Movie Reviews : NPR

Marcel Marceau Walks Against The Winds Of War In 'Resistance'

Marcel (Jesse Eisenberg) in the film Resistance. IFC Films hide caption

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IFC Films

Marcel Marceau Walks Against The Winds Of War In 'Resistance'

March 26, 2020 • Jesse Eisenberg stars as the famous mime as he gets involved in the French Resistance during World War II. The film is an "honorable, absorbing homage to the making of a man and his art."

Tom (Jesse Eisenberg) and Gemma (Imogen Poots) go house hunting and find something more in Vivarium. Mongrel Media hide caption

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Mongrel Media

'Vivarium': House Hunters, Unnatural

March 26, 2020 • A young couple seeking a house in the 'burbs encounter an unexpected (sub)development and cannot leave. Despite its Twilight Zone premise, the film's "eccentricity and wit" carry it a long way.

'Crip Camp' Is A Raucous Celebration Of A World-Changing Place

Camp Jened, in upstate New York, was the epicenter of a disability rights movement that led to the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Steve Honigsbaum hide caption

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Steve Honigsbaum

'Crip Camp' Is A Raucous Celebration Of A World-Changing Place

March 25, 2020 • Near Woodstock, at an early '70s summer camp for kids with disabilities, a revolution was born that became a civil rights movement, and led to the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

'Crip Camp' Is A Raucous Celebration Of A World-Changing Place

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It Ain't Cabot Cove: Murder In Maine Haunts The Twisty 'Blow The Man Down'

Mary Beth (Morgan Saylor) and Pris (Sophie Lowe) get a stern talking-to from Enid (Margo Martindale) in Blow the Man Down. Jeong Park/Amazon Studios hide caption

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Jeong Park/Amazon Studios

It Ain't Cabot Cove: Murder In Maine Haunts The Twisty 'Blow The Man Down'

March 19, 2020 • Two sisters attempt to cover up a killing in a fishing village that harbors its own sinister secrets in this film that evokes the tone of films like Fargo and Blood Simple.

In 'Never Rarely Sometimes Always,' A Teenager With A Choice

March 13, 2020 • A pregnant teenager travels to New York City to obtain an abortion in Eliza Hittman's drama Never Rarely Sometimes Always.

In 'Never Rarely Sometimes Always,' A Teenager With A Choice

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'Never Rarely Sometimes Always' Will Stay With You Forever

Sidney Flanigan stars as 17-year-old Autumn in Never Rarely Sometimes Always. Courtesy of Focus Features hide caption

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Courtesy of Focus Features

'Never Rarely Sometimes Always' Will Stay With You Forever

Fresh Air

March 13, 2020 • In Eliza Hittman's pointed new movie, a teenager from small-town Pennsylvania doesn't want to tell her parents she's pregnant; instead, she travels to New York City with her cousin for an abortion.

'Never Rarely Sometimes Always' Will Stay With You Forever

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In The Derivative Action Flick 'Bloodshot,' Diesel Delivers Low-Octane Thrills

Bloodshot (Vin Diesel) looks vexed, or surprised or possibly dyspeptic, in Bloodshot. Graham Bartholomew/Sony Pictures hide caption

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Graham Bartholomew/Sony Pictures

In The Derivative Action Flick 'Bloodshot,' Diesel Delivers Low-Octane Thrills

March 12, 2020 • As a soldier reanimated by nanobots, Vin Diesel — "a lumbering fireplug who runs like John Wayne and fights like Roger Moore" — underperforms.

A Young Woman Faces A Choice In The Sobering 'Never Rarely Sometimes Always'

Autumn (Sidney Flanigan) embarks on a journey to New York in Never Rarely Sometimes Always. Focus Features hide caption

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Focus Features

A Young Woman Faces A Choice In The Sobering 'Never Rarely Sometimes Always'

March 12, 2020 • Writer-director Eliza Hittman's tale of a traumatized teen (Sidney Flanigan), who travels to New York for an abortion is best when it hews closest to her point-of-view.

Pixar's Latest Adventure Is The Animated Film 'Onward'

March 9, 2020 • NPR's Rachel Martin talks to Claudia Puig of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association about the new animated film Onward — two teenage elves set off on a magical quest to bring back their dad.

Pixar's Latest Adventure Is The Animated Film 'Onward'

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Movie Review: 'First Cow'

March 8, 2020 • Director Kelly Reichardt set her latest western drama in Oregon in the 1820s. It's the story of two drifters who come up with a unique money-making scheme in the midst of a gold rush.

Movie Review: 'First Cow'

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Review: Pixar's 'Onward'

March 6, 2020 • Pixar's new animated film ONWARD is about teenage elf brothers who are on a quest to find out if there's enough magic in their world to let them spend a day with their late father.

Review: Pixar's 'Onward'

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'First Cow': A Profound, Ruminative Western

When Greener Pastures Are Unpasteurized: Two men try to start a business in the Oregon Territory in First Cow. Allyson Riggs/A24 hide caption

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Allyson Riggs/A24

'First Cow': A Profound, Ruminative Western

March 5, 2020 • Two men struggle to eke out a living in the Oregon Territory by stealing the milk of a wealthy landowner in writer-director Kelly Reichardt's film.

'Onward': Timid Teen On A Mythic Quest For Elf-Assurance

Ian (voiced by Tom Holland) and his older brother Barley (voiced Chris Pratt) set off on a distinctly suburban quest in Onward. Disney/Pixar hide caption

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Disney/Pixar

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Onward': Timid Teen On A Mythic Quest For Elf-Assurance

March 5, 2020 • The opening minutes of Disney/Pixar's latest animated film are Disney-Channel cheesy, but as soon as Onward starts highlighting the comic physicality of its characters, it finds itself.

'Sorry We Missed You': Ken Loach's Characters Gag On The Gig Economy

Ricky (Kris Hitchens) and daughter Jane (Katie Proctor) share a light moment in the Ken Loach drama Sorry We Missed You. Joss Barrat/Zeitgeist Films hide caption

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Joss Barrat/Zeitgeist Films

'Sorry We Missed You': Ken Loach's Characters Gag On The Gig Economy

March 5, 2020 • Director Ken Loach and writer Paul Laverty deliver a "lacerating social drama" about a delivery driver (Kris Hitchen) whose demanding job comes with penalties that wipe out his pay.

'The Booksellers' Speaks Volumes About Old Books And Those Who Love Them

Adam Weinberger examines a bookshelf in the documentary The Booksellers. Greenwich Entertainment hide caption

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Greenwich Entertainment

'The Booksellers' Speaks Volumes About Old Books And Those Who Love Them

March 5, 2020 • This "delightful homage" to the world of antiquarian books in New York City features celebrity talking heads — but comes alive when it spotlights the eccentrics who are passionate about collecting.