The Farewell follows a New Yorker as she travels to China to say goodbye to her sick grandmother — who doesn't know she's dying. 30-second review: The Farewell is a movie of dichotomies — Chinese culture and American culture, parents and children, mourning and celebrating, youth and old age — that appropriately straddles the line…
Bad Times at the El Royale is a thrilling, character-driven neo-noir homage that will keep you guessing from beginning to end. Don't let the flashy trailers, catchy title, or A-list stars fool you. Bad Times at the El Royale is not your typical popcorn thriller. Written and directed by Drew Goddard, who had a lot to live up…
Shoplifters is heartbreaking but often funny and hopeful look at a family of thieves relying on each other to make it day to day. Shoplifters is one of those rare movies that you cherish what you don't know about the characters. Not because what's beneath the surface will change your opinion of them. It's because you know when…
High Flying Bird is a masterfully constructed drama that tackles the professional sports business with as much intrigue as a heist movie. 30-second review: High Flying Bird doesn't clue you into its real intentions until the very end, that doesn't make the journey to get there any less compelling. Steven Soderbergh is a master of storytelling…
Unicorn Store marks the directorial debut of Oscar-winner Brie Larson, who also stars in the Netflix Original. 30-second review: Unicorn Store has so much going for it — an original premise, terrific cast, directorial debut of one of the best actors working today — but the magic falls flat. That's no fault of Brie Larson, whose endearing…
Little Woods, Nia DaCosta's directorial debut, finds two sisters going up against a system that doesn't want them to succeed in One sentence review: Little Woods is a quiet, well-directed character-driven drama that features a powerhouse emotional performance by Tessa Thompson. One paragraph review: Though it may be on the nose at times, Little Woods is a tense and emotional look at…
Dumplin’ is the cinematic equivalent of comfort food. It’s warm, filling, satisfying, and exactly what you’d expect, but that’s why it works. Dumplin’ fills a feel-good movie shaped void in 2018. And while it doesn’t completely subvert the formula it applies it incredibly well to this touching coming-of-age story of self-love directed by Anne Fletcher—best…
Mary Queen of Scots is a solid well-made historical drama with powerhouse performances by Saoirse Ronan and Margot Robbie Mary Queen of Scots is an exemplary example of how a historical drama can feel modern and have modern themes without sacrificing the story its based on. Saoirse Ronan—following up her career-high performance in Lady Bird—is a powerhouse as the titular famed…
Cold War is stunningly crafted black-and-white love story set in postwar Poland that lacks the emotional substance to make it truly great. In Cold War, the war isn't the only thing that's cold. The film follows a two-decade-long romance between Wiktor (Tomasz Kot)—the music director of a folk music academy tasked with capturing the culture of…
Moonlight is gorgeously crafted, masterfully acted, surprisingly timely, and demands to be watched and respected It wasn’t until I got into my twenties that I became aware of what identity is. Identity is as much how you view yourself as what the world views you as. You may be a minority or gay or poor, but that…
