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- Feed Preview Movies - Hollywood in Toto
Is ‘Challengers’ This Generation’s ‘Bull Durham?’
Luca Guadagnino’s “Challengers” is a tawdry, repetitive, sports-driven relationship drama elevated and almost saved entirely by robust filmmaking. Take it either as “Bull Durham” (1988)...
‘Unsung Hero’ Recalls Faith-Based Films of Yore
The Smallbone family has a story tailor-made for the big screen. Scratch that. It’s almost too remarkable to fit on any screen. The Australian clan came to America with little more than a dream...
‘Infested’ Will Get Under Your Skin
Spiders are the new sharks. Genre directors can’t get enough of the creepy crawlers. Can you blame them? We’ve all been grossed out by larger-than-expected spiders sneaking into our bedrooms....
‘Beautiful Girls’ Couldn’t Be Made Today. Here’s Why
There’s a growing list of stories that Hollywood would never tell again. “Blazing Saddles” shoots to mind, but so do “The Producers,” “Soul Man,” “I Now Pronounce You Chuck and La...
‘Civil War’ – Raw, Original and Utterly Pointless
Alex Garland wasn’t kidding. The writer/director of “Civil War” said his dystopian thriller didn’t take political sides. The film bears that out, focusing entirely on journalists scrambli...
‘Abigail’ Is Too Bloody Dumb for Its Own Good
Horror and dumb go together like peas and cah-rots, to paraphrase Forrest Gump. Think: There’s a serial killer on the loose … let’s split up! The monster sure looks like it’s dead. Let’...
‘Night Shift’ Offers Bates Motel-Brand Chills
The Coens. The Russos. The Farrellys. The Duplasses. The Safdies. The Chinas? No, Paul and Benjamin China aren’t in the rarified air of those famous directorial duos. Not even close. Still, the...
Why ‘Prey’ Makes the Least Out of Sniper Setup
Confession: This critic loves movies where innocents scramble in the woods while something or someone hunts them down. Think of thrillers like “Backcountry” or the sublime “Alone” as prim...
‘Blackout’ Offers Low-Rent Werewolf Shocks
Director Larry Fessenden pumped new life into Frankenstein’s monster with 2019’s “Depraved.” The genre veteran’s attempt to reimagine the werewolf genre, alas, deserves a swift silver b...
We Need More Horror Movies Like ‘Sting’
Every kid deserves a pet, but the young heroine in “Sting” gets more than she bargained for. The latest arachnid thriller spins from a familiar premise but turns into a family affair. Sound c...
Why ‘The First Omen’ Can’t Measure Up to the Original
No movie franchise is safe from revival. Now, it’s “The Omen’s” turn despite a weak 2006 attempt to give the devil his due. Again. “The First Omen” craves a do-over. The prequel follo...
Dev Patel’s ‘Monkey Man’ – A Feast for the Senses
Hollywood’s quest for inclusivity is both maddening and noble. Forced diversity and Oscar-themed box checking are anathema to the creative process. Allowing more voices to share their stories? ...
‘Agua Donkeys’ Out-Dumbs ‘Napoleon Dynamite’
The best dumb comedies are smarter than they look. The 2004 cult hit “Napoleon Dynamite” proved it, although not as much as its cult following suggests. Far better? The deliriously dumb 2016 ...
‘Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire’ Is the Anti-‘Godzilla Minus One’
Adam Wingard’s “Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire” is silly, exciting and astonishing in its lack of originality. It cobbles a bursting-apart screenplay from at least 20 other movies. Rebecca...
‘Perfect Days’ Offers Peak Wim Wenders Storytelling
Wim Wenders’ “Perfect Days” is the portrait of a life that might seem small and simple, but is full of insight, discipline, and steady rewards. It stars Koji Yakusho, in a performance that ...
‘Late Night with the Devil’ Possesses Satirical Sting
Colin and Cameron Cairnes’ “Late Night with the Devil” presents itself as a documentary about a haunted episode of a 1977 talk show, which we see in full. Following a recap of how once-prom...
‘Land of Saints and Sinners’ Shows Two Sides of Neeson
Liam Neeson’s post-“Taken” career has been a blessing and a curse for the Oscar nominee. Yes, he works constantly as an in-demand action hero even as he enters his 70s. The films in questio...
‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ Slimes Us with Nostalgia
You could excuse “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” for wallowing in nostalgia. The reboot/sequel had to wash away the stain of the 2016 “Ghostbusters: Answer the Call” while making amends with th...
Why ‘Road House’ Can’t Measure Up to the Original
The 1989 film “Road House” isn’t a classic. It’s more like a “classic.” Patrick Swayze’s honky tonk romp is both deeply flawed and a cherished ’80s film. Any attempt to remake it ...
‘Bardejov’ (Sadly) Arrives at the Perfect Time
“The Zone of Interest” kept the camera away from the Nazi atrocities. We watched a “normal” German family literally living next door to a concentration camp. Only the nauseating sounds of...
‘Killing America’ Connects Shocking DEI Dots
“Killing America” opens with an uppercut. The mini-documentary shares examples of antisemitism from the California school system. Director Eli Steele’s film has Oct. 7 on its mind, and the ...
‘Knox Goes Away’ Turns Assassin Genre on Its Ear
Hollywood’s fascination with assassins shows no signs of letting up. Consider the “John Wick” franchise as Exhibits A, B, C and D. (And you know E. is coming soon…) “Knox Goes Away” t...
Joel and Ethan Coen Are Better Together: ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ Proves It
One of the greatest works of criticism about the Coen brothers comes from Screentakes’s Jennine Lanouette in her review of “Inside Llewyn Davis.” The 2013 drama is arguably one of Joel and ...
‘Cabrini’ Stuns in More Ways Than One
Frances Xavier Cabrini wouldn’t take no for an answer. The Italian immigrant known as Mother Cabrini pushed past patriarchal bullies, making history with every selfless act. She’s no Girlboss...
‘Ricky Stanicky’ – Crude, Rude and Refreshing
Dwayne Johnson proved professional wrestlers could do more than just appear in major motion pictures. They could graduate to the A-list. Is it John Cena’s turn? Sure, the former wrestler has st...
Lurid ‘Love Lies Bleeding’ Delivers the Grindhouse Goods
Love often blooms between damaged souls, but in “Love Lies Bleeding” there’s another element in play. Iron. The story of a female bodybuilder falling for the daughter of a small-town thug f...
‘Dune: Part II’ Delivers More of the Spectacular Same
Director/co-writer Denis Villeneuve has done it again. Literally. Audiences who loved his 2021 take on Frank Herbert’s “Dune” will be doubly pleased with the sequel. If this brand of visual...
‘Coddling’ Doc Destroys Woke Universities, Trigger Warnings and More
The kids are not remotely all right. “The Coddling of the American Mind,” sparked by the book of the same name by Greg Lukianoff and Jonathan Haidt, takes a few beats to get to the heart of t...
‘Land of Bad’ Offers Everything You Crave in a Military Thriller
Drone warfare changed how America goes to war and, to an extent, the way filmmakers bring combat scenes to life. The bravura 2015 film “Eye in the Sky” explored the morality of pushing button...
‘Drive-Away Dolls’ – Ethan Coen Goes Solo (And Pathetically Woke)
Quentin Tarantino’s “Reservoir Dogs” inspired a flood of flashy copy-cats. His imitators aped his blend of hot action and cool banter. Suffice it to say few could come close to the real dea...
Heartbreaking ‘Ordinary Angels’ Upends Faith-Based Rulebook
The story behind “Ordinary Angels” is almost too perfect for a major motion picture. A woman attempting to rebuild a life stained by alcoholism rallies a community to save a girl’s life, ba...
‘Drugstore June’ Delivers Dizzying Millennial Satire (With a Twist)
How many unique comic characters do we see these days? Think Austin Powers, Capt. Jack Sparrow and Derek Zoolander. These larger-than-life types are played by actors who never step out of charact...
‘Maestro’ Leaves Out the Very Best of Leonard Bernstein
One of the biggest problems with “Maestro” is that it isn’t political enough. In trying to dramatize the life of Leonard Bernstein, director/star Bradley Cooper has been not so much dishone...
Run, Don’t Walk Away from ‘Madame Web’
We owe “The Marvels,” “Eternals” and “Morbius” an apology. Who knew superhero fare could sink as low as “Madame Web?” This obscure, Spider-related heroine yields a terrible origin...
Toby Keith Rounded Up the Boys To Make ‘Beer for My Horses’
Tim McGraw and Faith Hill leading “1883.” Dwight Yoakam playing white trash to perfection in “Sling Blade.” Trace Adkins starring in, well, seemingly everything according to his IMDb page...
‘Bob Marley: One Love’ Can’t Find Man Behind the Legend
Why did it take so long to see a biopic of reggae superstar Bob Marley? His life and musical legacy offer an endless amount of material, from his cultural cache to music that feels as fresh today...
‘Out of Darkness’ Taps Primal Terror Vein
Even easy-to-please horror fans must be exhausted by the genre’s tropes. Young, pretty casts Cabins in the woods Masked killers with their own theme music It’s why “Out of Darkness” feels...
Is ‘The Way Way Back’ the Best Coming of Age Movie in Years?
Some movies don’t age well for any number of reasons. The special effects, for example, look so clunky it’s hard to fall under the movie’s spell. Others boast themes that no longer apply to...
Wait … They Already Made a ‘Road House’ Sequel?
Before Jake Gyllenhaal body-shamed us with his unbuttoned Hawaiian shirt and Doug Liman declared a David and Goliath battle against Amazon over the streaming reboot of an ‘80s classic there was...
‘Argylle’ Is Great, Terrible, Funny, Confusing and Way Too Long
Your opinion of “Argylle” may vary from scene to scene, revelation to revelation. And, of course, it helps if you’re a cat person. The bloated spy comedy starts strong and features a mostly...
‘Bad Hombres’ Jolts B-Movie Template
One of the many problems plaguing woke films is predictability. Audiences often know what to expect given how Hollywood progressives view the world. It’s one reason “Bad Hombres” is both ...
‘What Happens Later’ Leans on Conservative Rom-Com Appeal
Meg Ryan deserved better than the reception “What Happens Later” received. The film hit theaters, oh so briefly, near the end of 2023 and got little press, marketing attention or box office g...
‘Zone of Interest’ Offers Unflinching Portrait of Evil
Jonathan Glazer’s “The Zone of Interest” begins with a family sitting by a stream, enjoying an idyllic day. We observe how the family is close-knit, lives in a beautiful home and, in a jarr...
‘Origin’ Lets Ava DuVernay Explore Racism, Hope
Ava DuVernay’s “Origin” is an audacious epic about where the root of racism lies, how it has continued to manifest itself for centuries and why we have a responsibility to recognize and not...
‘Founders Day’ Murders the Slasher Genre (Not a Compliment)
Erik Bloomquist’s “Founders Day” is a terrible new teen slasher movie, the kind of junk Eli Roth’s “Thanksgiving” successfully lampooned just weeks ago. Feeling like a middling early-...
Why ‘Give My Regards to Broad Street’ Got a Bad Rap
Peter Webb’s “Give My Regards to Broad Street” (1984) was seen as a major misstep and commercial setback for its star, writer and producer, Paul McCartney. In fact, nearly every biography o...
‘Beekeeper’ Takes Out the Trash (Including Hunter Biden?)
Jason Statham’s character in “The Beekeeper” takes his gig literally. He’s a retired military asset who once worked for a secret group of spies dubbed the Beekeepers. And, in his spare ti...
‘Mean Girls’ Works Best as Nostalgia Blast
Did we really need another “Mean Girls?” Yes, the Broadway musical inspired by the 2004 film made waves, and that toe-tapping music is part of the new “Mean Girls” remake. Update? Reboot?...
‘Kangaroo Kids’ Offers Embarrassment of Family-Friendly Riches
Farai Richmond’s “Kangaroo Kids” is a new family film that had a small premiere at the end of 2023 but is finding an audience online. Written and directed by Richmond and billed in the end ...
‘Migration’ Never Fully Takes Flight
The daffy animators at Illumination have made a (just-barely) Minion-free CGI animated comedy about a flock of ducks who are initially hesitant to join the others as they migrate. “Migration�...