A Wrinkle in Time: Off World
Last month, I stated in my review of Black Panther that black people don’t often get to direct Hollywood blockbuster extravaganzas. You know who...
Oscar’s Hidden Gold
When I do this feature next year, Black Panther will be all over it and Annihilation will likely rate a mention. However, I’m still...
Red Sparrow: Broken Wing
Most Hollywood movies these days tiptoe around international affairs, so careful are they to avoid offending foreign countries whose audiences might buy tickets. It’s...
Black Panther: It’s Good to Be King
Though it may be obvious, one point about Black Panther can’t be overstated: This Marvel Comics movie is the first time a black filmmaker...
Odds and Ends
I’m not completely done with the movies of 2017 — the ogres over at Sony Pictures Classics didn’t let me see Loveless and A...
Hostiles: Savage Land
Every time I look at Scott Cooper’s career, it gets smaller. The actor-turned-filmmaker made a promising directing debut back in 2009 with his country-music...
Phantom Thread: Mr. Woodcock
I’m usually skeptical of artists announcing their retirement when they’re neither terminally ill nor really old. (See: Soderbergh, Steven and Miyazaki, Hayao.) However, I’m...
Call Me by Your Name: A Summer Place
The exquisite Call Me by Your Name was originally supposed to be directed by James Ivory, the gay American filmmaker who adapted the script...
I, Tonya: Skatewreck
As a teenager, I came across a glowing Sports Illustrated profile of Tonya Harding during the run-up to the 1992 Winter Olympics. Reading the...
The Post: My God, the Fun!
Steven Spielberg's The Post isn’t a great movie, but it is a timely one, and sometimes that’s even better. As we watch its characters...