Patriots Day movie review: blurry portrait of a city
Unfocused like a 1970s cast-of-thousands disaster flick, and with little point beyond engaging in bland and easy propagandistic cheering. Boston deserves better.
crime
Prevenge movie review: baby bump off
Fresh feminist horror of a very welcome taboo-smashing kind. Nasty, hilarious, outraged and outrageous, and as poignant as it is blackly funny.
Split movie review: time for another round of “What the Hell Was M. Night Shyamalan Thinking?”
Lurid and squicky, Split treads water and keeps too many secrets on a dull path to the revelation of its self-satisfied cleverness.
Live by Night movie review: criminal tedium
Commits the cardinal sin of cinema: it’s boring. Feels like two hours of highlights from a 20-episode miniseries that only hint at a rich story tapestry.
Chi-Raq movie review: sex as a weapon of peace
Furious, funny, and deadly serious, this is an audacious, searing satire that swells into a raw, electrifying fantasy about how we might put aside savagery.
Bad Santa 2 movie review: been there, done that, licked the candy cane lasciviously
Hard to believe it took 13 years to get a sequel to our screens and still have it show not a hint of Bad Santa’s inspiration or subversion.
The Uncondemned documentary review: the horrors of Rwanda, on trial
Meet the dedicated young lawyers and activists who prosecuted and convicted the first person ever to go to prison for genocide and wartime rape.
The Accountant movie review: by the numbers but outside the lines
So convoluted, confusing, and overly crammed that it’s overwhelming, and not in a pleasant way. But Ben Affleck’s autistic action hero is fascinating.
Jack Reacher: Never Go Back movie review: don’t go back for the sequel
Jack Reacher is back. And no one seems to know why. Low stakes, a rote plot, and undistinguished action add up to a pointless and unnecessary sequel.
Blood Father movie review: a take-your-daughter-to-work adventure
Sly observations on American hypocrisy, a fresh father-daughter dynamic, and terrific performances elevate this a cut above the typical revenge thriller.
