Cinema

Davis spends ‘The Best Summer’ with Beastie Boys and friends

February 9th, 2026

By Greg Carlson

For the Generation X members obsessed with the incredible 90s music scene that gave us everything from the DIY exuberance of riot grrrl founding mothers Bikini Kill, to the noisy NYC no wave of Sonic Youth, to the evolutionary enlightenment transforming the Beastie Boys from bratty hip-hop pranksters to socially conscious elder statesmen, filmmaker Tamra Davis has something special in store for us. Not a lot of good came from the 2025 Palisades Fire, but one silver…

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​Lowthorpe adapts popular memoir ‘H Is for Hawk’

February 4th, 2026

By Greg Carlson

A little more than a decade following the publication of the popular Helen Macdonald memoir upon which it is based, a feature film version of “H Is for Hawk” starring Claire Foy has been theatrically released in the United States following a 2025 world premiere at Telluride. Directed by Philippa Lowthorpe from a screenplay she co-wrote with “Room” novelist Emma Donoghue in collaboration with Macdonald, the movie joins the class of thoughtful narratives focused on…

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​DaCosta visits ‘The Bone Temple’

January 26th, 2026

By Greg Carlson

The versatile Nia DaCosta follows her underseen and underappreciated “Hedda” (one of my 2025 favorites) with the first female-helmed entry in the 28 Days/Weeks/Years Later series, a fascinating and grisly memento mori called “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple.” Featuring a mesmerizing performance by an all-in Ralph Fiennes, reprising his role as Dr. Ian Kelson, DaCosta’s violent, vicious, and bloody chapter also brims with intelligence, visual beauty and even a…

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​Reichardt pulls a heist: ‘The Mastermind’

January 19th, 2026

By Greg Carlson


There is a great scene in the middle of Kelly Reichardt’s excellent movie “The Mastermind” when protagonist James Blaine Mooney (Josh O’Connor) is chastised by criminally-connected wheelman Jerry (the wonderful Matthew Maher), who dresses down the would-be art thief for his gross incompetence and naivete. J.B., whose goose by now is seemingly cooked, sulks in the back seat while Jerry chuckles at all the mistakes that led his passenger to failure. The perpetually…

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​Naomi Jaye directs Britt Lower in ‘Darkest Miriam’

January 12th, 2026

By Greg Carlson


Writer-director Naomi Jaye adapts fellow Canadian Martha Baillie’s 2009 novel “The Incident Report” as a potent and introspective character study. Retitled “Darkest Miriam,” Jaye’s movie stars Britt Lower as a Toronto librarian quietly observing a parade of quirky patrons whose behavior occasionally necessitates the filing of official workplace memos. Bibliophiles and public library supporters might represent some of the likeliest potential fans of the…

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​Fastvold marks the agony and the ecstasy of ‘The Testament of Ann Lee’

January 5th, 2026

By Greg Carlson

gregcarlson1@gmail.com

Director Mona Fastvold’s “The Testament of Ann Lee” frequently writhes and gesticulates with a hypnotizing mysticism that mirrors the fervor of its title character. At its absolute best when reaching for the strange and inexplicable, the movie — stunningly photographed by William Rexer — also shrinks and retreats when focused on the more basic historical outlines of the early development of the Shaker faith in the northwest of England and then…

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​Making the Magazine: Curry Subscribes to ‘The New Yorker at 100’

December 29th, 2025

By Greg Carlson

gregcarlson1@gmail.com

Available on Netflix, Marshall Curry’s “The New Yorker at 100” takes the measure of the venerable publication as a compact primer aiming to please longtime readers and potential new converts. The Oscar-winning filmmaker toggles between key historical moments and the preparation of the magazine’s centennial issue, following several personalities devoted to the care and keeping of the special recipe that has enthralled us decade after decade.…

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​‘Marty Supreme’ Looks for a Big Bounce

December 29th, 2025

By Greg Carlson


There is no rule demanding that our main characters be good human beings. Paul Newman’s Hud Bannon? A charming, selfish snake. Robert De Niro’s Travis Bickle? A ticking time bomb. Jason Schwartzman’s Max Fischer? A conniving, immature pest. And now we can add Timothée Chalamet’s mid-twentieth century table tennis hustler Marty Mauser to the list of folks we would likely cross the street to avoid should we have the misfortune to encounter them in our real lives.…

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Peck explores world and words in ‘Orwell: 2+2=5’

December 16th, 2025

By Greg Carlson

gregcarlson1@gmail.com

The brilliant film essayist and documentarian Raoul Peck tackles the looming shadow of contemporary American and international totalitarianism in “Orwell: 2+2=5.” Following a May debut at Cannes and a fall theatrical release, the troubling and worthwhile movie is now available to rent from the major streaming services. Meticulously researched and exactingly visualized, Peck’s critique would reverberate even more like a desperate and…

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​Be here now: Zhao stages a powerful “Hamnet”

December 9th, 2025

By Greg Carlson

gregcarlson1@gmail.com

Cinephiles who fell in love early with Chloe Zhao’s remarkable moviemaking gifts will point to the blend of unpolished performances, raw emotion and stunning visuals on display in “Songs My Brothers Taught Me” and “The Rider.” Those two features laid the groundwork that earned Best Picture, Best Director and Best Actress Oscars for mainstream breakthrough “Nomadland” and then the odd and polarizing Marvel superhero entry…

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