David Lewis

Though the ambitious Outlaw King doesn’t always fire on all cylinders, moviegoers deserve this chance to see it on the big screen, before it starts showing on a laptop near you.

In a film that should be dripping with drama, there is surprisingly little tension.

This is a film that wears its anti-tech bent like an old James Bond wristwatch.

This is one of those rare films nowadays that might have been helped with a few extra minutes. Yet at the same time, that’s a clear sign that Hill has created a world and a set of characters that have kept us engaged throughout.

A character study hiding in cowboys’ clothing — and even if its pacing could use a little more giddy-up, it delivers an inspired ending that makes the brothers’ longish journey worthwhile.

Assassination Nation won’t get any points for narrative cohesion or character development, but it’s a timely, visually arresting statement about how pandemonium in this country threatens to become the new norm.

The rambling Life Itself is a multigenerational drama about the messiness of life, but the emotional impact of the movie gets lost in the messiness of its screenplay. And though there is not one subpar acting performance, the film itself comes off as an exercise in self-consciousness.

Throughout the film, we always feel ahead — way ahead — of the narrator, even if the movie does contain a certain sense of dread for Trump detractors, as the inevitability of the election draws closer.

A bit icky yet full of charm, the engaging documentary Rodents of Unusual Size introduces us to the nutria, a furry antihero that’s a cross between a huge rat and a beaver — and that has been damaging Louisiana’s delicate wetlands for decades. The film serves as both an environmental cautionary tale for other states (including California) and an interesting slice of Cajun life.

The Nun is certainly not a terrible horror movie – the production values are stellar, and there is a decent backstory about the abbey. But the film won’t be remembered as one of the top entries in the expanding canon of the Conjuring Universe.

Even if the proceedings sometime feel like a travelogue, the reconstructions of Gabriel’s last days alive, down to the exact locations and personal interactions, leave a strong impression.

Kin is not a snoozer, at least, and the Baker brothers are certainly not untalented, but their genre-mashing experiment doesn’t work on any emotional level.

Even if it’s a film that will challenge any viewer, it benefits from a strong premise, a story line that more or less holds up, and three knockout performances. Rarely has the acting process been explored in such a cinematically provocative way.

This is a clever comedy about working-class women, and a sly, entertaining commentary on the insidious effects of gender inequality.

From time to time, there are the requisite cutesy boy-and-his-wolf moments, but for the most part, the film is harrowing, suspenseful and gritty — and a perfect vehicle for impressive 3-D effects that bring to life an exquisitely beautiful but unforgiving land.

Clearly, this is not a film for everyone, but even though the routine gets highly repetitious, some of the heavy metal numbers are stirring.

Fortunately, some of the people around Cameron turn out to be more interesting. The best in show is John Gallagher Jr., who brings out both the creepy and comforting sides of “ex-gay” instructor Rick — a seemingly nice guy who’s oblivious to the harm that he’s inflicting on his charges.

Dogs are notorious scene-stealers in the movies, but in the sappy yet mildly entertaining Dog Days, the humans mug just as shamelessly as their impossibly cute canine counterparts.

This is a fascinating portrait of an artist.

It’s never easy to translate visually the inner turmoil of a struggling artist, and “Gauguin” is a prime example of that.

At the end of the day, it's all just a nihilistic trifle, yet before the final sign-off, we can't help but think twice about what else is lurking on the internet.

A thinking person’s action movie - as long as you don’t think too much. Even if it has its share of preposterous moments, it crackles with nonstop tension, combat scenes and double-crosses.

Director Ben Lewin has crafted a biopic spy thriller, kind of, but the script has neither the character shadings to be a biopic nor the pacing and twist and turns to be a spy thriller.

This is a film that would never work without brilliant casting of the child actors, and it’s a marvel to watch the interplay between the young girls, who don’t deliver a false note.

Hypnotic and intense throughout, the brilliantly executed Hereditary taps into the ghosts within all of us — the insidious roots of family dysfunction — and turn them upside down and all around. It’s an audacious supernatural thriller where the psychological fallout is just as disturbing as the apparitions that come chillingly to life.

Turns it into a 90-minute infomercial, with nary a revelation in sight.

Regardless of how one might feel about its inherently icky subject matter, Dark Crimes needs more narrative momentum. The cast is game, the production design is impressive and a few surprises await — but even as things heat up, the film somehow remains cold.

Even if it has B-movie trappings and the tension wanes in the second half, it’s a stylish psychodrama.