Review: Downton Abbey’s fairy tale continues to fester
Movie Review: Downton Abbey
Julian Fellowes created a perfect little universe inside a crystal ball, then filled it with the suggestion of outside elements — a pinch of painted sand and glitter that he can agitate to conjure a snowstorm of conflict. The new feature film stays inside the gorgeous snow globe as a Royal Visit shakes up the Crawley family, and sets the stage for the next century -- as well as a continuing film franchise.
The Goldfinch fails to adapt but Donna Tartt’s DNA survives
Movies: #TIFF19 - The Goldfinch
The Pulitzer Prize-winning novel about survival divided audiences in print form as it fragmented in the final act. John Crowley’s visually satisfying, but dramatically disappointing, movie version falls prey to the same problems in its bid to fit too much into the frame.
Hustlers strips systemic sexism down to the boner
#TIFF19: Hustlers Movie Review
A team of smart pole dancers fleeced the wolves of Wall Street by exploiting their natural resources, but this female revenge story based on a New York magazine piece doesn’t grab at easy conclusions. Director Lorene Scafaria teases out the hard reality of gender inequality, one lap dance at a time.
Ready or Not exploits the secret fear of in-laws
Movie Review: Ready or Not
A young bride agrees to play a family game to prove her love and commitment, but traditional belief systems are the central villain in this entertaining satire that articulates a millennial disdain for decadence and inherited privilege.
Review: The Kitchen is a woman’s place, indeed
Movie Review: The Kitchen
Part revenge-quest, part sisterhood of the travelling pants with pistols, The Kitchen has so many male constructs sewn into its inseam, first-time director Andrea Berloff doesn’t have a lot of room to move. It’s a man’s cut, yet but makes it comfortable by wearing it all a size too large, boyfriend style, writes critic Katherine Monk.
Shelagh McLeod wants to put seniors on the moon
Interview: Shelagh McLeod on Astronaut
If voyaging to space is the ultimate metaphor for human progress, Shelagh McLeod thinks it should be a little more inclusive. That’s why she wrote and directed Astronaut, her feature debut starring Richard Dreyfuss as an aging engineer with big dreams of going to the stars.
Review: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood…
Movies: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Quentin Tarantino cements his brand into every boring, bloody frame of his latest picture, which frames a Brad Pitt-Leonardo DiCaprio buddy story against the backdrop of the Manson murders. Critic Katherine Monk says the acting is heroic, but the movie is just plain bad.
The Art of Self-Defense kicks with fists while crunching numbers
Movie Review: The Art of Self-Defense
Director Riley Stearns bares some surprising truths in a predictable revenge story that evolves into a forensic audit of the masculine identity as Jesse Eisenberg plays a meek accountant who helps a karate instructor reconcile the books.
Spider-Man Far From Home — with excess baggage
Movie Review: Spider-Man Far From Home
The web-slinger gets sticky in a whole new set of places in a so-so sequel that finds a sweet spot in the unspoken codes of masculinity, and what it means to be Spider-Man and awkward teen, Peter Parker, simultaneously.
