Review: “Shirley”

Writer Shirley Jackson is perhaps best known for her horror novel The Haunting of Hill House, widely regarded as one of the best and scariest ghost stories ever written. But Jackson’s personal life becomes a sort of horror story of its own in “Shirley,” a new drama based on the novel by Susan Scarf Merrell […]

Review: “How to Build a Girl”

The coming-of-age story is a familiar one in film, but rarely does the protagonist go through as many incarnations as Johanna Morrigan does in “How to Build a Girl.” The new movie from IFC Films, which is directed by Coky Giedroyc with a screenplay by Caitlin Moran adapted from her novel of the same name, […]

Review: “Portrait of a Lady on Fire”

5 out of 5 stars. In “Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” we know that Marianne and Héloïse’s relationship is doomed from the start. But that doesn’t make their interactions onscreen any less passionate or romantic; if anything, they are even more so, as the time that they have left together dwindles away. Written and […]

Review: “The Invisible Man”

3.5 out of 5 stars. Monster movies have always been compelling because, as far from reality as they may appear on the surface, we see reflections of the good and the bad in humanity in their stories. This is especially apparent in the new version of “The Invisible Man,” directed by Leigh Whannell and based […]

Review: “Birds of Prey”

4 out of 5 stars. Comic book movies can be dicey territory, but I think it’s safe to say that most people found the 2016 ensemble film “Suicide Squad” to be an unsatisfying mess. The best part of that movie, however, was that it gave us Margot Robbie’s portrayal of Harley Quinn. The character, who […]

Review: “Little Women” (2019)

4.5 out of 5 stars. “Little Women” has been the favorite book of many for generations, and the majority of its many film adaptations have been solid as well. But never has the story felt so alive as it does in Greta Gerwig’s new film version, which she wrote and directed. Based on the 1868 […]

Review: “Bombshell”

2.5 out of 5 stars. “Bombshell,” one of the first big movies to be based on some of the events that spurred the Me Too movement, is simultaneously shocking, and shockingly tame. Directed by Jay Roach, the film revolves around the sexual harassment scandal at Fox News, in which several women exposed CEO Roger Ailes, […]

Review: “Hustlers”

4 out of 5 stars. In “Hustlers,” the drama written and directed by Lorene Scafaria and based on the 2015 New York Magazine article titled “The Hustlers at Scores,” there are absolutely zero significant male characters. Not since 1939’s “The Women” can I think of any other film that has managed to tell a purely […]

Review: “Late Night”

3.5 out of 5 stars. In “Late Night,” Emma Thompson and Mindy Kaling both play women who defy those who underestimate. The film may be a workplace comedy—and a very funny one at that—but it has an important and timely message that reaches far deeper. The movie is directed by Nisha Ganatra from a script […]

Review: “Captain Marvel”

3.5 out of 5 stars. Warning: This review contains some plot details from “Captain Marvel.” In “Captain Marvel,” Carol Danvers is the hero of her own story. Despite being a mere month and a half away from “Avengers: Endgame,” “Captain Marvel” is the rare MCU film that stands on its own, and doesn’t have any […]