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FlickFilosopher.com

film criticism by maryann johanson | celebrating 25 years: 1997–2022

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Bill Nighy

weekend watchlist: a couple of treasures for Pride Month

Mon, Jul 18, 2022
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Plus a lovable English crank and a put-upon Texan mom. (First published June 18th, 2022, on Substack and Patreon.)

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Sometimes Always Never movie review: only very intermittently

Fri, Jun 12, 2020
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Gentle kook and visual frolicking bury emotion in this tale of a man mired in grief. Little of its head-scratching whimsy makes a melancholy landing; most just floats away on wisps of insignificance.

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Emma. movie review: this queen bee has a bitter sting

Fri, Feb 14, 2020
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A sly, penetrating zing and a frisson of Insta-influencer horror — of the oppression of performative perfection against a marzipan backdrop — renders Austen’s fluff and nonsense deadly serious.

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Pokémon: Detective Pikachu movie review: destined to be Legendary

Tue, May 07, 2019
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Designed to cash in on the popular mobile game, this kiddie noir nevertheless sparkles with charming originality. Gentle enough for tykes but with satirical bite for grownups, too. Downright adorable.

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The Bookshop movie review: quiet portrait of a woman of words

Wed, Aug 22, 2018
9 comments

It’s weighed down by unnecessary narration and a surprising lack of conflict. But star Emily Mortimer and director Isabel Coixet create a character study of a rarity onscreen: an earnestly cerebral woman.

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The Limehouse Golem movie review: riffing on the Ripper

Mon, Sep 04, 2017
4 comments

Lush sensationalism and Dickensian social justice collide in 1880s London, and if there isn’t quite enough of either, it’s still a slice of satisfying gothic horror.

| 4 Comments

Their Finest movie review: keeping calm and carrying on making movies

Wed, Apr 05, 2017
7 comments

Delightful dry and snarky satire on wartime propaganda, sharp feminist commentary, and a brilliant cast make this snappy historical dramedy a real corker.

| 7 Comments

The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel movie review: return visit

Thu, Feb 26, 2015
5 comments

There’s not much of a story, just a chance to spend more time with the gang of classy sexy randy oldsters. And that’s just fine.

| 5 Comments

Pride movie review: hanging together rather than hanging separately

Fri, Sep 12, 2014
4 comments

One of the rare movies that gets absolutely everything right, bursting with happy-tears emotion about solidarity, friendship, and smashing bigotry.

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I, Frankenstein review: beware, for it is pointless

Fri, Jan 31, 2014
3 comments

It’s alive! In a technical sense: images flicker on the screen, etc. But it is a soulless, unholy monstrosity. Behold: the movie without a protagonist!

| 3 Comments
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