Cynthia Nixon’s stellar performance provides the beating heart behind the occasionally staid exterior of “A Quiet Passion,” British writer-director Terence Davies’ lovingly intimate reflection on the life of poet Emily Dickinson. Beginning with the poet as a teenager (played by Emma Bell) during her brief time attending Mount Holyoke Female Seminary — where her skepticism […]
Movie Reviews
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Film review: ‘The Dinner’
Tense conversation and high-end cuisine propel the plot of “The Dinner.” Stanley (Richard Gere), a congressman in the midst of a gubernatorial campaign, and his history-scholar brother, Paul (Steve Coogan), along with their wives Claire (Laura Linney) and Kate (Rebecca Hall), meet for dinner at a chic restaurant. As course after ostentatious course is served, […]
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Film review: ‘The Circle’
We live in an increasingly interconnected world, and at this point it’s pretty clear there’s no going back (at least until the impending apocalypse occurs, then we’re all on our own). As society grows more Orwellian, it stands to reason that artists will continue to create stories that sift through exactly what the changing face […]
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Film review: ‘Tommy’s Honour’
“Tommy’s Honour” tells the story of
Tom Morris and Tommy Morris, Jr., the 19th century Scottish father-and-son duo who were undisputed pioneers of golf.
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Film review: ‘Colossal’
Everyone has issues. But in “Colossal,” one woman’s issues might be responsible for city-destroying giant monsters
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Film review: ‘Free Fire’
A black market arms deal goes south in spectacularly bloody fashion in the darkly comedic crime-thriller “Free Fire,” the latest from prolific British director Ben Wheatley. The filmmaker’s follow-up to his ambitious but flawed dystopian satire “High-Rise,” “Free Fire,” is an audacious, over-the-top genre exercise that’s somewhat scattershot in execution, but it makes for a […]
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Film review: ‘The Fate of the Furious’
What the hell, Vin Diesel? No, I’m not mad that you’ve ignored my four prior letters; I know you’re busy cranking out forgettable cash-grabs like “The Last Witch Hunter” or whatever sequel you’ve decided to beat to death. But why am I only now learning that your Dominic Toretto character is not actually of Italian […]
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Film review: ‘Gifted’
After taking a spin through the realm of mega budget superhero films with “The Amazing Spider-Man” and its sequel, director Marc Webb now helms the charming family drama “Gifted,” returning to the type of small-scale filmmaking that first brought him success. It’s not too surprising to find that the “(500) Days of Summer” director seems […]
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Film review: ‘Going in Style’
In the heist comedy “Going in Style,” Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, and Alan Arkin star as Joe, Willie, and Albert, lifelong friends who hatch a drastic, late-in-life plan to become bank robbers. The catalyst for this career change comes after the factory which employs the men suddenly decides to shift manufacturing overseas to Vietnam, leaving […]
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Film review: ‘Frantz’
A pleasantly old-fashioned melodrama, “Frantz” takes place in the immediate aftermath of World War I. The film centers around Anna (wonderful newcomer Paula Beer), a young German woman whose fiancé, Frantz, was killed in combat. She continues to live with Frantz’s parents, the Hoffmeisters, and they treat her as they would their own daughter. One […]
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Film review: ‘Raw’
The exceptionally assured feature debut of French writer-director Julia Ducournau, “Raw” is a deeply unnerving coming-of-age story and must-see viewing for iron-stomached horror fans. The film follows 16-year-old Justine (Garance Marillier), a strict vegetarian with a deep and abiding love of animals, who is on her way to her first year of veterinary school. Sweet-natured […]
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Film review: ‘Land of Mine’
When German forces ended their occupation of Denmark in the immediate aftermath of World War II, they left behind millions of landmines — planted in preparation for an Allied invasion that never came — on beaches along the west coast of the country. The removal of those explosives became a task left to German POWs, […]
