Movies

‘Edward Scissorhands’ (1990) a too-thin slice of heartfelt weirdness

Tim Burton is the most idiosyncratic of mass-appeal directors, but his weirdness is only skin deep. This is especially evident in one of his most

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Hitchcock gets transported to space in ‘Lifepod’ (1993)

The very definition of a remake worth doing, the Fox TV movie “Lifepod” (1993) takes the core concept of “Lifeboat” (1944) but puts new (and

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‘The Rental’ (2020) plays up creepiness of being a stranger in a strange home

With each new societal innovation, horror movies must follow. Such has been the case this decade with “vacation rental horror.” With the rise of Airbnb

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Smartly structured ‘Challengers’ breaks at love

“Challengers” gets a lot of mileage out of what is essentially a “Gossip Girl” premise: Two male tennis players – besties who have won the

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‘The Holdovers’ (2023) merely a placeholder for Payne

Alexander Payne would seem to be a good match for Christmas, as his films explore relatable emotions but ease the pain with laughs right when

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‘I Saw the TV Glow’ a mesmeric metaphysical journey

“I Saw the TV Glow” is one of the weirdest movies I’ve ever liked. This neon-lit, wrongly categorized “horror” movie from writer-director Jane Schoenbrun taps

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‘It’s a Wonderful Knife’ (2023) lacks any spirit at all

Bad Christmas horror movies have become as ubiquitous as bad Christmas rom-coms … OK, maybe not quite that ubiquitous. But the genre is beginning to

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‘Night of the Hunter’ (1955) is influential … but is it good?

Charles Laughton was a one-of-a-kind, larger-than-life actor – for better or worse. And his one film as a director, “The Night of the Hunter” (1955),

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‘Under Capricorn’ (1949) rightly buried under Hitchcock’s suspensers

Alfred Hitchcock was the Master of Suspense, but one thing he never mastered was a consistent sense of proper pacing and movie length. “Under Capricorn”

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‘Smile 2’ is worth a smirk as it illustrates celebrity stress

At least give writer-director Parker Finn credit for finding a new angle into his “Smile” saga. He follows up his popular but slightly overrated 2022

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