In spite of the adult material, it’s a genuinely affecting underdog story, and a rallying cry to anyone who has ever dreamed big. Most of all, Dolemite is a heartfelt tribute to a genuine auteur who spent his life spreading laughter and joy, and who made movie magic by always staying true to himself.

While it doesn’t hit the dizzying heights of The Witch, Robert Eggers' new film is a powerful psychological thriller.

It’s a heartbreaking tale of why the haves and have-nots will stay that way, crafted by a virtuoso director at the very top of his game.

Personable, emotional, and packed with humor, this film – and the spirit of Rogers – holds on to your heart and refuses to let go.

With a nuanced script, standout performances, and the adrenaline of a well-executed heist, Hustlers is an entertaining ride with something meaningful to say about power and control.

Theo is an engaging character – for the most part well played – and his journey is both entertaining and heartbreaking. Meaning much like the painting at the centre of this tale, Theo’s story both survives, and endures. despite the fragmented film’s shortcomings.

A great cast including Henry Cavill and Ben Kingsley is wasted in the predictable serial killer thriller Night Hunter.

There are still plenty of scares and things to enjoy in It Chapter Two even though it can't quite stick the landing.

Featuring a riveting, fully realized, and Oscar-worthy performance by Joaquin Phoenix, Joker would work just as well as an engrossing character study without any of its DC Comics trappings; that it just so happens to be a brilliant Batman-universe movie is icing on the Batfan cake. You will likely leave Joker feeling like I did: unsettled and ready to debate the film for years to come.

This is an entertaining game of tension and gore with a strong funny bone, all in a well-wrapped package clearly designed with surprising thought and artistic effort with a star-making performance for Samara Weaving.

Angel Has Fallen never quite digs deep enough into its themes and is inconsistent in its execution of action sequences.

The whole is less than the sum of its parts, but those parts just about make the grade.

Good Boys somehow manages to balance its risqué, scatological impulses with a surprisingly sweet, resonant coming-of-age tale.

While it may be light on logic and effects, it’s still a lovely story about being yourself, no matter what anyone thinks.

The Kitchen has a good cast and strong premise, but it never quite finds its footing and falls into gangster cliches.

The fun and frightful Scary Stories to Tell in The Dark will introduce a new generation to the joy of being scared.

Though it’s too long, and not every action scene or comedy bit works, Dwayne Johnson, Jason Statham, and terrific rising star Vanessa Kirby ensure that there’s fun to be had in a Fast & the Furious movie not centered around cars or racing.

The respective performances of DiCaprio and Pitt and the film’s meticulous attention to period detail are all great and keep you invested in where this cruise around Tinseltown will ultimately take you.

Point Blank's production bones are solid and the action itself is clear and capable, but the story is woefully past its expiration date and the attempt to tether it back to the types of "action movies we grew up with" falls flat.

Crawl is a fun albeit familiar human vs. beast movie, one that gets plenty of mileage out of its setting and people’s deep-set fear of being eaten.

Director Jon Favreau's The Lion King is a worthwhile reimagining that relies on nostalgia over risk-taking.

One of the most original films of the year so far, The Art of Self-Defense is a searing critique of male violence, and the notion of power at large, told through a traditional kung fu flick set in present day America. Dryly funny, the film also carries a wisdom that makes Riley Stearns a talent to watch.

Stuber is an awkward, uneven action-comedy that never realizes its full potential. It squanders a good premise and an odd couple pairing with potential that could have delivered something special.

Spider-Man: Far From Home is great fun, filled with heart, humor and lots of cool stuff for fans to geek out over.

Annabelle Comes Home offers more humor in addition to the supernatural terror the Conjuring franchise is known for.

Despite a problematic ending, Midsommar is an emotionally harrowing and slowly insidious journey, languidly forcing dread on the viewer, wrapping them in a weird nightmare summer camp of sunlight and cheer.

Child's Play is a passable but plain remake that's saved by a blisteringly bonkers third act.

Sandler and Aniston's chemistry elevates a breezy, bumpy overseas caper.

Pixar Animation delivers another hilarious yet also deeply moving chapter in their blockbuster franchise.

Tim Story takes a classic movie franchise and drains it of all the action, sex and topicality that made it worth revisiting in the first place. Jackson, Roundtree and Usher have star power to spare but they’re asked to perform embarrassing and ignorant comedy routines, and the action is so unremarkable that the movie can’t even rely on that spectacle to compensate.

MiB: International tries to invoke the original, but fails to match its key achievements: it isn’t funny or exciting.

Netflix's I Am Mother is an engaging sci-fi thriller-meets-coming of age drama, with three strong lead performances.

he Secret Life of Pets 2 is a fast-paced string of mostly mediocre jokes that younger audiences will enjoy, but aside from a few centerpieces, there's not much here to capture the attention if you're older than the intended audience.

Framing John DeLorean deftly tells the bigger-than-life tale of one man’s bold quest to build a timeless sports car.

Dark Phoenix is ultimately yet another fumbled take on the classic saga from the Marvel Comics, albeit one without the side plots of The Last Stand. Add to it a jarringly uneven latter half and some underdeveloped cosmic villains, and Dark Phoenix is fortunate to have not fully ended the X-Men’s current big screen run on a completely down note.

There’s plenty to giggle at throughout, and even a few moments that might just give you goosebumps. Those qualities alone, despite the film’s flaws, make Ma an almost endlessly entertaining watch.

A fun exercise in giant monster madness that indulges in all the kaiju fights fans and even casual viewers could hope for. It looks amazing while also giving its human characters a chance to stay interesting amid all the battling beasties by providing them with some really cool tech -- and some great one-liners among the supporting players. Unfortunately, the film’s plot is needlessly confusing, and not all that smart at times, and the lead characters could’ve used a little more fleshing out.

Rocketman is an unforgettable, emotional experience that raises the bar for biopics.

If you like weird, boundary-pushing, and unexpected movies that divide audiences you'll probably love The Perfection.

Brightburn doesn't take its satire to any kind of satisfying extreme – although a mid-credits stinger does include a larger joke at work – but as a superhero murder thriller, it is perfectly entertaining.

While Smith does fine work, how reliant this Genie is on Smith’s personality does make you wonder if an actor pushing farther out of their comfort zone would have gotten us closer to the boundless creativity that made Robin Williams’ performance so memorable.

In the end this is arguably Jarmusch's first popcorn movie and it's a pretty good one at that.

Yesterday doesn’t take too many chances, but it does boast a well-told story with a cast that’s game for both its comedic and more dramatic moments.

Chock full of inventive set-pieces and brutal kills, while also providing new facets to the intricate underworld lore fans of the franchise have come to enjoy, John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum pushes its title character to his breaking point and back while offering fresh information about his backstory.

Tolkien may disappoint fans looking for a LOTR origin but will please those who like stories of art, love & friendship.

Smith’s character gives the story an emotional weight and Reynolds delivers an endearing comedic performance that’s closer to his subversive Deadpool schtick than you’d expect. While video game movies haven’t had the best track record, this movie is by and far the best example of how to do one right.

Avengers: Endgame is easily the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s most ambitious, emotional, and affecting film to date, somehow managing to tie up more than a decade of storytelling in a confident (and mostly coherent) climax - a hurdle that many other blockbuster franchises have stumbled over in their final runs.

With a nuanced perspective and eye for detail, director Hiroyasu Ishida has swept the floor with a debut that hits all the sweet spots of a coming-of-age story, and I can’t wait to see what’s in store from him and Colorido in the future.

Here A Quiet Place thrilled by presenting a fleshed out family under a precise and horrifying threat, The Silence is satisfied to just plop down barely sketched characters then throw them into The Birds but more violent. That doesn't make it satisfying. There's just nothing special to be found in The Silence.

Hellboy is a thin, clumsy, and charmless attempt at rebooting a beloved franchise. It's populated by forgettable characters motivated by confusing stakes, cheaply executed visuals, and distracting editing. Somewhere, a finger on a Hellboy fan's monkey's paw is curling up -- sure, HB might finally be back in the spotlight, but he definitely would have been better off left alone.

There's not much to marvel at in Netflix's Unicorn Store, Brie Larson's astounding misfire of a directorial debut.

Anchored by first-rate storytelling, Missing Link is another jewel in the crown for Laika that leaves you satisfied and still ready for more.

While there are some creepy ideas in this surprise Netflix-Blumhouse offering, the quality of Mercy Black is strained.

Netflix’s The Dirt won’t win any awards nor will it inspire any would-be musicians, but it is entertaining and offers up a compelling story about Mötley Crüe. And while it isn’t a completely accurate depiction of the band’s tumultuous career, the film itself is insightful.

Sadly, this routine remake doesn't manage to recapture the surreal strangeness of the original Disney classic or elevate the dated premise into something better.

Shazam! is a lot of fun and it further proves how, in the wake of the success of Wonder Woman and Aquaman, DC’s movie future is indeed bright. Zachary Levi was born to play this superpowered man-child, delivering lots of laughs alongside sarcastic but amiable co-star Jack Dylan Grazer.

While some purists may balk at the changes and omissions made here, those simply looking for a horror movie as compelling as it is wicked should enjoy this new Pet Sematary.

The Curse of La Llorona offers some decently suspenseful set-pieces and has a family you care about at its center, but it's also a very familiar and formulaic Annabelle-adjacent entry in the Conjuring franchise.

Idris Elba’s directorial debut is an atmospheric and catchy DJ Noir about criminals who’d rather spin vinyl than sell cocaine, and it’s an impressive first film, only held back by the conventions in the plot. But it’s the details of Yardie’s world that make it worth visiting.

An atmospheric, affecting science fiction flick with big ideas, slick execution and a message that will stick with you.

The cast is pitch-perfect, scoring big laughs, heart swells, and even tears. Feldstein and Dever are a phenomenal comedy duo; Lourd is a stellar standout. And Wilde crushed it right out the gate.

Charlize Theron and Seth Rogen transform Long Shot's familiar rom-com story into a memorable and funny movie.

Us is a very, very strange film. But that’s OK because it wouldn’t be a Jordan Peele joint if there wasn’t a little risk involved. Peele has proven that he’s not a one-hit-wonder with this truly terrifying, poignant look at one American family that goes through hell at the hands of maniacal doppelgangers.

Triple Frontier features a cool cast and a gruesome story about greed, but it fails to capitalize on its own premise.

Captain Marvel manages to take the best ideas of early MCU origin stories like Iron Man and Thor and use them to form something that feels both familiar and fresh. It can be a bit on-the-nose at times, and occasionally has to fast-track its exposition in ways that can feel slightly clunky, but what it lacks in grace it makes up for in charm.

I Want to Eat Your Pancreas is a beautiful and moving exploration of what it means to truly live.

The level of risk-taking is refreshing, even when it's not completely successful at every single turn.

Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile has some interesting ideas about how little we know the people we love, and about the power of a celebrity cult status. But no matter how good Zac Efron’s performance as Ted Bundy is, this is the tamest way to explore such a complex and interesting story.

The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then The Bigfoot lays all its cards on the table up front, but then still manages to never quite be what you expect it to be. It juggles a lot of ostensibly ridiculous ideas, but they all land just right because the film's deliciously dour tone, that sort of snuggles everything within the warm embrace of Sam Elliott's ruggedness and regret.

Alita: Battle Angel is Robert Rodriguez’s best film in many years. It’s an ambitious, impressive, visually spectacular production with great performances that make its strange world seem real.

Miss Bala never quite delivers on its potential and lets down the woman at its center.

The film's a fun and humble horror offering set among the world of pretension and status.

Fighting With My Family delivers on comedy, action, and a sweet message of acceptance and strength at its core. It might be a bit too wrestling-heavy for some, but the strong cast, interesting real life story, and a magnetic lead mean this black sheep sports story is a feel-good flick with chops that might finally put WWE Studios on the map.

Cold Pursuit is partly a great action thriller, and Liam Neeson is still kicking plenty of butt, but the film is mostly an intriguing, relaxing, totally tuckered-out character study of old men running out of the energy required to run a criminal enterprise. As thrillers go, this one is more adult than your average.

The LEGO Movie 2 isn’t quite as funny or as brilliantly executed as the original, but it’s an ambitious, likable sequel. Kids will enjoy it and adults will appreciate that the filmmakers took it seriously, and tried to say something meaningful. Just don’t think about it too much, because the LEGO universe is often weird and confusing.

Reign of the Supermen is a squarely "middle of the pack" addition to DC's ever-growing lineup of animated movies.

Sweet and sincere, Pokémon The Movie: The Power of Us is a light and fun adventure film filled with likable characters, fantastic creatures, and enough classic Pokémon to make the most die hard of fans happy.

Mads Mikkelsen and Vanessa Hudgens’ on-screen chemistry bring some much-needed heart to Polar’s bloodsoaked story.

IO provides a different take on a familiar premise. The story is intimate in nature, with a plot that highlights the importance of relationships – not just between partners or family members, but relationships in general. Its pacing and lack of urgency betrays the drama though.

How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World is a fantastic, visually stunning and poignant way to end this beloved trilogy.

Dragon Ball Super: Broly delivers in terms of awesome action, but more than that, it uses the fathers of Goku, Vegeta, and Broly to link back to the late-1980s and early-1990s heyday of the series to add a relatable and thoughtful subtext. It’s a humorous movie that bounds into the world of imagination and is gripping to the end.

Fyre delivers greatly on the delight in the misfortune of the wealthy and the shallow that we all expect and crave, but it also smartly doesn't hang its hat on it. It's mostly about the actual well-intentioned people involved in this fiasco and how anyone can be suckered into a vision or dream when no one in a collective is willing to speak out as a lone voice of reason.

Netflix's uneven animated Godzilla saga receives an emotionally satisfying conclusion in The Planet Eater.

There are hints of greatness, but Glass is tonally confused and will likely disappoint fans of Unbreakable and Split.

With The Birth of a Nation, Nate Parker has shown himself to be a confident, extraordinary filmmaker. He not only gets good performances from his cast, but has created a film that seems sure of itself, one that knows when to lean into depicting hatred, when to lean into depicting love, and when to cut away; when the look on a face is more important than the blood on a back and when it isn't.

Selma pierces a Civil Rights milestone with honesty, avoiding damning accusations or easy schmaltz to reflect true human triumph. With expansive shots of protests in motion and intimate, shadowy close-ups of King locked in jail, DuVernay's direction brings to life what many only know in black-and-white snapshots.

Director Steve McQueen's eye is better than his sense of pacing in the nevertheless devastating drama 12 Years a Slave, featuring a standout performance from Serenity's Chiwetel Ejiofor.

Moonlight is a complex, haunting coming-of-age story unlike anything else this year.

Anna and the Apocalypse is a delightful Christmas/horror/comedy/musical hybrid, with a great cast, entertaining gore and a storyline that’s easy to take seriously… even though it’s fundamentally absurd.

Once Upon a Deadpool is a cute idea that doesn't live up to its potential, leaving audiences with little more than a less interesting version of a better movie they might have loved.

Peter Jackson's technical ambitions sometimes muddy his otherwise moving WWI documentary They Shall Not Grow Old.

If you've ever watched a Saw movie and wished there was no gore and a few more puzzles to solve then you'll likely enjoy this tropey but fun flick.

It's Sandra Bullock and the ensemble that heap some heft into this standard scorched Earth story.

The lazy gags, wasted supporting cast and unfocused writing make the film an unfunny chore, which evokes but doesn't come close to their earlier comedic outings.

Despite the movie showcasing her brilliance and tenacity, at times it's sanitized and schmaltzy, which takes away from the overall impact of the story.

Director Robert Zemeckis hits a new artistic low with Welcome to Marwen, a film that mistakes schmaltz for substance and employs downright boring novelty animation in a hackneyed attempt to stir the emotions.

Vice is a funny and vicious political commentary, revealing in clear, thrilling detail a man whom filmmaker Adam McKay considers one of the most insidious and dangerous political figures of the last fifty years. But that viciousness also makes Vice one-sided, even reductive.

Barry Jenkins' If Beale Street Could Talk is beaming with style and detail, but at its core, it’s a mindful meditation on human beings seeking the greatest gift we can give each other—love.