‘Luce’ movie review — An American (dream) crime story

Luce follows a mystery surrounding a small town's golden child and him and his parents' run-in with a teacher bent on his demise.  30-second review: Luce is so successful because its story has a clear message and point-of-view it wants to communicate, but director Julius Onah presents it in a completely fresh and original way. Though at its core…

‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’ movie review

Spider-Man: Far From Home finds Peter Parker at a crossroads following the fallout of Avengers: Endgame 30-second review: Spider-Man: Far From Home has the same quirkiness that made Homecoming so successful, but a predictable plot and poor pacing keep it from reaching its predecessor's heights. However, it also gives us the best interpretation of the "with great power…

‘Dark Phoenix’ movie review — The X-Men civil war

Dark Phoenix finds the X-Men fighting each other as they try to save Jean Grey — and the world — from herself 30-second review: There’s something off about nearly every element of Dark Phoenix. The dialogue is overly-written to the point that you can predict a line before it’s said, the performances are unmotivated, the story…

‘Rocketman’ mini-review — The bitch is back

Rocketman follows the meteoric launch and the explosive fall of one of music's most iconic artists, Elton John. 90-second review: Let's get the Bohemian Rhapsody comparison out of the way early. Rocketman is the better film. Not only is it competently made, it's not just a paint-by-the-numbers biopic that plugs in the right plot points…

‘John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum’ movie review

John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum finds John in his most precarious situation yet — and that's bad news for anyone that gets in his way. 30-second review: The reason the unlikely John Wick franchise works is because it understands its audience and, more importantly, trusts them. John Wick: Chapter 3 — Parabellum mercifully leaves…

‘Our Time Machine’ Tribeca review — Life, love, and puppets

Our Time Machine is a funny and moving documentary about an artist's attempt to cope with his father's illness by literally and metaphorically creating a time machine.  Directed by Yang Sun & S. Leo Chiang Written by S. Leo Chiang & Bob Lee Synopsis When artist Maleonn realizes that his father suffers from Alzheimer’s disease, he creates “Papa’s…