Movie Reviews Reviews of new movies, classic and art films, foreign films, and popular movies. Featuring Bob Mondello, Kenneth Turan, David Edelstein, and Mark Jenkins.

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In 'Someone Great,' The Greatest Someone Might Be Your Best Pal

Gina Rodriguez, DeWanda Wise and Brittany Snow star in Someone Great. Sarah Shatz/Netflix hide caption

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Sarah Shatz/Netflix

In 'Someone Great,' The Greatest Someone Might Be Your Best Pal

April 19, 2019 • Gina Rodriguez stars in Someone Great, a Netflix comedy that follows three friends trying to have one last adventure before everything changes for good.

Chris Evans returns as Captain America in Avengers: Endgame. Film Frame/Marvel Studios hide caption

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Film Frame/Marvel Studios

Our Summer Movie Preview

April 19, 2019 • It's time again for our summer movie preview. We'll take a shot at guessing hits and misses, and we'll tell you what we can't wait to see.

Our Summer Movie Preview

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In Pulpy L.A. Noir 'Under The Silver Lake,' A Man Chases Signs And Portents

Under the Silver Lake is the newest film from David Robert Mitchell, who directed 2015's It Follows. A24 hide caption

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A24

In Pulpy L.A. Noir 'Under The Silver Lake,' A Man Chases Signs And Portents

April 18, 2019 • There's a lot of flash and less substance in writer/director David Robert Mitchell's tale of a young man (Andrew Garfield) who sees hidden clues everywhere. But that flash is lovingly executed.

'Little Woods' Is Grimly Lovely — Dark And Deep

Lily James and Tessa Thompson play sisters struggling to stay afloat in Little Woods. Neon hide caption

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Neon

'Little Woods' Is Grimly Lovely — Dark And Deep

April 18, 2019 • Two sisters (Lily James, Tessa Thompson) struggle to navigate the opioid crisis in their small town. Nia DaCosta's first film is a "quietly feminist thriller" that's "modest but intensely empathetic."

'Hail Satan?': Documentary Examines Protest Group That Bedevils Religious Conservatives

Hail Satan? skimps on some devilish details, but as a profile of the Satanic Temple's efforts on behalf of the First Amendment, it's infernally compelling. Magnolia Pictures hide caption

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Magnolia Pictures

'Hail Satan?': Documentary Examines Protest Group That Bedevils Religious Conservatives

April 18, 2019 • The film spotlights the Satanic Temple, an organization that stages wry publicity stunts to underscore the separation of church and state. The doc "makes for an electric modern theological debate."

'Teen Spirit' Smells Like A Quirky, Beguiling Hit

Teen Spirit stars Elle Fanning as Violet, a girl from the Isle of Wight with dreams of being a pop star. Bleeker Street Media hide caption

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Bleeker Street Media

'Teen Spirit' Smells Like A Quirky, Beguiling Hit

April 11, 2019 • This charming musical fable about a teenage girl (Elle Fanning) who competes on a UK singing competition doesn't cover much new ground, but Fanning's terrific.

Aw, crap: David Harbour stars in the 2019 reboot of Hellboy. Mark Rogers/Lionsgate hide caption

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Mark Rogers/Lionsgate

'Hellboy': Hell, No

April 11, 2019 • Comics creator Mike Mignola's gruff demon-hero gets a hard-R reboot that swaps out the charm of director Guillermo del Toro's previous iterations and replaces it with "chaotic, repetitive" gore.

A Punk Rocker Hits Rock Bottom In The Raw-Edged 'Her Smell'

Elisabeth Moss plays a self-destructive rock star in Her Smell. Donald Stahl/Gunpowder & Sky hide caption

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Donald Stahl/Gunpowder & Sky

A Punk Rocker Hits Rock Bottom In The Raw-Edged 'Her Smell'

April 11, 2019 • Alex Ross Perry's visceral, difficult film about a visceral, difficult punk singer (Elisabeth Moss) unfolds in a series of bracingly raw and uncompromising set-pieces.

Moody, Mesmeric Chinese Noir Sends A Man On A 'Long Day's Journey Into Night'

Jue Huang stars in Long Day's Journey Into Night, which features an extended 3D sequence. Bai Linghai/Kino Lorber hide caption

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Bai Linghai/Kino Lorber

Moody, Mesmeric Chinese Noir Sends A Man On A 'Long Day's Journey Into Night'

April 11, 2019 • Writer/director Bi Gan's second feature is a mood piece about a man who returns to his hometown to search for a lost love. The net effect is that of a "stately waltz of movement and illumination."

'Little': A Wrong-Body Comedy That Can't Get Comfortable

In Little, Marsai Martin plays a tech mogul who turns into a 13-year-old version of herself. Issa Rae also stars. Eli Joshua Adé/Universal Pictures hide caption

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Eli Joshua Adé/Universal Pictures

'Little': A Wrong-Body Comedy That Can't Get Comfortable

April 11, 2019 • There's a lot to like about Little, including the central performance of Marsai Martin. But the jokes are a little too slow to pull the formulaic story along.

'High Life' Is A Stunning Space Odyssey — With A Baby On Board

Jessie Ross and Robert Pattinson are astronauts traveling toward an uncertain destination in High Life. A24 hide caption

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A24

'High Life' Is A Stunning Space Odyssey — With A Baby On Board

Fresh Air

April 5, 2019 • Claire Denis' sci-fi thriller is like no outer space movie you've seen; it opens with an astronaut caring for a baby in space — then flashes back to reveal the strange story behind their journey.

'High Life' Is A Stunning Space Odyssey — With A Baby On Board

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Brie Larson's Directorial Debut Glitters With The Charming 'Unicorn Store'

Brie Larson stars in her directorial debut Unicorn Store: a film about a woman, a store, and glitter. Logan White /Netflix hide caption

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Logan White /Netflix

Brie Larson's Directorial Debut Glitters With The Charming 'Unicorn Store'

April 5, 2019 • Brie Larson stars opposite Samuel L. Jackson, her Captain Marvel compatriot, in the oddball magical-realism comedy Unicorn Store on Netflix.

Zachary Levi and Jack Dylan Grazer star in the new movie Shazam! Warner Bros. hide caption

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Warner Bros.

'Shazam!' Is Shockingly Good

April 5, 2019 • "Shazam!" is what young Billy Batson says to morph into a big red superhero. It's also the name of the new movie about him. Starring Zachary Levi as the big lug in the suit, Shazam! makes for a lighter DC Comics movie.

'Shazam!' Is Shockingly Good

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In The Art-House Sci-Fi Film 'High Life,' No Aliens — Just Alienation

In High Life, a father (Robert Pattinson) and his daughter are stuck on a mysterious space mission. A24 hide caption

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A24

In The Art-House Sci-Fi Film 'High Life,' No Aliens — Just Alienation

April 4, 2019 • Director Claire Denis' first English-language film — an elliptical, existential and bluntly sexual tale — takes place on a spaceship full of convicts speeding toward oblivion.

In The Rich But Scattered 'Peterloo,' Mike Leigh Presents Scenes From A Massacre

Peterloo tells the story of the British government's massacre of protesters in 1819. Simon Mein/Amazon Studios hide caption

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Simon Mein/Amazon Studios

In The Rich But Scattered 'Peterloo,' Mike Leigh Presents Scenes From A Massacre

April 4, 2019 • The writer/director's latest film, about the British government's deadly assault on protesters in 1819, instills a growing sense of dread, but divides our attention among too many characters.

With 'Shazam!' DC Superhero Movies Bring The Thunder ... And The Lightening Up

Let there be light...ness: Freddy Freeman (Jack Dylan Grazer) and ... well, he goes by many names, long story (Zachary Levi) forget their troubles, come on and get zappy in Shazam! Warner Bros. Pictures hide caption

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Warner Bros. Pictures

Pop Culture Happy Hour

With 'Shazam!' DC Superhero Movies Bring The Thunder ... And The Lightening Up

April 4, 2019 • The breezy, funny elements of DC's latest superhero film feel so fresh they throw the movie's duller, more rote sections into sharper relief.

'Downton' Flabby: Period Piece 'The Chaperone' Is A Let-Down

In The Chaperone, Louise Brooks (Haley Lu Richardson) seeks a future as a dancer in 1920's New York. Masterpiece hide caption

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Masterpiece

'Downton' Flabby: Period Piece 'The Chaperone' Is A Let-Down

March 28, 2019 • There's plenty of 'Downton Abbey' DNA in this tale of prim Norma (Elizabeth McGovern) who shepherds young Louise Brooks (Haley Lu Richardson) to NYC; there's also a leaden script and thin characters.

Like A Rolling Stoner: Burnout Comedy 'The Beach Bum' Is A Balm

Blaze of Glory: Moondog (Matthew McConaughey) is a stoner/poet shambling through South Florida in Harmony Korine's The Beach Bum. Neon hide caption

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Neon

Like A Rolling Stoner: Burnout Comedy 'The Beach Bum' Is A Balm

March 28, 2019 • In writer/director Harmony Korine's latest, Matthew McConaughey plays a South Florida stoner/poet. It's a meandering, ecstatic, and ultimately "brilliant embrace of body, pleasure and art."

'Dumbo': Elephants Never Forget, But Audiences Will

Tim Burton's Dumbo re-imagines the 1942 animated Disney classic. Disney hide caption

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Disney

'Dumbo': Elephants Never Forget, But Audiences Will

March 28, 2019 • Tim Burton's take on the classic Disney animated feature does what it sets out to do in a kid-friendly, safe and unsurprising way devoid of the director's onetime idiosyncratic flair.

In The Bleakly Beautiful 'Diane,' Mary Kay Place Can't Help But Keep Helping

Mary Kay Place is a flinty New Englander with a grown son she can't help but help, in Diane. IFC hide caption

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IFC

In The Bleakly Beautiful 'Diane,' Mary Kay Place Can't Help But Keep Helping

March 28, 2019 • The debut feature of documentary filmmaker Kent Jones paints a loving but clear-eyed portrait of an older woman (Mary Kay Place) enabling her grown, addict son (Jake Lacy).

Lupita Nyong'o stars in Us, Jordan Peele's latest film. Claudette Barius/Universal hide caption

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Claudette Barius/Universal

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Us'

March 22, 2019 • Us is Jordan Peele's follow up to his 2017 film Get Out. The film stars Lupita Nyong'o as a mother whose whole family is confronted by their own doppelgängers.

'Us'

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'Out Of Blue': Stardust And (Hollywood) Star-Power Fuel This Genre-Bending Whodunit

Patricia Clarkson stars in Out Of Blue, a genre-bending detective flick. The movie is based on the Marin Amis novel Night Train. IFC hide caption

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IFC

'Out Of Blue': Stardust And (Hollywood) Star-Power Fuel This Genre-Bending Whodunit

March 21, 2019 • This introspective (and occasionally downright lethargic) existential whodunit starring Patricia Clarkson and a cast of ringers is based on the Martin Amis novel Night Train.

Measure Twice ...: Lupita Nyong'o stars in Us, the latest horror film written and directed by Jordan Peele. Claudette Barius/Universal Pictures hide caption

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Claudette Barius/Universal Pictures

When You Meet The Enemy, And It Is 'Us'

March 21, 2019 • Though less thematically precise than Get Out, Jordan Peele's latest film doubles down on horror — and excels at capturing the mundane, funny moments between the big scares.