they hear John Williams's virile theme.
Posted Apr 12, 2023
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3 Women
(1977)
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Patrick Taggart
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The whole thing can, in short, really kill a good evening.
Posted Apr 06, 2023
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2/4
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Army of Darkness
(1992)
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Michael MacCambridge
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One gets a sense of watching a talent show long on inventive costumes and short on talent.
Posted Mar 31, 2023
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Evil Dead 2
(1987)
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Patrick Taggart
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Evil Dead 2 can take a place right alongside such classic, nightmare horror films as George Romero's Night of the Living Dead. Like Romero's low-budget ghoul parade, Evil Dead is hilariously funny in a way that never robs the suspense and terror.
Posted Mar 28, 2023
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B+
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Joy Ride
(2023)
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Eric Webb
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Cola is the pace-setter; while Park's character is the fish-out-of-water protagonist, it's Lolo whose emotional beats the audience follows, from zany confidence to truly heartfelt pain. Put Cola in every movie immediately.
Posted Mar 27, 2023
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The Black Pirate
(1926)
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Hubert Mewhinney
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The Fairbanks picture is just that -- a Fairbanks picture. Doug Is the entire show, in 90 per cent of the scenes, and even dominating during his absence. He Is probably the only movie actor who can do it.
Posted Mar 22, 2023
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A
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Bottoms
(2023)
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Eric Webb
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A big, loud, expertly crafted love story about teenage lesbians, written from a deeply queer sensibility and letting its ladies get messy, is a heavyweight champ in my mind.
Posted Mar 20, 2023
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A-
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Problemista
(2023)
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Eric Webb
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A big creative explosion like Problemista is bound to bleed past the edges of the feeble human mind, though. For all its beautiful collectivism, perhaps its most sophisticated trick is making room for the power of self.
Posted Mar 20, 2023
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A
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Evil Dead Rise
(2023)
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Eric Webb
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Wicked, effed-up, heartfelt and witty: Evil Dead Rise is a nearly perfect continuation of a cult-favorite franchise.
Posted Mar 20, 2023
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A-
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The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent
(2022)
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Eric Webb
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There's never a wink. Even in a movie that feels like two Godzilla-sized eyelids staring right at the audience before closing together, Nicolas Cage's calculations are his own.
Posted Mar 20, 2023
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B-
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Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania
(2023)
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Eric Webb
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Quantumania has the goods. It lets Majors take new big bad Kang out for a joyride without feeling like he’s just slumming it in an Ant-Man picture.
Posted Mar 20, 2023
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A-
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Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
(2022)
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Eric Webb
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Glass Onion flexes the durability of Johnson's twist on a classic genre formula and the adaptability of its central sleuth.
Posted Mar 20, 2023
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A
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Everything Everywhere All at Once
(2022)
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Eric Webb
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Much like a hallucinogen might cause you to cycle through every human emotion and see your life laid out end to end — theoretically — this film has an ability to dazzle built into every kinetic, colorful, madcap frame.
Posted Mar 16, 2023
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D
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The Whale
(2022)
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Eric Webb
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At every moment when subtlety might afford Charlie humanity or control of his own story, Aronofsky takes the lurid path.
Posted Mar 15, 2023
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B
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Babylon
(2022)
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Eric Webb
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A filthy, funny, frenetic film that might be the weirdest holiday-season release in recent memory.
Posted Mar 15, 2023
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2.5/5
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Boys on the Side
(1995)
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Michael MacCambridge
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As a study of female compassion and camaraderie, the film is admirable and winning.
Posted Mar 14, 2023
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B+
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Missing
(2023)
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Eric Webb
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When it’s not registering on the Gasp-o-Meter, Missing finds just enough nuance between its browser tabs.
Posted Mar 10, 2023
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The Dark Angel
(1935)
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Statesman Staff
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A tender, tasteful screen play.
Posted Mar 09, 2023
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One Sings, the Other Doesn't
(1977)
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Paul Beutel
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The movie makes many strongly feminist statements and at times threatens to become didactic. But on the whole, it's a gentle, moving story which should please a great many people.
Posted Mar 07, 2023
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9 to 5
(1980)
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Patrick Taggart
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Nine to Five could have used an efficiency expert.
Posted Mar 03, 2023
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Sayonara
(1957)
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John Bustin
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Seldom has this subject been presented with as delicate a touch or in as attractive a mounting as in "Sayonara."
Posted Mar 03, 2023
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3.5/4
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Thelma & Louise
(1991)
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Michael MacCambridge
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Possessed of the funniest screenplay and best ensemble acting of the year, it's the first certified, can't-miss film since The Silence of the Lambs.
Posted Mar 01, 2023
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Flower Drum Song
(1961)
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John Bustin
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It may not be memorable entertainment for everybody, but it should be pretty happy stuff for most.
Posted Feb 27, 2023
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Safety Last
(1923)
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Florence Robinson
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The excitement produced by Lloyd as a human fly kept the packed house on the edges of the seats with eager enthusiasm as they followed him up the skyscraper.
Posted Feb 22, 2023
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1.5/4
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Godzilla
(1998)
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Chris Garcia
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The movie is breathtakingly unfunny and unscary. It just sits there, zombie-eyed, spittle dribbling down its chin.
Posted Feb 14, 2023
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Requiem for a Heavyweight
(1962)
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John Bustin
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Ralph Nelson has directed Sterling's moving, compassionate script with a sensitivity beneath a bleakly realistic, understated style made all the more effective by some inventive touches and some splendid camera work...
Posted Feb 08, 2023
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2.5/4
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The Truman Show
(1998)
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Chris Garcia
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A totally fresh experience.
Posted Feb 02, 2023
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Back to Bataan
(1945)
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Marcy Townsley
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Realistic almost to the point of seeming documentary, the picture covers a period of more than two years and is supposed to be based on actual facts in characters. It is gripping narrative even with the war in the Pacific over.
Posted Feb 01, 2023
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Diabolique
(1955)
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John Bustin
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A masterly demonstration of screen suspense and terror that you won't easily forget, even though might like to.
Posted Jan 31, 2023
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2.5/4
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The Big Lebowski
(1998)
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Alison Macor
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The Big Lebowski's story pales in comparison to its characters. Rather than watching the film in anticipation of its next entertaining setup, we look to the characters for some relief from the story's gutter balls.
Posted Jan 20, 2023
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Frankenstein
(1931)
|
Statesman Staff
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To Boris Karloff, as the monster, go honors for his extraordinary portrayal of the gruesome role.
Posted Jan 13, 2023
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3.5/4
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A Dry White Season
(1989)
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Patrick Taggart
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A Dry White Season fires a shot right between the eyes of South African apartheid. The new movie is a thriller, but it's also an education.
Posted Jan 04, 2023
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The Lady Eve
(1941)
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Ruth Lewis
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The Lady Eve is Sturges' third creation and conclusively marks Sturges as a top-flight master in light, ingratiating, clever comedy.
Posted Dec 29, 2022
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Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
(1937)
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Ruth Lewis
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Much has been said and written about some of the more frightening sequences and their probable effect on young children. I can't pose any great knowledge of child psychology, but I know I'd hate to see them miss Snow White.
Posted Dec 21, 2022
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3/4
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Groundhog Day
(1993)
|
Michael MacCambridge
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To look back on Murray's career is to see the development of a distinct strain of American humor, which has often been misunderstood or mangled on film. In Groundhog Day, Murray and Ramis return to the source, and they get it right.
Posted Dec 07, 2022
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3/4
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Braveheart
(1995)
|
Olga Flores
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Gibson, who directed and produced Braveheart, has transformed himself into a believable mercenary driven by revenge, passion and love.
Posted Nov 18, 2022
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Gentleman's Agreement
(1947)
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Steve Perkins
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Peck and McGuire handle an off-again-on-again romance with artful restraint. John Garfield, as a Jewish friend of the writer, turns in the sharpest characterization and delivers the hardest hitting blows of the theme.
Posted Nov 16, 2022
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B
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Black Panther: Wakanda Forever
(2022)
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Eric Webb
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Through the fight with Namor, Wakanda Forever again crafts a conflict where the antagonist, bloodthirsty though he may be, isn't wrong, exactly, when it comes to the threat of colonialism and oppression.
Posted Nov 11, 2022
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The Maltese Falcon
(1941)
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Ruth Lewis
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When Mr. Greenstreet speaks, you are in for a treat.
Posted Nov 11, 2022
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Meet Me in St. Louis
(1944)
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Marcy Townsley
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The screenplay has nothing spectacular to offer in the way of plot. A good storyteller, if he's good enough, doesn't need a whopping story to be successful and Meet Me in St Louis is successful because it's done beautifully.
Posted Nov 10, 2022
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Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
(1939)
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Ruth Lewis
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I submit Mr. Smith Goes to Washington as the best bracer democracy has had in this land in many a moon.
Posted Nov 09, 2022
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King Kong
(1933)
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Statesman Staff
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That mythical monster, Kong, will chill the blood in the veins of [audiences], giving two hours of about as thrilling and horrifying entertainment as the most bloodthirsty could wish.
Posted Nov 08, 2022
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