What makes the film more than just a starstruck string of great stories is that it also gets at the loss and longing in Gordon's life.

Lucy is insane, makes very little sense, doesn't stand up to scrutiny and is an absolute blast.

The Bob’s Burgers Movie is good. At times it’s really good, with a lot of the charm and humor that makes the show so great.

We don’t need to continually revisit every horror movie ever made. How many versions of “Friday the 13th” are we up to? Too many. But the best thing about this is that Candyman is not just another sequel. More like a revelation.

Mulloy’s only other directing credit is for the documentary short “This Morning.” She brings a documentarian’s objective eye to Una Noche, yet the actors — non-professionals — convey exactly the emotions she is looking for.

Logan is a serious take on the comic-book genre, the Marvel Cinematic Universe in particular, and it’s a good one. Not a great one, though, which it might've been if it hadn’t gotten in its own way, overdoing it with its R-rated freedoms.

It’s experimental in the best way; Estrada takes chances, and not every segment works. But pieced together they tell a full and rich tale of a city and the people who live there, and the diversity of their stories.

Terribly Happy must surely be the greatest Danish Western ever made.

A delicious trifle for anyone who has ever dreamt of bantering about the cinema with Luis Buñuel or lounging at the piano to hear Cole Porter sing "Let's Do It."

The brutally sparse documentary Rich Hill removes poverty from the realm of the abstract and makes it personal.

It's a surprisingly moving film. While the fight scenes are unquestionably thrilling, the movie's best bits are not about winning and losing but about pain and, ultimately, forgiveness.

It is a sweet, gentle, at times beautiful movie that does not gloss over the ugliness Steele, a transgender woman, references.

He's often called the Yiddish Mark Twain; supposedly Twain, upon hearing this, said to tell Aleichem that Twain was the American Sholem Aleichem.

One reason the movie works so well: Writer-director Malcolm D. Lee returns from the original, so the characters feel true to the first film. Secondly, most of the cast is back, and they have the kind of comfortable chemistry you can’t fake. It’s easy to believe these people have a history together.

Denis (“Beau Travail,” “35 Shots of Rum”) is a very particular filmmaker, forcing you to adjust to her rhythms. Never is that more apparent than the last scene, which goes on for a quarter of the film or more, right through the end credits and beyond.

How do you make an age-old tale that’s been told many times before feel fresh and invigorating? Hire Peter Dinklage, for starters. He makes Joe Wright’s pandemic project “Cyrano” come alive with a performance heartening and heartbreaking. Wright’s penchant for elaborate, over-the-top set pieces helps, too.

It's an engaging, accessible documentary that explores the (truly) eternal questions, "Does hell exist? If so, who ends up there, and why?"

In an age in which celebrity gossip and page views trump all, hearing two masters talk intelligently about movies and how they’re made is, if nothing else, a welcome treat.

Javier Mariscal and Fernando Trueba’s film is a lot of things, almost all of them good. It’s a vibrant, colorful, animated movie. It’s a serious documentary about political oppression and violence. It’s a loving exploration of Brazilian bossa nova. The soundtrack is incredible.

Greenwood is fantastic; his Meek occasionally lets down his facade of omniscience - but only occasionally. And Williams gives Emily not dignity exactly, but a calm, steely insistence on survival.

Night Moves is an unexpected pleasure, offering more than what we expect and taking its time to deliver.

Herzog’s longing for the ideological purity in which these lives are lived, free of paperwork and bureaucracy, taxes and technology, drives the film, which lacks an overall story arc. And that longing makes the title’s veracity a little suspect.

If you want pinpoint accuracy, watch a documentary. If you want to see top-notch actors inhabit characters in genuine and ultimately moving ways, The Duke is a much better option.

At 2 hours and 17 minutes, the film is a little bloated, though the expansiveness and inventiveness of the filmmaking make that sound like complaining about too much dessert.

Ordinary Love is not a movie solely about cancer. It is a raw, on-screen adaptation of what hundreds of couples experience when their limits are tested — physically, mentally and romantically. This film, like the love these couples have for one another, will stand the test the time.

Weird” is one word for it, and it certainly applies. But so does “creative,” “inventive,” “compelling” and, finally, “good.” Dave Made a Maze is all of those things, a one-of-a-kind movie from director and co-writer Bill Watterson.

Minions: The Rise of Gru is the perfect movie if you’ve been needing a moment to just laugh, no matter what age you are. Yes, it is an animated film that will appeal to kids for sure, but it's written with adults in mind, too.

One reason it works so well: The film always looks believable, and it’s easy to get wrapped into Singer’s fairy-tale world.

John Wick: Chapter 4 is not a great piece of cinema, exactly, but it delivers on what it promises, time and again.

Hill isn’t offering a sociological treatise. Mid90s is all about lived experience. It’s about a place and a time and offers little inkling of its characters’ futures.

[Washington's is] a tremendous performance. It's when he is on-screen (most of the time) that Zemeckis' film really, if you'll excuse the expression, takes flight.

The film is quiet, patient, allowing for lived-in performances that get at the enormous change in the characters' lives.

There are laughs aplenty, some disgusting, some rather sweet, some both at the same time.

What elevates this sequel are stakes.

Things go from far-fetched to insane before it's over, and Vaughn wisely keeps the pace at a healthy clip. But never underestimate his power to floor you.

A delicately balanced, mature drama, What They Had portrays a family devastated by Alzheimer’s with accuracy, empathy and respect, capturing both the heartache and unexpected tenderness of caring for a loved one coming slowly undone and the familial bonds that are tested and forged in the process.

To call Armstrong’s story a tragedy is probably an overblown notion. But it does involve sadness, not just with its depiction of a fallen idol, but with the necessary acknowledgment that some of our own hopes and dreams fell alongside him.

To watch Cage ride this rollercoaster of popular culture is a pure delight. It’s also agonizing and will make you squirm.

Sweeney stepping outside her popular roles as a rude, blonde teenager in "White Lotus" and "Euphoria" shows just how dynamic she is as an actress. Her range is the highlight of this film, which occasionally fell short when diving into more serious themes and dragged a bit in the middle. That said, "Christy" is worth watching, if only to see an almost unrecognizable Sweeney flex her acting muscles.

Nebraska is as cold and unforgiving as its setting, yet just as stunning.

A compulsively watchable look at Rivers.

This “Mamma Mia” takes a lot of the original’s qualities and then amplifies them to the nth degree. It’s bigger and crazier, and the emotions actually seem to run a bit deeper at times.

Terri is almost an anti-teen-coming-of-age teen-coming-of-age movie. And it's terrific.

Director Marielle Heller delivers a solid movie with fantastic acting, creativity and engagement.

The cultural specificity and fiercely patriarchal setting sets Mustang apart. It’s a timely reminder that, even still, there are few safe havens in the world for a free spirit.

It’s a messy story, but with Mann’s structural rigor imposed upon it. That is a powerful combination, and one that makes “Ferrari” a bizarrely compelling entry in the Mann canon.

Never miss a chance to see Helen Mirren. You certainly could do worse as far as movie advice goes. Mirren may not be the only reason to see The Last Station, about the final year of Leo Tolstoy's long, eventful life, but she's the best reason.

Rarely do you find a Gen Z movie that doesn’t make the group seem so insufferable. This film shows the struggle of modern dating during this time, at this age.

Shot in verite style with handheld cameras and rule-breaking quick cuts, Cahill's film moves slowly between moments of heartache and quiet beauty.

All are good, Damon in particular, but there are so many of them we don't see anyone for very long at one stretch. And all are given at least some bad material to work with before the movie is over. For the most part, they make the best of it.

Especially rewarding about Oduye's performance is how she's able to portray that frustration while retaining hope and optimism.

Thanks to a particularly even-handed job by director Michael Rapaport, the story emerges as compelling, even for non-fans in the audience.

It’s a Fellini-esque carnival of humanity on display, a more debauched phantasmagoria reminiscent of “La Dolce Vita.” But “La Dolce Vita” created the paparazzi; The Great Beauty takes place in a world where the paparazzi have existed for decades.

This is one of those little movies that stays with you, the announcement of an original voice worth watching. It’s a quirky, magical delight.

Monkey Kingdom is a delightful gambol, visually stunning and educational without feeling like it, with a propulsive drama about escaping one's lowly social class at its core that inspires reflection on some uncomfortable truths about ourselves.

The film is cute and funny, but it’s also action-packed and much more thrilling than you might expect from a Disney movie, with the same heartwarming lessons you would expect. It's a gem in Disney's new catalog.

If it is not as urgent as the first film, this is still an excellent companion piece. Together, the movies paint a complete picture of the physicality and mentality of war, and it is riveting.

Yes, “Popstar” is dumb, dirty fun. So what’s not to like?

You don't have to love Bruce Springsteen with the all-consuming passion of Sarfraz Manzoor, the U.K. journalist whose memoir was adapted for the screenplay of Blinded By the Light, to find the film both deeply moving and utterly charming.

Surprisingly entertaining, probably because it uses Wall Street shenanigans and schadenfreude as the backdrop to a crime drama.

OK, maybe they cut a couple seconds out of that scene where Deadpool gets ripped in half, but the movie's sardonically gruesome sensibility remains intact.

Mark Ruffalo, in just the right amount of stubble, grease and leather, plays Paul, about as cool an instant dad as a SoCal kid named Laser could hope for.

The film deftly weaves news and interview clips from Wallace's half-century on TV with the times he himself answered questions as tough as those he asked, fleshing out one of the country's last formidable journalists.

It’s creepy as all get out and features a great performance from Nina Kiri, on-screen alone for most of the film, as a podcast host who has moved back to her childhood home to take care of her dying mother (Michèle Duquet). Things get weird.

In an algorithm-driven world in which every decision is made based on numbers, prediction markets or a desperate attempt to be all things to all people (especially the people not buying your product), hooray for this weird little movie that refuses to play that game. If it can’t always figure out quite what it wants to be, it’s all the better for it.

It delivers its considerable moments of terror in the same way the original film did. But it does deliver.

Although Jonah Hill has been sweetly, profanely funny in such films as "Superbad" and "Get Him to the Greek," in Cyrus he's a revelation.

It’s all quite intricate and entertaining and terrific to look at. The “Fantastic” of the title might be stretching things a bit, but it doesn’t miss the mark by much. Better still, it makes you look forward to, and not dread, the next installment — and that’s real magic.

What's breathtaking here is the scope of greed, corruption, arrogance and above all cynicism on display, not just regarding the system of government but the people it ostensibly serves.

It's just a good yarn, well told. So don't be deterred by the title (it sounds like a lame horror movie) or the description.

A thick film of sleaze coats every frame of Nightcrawler, a movie that takes a hard look at media culture and provides Jake Gyllenhaal a terrific opportunity to creep us all out.

We get a sharp look at getting older, growing up and assuming responsibility. The fedora is optional (and not recommended).

The scares here are in the execution, aided by the acting. Bello is, like always, terrific, adding layers to what seems at first like the stereotypical mentally-ill movie character. She's fighting for something. Palmer, too, adds grit to her would-be iconoclast.

It's a somewhat formulaic romp, but it's an utterly winning one.

Beetlejuice Beetlejuice relies on your familiarity with and memory of those performances. It’s a fun journey down memory lane. It won’t take you anywhere new, particularly, but let’s face it, that’s not why most people will take the trip.

There are shortcomings in this film, and most of them are Wenders’ responsibility. But there is also inspiration here, if you’re willing to look for it.

The film ricochets between Tammy being an oblivious cartoon goblin and a textured, sympathetic human being who just wants to be loved. Perhaps if the film had catered a little less to McCarthy's comedic gifts — the curse-word fugue states, the slapstick humor, the non sequiturs — the end result would have felt more balanced and rewarding.

As cinema, Crime After Crime is nothing special. It would be perfect for a PBS "Frontline" entry. But it reminds us, once again, that little can be quite so riveting as a well-told story from a compelling talking head.

The film is less effective, and less focused, when it switches into activism mode. Not that its heart isn't in the right place — we all know about the appalling state of institutionalized elder care. Which is the problem with those segments: We all know this already, and the filmmaking feels like perfunctory, necessary padding.

Personal Shopper draws you in, interesting from all angles.

The movie isn’t particularly hard to figure out and doesn’t try to be. Its charms lie more in what the actors make of characters that could have been cliches (or, if you’re in a kinder mood, archetypes) and its gorgeous look.

It's mindless entertainment with enough thrills and chuckles to make the time pass painlessly. Just don't examine anything too closely.

The voices are outstanding; the story demands British accents, and with such people as Caine and Smith providing them, so much the better.

Scream is a confident movie that begs you to compare it to the other sequels in the slasher franchise, even daring you to mention it in the same breath as the original. Good. It should. Because it’s even better than the original “Scream,” which came out in 1996. Until the end.

You'll admire it and maybe even be astonished by its twisty nature, but that very twistiness can also feel more like a filmmaker showing off rather than something that emotionally engages a viewer.

Prophet’s Prey isn’t definitive, but it is compelling and occasionally even cinematic.

It’s a withering satire and a horror movie. Maddin, working with co-directors Galen and Evan Johnson, makes a good point, and he makes it over and over. But he makes it with his trademark absurdist humor, and the cast is so talented that it takes what are intentional stereotypes and runs with them.

The Danish Girl is beautifully shot and tastefully made and acted, but only Vikander seems willing to take chances. Happily, she does.

The performances are terrific, and when it’s on its game, which is often, Straight Outta Compton is an explosive look at the creation of a message that had to be delivered by the only people who could deliver it, a message that is, unfortunately, as timely now as when we first heard it.

Superfans of the entire Marvel universe will find this film filled with top-notch comedy and action, Easter eggs, cameos that left the audience gasping and cheering, a lot of meta jokes and digs at 20th Century Fox...It's the perfect way to wrap up the "Deadpool" franchise for good.

Although it won’t win any points for originality, it is a fast-moving little chiller filled with creepy atmosphere and convincing performances.

The Founder, John Lee Hancock’s film about Ray Kroc, is kind of a mess, which makes it perfect for the current political climate.

The Invisible Man is a thrilling movie. If nothing else, it will make you question if that feeling you get of being watched is just in your head, or if there really is somebody else in the room.

If you like your summer-movie explosions huge, Man of Steel delivers. But it seems as if it might have delivered even more than a glorious noise.

Bacon can play just about anything, and he’s having a good time here as a guy not quite smart enough to keep himself out of trouble, but wily enough to try to dig himself out of it. It’s fun to watch.

A great soundtrack can go a long way in smoothing over a decent movie’s rough patches, and Northern Soul’s is fantastic.

Too often in this long, long slog of Marvel movies, we are expected to have an advanced degree in Marvel-ology to understand even the trailer for a twice-removed TV offshoot. Until the very end, Thunderbolts* is free of this intellectual-property tyranny, content to carve its own funky little way.

The Runaways broke new ground. And if "The Runaways" doesn't, it's still a movie worth watching - and listening to.