Glenn Heath Jr.
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
Patience and posing in ‘Final Portrait’
Watching an artist work can be inspiring. That is not the case with Swiss sculptor and painter Alberto Giacometti (Geoffrey Rush), who grouses and snaps throughout Stanley Tucci’s restrained biopic Final Portrait. more
Barks of resistance in ‘Isle of Dogs’
At its core, Isle of Dogs (opening Friday, March 30) functions as a timely allegory that celebrates young people who stand up and resist the cynical status quo. more
‘Foxtrot’ bottles up its characters
Israeli director Samuel Maoz sees the world through confined spaces. His 2009 film Lebanon takes place entirely within the belly of a tank. more
Fear and loathing in ‘Unsane’
Cloaked in blue tint, Unsane begins inside the mind of a madman. Floating dreamily through the forest at night, a creepy voice fills the space as if unnatural infatuation could gust seamlessly like wind in the trees. more
‘The Death of Stalin’ perfects the art of backstabbing
When the cat’s away, the mice will shoot each other in the head. Such an idiom could describe the nasty power struggle that ensues in Armando Iannucci’s The Death of Stalin. more
San Diego Latino Film Festival celebrates 25 years
As with any broadly defined umbrella term, “Latino cinema” merely provides an entry point for what is a vast array of cultures, dialects, themes, myths, perspectives and styles all being transcribed through film. more
‘Loveless’ is all gloom and doom
Beware to all the newlyweds, lovebirds and hopeless romantics out there: Viewing Loveless might permanently alter your faith in humanity. more
‘Before We Vanish’ is an audaciously gonzo alien invasion saga
Before We Vanish (opening Friday, March 9, at the Digital Gym Cinema in North Park) ultimately centers on the theme of sacrifice as humanity’s saving grace. more
Making Oscar predictions is a masochistic exercise
I give the Oscars a lot of grief. As a barometer of cinematic value, they tend to reward mediocrity rather than audaciousness. more
Courtesy Everett Collection
Hedy Lamarr was more than a ‘Bombshell’
Bombshell doesn’t take many chances stylistically, unspooling linearly and banally in standard PBS fashion. more
Daniela Vega personifies courageous resolve in “A Fantastic Woman’
For a few brief minutes, A Fantastic Woman lives in perfect harmony. more
Strand Releasing
‘Have a Nice Day’ is anything but nice
Any pleasantries in Have a Nice Day end with its title. Liu Jian’s bleak, animated neo-noir operates at street level in the gutters and alleyways of modern industrial China. more
Nasty ‘Double Lover’ splits love in two
More often than not, when twins show up in a film, it means mischief or terror will follow. more
‘The Cloverfield Paradox’ is a black eye for Netflix
The Cloverfield series has always benefited from mystery and audience anticipation, but this latest exhibition ploy reeks of desperation. more
Scraping by in ‘A Ciambra’
With A Ciambra, director Jonas Carpignano fuses two classic Italian genres—the neo-realist fable and blue-collar gangster saga. more