Mae Abdulbaki

Despite being all over the place, Antlers can be gripping and potently disconcerting, with good character development making up for its pitfalls.

Slow and frustrating, with a finale that is unearned, Red Rocket fluctuates between trying to say something and getting lost in its own premise.

Nuanced, thoughtful, and deeply effective, Gyllenhaal’s movie is assuredly executed, uplifted by a strong, striking performance by Olivia Colman.

Heavy-handed and unnecessarily long, Spencer explores Diana as a prisoner of the royal family in heart-wrenching and beautifully haunting fashion.

Campion’s film is gorgeously crafted and detailed, emotionally effective, and layered in shades of meaning about masculinity. Mesmerizing in every way, The Power of the Dog is a triumph.

Bolstered by a solid performance by Will Smith, King Richard is a feel-good, charming sports biopic that uplifts but never reaches its full potential.

Ambitious, occasionally thrilling, and visually striking, Dune is mostly set up, building out a heartless world that never truly feels complete.

Madres is extremely fragmented and painfully subpar, wasting a chance to tell an intriguing, nuanced story that is still an issue in the present.

While Needle in a Timestack aims to be profound, it loses itself within the sci-fi premise rather than exploring the central romance in any detail.

A tale of power and misogyny masquerading as honor, the film is engaging and occasionally funny, embracing its themes despite a narrative imbalance.

From a horror perspective, the film is lacking, but it more than makes up for it with well developed characters and a killer who preys on secrets.

When its focus is on Agatha Rousselle’s Alexia and the lack of control she has over her own body, Titane digs a bit deeper. However, the film’s true weakness is in its inability to explore Alexia as a person, keeping things vague while centering the extreme body horror aspects.

The film, directed by Peter Bebjak from a screenplay he co-wrote with Jozef Pastéka and Tomás Bombík, is urgent, effective, and also deeply painful.

Daniel Craig’s fifth and final outing as Bond is replete with fantastic action sequences and an emotional center despite the final act being shaky.

Heartwarming, elegant, and often profound in its exploration of loneliness and human connection, I’m Your Man is exquisitely charming and smart.

Dear Evan Hansen might be well-meaning, but it completely misses the mark. It’s not the worst movie out this year, but it’s not a musical one might be inclined to rush to the theater to see, either.

While the first half of the film struggles, the second half deftly explores the character dynamics in a tender way that makes it well worth the watch.

The Electrical Life of Louis Wain is so utterly charming and buoyant that it makes even the frustrating aspects of the film forgivable.

While the drama gets the wind knocked out of its sails after introducing other characters, Encounter gets in plenty of emotional, nuanced scenes between Malik and his sons that become the beating heart of this often unsettling, uneven, yet strangely mesmerizing film.

While its performances are lovely and tender, with the execution somewhat messy in its handling of themes, All My Puny Sorrows doesn’t dig past the surface enough to make a strong enough case for itself.

What could have been a thoughtful, poignant story about loss ended up being an unfortunate misfire.

Petite Maman is the kind of film that lays itself bare without ever being over-the-top, shaping itself into a story that lingers in one’s memory for a while after it’s over.

While Small Engine Repair’s message is clear, it doesn’t completely take off and is fragmented in its pacing, with a twisted turn that doesn't land.

Vacation Friends finds its humor in the disconcerting scenarios the characters find themselves in, but it never evolves past its empty premise.

Unfortunately, Cinderella lacks the specificity of Ever After and doesn’t commit to the full fantasy of Brandy’s Cinderella, either, nor does it have the charisma of Ella Enchanted.

While introducing a few arcs it doesn’t fully explore, Candyman is replete with haunting imagery, disconcerting horror, and thought-provoking themes.

Uplifted by an incredible central performance by Hall, The Night House twists and turns, weaving terrifying visuals and jump-scares with thought-provoking and emotional story beats. The result makes for one of the best horror-thrillers of the year.

Resort to Love doesn’t do anything unexpected or exciting and, despite its overly saccharine silliness, it is entertaining enough to watch in passing.