Glenn Heath Jr.
‘Incredibles 2’ keeps its powers all in the family
On the whole, though, Incredibles 2 (opening wide Friday, June 15) celebrates parental flexibility—compromises made and pride swallowed—as an art form perfected over a life’s work. more
‘Won’t You Be My Neighbor?’ highlights Mr. Rogers
Most important of all, Won’t You Be My Neighbor? (opening Friday, June 15) offers viewers respite from the Trumpian culture that’s taken root in this country. more
The blood relatives of ‘Hereditary’
Looking to consume a year’s worth of dread all in one sitting? Hereditary will gladly oblige. The debut film from writer/director Ari Aster is an intoxicating and draining exercise in omnipresent possession. more
Fools and fakers populate ‘American Animals’
American Animals (opening Friday, June 8, at the Angelika Film Centers—Carmel Mountain) chooses to disavow the truth entirely to flip off the sanctity of traditional documentary models. more
‘First Reformed’ finds despair on hallowed ground
What can be said is First Reformed manages to sublimely inspire great conviction out of impenetrable darkness. more
‘Upgrade’ is a lean and mean gem
Near the end of Upgrade, Grey screams to STEM, “I can’t keep up!” One day in the near future we’ll all probably be saying the same thing. more
‘Solo’ charms but sorely lacks urgency
Howard’s worst dramatic impulses eventually kick in as themes of revenge and inequality grow more pronounced in what becomes a twist-heavy narrative. more
‘Filmworker’ gives Leon Vitali his close-up
Notoriously temperamental and obsessive, Kubrick would spend years cultivating a single project. Vitali witnessed this process firsthand on The Shining, Full Metal Jacket, and finally Eyes Wide Shut. more
‘Let the Sunshine In’ and the afterglow of daily heartbreak
Let the Sunshine In (opening Friday, May 18, at the Landmark Hillcrest Cinemas) not only complicates the potentially easy meaning of its title, but also reinforces the inverse: keep the shade at bay. more
‘Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami’ moves to its own beat
Grace Jones: Bloodlight and Bami inhabits spaces so kinetically visceral and weird they feel synonymous with David Lynch’s films. more
On the fast track with ‘Racer and the Jailbird’
For a film with such an impersonal title, Racer and the Jailbird is an unabashedly personal work, pushing aside conventional genre tropes to focus on themes of intimacy and disappointment. more
Dour ‘Disobedience’ wastes a talented cast
Sebastián Lelio’s Disobedience, a deathly serious drama that considers the intersection between sexuality and faith within London’s Jewish Orthodox community, once again casts McAdams against type. more
Our summer movie preview
The following list of upcoming summer releases represents the esoteric and risky fare scheduled to hit theaters in the coming months. more
‘The Rider’ and confidence in crisis
One could wager Hawks would have found much to admire in The Rider, Chloé Zhao’s portrait of the cowboy way besieged by emotional distress and uncertainty. more
‘Ghost Stories’ instills dread, then silly closure
Horror sagas like Ghost Stories too often try to impress psychological closure on knotty perceptions of grief and trauma. more
scott patrick green Scott Patrick Green
Lonely are the brave in ‘Lean on Pete’
Plummer’s incredibly brave performance, guided by Haigh’s delicate direction and Magnus Nordenhof Jønck’s windswept cinematography, anchors Lean on Pete throughout multiple emotional swells. more
Conformity repeats itself in ‘The Endless’
Can we ever trust our childhood memories? That question lies at the center of The Endless, a sci-fi whatsit about two grown brothers who return to the UFO cult they escaped from 10 years previous. more
Joaquin Phoenix is a grizzly man in ‘You Were Never Really Here’
Viciousness and compassion go hand in hand for Joe (Joaquin Phoenix), the hulking enforcer at the center of this entrancing and often disjointed story. more
Photo Credit: "Photo: Mark Roger
Bloody folklore and ‘Sweet Country’
The Australian western is not a gentle sort. more
‘Gemini’ explores the madness of celebrity culture
Each character bleeds into the fabric of a sleek, neon tableau with memorable precision. Katz seems right at home giving each actor (including Jon Cho in his best performance) just enough time to make an impression before moving on. more