For about three-quarters of the runtime, this dynamic works in creating effective drama and authentic situational humor.

Perhaps we’re comedy-starved in today’s cinematic landscape, but Dupieux’s rollicking adventure generates rare laugh-out-loud moments and even a few applause-worthy bits.

What begins as a modest and perhaps slight take on the refugee crisis tinged by an acquired yet welcome taste of British comedy, however, slowly reveals its underlying drama via the stark inevitability of its existence. You can only deflect from your plight so long before the stress and anxiety bubbles back to the surface.

Nothing Blakeson gives us is necessarily new or unique, but his ability to put it all together into this very American capitalist greed package is fresh enough to enjoy that familiarity for its sheer hilarity.

Perhaps the most interesting thing in Hopper/Welles is that you can’t quite tell if the battle-scarred veteran is looking to wrap an arm around the younger man or is trying to defeat him.

Its in-depth dissection of what the concept of “truth” has become in an age of blindly devoted acolytes spreading information faster than it can be confirmed.

It is a compelling drama––one based on a true story––and an important one, to be sure. But there are numerous missteps that lessen the impact and slow down the dramatic energy. While this keeps The Best Is Yet to Come from greatness, the film remains a powerful, worthy tale of investigative writing and compassionate reportage.

Having come upon a provocative allegory for the endemic dissociation of the hyper-digital age, though, Nikou does not interrogate it as intensely or from as many angles as possible in the lean, character-driven 90-minute film.

It is a thoughtful, unquestionably moving piece of work with much to say about the inner lives of the women at the center, but it could have used another gear

The protagonists of Wife of a Spy often act out of character, which all bodes efficiently well for the film’s slippery web of conceit, but ultimately quells a great deal of something the film is otherwise lacking in: feeling. It is, for my money, Kurosawa in low key; an interesting inclusion to a wonderfully idiosyncratic career.

It is not a flawless achievement, but The Disciple has that feel of a burgeoning master: the patience and sureness of touch; the controlled surrealist flourishes; the sheer ambition and scope.

Pieces of a Woman engages with many topical issues surrounding women’s health, and the connection of biology to psychology. It won’t quite leave one in pieces, but the film has a subtle grace all of its own.

These four actors provide their roles with a bold presence both in their ability to impersonate physically and embody spiritually.

Nomadland is initially stirring with its imaginative utilization of a Hollywood star as Zhao places McDormand, sometimes jarringly, right in the real world. But it ultimately reverts to homilies, offering a flinty, exciting character a bland third-act volte-face.

All In: The Fight For Democracy is the perfect civics lesson for the current moment.

The arc of the story feels a bit rushed as it darts between past and present, focused around a journey that is incomplete. Perhaps with a few more weeks or even another year, Berns’ story might have grown into something slightly more compelling as he transition into his new role as a grandfather and provider on a dwindling income.

It’s an exercise in empathy––and a spellbinding one at that.

These men have dedicated their entire lives to not only finding these exquisite white Alba truffles but also to the dogs that help them find their way, and to see their culture upturned for selfish reasons is an upsetting thing to witness. That they still have so much personality, joy, and life in them, however, makes The Truffle Hunters a delightful, charming watch.

On its most superficial horror flick level, Jay Baruchel’s latest directorial effort Random Acts of Violence works

Coup 53 isn’t the most coherent in approach or pacing, but its ambition––and overall literacy––ties its knots.

Talking heads often go on long enough to distract from the overall thesis, and the runtime, while not particularly long, buries its own arc between the then and the now.

The filmmakers’ obvious ambitions fall prey to cinematic convention.

It’s a depressing, disturbing journey to witness, but an essential one to see the machinations of evil that pervade and influence our daily life on the internet and beyond.

Interestingly, of all Disney’s recent live-action adaptations, Mulan is probably the one that would have benefited most from the big screen.

The Mole Agent may stumble through some of its choices at first, but it sticks the landing by finding a cogitative dissonance and refusing to solve it.

The primary goal and achievement of Robin’s Wish is spotlighting the confounding nature of Williams’ disorder and the deeper need for mental health awareness.

The film’s greatest achievement is the effortlessness with which Sandoval captures several microcosms simultaneously happening in New York City.

Though just under 90 minutes, the film falters with pacing. The story rarely progresses further than exchanged glances, lots of sleeping, and a few, tense, cold moments. The couple never looks to be in serious danger.