Malcolm & Marie

Malcolm’s movie is a hit! So why is Marie upset?

A few reasons, it turns out. And so the best day of Malcolm’s life passes into the worst night. The couple argues on and off for hours, saying things that can never be unsaid.

The beginning is transfixing—even charming. There’s a hint of truth in celebrating with a drink, or cooking dinner for someone you’re upset with. But as time passes, the movie devolves into pretentiousness. Is anybody on earth this articulate at three in the morning? Who can possibly shrug off such devastating digs—and every twenty minutes, at that?

Exhausting is the word. Not because the floodgates of an unhealthy relationship are opening in the middle of the night, but because the movie does not feel like an argument; it feels like a movie that was written to fill two hours with one.

No amount of (gorgeous) camerawork or (unremarkable) acting can make up for this.

The Dig

The Dig strikes gold, then gets greedy.

Edith can’t kick the feeling that something big is buried on her land. With world war and illness looming, finding it has become that much more important.

Basil agrees. He’s no archaeologist, but the man respects a dig.

What the two uncover will go down in history. But making history and being history are very different things. So Basil does double duty, giving and Edith and her son some perspective amidst the turmoil.

It is a simple and touching story. What’s odd is that the moviemakers didn’t seem to think so. Surprisingly deep into this, a romantic storyline magically appears, shifting the focus of the movie and almost doubling its length.

But it’s still worth a watch, not least for its beautiful picture. Golden light and big sky expanses subtly remind us how precious life can be.

The White Tiger

The White Tiger is complicated. But to sum up, India is chickens.

Just take it from Balram. By clawing his way up from candy man to rich man he’s seen it all. And now, he’s telling all.

The story is full of intrigue, and often exciting. But it’s also dark. Hard truths about society—and Balram’s choices—are what make this movie. Entertaining and devastating can now be used in the same sentence.

Indeed, this isn’t about rags or riches. It’s about the internal struggle we each face: how to do the right thing for others while doing right by ourselves. Thanks in part to pitch-perfect acting, it’s never been so easy to cheer for characters in one scene and boo them in the next.

Family Romance, LLC

Drunk uncle gonna ruin your wedding day? Why not rent a replacement?!

That’s right. Family Romance, LLC has actors to fill whatever role you need—loved ones included.

It’s a strange concept, and even stranger to behold. The main event has “Dad” trying to rekindle a relationship with his neglected “daughter”.

Their moments together are real. But because half of the emotion is paid for, these moments feel hollow. It’s almost like watching a funeral. Yea yea, life goes on, but something’s missing, and you can’t tell me otherwise!

This seems to be the deeper goal of the movie—to get us thinking about the loneliness and connection life can offer. Although it’s thought-provoking, the movie feels more talent show than anything else. Most of the time has us jumping between unrelated scenes, just to exhibit different actors. This stalls the main story until the very end, when its conflict is finally introduced. The movie gets good just as soon as it finishes.

Twenty Two

Of 200,000, twenty-two survive. Those must be some stories.

Yep. And difficult to share. Surviving systematic abuse by the Japanese army, just to have society look down on you? These women deserve better.

So the movie does what it can. Our Chinese grannies share their pain—some of them, for the first time. But even when reliving becomes too difficult, we still sit with them. See them.

About half of the movie steps out of the room. Nothing-moments. As much as these give grannies a respectful distance, they give us time to download what we’ve just learned. Watching a snowfall, we can think about how the voice of pain is sometimes muffled. Or, we can focus on the flakes’ delicate dance. Up to us.

Whether by interviews or in-betweens, this movie is as tasteful and beautiful as a movie can be. There is no action, no journey. Just life, raw and real.

One Night in Miami

Hey—have you heard the one where two champions, a rock star, and a philosopher walk into a bar?

It’s no joke. In fact, it’s deeply satisfying. Watching Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, Sam Cooke, and Malcolm X with their guards down, it feels like we’re getting away with something.

That’s because people speak more freely with friends. It’s catch-ups one minute, deep cuts another. Sure, you’re the best at what you do, but is your day job making the world a better place?

Some of the lines truly burn. But most of the movie is a more subtle sizzle. Even the slower pace and group imagery are saying, relax and celebrate while you can, but to be black in the United States is to return to a struggle.

There’s much to take away from this, and we each might take something different. The message, maybe, is that that’s OK. Our own experiences and talents can’t be denied. So if we disagree, let’s talk about it.

To All the Boys I've Loved Before

Speak now or forever hold your peace? I’ll take the third option.

Like Lara Jean. Instead of telling people how she really feels, she writes letters—never to be sent, of course.

Of course. Once these letters (mysteriously) make their way into the world, what had felt like a sappy movie transforms. When all the boys you’ve loved before are at your door, funny things happen.

It’s not a likely story. You’ll see more group hugs and self-possessed teenagers here than you will in a lifetime. But it’s hard to roll your eyes when the rest makes you feel so good. You can sympathize with the hard stuff, and laugh at the light. Lara Jean playing her part to perfection helps.

Wonder Woman 1984

It’s 1984, and big is in. Hair. Shoulder pads. Desire.

Diana isn’t the biggest fan: She believes there’s such a thing as enough. And as an Amazon warrior, she has the powers—and duty—to remind people of it.

That includes Maxwell. He’s selling the dream of more, to those with less. But it’s a Ponzi scheme. To maintain, it must grow. And to grow, it must take.

The movie leans heavily on these themes. That works well, for a while. But somewhere along the line, the story doesn’t follow its own logic, and so its message falls flat. OK movie, you want me to examine my place in the world? I’ll do that after you examine yourself first.

It’s frustrating. The moral is a good one, and shouldn’t get lost. But if you can look past the mistake, plenty of the movie is funny and entertaining.

Tiger

Tiger Woods will bring a kind of peace to this world, a peace like it has never seen before.

Can you imagine, the audacity? But what if your parents said the same about you? Might you feel lucky, that they recognized you were special? Grateful, for their support?

Or maybe, you’d become a machine, addicted to validation. Maybe, you’d be torn up inside. Because no person can be perfect, and because healthy relationships aren’t distractions to be tossed aside.

These are just a few of the ideas whizzing around this movie. Sure, you’ll see footage of golf greatness, and it’s simply wonderful. But the movie is at its most compelling when interviews put this greatness into context—when we can begin to imagine the insane pressures Tiger is facing.

Life is messy, and doesn’t work out into chapters for a story. But this is a riveting, human one, and you’ll easily sit through all three hours of it.

Tenet

Tenet spelled backward is Tenet. But Tenet spelled forward is Tenet . . . So which way is which? And what if the fate of the world depended on your answering correctly?

For our lead, this problem is too real. Not only does he need to find the bad guys, he needs to fight their new weapon. Think apple falling up the tree. Or bullet speeding into the gun.

Confused? You’re not the only one. But our lead has a knack for asking the right questions—and throwing the right punches.

This movie is complicated, sprawling, exhausting—but exciting and impressive. It’s a globe-trotting, mind-bending, action-packed dream, and our brains can’t keep up.

Pieces of a Woman

The baby’s coming. Right now.

But Martha and her partner aren’t worried about being at home. In fact, they planned it this way.

What they didn’t plan for was tragedy. You’d think it would bring the family closer together, but this is a story of separation. People feel pain and seek peace in different ways.

The birthing scene alone will rock you. But the whole movie is expertly done. Editing toys with our perceptions. Direction keeps us close, because even the smallest detail adds to the picture. And last but not least, Martha and her mother deliver champion performances: We’re not watching people change, we’re watching their most intimate thoughts in action.

Prepare to have your emotions thrown on a skillet.

The Founder

McDonald’s’ll never be big. Just ask the McDonald brothers!

Ray disagrees, and is on a mission to convert them (and everyone else) to the gospel of growth. Problem is, Ray’s a nobody; a struggling salesman with flimsy ideas.

We all know how the story ends. But here we learn how it begins, and how it begins is wildly interesting, almost unbelievable.

Why? It’s complicated. At one end, nostalgia rains like a vanilla milkshake. Suits are pressed, and countertops glisten. Bright smiles beam out of cherry-red Buicks. But the other end? It’s never far away, and it’s all selfishness and mania. Ideas over people.

The movie is built around this bipolar energy—Ray’s energy. So it’s strange to say, but at the end of the day, this is a well done, family-friendly movie about a man anything but.

The Midnight Sky

So you’re terminally ill. Oh, and the last person on Earth. Finding it hard to focus?

Augustine sure is. But he still finds time to search for a future. You see, a few stranded astronauts can use his help.

Dystopian futures can be downers, but this one isn’t. Its weaved storylines are never boring—and never too heavy. It’s about relationships and connections, not how scary the end of existence might seem.

The story is engaging enough, but pro moviemaking adds depth. For one thing, each scene is pretty enough to watch on its own. Barren settings are made beautiful. Alternating focus draws our attention. Subtle differences in light, greys and blacks, change our mood in a split second.

In a cold, dark universe, there are pockets of light. This movie is one.

Soul

If you died tomorrow, would you be OK with it?

Without any words, that’s what Soul asks us. The short story is that Joe needs to pick between following his jazz-piano-passion and holding down a steady job. The long story is that he has other things to figure out, and it takes a journey through space and time for him to realize it.

Sound heavy? That’s because it is. But this remains a movie for the whole family, filled with approachable characters and silly scenarios. The music is mesmerizing, and the animation everchanging. You’ll be hooked in the first two minutes.

It’s something special when a movie can work on multiple levels; when your child can have fun learning a life lesson—and you can have fun re-learning it. So now that you know there’s something special in your life, what are you waiting for?

Klaus

Nobody gets toys on Christmas.

That’s because Smeerensburg is about tradition, and tradition says to hate thy neighbor.

Jesper is thrown into this lovely setting as the town’s new mail carrier. But he’s no saint either: He sees Klaus, a nice old man, as his ticket out. At least, that’s how their relationship starts . . .

At the end of the day, this movie tries to do too much. It’s really about Jesper growing up, but jams in Santa’s origin story, the meaning of secular Christmas, the corrupting power of adults, and more. This makes things confusing. Who should we root for? What’s the moral of the story?

You can watch it with family, but it’s more for adults (who overthink things) than children. All that said, its tie-ins to Christmas traditions are clever, and the animation can be gorgeous. Lights and lines create vivid portraits that just so happen to move.

Mangrove

Before Frank knows it, his new restaurant is the hottest spot in town. That’s bad news.

Why? The police don’t see a place to relax. They see enemy headquarters, usurpers of English space and women. So begins an attack on London’s Caribbean community.

The story here is many. Many conversations, many frustrations, many injustices. It’s all maddening. And yet, the movie is beautiful.

Direction with a light touch lets the story speak for itself. And with near-perfect acting, it speaks loud and clear: There is no limit to what individuals are capable of when they work with each other.

The movie is powerful—and powerfully real—from beginning to end, but the trial sequences are some of the most memorable you’ll see in movies.

Godmothered

The Godmother industry is going out of business. People just don’t believe in happily-ever-after anymore.

That includes Mackenzie, which is bad news for Eleanor, Godmother-in-training and complete ditz.

Will Mackenzie ever rekindle the light in her life? Eleanor thinks so, and tries her best to make it happen. She’s completely out of place—and hilarious and charming. The same can be said for the whole movie. This fairy tale includes funny twists on oldies-but-goodies, but leaves behind outdated values.

The cast gels together, and every so often, camerawork adds to the theme of magic in our everyday. What we have here is a wholesome story just in time for the holiday season.

Peppermint

Riley ain’t so sweet. In fact, she’s hell-bent on revenge. Looks like Diego and his gang messed with the wrong mom.

Fine. Everyone wants justice. But the tone here is way too dark. The “hero” does more harm than good, and the movie doesn’t explore whether it’s justified.

The twists are good enough to make us curious whether Riley will get satisfaction, but in the end, there’s little satisfying about this shootfest. Too bad. It’s a waste of good performances by each of the police crew, and action by our lead.

His House

Bol and Rial have suffered, and are ready to build a new life.

New life means new house. This one has room for the family to grow, but something’s off. Something’s way off.

As we watch the couple deal with a living nightmare, we learn about some of their past ones. It’s moving and terrifying stuff.

What we have here is an instant classic, equal parts horror, drama, and social commentary. Yep—visual and sound effects will have you jumping out of your seat more than once. But the writing and imagery, easy-flowing and rooted in reality, are just as scary. Driving it all home are performances by Bol and Rial showing exceptional depth and range.

The Prom

Prom is cancelled! Thanks PTA. Now the cool kids won’t be able to flaunt it, and Emma won’t be able to finally enjoy a night in public with her girlfriend.

Outrage at this small-town injustice is trending. So Dee Dee and Barry, fresh off their Broadway flop, try to score publicity points by saving the day. Think sequin-bomb exploding in an Indiana Applebee’s.

What follows is relentlessly upbeat, filled with loud colors, broad smiles, and impromptu (but perfect) performances. It can be a bit much, especially with such a long movie, but it’s all there to create a mood of positivity in the face of pain. Snarky and self-referential jokes make it clear that the moviemakers knew exactly what they were doing here: just having fun with it.