‘Robot Dreams’
A dog and his robot friend explore 1980s New York in this wordless cartoon written and directed by Pablo Berger and adapted from the graphic novel of the same name.
From our review:
It’s marvelous how the film is able to sketch so much soul from such simple lines. The characters are drawn bluntly, just as they are in the book. Yet Berger, directing his first animated feature (but not his first silent film), already boasts the creativity of a master. He frames images from inside a grimy microwave, or looking up from the bottom of a candy bowl as it’s being filled with jelly beans. One dizzying shot comes from the point of view of a snowman who’s popped off his own head and hurled it like a bowling ball.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Critic’s Pick
The sulking dead.
‘Handling the Undead’
After the dead are spontaneously reanimated, three families wrestle with the personal ramifications.
From our review:
Director Thea Hvistendahl wisely takes her time getting to any real action. Instead, with a slow-moving camera and plenty of filtered sunlight, she conjures a dreamlike state, the sense of hanging between planes of existence that tends to accompany those who grieve. There are times when the film veers too near the maudlin for comfort, but it always finds its way back to something spare and meaningful. What would you do, the story gently asks, if your fondest and most impossible wish was granted, and you realized it wasn’t at all what you’d hoped it would be?
In theaters. Read the full review.
Swimming with the clichés.
‘Young Woman and the Sea’
This Disney drama is inspired by the true story of Trudy Ederle (played by Daisy Ridley), who in 1926 battled sexism and became the first woman to swim across the English Channel.
From our review:
This is one of those movies that proves, when they’ve got a mind to, they can still make them like they used to. Which is to say, its production values are top-notch, the cast uniformly competent or better (Ridley is particularly winning), and the filmmaking language — the director here is Joachim Ronning, whose last at-bat with Disney was the 2019 critical misfire “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil” — is meticulously calculated to deliver a rousing climax and an appropriately heartwarming coda. It’s also rather rich in cliché.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Critic’s Pick
Jessica Lange, stealing the show.
‘The Great Lillian Hall’
The title character (Jessica Lange) is an aging stage actress who struggles personally and professionally in this melodrama directed by Michael Cristofer.
From our review:
“The Great Lillian Hall” is not afraid to embrace its classicism; had it been made in the 1940s, it would have starred Bette Davis. Like many of the best golden-age melodramas, this HBO film fully commits to both unabashed emotion and a complicated female lead, a role filled by Jessica Lange with a finely tuned mix of showmanship and nuance.
Watch on Max. Read the full review.
A road trip along a familiar route.
‘Ezra’
After his son Ezra (William A. Fitzgerald), an 11-year-old with autism, is expelled from school, Max (Bobby Cannavale) kidnaps him from his ex-wife and the boy and his father embark on a cross-country road trip.
From our review:
Written by Tony Spiridakis and directed by Tony Goldwyn, “Ezra” is standard Hollywood fare. Its mood is often playful, until there’s a hard tug at the heartstrings. Family members reconcile, while tough guys learn life lessons about being generous with their children, and their own inner children. What keeps the story sweet is the chemistry between Cannavale and Fitzgerald, who build a bond worth cherishing.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Critic’s Pick
Viggo Mortensen’s inspired passion project.
‘The Dead Don’t Hurt’
A Danish sheriff, Olsen, and a French Canadian woman, Vivienne, try to forge a life together in a small Western town but the American Civil War makes that impossible in this sprawling epic starring Viggo Mortensen, who also wrote, directed, produced and scored.
From our review:
Shooting primarily in Durango, Mexico, Mortensen ably handles the division of perspectives and dramas — when Olsen goes off to war, the movie cedes center stage to Vivienne — without ever losing interest or proportion. Only the ending, a would-be poetic parting note too gentle for the gritty spectacle that has preceded it, and too untethered to its themes, comes across as a weak point. Even then, with performances this good, it’s hard to mind much.
In theaters. Read the full review.
A volley from the small screen to the big screen.
‘Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle’
This film, directed by Susumu Mitsunaka, is a continuation of the sports anime series “Haikyu!!” and follows a heated volleyball match between two high schools, Karasuno, with players like Shoyo Hinata, and rival Nekoma.
From our review:
As in every match in the series, the Dumpster Battle uses imaginative visual metaphors to depict each team’s offensive and defensive strategies and overall playing philosophies. Karasuno is the crow, with Hinata’s awe-inspiring leaps above the court represented by a crow making an airborne attack. Nekoma is the cat, grounded with solid defense, stalking and manipulating its prey until it can find the right moment to clip the crow’s feathers.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Critic’s Pick
Like if Michael Myers was the protagonist.
‘In a Violent Nature’
This slasher takes the killer as its main character, following him through the woods from one murder to the next.
From our review:
There is a calm implacability to “In a Violent Nature” that’s deeply unsettling and particularly unpleasant. Yet I was also transfixed: Chris Nash’s direction is so persuasively bold — brazen, really — and bloodcurdlingly coolheaded that his unusual shocker is impossible to dismiss.
In theaters. Read the full review.
A queer teen drama without the usual trauma.
‘Backspot’
When teenager Riley (Devery Jacobs) joins an all-star cheer squad, she must balance her mental health, her relationship with her girlfriend (Kudakwashe Rutendo) and her need to impress her new coach (Evan Rachel Wood).
From our review:
The nonbinary director, D.W. Waterson, wanted to make the kind of film they wished they had seen growing up in a hockey-obsessed household in Canada. Which may explain why an earnest teen spirit seems to be alive and somersaulting in “Backspot,” a cheer squad tale offering plenty of life lessons. … The double full twist with “Backspot” is that the writer, Joanne Sarazen, and Waterson (who edited and scored the film), don’t center the coming-of-age drama in coming-out trauma.
In theaters. Read the full review.
A bride with cold feet. Cue the chaos.
‘The Young Wife’
This comedy-drama directed by Tayarisha Poe follows Celestina (Kiersey Clemons) on her chaotic wedding day.
From our review:
The film’s cacophony of voices, and a spotlight that roves across the party guests, creates a storm of light, color and sound in the midst of which Celestina ponders existential questions. … These are familiar, even hackneyed themes, which make the film’s relentless theatrics feel gratuitous and somewhat exhausting. Style overpowers substance, though Poe’s fantastic eye for composition and Clemons’s vivacious screen presence are undeniable.
In theaters and available to rent or buy on most major platforms. Read the full review.
Compiled by Kellina Moore.
