[Rating: Swiss Fist] In trying to bridge the gap between twee and horror, writers/directors Dan Berk and Robert Olsen have made a movie that is neither and struggles to find an identity as a result. The story of a pair of young outlaws on the run who happen upon a set of actual, real-deal criminals, […]
‘Official Secrets,’ a true story about a government whistleblower during the run-up to the 2003 Iraq War, is interesting if sometimes unfocused.
[Rating: Swiss Fist] A good-natured attempt to humanize a very real monstrosity running rampant through the current hell-scape that is this cursed year of 2019, Hot Air doesn’t stumble so much as it breaks both legs and suffers a heart attack right out of the starting gate. Positioned as a biting satire of conservative opinion-making, […]
‘The VelociPastor’ is all cheap thrills without the fun: proof that life doesn’t always “find a way.”
All told, Ode to Joy is a darn good time, making the most out of a wild premise without ever veering too far off into mockery or slapstick.
‘Sword of Trust’ is a fun, funny, and touching trifle with well-painted characters and a surprising amount of insight into modern myth-making
A slow-burn postmodern western-noir thriller with just a tad more style than substance, Into the Ashes delivers when it needs to.
A movie about listless, uninspired, confused man-children & the throngs of women tying themselves in knots over them, ‘Summer Night’ is a decided miss.
‘Plus One’ effectively uses the tropes of the rom-com genre to conform to the best parts of it while blazing a path entirely its own.
A breezy little documentary with modest ambitions and a surplus of reverence for its subject, ‘Loopers: The Caddie’s Long Walk’ makes par.
[Rating: Minor Rock Fist Down] A straightforward hagiography piece that celebrates its subject with little critical analysis, Botero is an instructive albeit unambitious documentary. Tracking the creative growth of Columbian painter/sculptor Fernando Botero, the film hits all of the expected notes of the artist’s professional maturation using testimonials from family members, curators, art historians, and […]
[Rating: Minor Rock Fist Down] A rom-com that lives in the periphery of the world it creates for itself, Photograph endeavors (yet too often fails) to tell a familiar story without the traditional narrative building blocks of its genre. This is somewhat ironic, too, for the story is steeped in the traditions of its characters, […]
Using a refreshing, unique spin on a classic high school yarn, ‘Banana Split’ succeeds in crafting a story that’s both entertaining and empowering.
Bolstered by an against-type performance by Hawke, and a quiet but strong turn by Rapace, ‘Stockholm’ might just suck you in like the syndrome.
‘William’ struggles to overcome its clunky dialogue and try-hard script to ascend to anything more than a basic retread of better, more ambitious fare.