Jordan Ruimy

As striking as some of these performances are, 6 Balloons is not without its problems. At a barebones 74 minute running time that doesn’t dive into the emotional texture as much as it could, 6 Balloons at times, feels slight.

The story is a simple one, and sometimes it might feel a little too slight for it own good, but Paulson carries it all the way through with bravado acting.

The film is easy to admire, but lacks the kinds of scenes necessary to truly make a emotional connection.

It’s an uneven film, but a deeply passionate one that also features an A-list actress at the top of her game.

It helps that the chemistry between Lister-Jones and Pally works, but one does wonder if another pass at the script would have elevated the film for one to care more about what’s at stake.

Talking head interviews from his victims, business and works partners, and friends mesh together with archival photos, videos, and audio recordings of Weinstein for a compulsively watchable, yet not definitive, look at the man whose predatory behavior spearheaded the #MeToo movement.

There seems to be something missing; his life was an enigmatic puzzle and Strong hasn’t found all the pieces. It doesn’t help that his visual style is flat and the narrative is conventional enough.

The simplicity of the film is commendable, but it’s only in the last act where things finally come together and any kind of visceral thrills arrive far too late. Even Mikkelson’s on-screen talents can’t save an admirable yet stagnant film in dire need of a heartbeat.

If George set his sights on capturing the effects of this tragic stain in history rather than love-making, we might have gotten a drama worthy of the talent involved.

The first hour is overwhelmingly exciting as Levinson uses split screens and more stylistic techniques to make his story pop. The dialogue is also delivered in impressively natural fashion, with the leading quartet discussing subjects that capture the zeitgeist. However, the ultra-violent finale goes over the top, lacking the pizzaz and inventiveness of the film’s earlier stages.

It might not be as risk-taking as previous Shainberg gems, but his knack for expertly crafted drama remains.

It’s a real shame that Walsh decides to concentrate a big chunk of her movie on the stilted love affair between Everett and Maud, in a relationship that starts aggressively intriguing, but becomes the definition of saccharine by its climax.

Ultimately, the lack of risk-taking not only makes for a pedantic experience but ironically serves Tubman very poorly, never allowing for Erivo’s performance or the spirit of the subject to ever feel truly free.

Deepwater Horizon reminds us just how talented an action director Berg is and how often substance becomes a second thought for the director.

The potential of this movie’s premise might have been squandered by cliches, but McBride and DeWitt keep it watchable.

If the first half is an indelible treat and gives one high hopes that a film delicately placed in the awards season will in fact meet its steep expectations, the second half is troublesome and falls flat.

The film is a trifle, albeit one spiked with mirth and malice.

The fact that you do care about their being together means Abu-Assad and company have succeeded, at the most basic level, what they set out to achieve.

Even as an homage The Hole in the Ground feels like business as usual rather imbuing the genre with a much-needed modern edge or new context.

Despite this disappointing effort, Diao continues to impress with the clever use of his camera. Now, one just wishes he could find the substance to pull all this style together in a winning fashion.

Branagh—the actor—dominates the film, with everyone else in supporting roles. Meanwhile Branagh—the director—relies on a too-colorful style and atmosphere, shooting himself in the foot by cutting short the darkness that loomed in Christie’s original vision.

All four actors are perfectly fine here, but the set-up is predictably conventional.

What keeps Burden captivating are the performances, especially from Riseborough, Whitaker and Wilkinson, consummate pros that give their characters flesh and blood dimension.

Newness attempts to be a prescient look at modern passion, but it ends up recycling the same old tired clichés that invade most sappy cinematic love stories.

The meaningful topics of female sexual expression, repression, and desire for acceptance that “To the Stars” portrays are relevant, but it’s a shame they’re not more poignant and persuasive.

Mandler’s background before shooting his narrative feature debut was in music videos and commercials, but the ADD-style filmmaking he uses for Monster suggests he’s not ready to fully command a two-hour movie.

The struggles that Chris and Carol are put through may be brought to life with an authentic touch by Shelton, but they are explored with much complexity in better, more substance-filled endeavors.

Embers attempts to be a complicated dissection of a possible world not too far ahead of us, but it lacks the imagination to make us soar along with its vision.