Holding Out for A Hero
In the wake of Iran’s phony election of 2009 that re-installed Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as president, the country cracked down on its filmmakers, so Abbas...
Macbeth: Toil and Trouble
And still I haven’t seen a convincing film version of Shakespeare’s Macbeth. Akira Kurosawa’s Throne of Blood comes closest, and Scotland, PA comes a...
The Best Lead Performances of 2021
Do movie stars exist anymore? I mean the old-fashioned type that can pull an audience to the theater just on marquee value alone. I...
The Best Filmmaking Debuts of 2021
One reason why this job doesn’t wear on me is that I take so much pleasure in welcoming new directorial talents to our screens....
The Best Movie Dialogue of 2021
This year’s feature on the best movie dialogue is unusually heavy on monologues. I wish I knew what that meant. I do still enjoy...
The Best Supporting Performances of 2021
Back to normal service, everyone. My annual list of the best achievements in film was delayed last year, but now it’s back in December...
The Top 10
This past year, I spent more time in multiplexes than anyone who doesn’t work for a movie theater, and I didn’t get sick. Vaccinations...
Red Rocket: Magic Mikey
In the movement to destigmatize sex work, Sean Baker is leading the charge. All four of his feature films have been about sex workers,...
Licorice Pizza: Growing Up Is Hard to Do
I need to stake out a position here on Licorice Pizza, since it’s becoming an awards contender. After the death grip that Paul Thomas...
Matrix: Techno Is Dead
“Nothing comforts anxiety like fake nostalgia,” says one of the characters in The Matrix Resurrections. Yeah, they said that to me as I watched...
