Movie Reviews

Work It, Make It, Do It: In Stronger, Jake Gyllenhaal plays Jeff Bauman, who was injured in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings.

Arts

'Stronger' Does The Hard Work To Earn Its Every Inspiring Moment

5:01pm September 20, 2017

by Scott Tobias

Director David Gordon Green's film stands out from others like it because it prizes "understanding Bauman's perspective and the private burdens of being a hero" over simple uplift.

Arts

Self-Aggrandizing, Interminable 'Mother!' Mixes Fantasy And Reality

3:43pm September 15, 2017

by David Edelstein

Writer-director Darren Aronofsky's new film is set in a large country house where a young woman, played by Jennifer Lawrence, finds herself under siege by unwanted guests.

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Review: Ken Burns' 'The Vietnam War'

5:06am September 15, 2017

by Eric Deggans

Filmmaker Ken Burns and collaborators turn their lens to the Vietnam War in a 10-part, 18-hour documentary. It was six years in the making and includes rarely seen footage.

Paint and Suffering: Jennifer Lawrence plays a woman called Mother in Darren Aronofsky's mother!

Arts

Don't Read This Review Of Darren Aronofsky's Compelling, Confounding 'Mother!'

5:01pm September 14, 2017

by Chris Klimek

Critic Chris Klimek thinks you should go into this film about a poet (Javier Bardem) and his submissive wife (Jennifer Lawrence) cold — just be prepared for "squirm-inducing fun."

Rat King: Harold Edmond goes to work in Rat Film.

Arts

'Rat Film': Superb, Formally Inventive Documentary Smells A Rat — And It Is Us

5:00pm September 14, 2017

by Andrew Lapin

The film examines many facets of Baltimore's social and political history "to drive a pointed, deliberate argument that is still firmly rooted in artistry rather than political message-making."

Shelf-Awareness: The Reading Room of the New York Public Library, featured in Ex Libris.

Arts

In Frederick Wiseman's 'Ex Libris,' The New York Public Library Gets Checked Out

5:00pm September 14, 2017

by Mark Jenkins

The prolific documentary filmmaker's latest project goes behind the stacks to offer a comprehensive, multi-faceted — and overdue — examination of the NYPL as an institution.

Please Clap: Troy (Austin Abrams) and father Brad (Ben Stiller) in Brad's Status.

Arts

A College-Bound Lad And His Unbound Dad In 'Brad's Status'

5:00pm September 14, 2017

by Ella Taylor

In Mike White's latest film, Ben Stiller plays a middle-aged man so consumed by envy that he fails to grasp how much his emotionally mature son (Austin Abrams) could teach him.

Arts

A Young Doctor Turns Detective In 'The Unknown Girl'

10:59am September 08, 2017

by Justin Chang

A woman turns up dead the day after a doctor, Jenny, ignores the woman's after-hour visit to her clinic. Jenny's sense of guilt pushes her to conduct her own investigation.

Reese Witherspoon stars as Alice Kinney, a recently separated mother of two who moves back in with her mother (Candice Bergen) for a fresh start.

Arts

You Can't Go 'Home Again' — Or At Least, You Shouldn't

5:00pm September 07, 2017

by Ella Taylor

The writing/directing debut of Hallie Meyers-Shyer (daughter of Nancy Meyers) features tired tropes, stiff acting and lots of hand-wringing about how tough it is to break into Hollywood.

One luftballon down, 98 to go: Bill Skarsgård stars as Pennywise in director Andy Muschietti's horror thriller It.

Arts

'It' Happens, Again And Again And Again

5:00pm September 07, 2017

by Scott Tobias

Stephen King's tale of a shape-shifting clown who haunts a small Maine town gets an adaptation that features fine performances, but relies on a barrage of repetitive jump-scares.