Review: “The Farewell”

4.5 out of 5 stars. In America, one’s life is one’s own. But in China, one’s life is a part of something bigger. This cultural divide is a major player in “The Farewell,” a comedy/drama written and directed by Lula Wang, based on a story from her own life. It’s a story that’s simultaneously light […]

Review: “Dora and the Lost City of Gold”

3.5 out of 5 stars. When a live-action adaptation of the popular children’s cartoon “Dora the Explorer” was first announced there was a lot of confusion as to just what exactly that would look like. The show was a staple of the Nick Jr. block on Nickelodeon for eight seasons, with viewers following young Dora, […]

Review: “Fast and Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw”

2.5 out of 5 stars. There’s at least one thing that can be said about “Hobbs & Shaw”: it knows exactly what it is, and doesn’t try to do anything more than that. At the same time, this spinoff of the “Fast and Furious” franchise proves that there is little left for this series to […]

Review: “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood”

4 out of 5 stars. In 1969, Hollywood was changing. The studio system was already long gone, television was at its height, and a new generation of filmmakers were emerging with a completely new way of telling stories on screen. This is the Hollywood that writer and director Quentin Tarantino grew up in, and this […]

Review: “The Lion King” (2019)

2 out of 5 stars. It only takes a few minutes to realize that something with “The Lion King”—a remake of the 1994 Disney animated classic directed by Jon Favreau—is vastly wrong. The new movie utilizes cutting edge technology to create photorealistic animal characters, and as beautiful as they look, they serve as a masterclass […]

Review: “The Dead Don’t Die”

3 out of 5 stars. From the get-go, police officer Ronnie Peterson (played by Adam Driver), tells his colleagues—and the audience—that this story is going to end badly. The journey to that ending, however, is a light-hearted romp through the zombie apocalypse, told with writer and director Jim Jarmusch’s signature brand of deadpan humor, with […]

Review: “The Last Black Man in San Francisco”

4.5 out of 5 stars. “You can’t hate a place unless you love it.” Those words, spoken by Jimmie Fails toward the end of “The Last Black Man in San Francisco,” perfectly sum up the film as a portrait of gentrification in a rapidly changing city. Fails plays himself in this semi-autobiographical story that was […]

Review: “Midsommar”

3.5 out of 5 stars. In “Midsommar,” very few scenes are set in dark places. The majority of the film takes place in the bright Swedish summer sunshine, as the members of a commune called the Hårga prepare to celebrate the midsummer solstice. But writer and director Ari Aster (Hereditary) finds the terror in this […]

Review: “Spider-Man: Far From Home”

WARNING: As “Spider-Man: Far From Home” deals directly with the events of “Avengers: Endgame,” this review discusses some plot details from “Endgame.” If you still haven’t seen it, read this review—and watch “Far From Home—at your own risk. 3 out of 5 stars. “Spider-Man: Far From Home” has the misfortune of being the first movie […]

Streaming Roundup: June 2019

With July just beginning and the summer movie season already halfway over, there have been a ton of films released between both the big and small screens. Here’s the rundown of a few new films released on streaming platforms in June. AMAZON “Chasing Happiness” This documentary chronicles the Jonas Brothers’ rise to fame as one […]