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 […]
Fair Play (2023)
‘Fair Play’ effectively weaponizes sex in the office It begins with the blood of a woman and ends with the blood of a man. But it’s what transpires between that proves most captivating in Chloe Domont’s auspicious filmmaking debut, “Fair Play.” It’s another treatise on the war between the sexes, but what sets it apart […]
Flora and Son (2023)
Charming ‘Flora and Son’ makes beautiful music Few meld song and film as seamlessly as John Carney. That’s because the writer-director knows well how to excite and exploit the senses of sight and sound in a manner that stirs the heart and soul. He makes it appear so effortless when it’s most certainly not. That’s […]
Cassandro (2023)
Uplifting ‘Cassandro’ puts a hold on you If ever a wrestling movie pinned you to the canvas, it’s “Cassandro,” the wildly flamboyant tale of one of lucha libre’s most colorful, and least likely, gladiators. As played by Mexican treasure, Gael Garcia Bernal, Cassandro is a walking contradiction: Confident, yet filled with doubt; macho, yet effete; […]