Movie Reviews : NPR

In 'A Paris Education,' A Film Student Takes Stock Of His Art, And Himself

Lyon-Hearted: Etienne (Andranic Manet) travels from provincial Lyon to the City of Lights in A Paris Education. Kino Lorber hide caption

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Kino Lorber

In 'A Paris Education,' A Film Student Takes Stock Of His Art, And Himself

August 30, 2018 • A young man in Paris studies film and has a lot of sex and meandering, passionate conversations about the state of cinema in this "honest, reflective, a little pretentious" (and very French) movie.

To Catch A Nazi: 'Operation Finale' Is More A Talker Than A Thriller

Adolf Eichmann (Ben Kingsley) models the banality of evil in the historical drama Operation Finale. Valeria Florini/MGM hide caption

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Valeria Florini/MGM

To Catch A Nazi: 'Operation Finale' Is More A Talker Than A Thriller

August 30, 2018 • Director Chris Weitz seems ill-at-ease with the rhythms of action scenes, but this Hollywood-zed version of history comes to life when it features Oscar Isaac and Ben Kingsley verbally sparring.

Saving The World, One Science Fair At A Time: 'Inventing Tomorrow'

Indonesian high school student Nuha Itan (L) and a classmate gaze out from the deck of a tin-mining ship in the documentary Inventing Tomorrow. Fishbowl Pictures hide caption

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Fishbowl Pictures

Saving The World, One Science Fair At A Time: 'Inventing Tomorrow'

August 29, 2018 • This documentary "makes for riveting viewing" as it follows four teams of brilliant young people with ideas for combating environmental threats as they compete in an international science fair.

'The Rider' Offers An Aching Portrait Of Masculinity In Crisis

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August 24, 2018 • Writer-director Chloé Zhao's new film tells the true story of a Lakota cowboy recovering from a serious rodeo accident. Critic Justin Chang says The Rider has "a bone-deep authenticity."

'The Rider' Offers An Aching Portrait Of Masculinity In Crisis

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'What Keeps You Alive': When You Marry A Killer, The Anniversary Gifts Are Murder

In What Keeps You Alive, Jackie (Hannah Emily Anderson) and Jules (Brittany Allen) head to a cabin in the woods and everything works out fine, because nothing bad ever happens in cabins in the woods. IFC Midnight hide caption

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IFC Midnight

'What Keeps You Alive': When You Marry A Killer, The Anniversary Gifts Are Murder

August 23, 2018 • In writer/director Colin Minihan's slack but stylish horror thriller, two women visit a remote cabin to celebrate their anniversary; a deadly cat-and-mouse game ensues.

Raunchy But Thin 'The Happytime Murders' Isn't Deeply Felt

Detective Connie Edwards (Melissa McCarthy) and private eye Phil Philips (Bill Barretta) investigate underhanded goings-on in The Happytime Murders Hopper Stone/STX Entertainment hide caption

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Hopper Stone/STX Entertainment

Raunchy But Thin 'The Happytime Murders' Isn't Deeply Felt

August 23, 2018 • Unlike the more allegorical Meet the Feebles or Team America: World Police, this latest excuse to make jokes about puppet-sex isn't interested in doing anything more than make jokes about puppet-sex.

'The Bookshop': A Caustic Tale of Clashing Sensibilities Gets A Too-Gentle Treatment

Florence (Emily Mortimer) unpacks her inventory in an adaptation of Penelope Fitzgerald's 1978 novel The Bookshop. Greenwich Entertainment hide caption

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Greenwich Entertainment

'The Bookshop': A Caustic Tale of Clashing Sensibilities Gets A Too-Gentle Treatment

August 23, 2018 • To make Penelope Fitzgerald's astringent novel more broadly palatable, adapter Isabel Coixet softens it nearly beyond recognition. Fitzgerald fans, be warned: The result is marketable but mealy.

In 'Support The Girls,' The Script ... Doesn't

August 23, 2018 • Regina Hall stars in this comedy set in a chain sports bar where young female servers scramble for tips, but the underwritten screenplay relies on a ceaseless stream of clunky one-liners.

A Desperate Father Goes 'Searching' For His Missing Daughter In A Taut New Film

John Cho stars as a Silicon Valley widower whose 16-year-old daughter has disappeared in Searching. Elizabeth Kitchens/Sony hide caption

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Elizabeth Kitchens/Sony

A Desperate Father Goes 'Searching' For His Missing Daughter In A Taut New Film

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August 23, 2018 • Searching takes the mundane details of a typical computer session — from video chats to browser windows — and spins them into a surprising, sometimes uncomfortably voyeuristic crime thriller.

A Desperate Father Goes 'Searching' For His Missing Daughter In A Taut New Film

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Muddled Action Thriller 'Mile 22' Should Have Pulled Off At Mile 3 Or So

CIA officer James Silva (Mark Wahlberg) escorts Li Noor (Iko Uwais) in Mile 22. STXfilms hide caption

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STXfilms

Muddled Action Thriller 'Mile 22' Should Have Pulled Off At Mile 3 Or So

August 16, 2018 • Mark Wahlberg plays a CIA operative trying to extricate a mysterious informant (Iko Uwais) from a fictional country in this disjointed film that underuses Uwais and overuses Wahlberg.

An Aging Rocker, A Fawning Fanboy — And Thou: 'Juliet, Naked'

She's With The Headband: Annie (Rose Byrne) and reclusive singer-songwriter Tucker (Ethan Hawke) share a moment in Juliet, Naked. Alex Bailey/Roadside Attractions hide caption

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Alex Bailey/Roadside Attractions

An Aging Rocker, A Fawning Fanboy — And Thou: 'Juliet, Naked'

August 16, 2018 • In this beguiling, decidedly un-frothy adaptation of Nick Hornby's novel, Annie (Rose Byrne) exchanges emails with a singer-songwriter (Ethan Hawke) her inattentive boyfriend (Chris O'Dowd) reveres.

Life — Or Something Like It — During Wartime: The Wrenching 'Memoir Of War'

Mélanie Thierry is writer Marguerite Duras in Memoir of War. Music Box Films hide caption

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Music Box Films

Life — Or Something Like It — During Wartime: The Wrenching 'Memoir Of War'

August 16, 2018 • Mélanie Thierry's quietly devastating performance anchors this adaptation of Marguerite Duras' wartime memoir chronicling her life in a perpetual state of uncertainty over her husband's fate.

When The Wild Rumpus Stops: 'We The Animals'

L to R: Jonah (Evan Rosado) draws while Ma (Sheila Vand) and Paps (Raul Castillo) drowse, in We the Animals. Paul Davidson/The Orchard hide caption

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Paul Davidson/The Orchard

When The Wild Rumpus Stops: 'We The Animals'

August 16, 2018 • Documentarian Jeremiah Zagar's first feature film adapts Justin Torres' impressionistic autobiographical novel of boyhood; the dreamlike result is "intense, scary and ecstatically lyrical."

When The Wild Rumpus Stops: 'We The Animals'

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Satire, Soap Opera, Duty, Devotion: 'Crazy Rich Asians' Is A Movie Milestone

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August 15, 2018 • The romantic comedy based on Kevin Kwan's 2013 novel has been saddled with cultural and commercial expectations. Critic Justin Chang was happy to find the film doesn't collapse under the weight.

Satire, Soap Opera, Duty, Devotion: 'Crazy Rich Asians' Is A Movie Milestone

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'BlacKkKlansman' Entertains, But Falls Short Of Lee's Best

Detective Ron Stallworth (John David Washington) goes undercover, brother, in Spike Lee's BlacKkKlansman. David Lee/Focus Features hide caption

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David Lee/Focus Features

'BlacKkKlansman' Entertains, But Falls Short Of Lee's Best

August 13, 2018 • It's being hailed as Spike Lee's best film in years, but NPR's Justin Richmond says BlacKkKlansman breezes over its main character's inner conflicts and lets polemics get in the way of storytelling.