All Posts

‘A.I. Rising’ (2018) a surprisingly splendid sexbot story

Some sexbot films avoid discomfort with camp and a few laughs. Others confront the discomfort head-on and reveal the wrongfulness of sex toys – especially

READ MORE

‘Earthlings’ (2018) gives shocking insider insight into outsiders

“Earthlings” (2018) so effectively skews and skewers a readers’ idea of right and wrong that by the end we’re wondering whether theft, incest and murder

READ MORE

Return to Britain serves up ‘Frenzy’ (1972) of great plotting

“Frenzy” (1972) is Alfred Hitchcock’s best British film – even though it’s his only British film after he switched to Hollywood, and it’s from his

READ MORE

Lansbury takes crack at Marple in ‘The Mirror Crack’d’ (1980)

Amid the resurgence of lush Poirot movies, Miss Marple tiptoed in with “The Mirror Crack’d” (1980). It’s a faithful, respectable adaptation, and many people liked

READ MORE

‘MaXXXine’ wades into belly of beast to cap ‘X’ trilogy

If “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood” (2019) was Quentin Tarantino’s love letter to Sixties Hollywood, “MaXXXine” is Ti West’s hate letter to Eighties

READ MORE

Ricci’s ‘The Gathering’ (2003) is well-meaning, cliched church horror

As her career launched, like most actresses, Christina Ricci supplemented artistic, critic-lauded work with better-paying gigs, which likely explains her top billing in “The Gathering”

READ MORE

‘The Third Man’ (1949) doesn’t even need a third man to be great

Any dive into the great film noirs has to include “The Third Man” (1949), often ranked among the best British productions of all time. Interestingly,

READ MORE

‘The Trouble with Harry’ (1955) is that it’s so different

“Mr. and Mrs. Smith” (1941) is infamously Alfred Hitchcock’s worst film because he operates like a hired hand, efficiently making a standard, unfunny rom-com. The

READ MORE

‘Cobra Kai’ eventually gets its kicks back in Season 6, Part 1

Has “Cobra Kai” (Netflix) lost its fighting edge in the five-episode Season 6, Part 1? Episode one is quite flat, episode two is spicier, but

READ MORE

‘The Princess and the Goblin’ (1991) isn’t slick, but it has childlike wonder

Unfortunately for “The Princess and the Goblin” (1991), it was released in the United States in 1994, the same year as “The Lion King.” Comparisons

READ MORE