Director Stephen Chbosky broke through with 2012’s “The Perks of Being a Wallflower”, followed by powerful family film (and box office and awards hit) “Wonder”. His adaptation of Broadway musical “Dear Evan Hansen” was met with mostly negative reviews. I was a little kinder to it than most critics, but the third act is very […]
It’s Christmastime in Australia, and ‘The Surfer’ is looking to buy his childhood home, which is back on the market. It’s a real quest for the title character of this new psychological thriller with a soap opera-vibe. By living in this house on a cliff, overlooking a gorgeous beach, The Surfer can finally feel whole […]
“On Swift Horses” is a new romance drama set during the Korean War starring some of today’s popular mid-20s to early-30s actors. Daisy Edgar-Jones (from “Twisters”) plays Muriel. She accepts the marriage proposal of Lee (Will Poulter, of “The Maze Runner” franchise and “The Bear”) at her lifelong Kansas home on a snowy Christmas Eve. […]
Ryan Coogler delivered a powerhouse trio of films in “Fruitvale Station”, “Creed” and “Black Panther”. Outside of Angela Bassett’s performance and the opening Marvel intro tribute to the late Chadwick Boseman, I wasn’t a huge fan of “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”. But Coogler is back to form with “Sinners” — an original concept with a […]
One of my most anticipated movies of 2025 delivers. “The Luckiest Man in America” recreates and dramatizes Michael Larson’s unique, epic victory on popular ’80s game show “Press Your Luck”. Paul Walter Hauser does a terrific job as the infamous contestant who was so obsessed with the program that he memorized the patterns of that […]
“Audrey’s Children” is one of the best movies of 2025 so far. And only a couple times a year do we really get one of these old fashioned, sophisticated, well told dramas. Natalie Dormer is outstanding as the caring, precise, very determined, and game-changing Dr. Audrey Evans, who goes to Philadelphia Children’s Hospital in 1969 […]
I don’t just like it… I love it when a movie has a unique concept — and then expands upon it by delivering powerhouse results the rest of the way through. “Bob Trevino Likes It” is one of the standout films of 2025 so far. Barbie Ferreira (from HBO’s “Euphoria”) is fantastic as 25-year-old Lily. […]
Atom Egoyan was Oscar nominated for his powerful 1997 drama “The Sweet Hereafter”. His latest film is “Seven Veils”, an examination of the making of an opera and the woman at the center of it. Amanda Seyfried pulls off a challenging performance as Jeanine, the director of a new version of “Salome” opening soon in […]
Let me start off by stating that I like “The Brothers McMullen”. I saw it a long time ago. Edward Burns is now going to make a sequel (called “The Family McMullen”), which hopefully is good, but off of “Millers in Marriage”, I’m not so sure. “McMullen” was a dramedy about a tight-knit family and […]
I was most intrigued to see “Old Guy” because of the cast. Two-time Oscar winner Christoph Waltz stars as Danny, an aging hitman with a recently injured right hand, who is reluctantly training Wihlborg (played by Cooper Hoffman, fantastic in “Licorice Pizza” and “Saturday Night”). Danny’s longtime friend Anata (Lucy Liu) is also in the […]