Yet, here’s Max Walker-Silverman, following up the well-received A Love Song, with a drama that emphasizes true familial roots before anything else. When done right, those basics are bigger than any flashy extras. Instead of only “home is where your heart is,” Rebuilding asserts that home is where you are welcome, and, even after everything, Dusty says it like it is: “I don’t like anywhere better.”
Read MoreWhat strengthens this viewing experience is the unyielding performance from Rose Byrne. Her expressive interpretation of both physical and mental fatigue is beyond anything she’s ever done and is one of the best acting displays of 2025. Her fully-formed comedic timing as a seasoned actress of that genre stirs the dark and uncomfortable humor that bubbles within If I Had Legs I’d Kick You.
Read MoreRichard Linklater, through thick and thin over the years, has never sunk as low as where Lorenz Hart finished his life and career, partially because he, too, has the same inextinguishable zest to challenge and create, and puts it on screen every chance he gets. Keep going, Richard. We’re here for it.
Read MoreThrough it all, Truth and Treason means to call on more dissenters in this world. Either in the actual moment or in hindsight later, when people learn of or reflect on time periods of war and tyranny, they raise the question of where the dissenters were. Too often, the evil majority dominates the headlines and narratives of the given political or social conflict. In those times, conscientious objectors, protesters, or flat-out opponents of resistance were needed more than ever.
Read MoreThis supporting role in an independent movie from Good Deed Entertainment is smaller in scope than his previous three credits in massive Marvel Cinematic Universe entries and pales in complexity to the memorable, morally complex characters on his resume, where this final bow may not feel important enough in some eyes. Nevertheless, there’s something special about placing Michael Douglas’s mystique in such a soft, simple position.
Read MoreWhat could have been a morose, listless slog about a bitter whiner is energized into something of a soul-stirring seance in many layers and moments. If you’re taken away for 100 minutes to think about your life—what you’ve done and haven’t done—and what kind of man or person you want to be, one could do far worse than swoon to Gabriel Byrne and groove to Leonard Cohen.
Read MoreThanks to a strong third act monologue from Ejiofor speaking on approaching loss as the “inevitable outcome of the love that unites us all,” we want what we he wants and have to remove cynicism to accept that outcome from Johansson’s film with warmth. There’s plenty for the new director to be proud of and a high value to being a mouthpiece for human connection as this film intends.
Read MoreStarring the multi-talented Lilly Singh, the sex farce comedy flies a bunting’s worth of freak flags, all of them willfully fluttering with pride and wantonness in the face of pearl-clutching prudeness and opposition. While it stumps for modernity to do away with antiquated thinking on a few topics, Doin’ It also turns back the clock to bring back a downright horny level of raunch, a tone setting long abandoned by studios and missed by plenty of audiences.
Read MoreTrue to the old recipe, the improvisational nature of the conversations and interactions shows its essentialness for the cast and storytellers. For the audience who has missed the casualness of this style, The Baltimorons is comfort food not unlike the hearty plates both these characters wouldn’t mind partaking in with loved ones before the day is out.
Read MoreYet, Rachael Abigail Holder makes her choice. She leans on love and lets the rest of the issues orbit like an accompanying breeze. In doing so, Love, Brooklyn offers a bountiful, conversation-driven romantic drama that exudes intelligence, not only in its portrayal of the neighborhood's dynamics but also in its exploration of the hurdles modern relationships face in such a culturally affluent setting.
Read MoreMissing children are an unsettling movie crisis, often rapt in thriller-sized peril. The helplessness is crippling, even if a happy ending arrives. As well, the fear and uncertainty hit very close to home, even if the viewer is not a parent themselves. More often than not, films about missing or kidnapped children amplify the danger to an exasperating and overwrought level. Stranger Eyes encapsulates the aforementioned proliferating dangers in an almost entrancing, methodical way
Read MoreThe Knife’s suspense stirs from the thoroughness on display inside and outside of the film’s events. Getting involved with every character, Melissa Leo is granted an excellent showcase, prying truths from lies and pushing this plot along, proving, once again, her sizable screen presence in the right role. For her detective, specifics and details matter, and the screenplay from Asomugha and prolific writer/actor Mark Duplass masks them in a taut and efficient movie
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