Dan Mecca

Perhaps the saddest, most effective thing about Orwell: 2+2=5 is that it all seems so obvious. The evidence, the crimes, the lies––all of it. So many of these despots lack any nuance or fortitude. Raoul Peck remains a steadfast beacon of truth. In this time when fiction is fact, we need as many of him as we can get.

Huda’s Salon recalls Hollywood mysteries from the 1940s in both its brisk pace and disarmingly simple style, resulting in a sparse, intelligent thriller.

Nothing is more subjective than comedy and this brand will surely turn many off. No matter. Those behind Greener Grass are clearly unfazed by the weirdness. They wallow in it, unabashedly. If only they kept it up for the whole one-hundred minutes.

Mutt isn’t perfect, but it is well-lived. The real-life experiences of the filmmakers bleed through the frames. One wishes for a fuller narrative (the third act peters out a bit) and a peppier pace while also acknowledging the many young people who will discover this coming-of-age narrative and relate to it in a deeply important way.

Minyan is at its best when it is observing its characters. Often the narrative turns feel a bit abrupt, even forced. The slower bits work the best.

Samberg and company are keen observers of pop culture and every facet of its insanity, doing their very best to out-size that which already feels larger than logic. They don’t always succeed, but when they do, it’s more than worth it.

All in all, it’s bracingly effective and not altogether dire.

Joy Ride is the perfect example of “less is more.” One imagines there could be a three-hour cut of these adventures, but who needs that? This feels like the best bits from the bunch, and Goldthwait is economical in his pacing.

In many respects, The Boy Who Harnessed The Wind feels like a showcase of immense talent, both in front of and behind the camera. If stories like this can continue to be told with the confidence of fresh filmmaking voices like Chiwetel Ejiofor, we will all be better for it.

If not necessarily the Craig era’s resounding victory lap some might wish, it’s still an exceptional time in a cinema, begging for the largest screen possible. More importantly, a bold, exciting gesture of good faith in 007’s path forward.

Merchant Ivory ultimately feels like a a devoted document of a group of artists who lived complicated, interesting lives. And while this film may not fully capture that complexity, there are forty films they made that get to the heart of the matter.

There is a quality to these performances and an earnestness to the filmmaking that’s more than enough to recommend.

The messy creativity on display is something to admire.

Colangelo is a strong director of actors, but Borenstein’s script lets her down a bit.

Johnston and company are aware that introducing a hero means more than showing off his suit and gadgets or building up the universe he will eventually encapsulate. Before any of that, we must care about who he/she is.

Paula Niedert Elliott is given the most to do, and she does plenty with it.

There is a clarity to every performance from start to finish, from Roberts all the way down. Yes, the thriller elements that are introduced never fully connect with the tone of the overall experience, but it’s a minuscule criticism.

On-the-nose dialogue and a less-than-effective opening in media res hamper the film a bit. Peren’s script gets in the way of her direction from time to time. The Forger‘s biggest success is its rendering of domestic life amongst wartime.

Simultaneously, Cyrano feels like something new and something old. The best of both worlds.

Despite some narrative and aesthetic reservations, there is an edge and an engagement throughout that make 892 worth a recommendation. Abi Damaris Corbin and John Boyega have done solid work in bringing Brian Brown-Easley’s tragic end to the masses.

Master is ultimately undone by its overreaching scope.

Blood Father, directed by Jean-François Richet (Mesrine, Assault on Precinct 13), works remarkably well as a grindhouse throwback, sporting a screenplay (from Peter Craig and Andrea Berloff, based on Craig’s novel) that’s better than it has any right to be.

This is spare-but-effective filmmaking.

Not unlike the man himself, it is both exciting and exhausting to watch all of this come together, and that alone is worth the journey.

Many laughs are earned in observing how much money Seal actually made and how much the government played him for a fool. And like many cautionary tales, some of the comedy hurts. Liman and Cruise know this, and the result is something well-crafted, if woefully familiar.

Carion is unabashed in his love for both the cabbie and his fare. That affection makes it easy for us to love them too.

This is a quiet, sad, lovely little film with wonderful, small character moments.

Forbes and Wolodarsky are clearly fascinated by this character and all of his sins, but not those he sinned against.

Ultimately, Cooke and company do a satisfactory job of telling an incredible story.

While most of this authenticity reads as manufactured and a bit focus-grouped, it’s hard not to like this pop star. The phrase “she means well” can band-aid any manner of sins, but here it feels like a true descriptor.

Featuring multiple lead characters, many points of view, and more twists than a Twizzler, this construct may feel convoluted in spots. Yet it is a concise, well-told piece of entertainment that’s smart enough to know being too clever can be a crutch.

Kramer and Riseborough are clearly on the same wavelength, both understanding that though the representation in Please, Baby, Please is important, it is most vital the film be entertaining. In both respects they find success.

Folk Hero & Funny Guy rises above cliché thanks to a sure-handed, thought-out script, and memorable performances.

Ayouch’s aesthetic is natural, the performances he gets from his actors true. It’s no small feat to get kids acting like kids onscreen. The musical breaks and classroom discussions are both engaging and provocative.

The tone throughout Confess, Fletch is refreshingly casual and the dialogue is usually clever. The silliest bits are some of the accents and a twisty plot. Hamm anchors all of it, as funny as he’s teased at being for the last decade or so in supporting roles.

This is a film worth discovering, ideally after immersing yourself in the underrated novel.

As written and directed by Matt Ruskin, the tragic story of Colin Warner doesn’t so much come to life on the screen as it is responsibly recalled in Crown Heights, aided by effective performances and some streamlined storytelling.

At first glance, Ric Roman Waugh’s Greenland appears to be a spiritual sequel to Geostorm. Also starring Gerard Butler, that 2017 film is a silly, diverting disaster-action epic. Greenland is decidedly more nuanced, cerebral, and, frankly, memorable.

Dreamin’ Wild is a kind film about kindness. While comforting in some respects, it lacks a certain amount of punch. Pohlad’s intentions are noble, and the talent of the Emerson brothers is clear enough. One can be happy it exists without fully embracing the film itself.

If nothing else, this movie makes the case for Jason Mantzoukas, comedic leading man. His ability to find the humor in most every moment is a true gift.

The story inside Official Secrets is one worth telling, but perhaps it would be better to read the book.

This film is so unabashedly, so unflinchingly evil that it is extremely impressive and extreme unlikeable.

Dewey is the highlight of the picture, offering both humor and pathos throughout while playing off Barrera nicely.

There’s honesty here and a swath of well-written, well-developed female characters, but not enough to justify laughing with a kidnapper.

One of the most interesting things when watching Before The Flood is noting how the tone has changed in reference to climate change in just a decade.

Ultimately, it is hard to ignore a hard-edged genre piece showcasing three great performers.

In so many ways, A Haunting in Venice feels like some sort of culmination.

One of the more fascinating elements of the documentary WTO/99, directed by Ian Bell, is that while it visually suggests a relic, the political observations feel as predictive as they are reflexive.

The tone is snug and pleasant, the frames unobtrusive and patient. In the third act, Kulcsar’s ultimate ambition reveals itself and its fittingly adventurous for a film wherein adventure is simply a vacation worth taking. If only life were that easy!

Set It Up, from its title on down, is a fresh mixture of a reliable formula.

In this digital world that allows for Kong to be as big as a building and believably so, Roberts is smart to pull out all the stops. And if some of the story and character motivation gets left in the dust, so be it.

A film like Most Wanted is a welcome one, featuring a well-told version of this all-too-common real-world narrative.

It is, above all else, a fascinating window into the personal and creative life of a queer woman constantly rebelling against the restrictive social norms of her time while trying to decipher what kind of person she is herself.

Wright the filmmaker wrings out one of Wright the actor’s career-best performances.

Despite a stacked cast and some impressive physical comedy, this film slips into ridiculousness without the laughs to back it up.

This is ultimately a picture that offers no answers. No clean resolutions. No overtly happy endings. This is a strength. Bialik is more interested in the journey to an ending, rather than the ending itself.

Velvet Buzzsaw may not be visionary, but it’s a ton of fun.

Fatale works well as an updated throwback. It’s a well-made, well-acted neo-noir absent any sort of self-seriousness or superfluous posturing. An hour-and-a-half has rarely moved faster.

Every grunt, groan, and eye-roll feels genuine and relatable.

There’s a running joke that Chris Morgan will take this franchise to space since it’s all gotten so out of hand. Honestly, if he were to take these characters there, he’d figure a way to keep us engaged and involved.

While Duplass, of course, adds plenty as the primary source of levity, Brown emerges as the standout. This is an actor who can apparently do anything.

Cooper makes the very smart decision to tap into the legend of Bruce while keeping things small and grounded. While viewers get some hits, focus remains on character.

Fight or Flight‘s enjoyment will rest on where you stand with Hartnett, his character, and his comedy.

The fourth-wall breaks grow a bit tiresome and its final scene fails to build on the intensity of what comes just before, but leading turns and the topical setting prove memorable. How much you would like to be reminded of our current state of affairs is, of course, up to each and every viewer.

Armed with two top-notch leads and a compelling premise, Joshua Marston‘s third feature, Complete Unknown, spends a lot of time hinting at which direction it will go, without going anywhere at all.

Frankly, one wishes The Glorias was a bit more radical in its presentation. As it stands, the film gets the job done.

Connolly continues to grow as a filmmaker, as evidenced in his last three pictures (The Dry, Blueback, and Force of Nature: The Dry 2), all starring Bana. While The Dry may hold greater dramatic weight, Force of Nature is a more complicated affair. More red herrings, more technical proficiency.

The beats are familiar, recalling many a teen movie past, but the themes resonate for today’s youth and they resonate clearly.

There’s a lot to admire here, even it all of it doesn’t work.

High & Low: John Galliano feels like half a movie––plenty of questions, no answers. It’s the beginning of an intriguing conversation and not much else.

For the first half of the picture, Bettany’s soft, contemplative performance investigates Frank’s self-hatred with such beauty that the re-introduction of the rest of the family feels like a detriment, despite the talent of the cast.

One hopes this is a smaller film that benefits from this moment. Many are staying in and staying safe, looking for art that will comfort them like a warm blanket. Look no further than The High Note.

Becoming a parent means living for another life as much as––if not more than––your own. There’s nothing straightforward about it. At times, this film is a bit too straightforward.

Ezra is a flawed, earnest, often-unflinching look at a family doing their best.

The only bond built is the one between Perry and Dima, two characters who are little more than pawns in the game. It’s exciting enough watching them try to negotiate their situation, but it’d be more intriguing if we knew more about the people making the decisions.

At its core, The Wall serves as a well-made, engaging war-time thriller that showcases Liman’s abilities as a top-notch storyteller, no matter the shape or size of the story being told.

At under two hours, however, the pulpy entertainment is welcome, including a bevy of twists that recall the recent (and slightly better) Den of Thieves.

There are few things better than when a good idea blossoms into a great movie. It’s What’s Inside, written and directed by Greg Jardin, achieves this rare feat.

At its least, this film is a moderately engaging submarine thriller. At its most, this film serves as a pertinent reminder of the dangers of a government embroiled in bullshit, misguidedly confident in its own presumed greatness.

What one will remember from The Falling Star are small things. The way characters get into cars or attempt to fall asleep. The way they pour beer or run from gunfire. For this writer, the small things do not add up to quite enough. Yet when it’s funny, it is really funny.

This is a classical director, someone who clearly enjoys bringing the past to life. With The Boys in the Boat, he found the right book and the right actors in Turner and Edgerton.

There are plenty of characters and there is plenty of New York City in writer/director Dustin Guy Defa‘s Person To Person, but the whole thing meanders all over without ever really settling somewhere that matters.

Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk, proves both messy and inspiring.

Krasinski appears to know exactly the kind of movie he’s making, elevating familiar material to a level that feels real and bittersweet.

From start to finish, Christian Ditter‘s How To Be Single struggles to be both a forward-thinking comedy about women dating in the modern world and a reliably generic romantic comedy that will satisfy those looking for cinematic comfort food.

For every moment that feels overly self-serious, there are two that promise this thing’s some kind of pop-schlock classic.

Clarke has been angling at legit leading lady status ever since she got called Khaleesi, to varying degrees of success. Last Christmas feels like the young actress is in full form. Forget the perceived genre limitations, this is a good performance. Her Kate is cutting, manipulative, charming, broken and funny. All at once! She’s fully human, a refreshing departure from some of her recent roles.

While the structure is fairly standard and its overall aesthetic sometimes appears limited by scope, The Laureate is a solid, heady account of a particularly tumultuous time in the life of poet Robert Graves.

Offering plenty left to discuss and ponder by the film’s end, this is a haunted house thriller with a good deal on its mind.

Where Spy succeeds the most is in the first half. Rudd is top-notch, playing Berg as a tragic sort jailed in his own mind, internally fighting and assimilating to a world that cannot accept him.

There’s a whole lot going on throughout Live by Night. Somewhere in there is a crime film worthy of its intention.

Ultimately, the whole point of the picture comes down to the tune “This Is Me.” The crux of the song, led by the impressive Keala Settle, is to be comfortable in your own skin no matter what the masses may say. It’s hard to fight against this kind of positivity, as delivered by these kind faces and kind songs. The Greatest Showman, despite its flaws, is a winning piece of work.

Taylor’s unremarkable thriller is not one that demands to be seen in theaters, but will undoubtedly be seen and enjoyed in that rainy Sunday afternoon kind of way. There’s some comfort in that.

Ultimately, it’s the upbeat energy from Sanders’ direction that keeps the engine going. The Call of the Wild is a welcome adventure for a cold winter’s night.

There has always been a lack of logic to these movies, but all pretense slips away here.

The tone is playful, to be sure, but it’s hard to see past the collateral damage. Blame it on the times. Make no mistake, all of this could be forgiven if The Hitman’s Bodyguard had enough laughs. It does not.

Glitter & Doom feels like a beautiful, energetic half-measure.

Ultimately, the whole is not as great as the sum of some very effective scenes.