American Symphony (2023)
Batiste profile ends in tone-deaf ‘Symphony’ I admire the fearless, in-the-moment documentaries crafted by Matthew Heineman. With no regard for his own safety, the ballsy director repeatedly thrusts himself into the fire, whether it’s embedding with drug lords in “Cartel Land,” following citizen journalists inside war-torn Raqqa in “City of Ghosts,” or joining first responders […]
Maestro (2023)
Superficial ‘Maestro’ isn’t well conducted High among Boston’s favorite sons, Leonard Bernstein never forgot his roots. He adored his hometown and state, spending nearly every summer of his adult life guest-conducting the Boston Symphony Orchestra at Tanglewood. But much like Babe Ruth was snatched away from the Hub, Bernstein notched his greatest triumphs as a […]
May December (2023)
Pop-culture obsession at heart of ‘May December’ What is it that stirs our fascination with other people’s lives at the expense of our own? Is it ennui? Or, something much more sinister? A dose of schadenfreude to fool ourselves into believing we are better than others? Those are but a few of the unanswerable questions […]
Rustin (2023)
Inspiring ‘Rustin’ thrives on Domingo’s portrayal There’s no crueler irony than subjects of discrimination ostracizing a person worse off than they are in the hierarchy of social injustice. That, sadly, was the fate of Bayard Rustin, a gay Black man kept at a distance by civil rights leaders, despite his prominent role in attracting worldwide […]
Fingernails (2023)
Weird ‘Fingernails’ could use some polish It’s easy to quantify sex. Just ask Masters and Johnson. But what about love? Can one’s romantic feelings be evaluated and measured in a laboratory? That’s the unanswerable question Greek director Christos Nikou ponders in his ponderous “Fingernails.” The chemistry is certainly there in the form of […]
The Pigeon Tunnel (2023)
‘Pigeon Tunnel’ delves into enigmatic le Carré An interview or an interrogation? Is there a difference? That is the intrigue sucking you into “The Pigeon Tunnel” like a vacuum cleaner. At times, you wonder who is playing whom as Cambridge-based documentarian Errol Morris shrewdly seeks the “truth” from a man who admittedly built his […]
Re-education of Molly Singer (2023)
‘Education’ is a lesson in stupidity Insipid doesn’t begin to describe the astoundingly awful “The Re-Education of Molly Singer.” That “education” is a part of its title is a massive insult to academia. And at two hours, it’s tantamount to torture. Surely, it’s not that bad, you say. Oh, believe me, it is! It’s rancid […]
Anatomy of a Fall (2023)
‘Anatomy’ a riveting exploration of love gone wrong As a study on the physics of a marriage, “Anatomy of a Fall” is all about gravity and its effects when the bottom falls out and a relationship collapses to the ground, broken and bloodied. Survival unlikely. That, pardon the expression, is the jumping-off point for a […]
Killers of the Flower Moon (2023)
Labored ‘Killers’ is good, not great From the first to the last shot 206 minutes later, Martin Scorsese’s epic “Killers of the Flower Moon” exhibits immense love and care in effectively doing justice to America’s indigenous people. It’s as gripping and poignant as any film since Edison developed the medium. And the inventiveness in how […]
The Royal Hotel (2023)
Creepy ‘Royal Hotel’ accommodates plenty of thrills The best horror movies are those in which the haunted house is situated inside our inventive minds, where terrors reside at the intersection of assumption and expectation. Such is the property known as “The Royal Hotel,” where it’s all about location, location, location. The address is Australia’s desolate […]