Joining 2021’s Luca and forgotten old classics like The Fox and the Hound, Elio carves a formative path with a more careful attitude for youths to observe and absorb that could not be more essential and relevant, especially with pre-teen boys. This is one for them, and the effort is welcome.
Read MoreAmid all the pressures she puts on herself to be a responsible mom, flexing artistic muscles and sparking the creative synapses of music creates a new balance in Nora’s life. It’s safe to say every parent watching Nora needs to carve out some self-care time in their schedules to do their own just-for-you enrichment activity, whatever it may be.
Read MoreA Minecraft Movie is asking those newbies to enter and welcome a weird new universe. This energetic family movie proudly opens its doors to all comers (and wallets) where no prior knowledge is really necessary. Thanks to the exuberant cast and the kind of contagious entertainment they dispensed, you may just come to love something you didn’t know a lick about 101 minutes earlier.
Read MoreTrue to a play’s performative spine, Eric LaRue rises to become an actor’s showcase building towards two important summits: the aforementioned collection of mothers and the first visit to Eric in prison. Each seated clash places Judy Greer in the unenviable position as the target of ire and the recipient of painful reactions, where no amount of contrition will be enough and immediate peace is impossible.
Read MoreAudrey’s Children chisels an important story into an extremely well-meaning film. Not all life-saving feats are glamorous and marked with crowds and cheers. Sometimes, all they are is a stabilized vital signs, hopeful test results to live longer, or a family that walks out the door of a hospital intact instead of grieving a loss. To enjoy and appreciate this film is to watch an uncompromising woman taking risks to put in the diligent work to make a difference for, once again, “her kids.”
Read MoreThe movie is entertaining and engaging evidence the genre’s stand-up-and-cheer formula does not always need reinvention or recalibration, just more diverse and meaningful stories for new spotlights. When it’s all said and done, Queen of the Ring nailed the big fight feel in its 1954 climax that bookends the film, and they put on a barnburner.
Read MoreAssembling this esteemed cast of respected performers, Millers in Marriage pervades more and more audacious questions. While everyone has their share of golden parachutes compared to commoners, the inquiries of who’s jealous, curious, sad, or happy—and with whom—carry plenty of pertinence. Each relationship reaches crucial decision points with those feelings, and the movie unveils who makes the right ones and who makes the wrong ones
Read MoreDeeper though, what compels us for certain heroic movies beyond these dreamboats with best-of-the-best skill sets? First, it depends on the stars chosen. Radiant charisma and a touch of romance sure help when it comes to letting the beautiful people win. An interesting opponent, or predicament would help even more. Luckily, The Gorge offers enough of those enhancers to give us a good time with marquee names.
Read MoreMoral challenges and splits involving personal truths increase as the days and hours dwindle to do something about them. Depending on the viewer’s acceptance and temperament, When I’m Ready is a complicated blend of the morbid and the soulful. Cynics will call it soft and over-convenient. They’ll be missing the attempted love letter-level poetry championing companionship. Instead, those who lean to and shine with the positive latter will be rewarded with a lovely odyssey of warmth fighting back bleakness.
Read MoreWith its idyllic morals and rural accoutrements, Green and Gold champions hopeful and wholesome vibes. Green and Gold embraces that soft touch without thumping Bibles to support and celebrate the challenges and resilience found in the endangered American farmer. There’s an under-filled soft spot place for quaint family fare tipping a hat like this.
Read MoreCount Somewhere in Montana writer-director Brandon Smith as a wiser gentleman who avoided, for the most part, reaching for those types of low-hanging fruit. These featured men are surprisingly deeper than their outward tropes, and their qualities thicken, ever so slightly, what could have been a narrow movie.
Read MoreContinuing the immense commitment-to-the-bit she has demonstrated her entire career in both comedic and dramatic roles, Amy Adams runs with every one of Nightbitch’s surreal twists and turns in an incredible physical and emotional performance, worthy of another ticket to the Oscar soiree. Through enormous effort, she balances the fierce intensity of Heller’s narrative with the draw of underlying sensitivity that generates tangible empathy. No angle is too outlandish and no risk is too great to try.
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