Year: 2025

March 23, 2025 · Watch the official trailer

Disney’s obsession with taking their animated classics and transforming them to live action iterations for easy box office revenue has led to an underwhelming amount of family friendly films that are easily forgotten.

This time, however, it feels like Mickey Mouse and company might actually be onto something with director Marc Webb’s modern reimagining of the classic “Snow White” tale headlined by “West Side Story” actress Rachel Zegler and “Wonder Woman” star Gal Gadot.

“Snow White” is a relatively progressive, updated twist on the classic fairy tale character with the titular role being given far more agency than ever before. Snow White is not simply a girl waiting for her prince to come like the classic tune removed for this iteration, but rather a much more resilient, independent, and thoughtful young woman seeking to build on her parents’ noble legacy.

In this way, Zegler is an ideal choice to play Snow White, perfectly balancing a wide-eyed naivete with forthright determination and a zeal to be of service to others.

It also helps tremendously that Zegler is an exceptionally talented theatrical and musical performer and her ability to carry the narrative forward while also masterfully performing original tunes written for the film by “The Greatest Showman” songwriters Benj Pasek and Justin Paul give a flavor to a Disney film from a musical sense that the studio has been lacking since Lin-Manuel Miranda's “Moana” soundtrack and the smash hit “We Don't Talk About Bruno” from “Encanto.”

Conversely, the modernization of this “Snow White” iteration largely sidelines Gadot as the Evil Queen, a sorceress with limited magical powers that hinder her character’s backstory and largely paint Gadot into a corner of one note villainy.

Scenes with the Evil Queen are often the worst in the entire film though luckily it is also the smallest percentage of “Snow White” with Webb and screenwriter Erin Cressida Wilson keeping Zegler’s demonstrably better performance at the forefront throughout.

The film’s classic seven dwarfs, Happy, Sleepy, Sneezy, Bashful, Grumpy, Dopey, and Doc, are all still in the film by name, though not referred to as dwarves. And these friendly miners that Snow White meets all over path have minor alterations to their overall character with Dopey playing an increased role in the emotional through lines of the narrative.

While there is technically a male love interest for Snow White, the rebellious outsider Jonathan portrayed by Andrew Burnap is a major change from the classic prince of the 1937 original and will remind some viewers of Jonathan Bailey’s turn as Fiyero in last year’s “Wicked.”

“Snow White” also features some of the best CGI work that Disney has done in one of these live action re-imaginings of their classic animated films, both in the mostly photo realistic designs given to the seven dwarves, but also in the nuanced yet light animals Snow White befriends.

Musical moments in the film are exceptionally strong with returning classic tunes “Heigh Ho” and “Whistle While You Work” are among the film’s highlights.

These scenes also help to reposition Snow White as more of an independent character with agency with the act one song “Waiting on a Wish” having the same emotional resonance as “How Far I'll Go” from “Moana” did for that film's narrative. It's a song that should be a strong contender for Best Original Song at next year's Academy Awards ceremony.

Although families were probably already heading to the theaters to see “Snow White” over spring break for a monthly outing to the cinema, There is enough quality in the storytelling and filmmaking of Webb's film to make “Snow White” something that cinephiles might agree is a step of or a class above other live action iterations in the same style and perhaps worth taking a chance on the big screen.

March 17, 2025 · Watch the official trailer

Filmmakers rarely strive for exactly 90 minutes of quality cinema anymore.

There's so much bloat in narratives nowadays whether unnecessary expository scenes, elongated action sequences, or frivolous side plots that overextend a story beyond its means making for something that's less than enjoyable for a wide audience.

Director Stephen Soderbergh has made what will only be recognized as perhaps the year's most striking and sharply short film with his small ensemble spy thriller “Black Bag,” which arrived in theaters this past weekend.

From a screenplay by David Koepp, “Black Bag” follows Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett as married British intelligence operatives working in separate departments only to find Blanchett's Kathryn targeted as a potential traitor to the United Kingdom and Fassbender’s George stealthily seeking to find the truth at any cost.

It's a film that seductively dances around the fringes of spy drama and almost Agatha Christie-esque murder mystery all while having the radiant sexy tone of “The Thomas Crown Affair” crossed with a John le Carre novel.

At the center of the film, Fassbender demonstrates a quite exacting nature in his performance as George using a charming stoicism and quiet demeanor to highlight just how observant and nuanced George is while putting all his closest friends in the crosshairs.

It's rare to find active listening being a demonstrable cinematic skill, but Fassbender dazzles in the alluringly seductive ways a spy can evoke an illicit response from potential targets while doing and saying very little on their own.

Conversely, Blanchett radiates a more electric, kinetic energy as Kathryn, while the mystery of her character as a potential suspect does obfuscate her true motives. The instant, immediate, and rapturous chemistry that she shares with Fassbender carries the film's larger dilemma of loyalty to country versus spouse in a very unique way.

Koepp’s screenplay skillfully creates scenarios where George and Kathryn must balance their personal and professional choices, while also exploring these conflicts among secondary characters effectively within a short runtime.

This is also masterfully complicated by the concept of “black bag” within the narrative, a spy phrase meant to protect intelligence officers that’s almost used too liberally by characters as a way to hide information from each other under the guise of state secrets.

The film's ensemble cast comprises a mix of emerging talents and experienced character actors, seamlessly combining their strengths to create a richly detailed world in “Black Bag.”

“Back To Black” star Marisa Abela steals scenes as a junior signals intelligence officer whose humor and off the cuff verbal jabs cut deep while revealing an inquisitive yet saddening naïveté about intermixing personal and professional relationships in the world of spies.

“Bridgerton” star Regé-Jean Page delivers his best film performance as a fellow officer working very closely with George while James Bond franchise stars Pierce Brosnan and Naomie Harris bring gravitas and a familiarity to the world of espionage cinema that one might not come to expect from such a small intimate drama.

Soderbergh is amazingly adept in briskly creating a full-fledged world for “Black Bag,” both in giving the film room to breathe in its iconic dinner scenes that allow the banter and repartee of Koepp's screenplay to shine as well as a daringly iconic and very European visual language that make “Black Bag” feel unlike any recent thriller one might have seen in theaters. 


While it is far too early in the year to fully consider “Black Bag” to be among the year's best films, it is without question the best piece of cinema to arrive in the first quarter and with its small, dynamite ensemble cast, sharp writing and brisk pace, there's absolutely no reason why cinephiles should not seek out this seductive spy thriller in theaters.


March 10, 2025 · Watch the official trailer

Desperation has no class divide.

It's the central theory behind Academy award-winning director Bong Joon-ho’s latest film, “Mickey 17,” his third foray into cinema in the English language and his first film after 2019's “Parasite” became the first foreign language film to win Best Picture.

Adapted from the novel “Mickey7” by Edward Ashton, “Mickey 17” is an outlandish science fiction, dark comedy satire that exceeds the amount of bizarre absurdities audiences might not expect from a Bong Joon-ho film but maintains the filmmaker's unique critical perspectives on an almost like caste-like classification of people by assumed power through wealth.

The story follows Robert Pattinson as a man with nothing to lose who unwittingly signs up to become a perpetual crash test dummy for an interstellar exploration seeking a new planet, only to run afoul of the spaceship’s commander when the cloning technology used to replicate another Mickey goes awry.

Pattinson has been adept at confidently and engagingly portraying eccentric quirky characters in films like “The Lighthouse,” “The Batman,” and “Good Time.” His ability to create nearly identical, but just off centered characters from two different versions of his Mickey is one of the most entertaining and engaging entry points into the film and the subtle nuances of the character work that Pattinson displays far exceed typical science fiction or black comedy films in the genre.

While the physicality between his two Mickeys are nearly identical, distinct differences in the character affectations and tonality help differentiate 17 from 18 when they're on screen together and while clearly Pattinson is not acting against himself directly in each scene, the way that the layering of both Mickeys is constructed for their time together on screen really showcases just how difficult of a quality performance it is to pull off for Pattinson.

And yet, the veteran character actor absolutely nails the individuality in supposed replicants with a more submissive 17 and assertive 18 all while maintaining a terrific balance between the two characters.

His primary antagonist, Oscar nominee Mark Ruffalo, is a maniacal avantgarde eccentric whose neuroses are only exacerbated by the obscene transgressive nature of his character lording over the crew members on his starship as his class status acquired through power and wealth have infected his mind almost to a neurotic psychosis.

The symbiotic relationship that Ruffalo masterfully forms with Toni Collette as his wife multiplies and exacerbates these motifs in Bong Joon-ho's screenplay and the absurdity with which Ruffalo and Collette's devotion to each other radiates off the screen creates the film's most side-splitting moments.

The strong yet small supporting ensemble cast also anchors down the character development in the narrative with Naomi Ackie’s Nasha serving as an emotional touchstone for both of Pattinson's Mickeys, while the increasingly peculiar turn Steven Yeun's character takes over the course of Mickey 17 helps both propel the narrative forward and make Mickey's backstory more complex.

The largely CGI heavy film does a solid job of blending the clearly digitized elements of the grandiose landscapes in outer space scenery of the film and contrasting interior sets help further visually capture the divide between the common crew member and the higher class on the spaceship.

These cinematic visuals are not of the same quality necessarily as 2019's masterful “Parasite” yet are very well in keeping with the more studio-driven blockbuster style that “Mickey 17” has throughout and the various iterations of the film’s strange caterpillar-esqie alien creatures, known as creepers, are executed far better than one might come to expect from the trailers.

Audiences may have difficulty connecting in with the overall film due to an exceptionally deliberate and slow narrative pace that drags in sections and provides almost too many opportunities for viewers to disconnect from Mickey's plight.

Yet while this is clearly not what one might expect an Oscar-winning auteur to deliver immediately after such a groundbreaking best picture win, “Mickey 17” is still exceptionally entertaining and rises far above many of its peers also showing currently on the big screen.

March 3, 2025 · Watch the official trailer

This year’s Academy Award winner for Best Picture wasn’t propelled by a major studio with an extravagantly large budget, which is somewhat surprising in a cinematic year anchored by the likes of “Dune: Part Two” and “Wicked: Part One.”

On an independent budget of $6 million, filmmaker Sean Baker crafted one of 2024’s most charming, hysterical, and captivating movies about a woman on the fringes of society, an unlikely protagonist with a rich, layered personality irresistible to watch.

Centered around a breakout star in newly crowned Best Actress winner Mikey Madison, “Anora” is the exceptionally unlikely tale of a 23-year-old Russian-American woman working in high end escort services whose romance with a client leads to “Great Gatsby” like series of events that shape and transform her life in emotional and hysterical ways.

As writer/director/editor/producer, Baker’s imprint is all over the film for which he also received Best Director, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Editing awards Sunday evening at the Oscars, making him the first in Academy history to win four Oscars individually for one movie.

Baker has made his career showcasing characters just outside polite society, most often in sex work with his Oscar nominated “The Florida Project” and the edgy “Tangerine” among his filmography. With “Anora,” however, this is Baker’s most crowd-pleasing and accessible movie to date, not just for the sometime dry, sometimes slapstick comedic hijinks at play but also in the very raw, human emotions that he’s able to draw out in his lead character Ani.

Best Actress winner Madison is enthralling and transformative as Ani, a scrappy, feisty exotic dancer in the Brighton Beach area of New York City. The ways Madison is able to subtly balance the failed innocence of her youth with a streetwise attitude more than befitting her five-foot-nothing frame allows the actress to slowly reveal Ani’s desire for authentic love and the American dream, making her turn one of 2024’s most compelling and impactful in a role where audiences might not see it coming.

From the outset, Madison goes above and beyond to portray sex work on a very respectful, non-judgmental way that feels visceral and authentic to the genuine experiences young women find themselves in and the hustler attitude Ani displays provides Baker with a pop of vibrancy early in the film to keep audience engagement while setting up the narrative.

Over the course of “Anora,” her walls begin to soften as Ani falls for her client, Ivan, in much the same way that Julia Roberts once fell for Richard Gere in 1990’s “Pretty Woman” and though “Anora” isn’t quite the traditional rom-com, Madison easily draws viewers to her side to where they can’t help but root for this fledgling romance to thrive.

For his part, Mark Eydelshteyn bounds around “Anora” as Ivan with an outstanding glee that is two parts reckless wild child and one part earnest miscreant that has just enough of a soft side to make Ani’s burgeoning adoration for his potential seem plausible to the story.

The frantic nature of much of Baker’s film keeps things from feeling too lethargic and allows for viewers to perhaps miss some of the more subtle character work in glances Madison’s Ani lobs at Ivan as she begins to see him in a different light. Her physicality demonstrably changes to perfect effect when Ani is on or off the clock in their relationship, providing a far more complete picture into her character than one might expect from similar films.

The film’s ensemble cast provides a wonderful context to the larger world of Brighton Beach in “Anora” with Best Supporting Actor nominee Yura Borisov as an Armenian heavy with a genuine, pure heart serving as an unlikely sense of morality in a largely amoral world and the gradual warmth of his Igor becomes one of the film’s biggest strengths by the final act.

The visual spectacle of “Anora” keys off a bright, wide-eyed lens that pulls viewers into Ani’s POV as she’s whisked away on a thrill ride of high roller spending with an ever-changing color palette that highlights the unique qualities of each location from the darker hues of the club to the practically glowing pristine sheen of Ivan’s home.

Its Best Picture win Sunday evening proves a continuing evolution in what the industry regards as a major Oscar contender, with independent and foreign films like “Anora,” “The Brutalist,” “Emilia Perez,” and “Flow” all defying the large studio formula. Baker rightfully used several moments in his speeches to call for more independent filmmaking and support for theatrical releases where cinema can be enjoyed as a communal movie-going experience.

Cinephiles who haven’t yet seen “Anora” likely won’t be able to catch the crowd-pleasing dramedy in theaters anymore but should absolutely seek out the newly-minted Best Picture winner streaming on demand or later this month when it arrives on Hulu.

Regardless, there’s such a brash vibrancy melding with subtle nuance in Baker’s dramedy that audiences should seek out “Anora” in a crowded screening theatrically to get the full effect of its uniquely funny yet emotional narrative.

February 24, 2025 · Watch the official trailer

Sometimes a quality film can be like a warm hug for audiences providing respite and pure unadulterated joy when viewers young and old alike might need it most.

The “Paddington” films, based on the classic Michael Bond stories about a young lost bear who finds companionship with a quirky British family, have been stand out movies in the family friendly genre, but also simply quality pieces of cinema.

Following two standout entries by director Paul King before he moved on to the “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory” prequel “Wonka” in 2023, the “Paddington” torch was passed to first time director Dougal Wilson with the third installment of the franchise, “Paddington in Peru,” seeing the titular bear and his family on their first action adventure.

After Paddington receives a letter that his Aunt Lucy is lonely and missing him, the Browns travel to Peru only to find that she has gone missing in a search for the fabled city of gold. What ensues is part Indiana Jones, part Mr. Bean in an adorable and, at times, mildly scary story about family and community.

The center of the films has always been the vocal performance of British actor Ben Whishaw as Paddington Bear, who brightens the entire world of “Paddington” with a relentless joy that leaps off the screen and into the hearts of audiences.

The natural affability of his vocal performance is matched by some of children’s cinema’s best CGI work as the graphics to insert Paddington into live action scenes feels more natural and cohesive than almost all of Disney's endeavors into the same style.

The facial work and expressions especially that animators give Paddington perfectly mimic and match the warmth that Whishaw provides vocally making a fantastic protagonist for audiences to follow.

Many of the same actors return to portray the Brown family, including Hugh Bonneville and Julie Walters, and while the film clearly misses the heart of Oscar nominee Sally Hawkins as Mrs. Brown, Emily Mortimer is a more than capable substitute in the role that Paddington fans will quickly get behind with a similar affability and charm.

The film’s standout performances come from two newcomers to the franchise with Oscar winner Olivia Colman relishing in the eccentricities of her Reverend Mother character to both propel the story forward and bring her signature quirks to the franchise.

Her rendition of the song “Paddington in Peru” to introduce the film’s second act is a wonderful homage to both children's cinema and more specifically Julie Andrews’ iconic role in “The Sound of Music.”

Equally engaging and entertaining, Antonio Banderas is a joy as the film's primary antagonist, a boat captain seemingly wanting to help Paddington and his family find Aunt Lucy but also seeking the city of gold for his own means.

The role allows Banderas to riff on his work both as Zorro and Puss In Boots while also bathing him in hysterical costumes to play his character's own deceased relatives in a plot twist that wouldn't work in almost any other franchise or with almost any other performer.

Banderas’ commitment to the bit here and the way that he is able to banter with himself in almost an internal monologue that audiences are able to see play out on screen is impressive and among the film’s funniest moments.

“Paddington In Peru” does lose some of the charm of King’s first two films transitioning to a new director and especially due to the locale change for the majority of the movie that saps a bit of the Britishness that is so intrinsic to the “Paddington” film franchise.

Yet this action-adventure foray still is a worthwhile extension and expansion of Paddington’s larger story and something cinephiles young and old should take a chance on in theaters.

February 17, 2025 · Watch the official trailer

Now 35 films deep into its lore, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) has dug itself so far into a corner that it's almost impossible to come back from.

As has been the case for several years now, every film in the MCU is unrightfully judged in comparison to the climatic ending of Marvel's Infinity Saga with “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Avengers: Endgame” feeling the most blockbuster iteration of comic books come to life that cinema has seen outside of perhaps Christopher Nolan’s “The Dark Knight.”

As they attempt to rebuild the pieces of superheroes in a post-Avengers world, studio head Kevin Feige finds himself in the awkward position of creating new stars from less famous actors while attempting to keep continuity and extend fan service to those still loyal to his fledgling brand.

“Captain America: Brave New World,” the first film with the star-spangled hero not to feature Chris Evans, should be a banner project for Marvel setting the stage for what is to come in the MCU. However, it's clear that the hesitancy to develop a clear plan of where these stories are headed and overextending lesser films has shackled the new Captain America film into wrapping up old storylines rather than creating a world of its own.

“Brave New World” seeks to be a replication of the best Captain America solo film “The Winter Soldier,” leaning heavily into 1970s political espionage thriller to ground its comic book nature in more true to life world views. Though there is a Tom Clancy “Hunt for Red October” style to the film, “Brave New World” does not fully commit to this narrative opting to force unneeded ties to 2008’s “The Incredible Hulk” and the much-maligned 2021 film “Eternals” in order to close the chapter on movies even ardent MCU fans don’t particularly care about.

Fully donning the stars and stripes for the first time cinematically, Anthony Mackie leans into the reluctant hero persona that his Sam Wilson, uh was ingrained with during the Disney+ TV show “The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.” And while that show excellently handled racial identity politics, the film extension of this plot line isn't given the same weight and feels much more forced into the narrative as an entry point before all of the bombastic action begins.

It's easy for audiences to root for Mackie in the role, however, as the humanity that he imbues Sam with resonates off the screen and makes for the most compelling aspects of the film. 


Harrison Ford, replacing the late William Hurt as comic book stalwart Thunderbolt Ross, maintains the traditional gruff exterior throughout that one might come to expect from a classic Ford character and whatever gravitas he might normally bring to the part is easily destroyed by the outcome of his character.

Since it’s revealed in the film’s trailers, it’s not a spoiler to say that Ross’s transformation into the infamous Red Hulk. a CGI mega monster, doesn't really add much to Ford's character work here.

A smaller, tighter, better film probably would have focused more on the eccentricities of Tim Blake Nelson's return to the MCU as the villainous Samuel Stearns from “The Incredible Hulk” as the cerebral chess match that his character plays with Sam could have more naturally unfolded in less apocalyptic stakes.

Filmmaker Julius Onah feels a bit out of his depth carrying the weight of an expected blockbuster film for his only second directorial effort and while audiences can feel a little bit of his vision and style in the first act, it's clear that Marvel Studios and their computer graphic department take over the bulk of the heavy lifting by the end of the first hour or so.

As a result, the whole film becomes almost more of a two-part season finale to a Disney+ TV show rather than something that needed to be put on the big screen.

While ardent Marvel fans and completionists will likely watch “Captain America: Brave New World” within the first couple of weeks of its theatrical release, there's absolutely no reason to rush out to see the film before it will be largely forgotten in several months when Marvel's next project “Thunderbolts*” arrives on the big screen in May.


February 10, 2025 · Watch the official trailer

Ke Huy Quan, after having come out of nowhere to win a best supporting actor Oscar in 2023 for “Everything Everywhere All At Once,” is exactly the kind of movie star Hollywood should be celebrating and building films around.

When approached for his latest project, “Love Hurts,” Quan said he initially turned down the lead role because it should have gone to Jason Statham. But when audiences see the humble, earnest positivity he exudes on screen. It's clear why Quan is the absolute perfect choice for reluctant hero Marvin Gable.

Billed as a Valentine's Day action comedy for couples, “Love Hurts” follows Marvin as he attempts to lead a normal life as a successful realtor when his past comes bubbling back up to the surface as his life is a former hitman pulls him into the middle of a spree of violence.

On the page, it makes sense why Quan wouldn't want to accept the role as many sequences within the film are geared towards traditional action stars yet the underwhelming narrative is so flimsy, it's almost as if just the premise of Quan himself being a secret hitman is the only razor-thin difference between Marvin and the actor’s real self.

His overwhelming sense of positivity and affability permeate every frame of “Love Hurts,” making it the least traditional action comedy in some time. While the ridiculousness of the film's plot could have driven things to be exceptionally bizarre and more in line with action flicks Statham or perhaps even Steven Seagal might headline, the only reason that audiences should even seek out this film at all is for the joy that they will get watching Quan on screen.

Oscar winner Ariana DeBois is woefully underutilized in a secondary role as a woman with a secret past of her own who Marvin is in love with but cannot bring himself to tell her.

It's clear that DeBois’ musical theater background lends itself to the action choreography that her Rose is given in “Love Hurts,” but structurally there's much more of a dance nature to those sequences as opposed to the stiffer Hong Kong style set pieces that permeate the rest of the film. 


Action sequences play to Quan’s relatively diminutive size for a leading man, pitting him against bigger, brutish actors like former football star Marshawn Lynch (who’s surprisingly funny here) and the visual mismash provides a unique contrast in fighting styles and entertaining, engaging martial arts sequences.

The light-hearted, almost breezy nature of the comedy provides a decent enough counterbalance to the aggressive and bloody violence of an R-rated action flick that hopes to make a John Wick out of Data from “The Goonies.”

“Love Hurts” benefits greatly from a brisk 80-minute run time and it’s the winning persona and heart that Quan brings to the lead role that make this alternative to traditional romance something that might be worth a casual watch in theaters or streaming at home in a few months.

February 3, 2025 · Watch the official trailer

If writer/director Neil Burger's latest film was on Netflix, it would instantly be the top film on the streaming service within a week.

In a tight 100 minutes, “Bridgerton” actress Phoebe Dynevor races all over the globe in an international spy thriller that minimizes the frills and heightens a relentless intoxicating feeling of confusion and intrigue that would keep casual audiences vastly entertained and off their phones.

Yet somehow, “Inheritance” has already made its way into and almost entirely out of theaters without any real fanfare thanks to a limited distribution run from a studio in IFC Films that doesn't have the marketing budget to draw cinephiles to theaters.

The film in of itself has a unique hook that makes it worth taking a chance on yet the decision to shoot the film entirely on iPhones in a post-pandemic world gives “Inheritance” a slightly raw, found-footage aesthetic that helps propel the tension of each moment.

“Inheritance” follows Dynevor's Maya as she is coerced by her estranged father to help him on an international business trip in Cairo shortly after her mother's funeral only to learn that her father has been kidnapped at the hands of an unknown organization wanting stolen goods that he has in his possession.

Dynevor is not a traditional choice for an action heroine though the nature and structure of “Inheritance” allows her to slink and sneak her way in and out of situations rather than having to engage in fight sequences. This allows Dynevor to focus on Maya's fragile mental state as she overcomes a sort of paralysis to thrust herself into fight-or-flight style action that would save her and her father.

Burger and cinematographer Jackson Hunt home in on Dynevor for non-verbal cues and facial expressions with a very foreboding handheld camera that sinks in tighter on Dynevor's face than the average movie would.

And the uniqueness of the camera angles that Hunt and Burger use in the film keep audiences’ attention by changing their sight lines and eye levels at times peering into Maya’s thoughts while at others seeing things from Maya's direct point-of-view.

Stylistically, this is an exceptionally engaging and unique way to film a spy thriller that does not require large budgets and extensive crews. While numerous chase sequences do have some semblance of staging to them, there is a visceral nature that also gives the impression that scenes are shot on the fly with Dynevor making decisions for Maya that feel natural and not written into a screenplay.

Though he’s not the centerpiece of the film, veteran character actor Rhys Ifans does a solid job as Maya's father, Sam, who keeps audiences and Maya engaged in the mission while also just enough in the dark to prevent her from making a mistake. Dynevor quickly develops a very guarded, familial chemistry with Ifans that gives just enough character drama to propel the overall narrative forward for a film that’s clearly focused on just one actor.

The intimacy that shooting on iPhones gives Burger and his team also creates a hyper-realistic take on the world in real-time as the sort of guerilla filmmaking required here has random passersby acting as extras being largely unaware of what’s happening around them, which allows Maya to feel even more like a chameleon hiding in plain sight.

“Inheritance” has a sharp vibrancy to its cinematic visual style that covers whatever flaws there might be in the limited narrative screenplay and with Dynevor’s attention-grabbing performance, the film is certainly worth seeking out in theaters or renting for an at-home viewing when it’s expected to be released on-demand in the next few weeks.

January 23, 2025 · Watch the official trailer

Five weeks from now, the true power of an expanding international voting segment of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will be tested.

In the aftermath of increasing efforts to diversify its membership, the Academy has seen a push in recent years away from traditional Oscar fare and towards a wider array of cinema that might not always appeal to American moviegoers.

Last week, an international production mixing multiple genres with dialogue almost entirely in Spanish led the pack with 13 Academy Award nominations as French writer/director Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Pérez” cemented its status as a front runner for best picture.

The film which blends crime drama, thriller, societal think piece, and musical into a very avant-garde blend that has proved to be quite divisive in cinema discourse since its release at the Cannes Film Festival last year led to a rather tepid theatrical debut and middling release onto Netflix's streaming service.

At first glance, this might make “Emilia Pérez” seem to be the kind of forgettable one or two nom movie that doesn't make waves come awards night. However, the strength of its nominations along with a surprise best picture selection for Brazilian film “I'm Still Here” has garnered “Emilia Pérez” wider attention and will likely vault it to the top of Netflix's most seen films up until the Oscars on March 2.

The film follows a mid-tier Mexican attorney played by Zoe Saldana, who is pressed into the service of a cartel leader only to discover that she is covertly aiding in gender affirmation surgery so the drug lord can lead the remainder of their life as a woman.

On its face, this may cause pause among more conservative cinephiles, and yet Audiard doubles down on the divisive nature of his film, opting to make the entire film operatic with musical numbers interrupting the flow of the film.


Already a Golden Globe winner in the role, Saldana is likely to win a best supporting actress Oscar as well for her turn as Rita, the attorney who aides Emilia’s transition in secret.

Her strongest work happens within the film's first act before Emilia is even introduced and there is a staccato vibrancy to Saldana’s musical theatricality that evokes a sharp “Hamilton”-like rap dialogue which works in certain segments of the film especially for her character, though the often rapid changes in tone even within the musical segments make it quite difficult for some audiences to truly engage with the material in a responsible manner.

Once the titular Emilia takes over as the main character, Saldana’s performance slightly weakens, and any character development becomes short-shifted to an almost one note devotion to a reformed character who may not necessarily have earned it.

Transgender actress Karla Sofia Gascón portrays the title character both pre and post transition as cartel leader Manitas and Emilia and though Audiard originally sought to have a separate male performer play Manitas, the film works better with one person portraying both parts.

The overall concept of the film becomes the duality that Manitas and Emilia share with Manitas unable to hide the softer life they wish to lead as a woman and Emilia not entirely able to control the more unforgiving ruthless side of a cartel boss.

Gascón portrays this dichotomy admirably and beautifully, though her vocal work is much more self-assured and confident outside the musical moments. And while the depths of this complete transformation are brought out over the course of two hours, there's still a disconnect audience members may feel to Emilia's journey as some of the more introspective signs of regret are not well-developed and shuffled into song form that kind of lessens the overall impact of the narrative.

Musician and “Only Murders in the Building” stars Selena Gomez cranks the melodrama up to 11 as Manitas’ wife, Jessi, who believes her husband to have been murdered and forms a somewhat stilted friendship with Emilia.

Though it's clear that Gomez is giving her all in the role, her Jessi sticks out like a sore thumb in the larger context of the world Audiard creates and is unquestionably the most dislikable character in the entire film. Whether this is intentional on the part of Audiard and Gomez to portray Jessi in this way is unclear, however, much of her time on screen is marred by this disconnect, setting the course for an awkwardly staged third act that will be among the film's most controversial moments.

At its core, “Emilia Pérez” likens itself to be both a vibrant musical and an intimate drama about transitioning though a somewhat forced need to make Manitas a drug kingpin causes issues in the film's second half when it feels as if Manitas’ dirty deeds and connections to the Mexican underworld are relatively washed away upon her return to Mexico City. And there's an incompleteness to that story element that will linger in audience's minds.

As an Oscar front runner, “Emilia Pérez” has strong technical elements that make it among the year's best from a production design and costuming perspective especially though certain elements like screenplay and editing really limit the ease and suspension of disbelief that audiences need to lock in with a film of this kind.

With the likelihood that it’s in a two-way race opposite “The Brutalist” for best picture, cinephiles wanting to have a fuller picture of the Oscar race before this Academy Awards ceremony March 2 should definitely check out “Emilia Pérez” on Netflix though moviegoers skeptical of the film's plot or avantgarde tone might be better served skipping the film altogether.

January 20, 2025 · Watch the official trailer

There's a scene in the opening moments of writer/director Brady Corbet's “The Brutalist” that announces the arrival of what audiences should expect to be another great American epic.

Adrian Brody portraying a Jewish-Hungarian Jewish refugee and Holocaust survivor looks wondrously at his surroundings on a ship only to reveal the Statue of Liberty immediately overhead and the awe-inspiring, “this is the American dream” motif cries out as an almost photographic emergence of an auteur with something very important to say. 


And yet in the almost 190 minutes that follow, Corbet’s three-hour odyssey complete with 15-minute intermission is so overtly heady in its self-serving nature that “The Brutalist” will be relatively inaccessible for more casual audiences or for those who don't seem to be in lock step with Corbet in every moment of the film.

Told into almost an equal 100-minute installments, “The Brutalist” follows Brody’s László Tóth as he navigates the world of high and low society in a post-World War II era America that is exceptionally idealistic in its capitalism and simultaneously accepting and weary of refugee immigrants whose only worth is in what they can do to elevate the status of the rich.

The fundamental dichotomy at the heart of “The Brutalist” is the back and forth verbal, intellectual, and sociological dichotomy between Brody’s Tóth and Guy Pearce’s Harrison Van Buren, respectively portraying a struggling architect on the fringes of society and his exceedingly wealthy patron, who come together to create a monolithic building meant to signify great importance though neither of the two agree on what that importance is for each other or perhaps even for themselves.

It's difficult to examine Brody's performance here without thinking of his Oscar-winning turn in “The Pianist,” where he also plays a Holocaust survivor and his ability to become a reluctant everyman protagonist through nonverbal facial expressions and a relatively meek persona allows audiences to engage with the material of the film with the questioning wonder that Corbet clearly defines throughout the film’s screenplay.

While the ups and downs of Laszló’s mental health due to trauma endured during the Holocaust and his burgeoning heroin addiction could be too daunting a task for some actors, Brody approaches the role head-on and the subtle nuances to his physical performance linger on the frame to make a much deeper impact on the viewer than the actual dialogue itself.

Conversely, “The Brutalist” has no qualms about making the eccentric patron Van Buren the antagonist of the film and while Pearce never plays the part as a true villain, it's clear throughout Pearce's performance that allegories transform Van Buren into essentially a stand in for the affluent class as a whole unwilling to treat outsiders as equals.

Oscar nominee Felicity Jones' impacts in the film’s second half is not done by force, though her arrival as László's wife, Erzsébet does help reinforce the larger narrative shift that “The Brutalist” undertakes in the five-year time jump between the conclusion of part one heading into part two.

The soft demure of her performance slowly begins to bubble into something greater and deeper as Erzsébet comes to understand the mental and emotional toll that's László’s obsession with his work is having on him and her demonstrative final scene has some of the most resonant impact on the overall course of the film as a whole.

“The Brutalist” as a whole has a stern, raw, affecting visual style that matches cinematic visuals of the time and also reinforces the stoicism of the film's major characters and the singularity of the monoliths that the film and its characters are trying to create.

There are certain moments of singular iconography within “The Brutalist” that are memorably and masterfully shot by cinematographer Lol Crawley whose approach utilizing 1950s era VistaVision film creates a dynamic, resonant widescreen look to the film that only very nuanced, considered auteurs would take the time to develop in such a conscientious way. 


“The Brutalist” recently took home Best Picture – Drama at the Golden Globe Awards and is expected to be a frontrunner when Academy Award nominations are announced before the end of the month. It's likely that anywhere from 8- 12 nominations will be given to Corbet's third major feature including Best Picture, directing, original screenplay, numerous technical nods, and perhaps as many as three acting nominations for Brody, Pearce, and Jones.

“The Brutalist” is probably best seen in a large-format theatrical setting where the grandiose nature of the cinematography can be enjoyed in a closed environment with minimal distractions, though the exceedingly long run time and headiness of the narrative as a whole may prove to be too challenging for more casual audiences to take a chance on outside the comfort of their own home.