The Rise (aka Wasteland) review
Smooth, accomplished British crime indie tweaks clichés of the genre in a marvelously satisfying way.
drama
Prisoners review: the unbearable darkness of being
Please see this movie. We need to let Hollywood know that there is, in fact, an audience for sophisticated drama for adults.
Rush review: man + machine vs man + machine
A thoroughly magnificent film on every level, with astonishing performances by Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Brühl; one of the very best films of 2013.
Museum Hours review: life as art
A little bit like a travelogue, a little bit like people-watching, this is simultaneously a relaxing and invigorating cinematic experience. Simply magnificent.
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones review
Way to give overwrought fan fiction a bad name. No amount of fairy dust can make this bewitching.
Passion review
Trashy remake of the brilliant French black comedy strips out the satire and slathers what’s left in ridiculous lesbian-erotic-thriller sauce.
The Lifeguard review
Apparently it’s hard to be a grownup in today’s crazy world without committing consequence-free statutory rape. Ugh.
Upstream Color review: higher dimensions of storytelling
A confounding intellectual mystery, an enigmatic philosophical science fantasy that’s like a cinematic Moebius strip.
Rebellion (L’ordre et la morale) review
Sporadically exciting French action drama about a 1988 hostage crisis drags more often than it should.
A Hijacking (Kapringen) mini review
Harrowing drama of modern-day piracy as a sort of illicit corporate takeover; riveting and exhausting.
