The Substance (2024) is a film that arrives shrouded in the promise of “smart horror,” marketed as a psychologically intense thriller with profound themes and a refined aesthetic. At first glance, the movie seems to […]
Review
Sector 36 Review: Vikrant Massey Mesmerizes in a Dark Thriller Undone by an Unfocused Screenplay
Sector 36 is such a close thing to brilliance, yet its writing cannot make it the case. The movie has all going for it: a great source material, competent direction, revealing a good sense of […]
Meiyazhagan Review: A Heartwarming Tale of Nostalgia, Redemption, and the Power of Love
“My dear children, there is nothing higher and stronger and more wholesome and good for life in the future than some good memory, especially a memory of childhood, of home. If a person carries many […]
Cape Fear Review: Scorsese’s Nasty Masterpiece of Menace and Morality
There’s a fine line between a great decision and a missed opportunity. We can never know what could have been, but I will say that the exchange between Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg in the […]
Anora Review: Sean Baker’s Bold Leap into High-Stakes Glamour and Grit
This week, I was lucky enough to attend the Cambridge Film Festival. Among the wide variety of shorts and features chosen for the event, by far the largest-scale attraction was Anora, a major contender for […]
Dunkirk Review: The Anti-Hollywood War Film That Makes You Feel Every Moment
Dunkirk is an evacuation of sustained terror. It is a horror sequence, a suspense sequence, and a battle sequence all in one. It is unlike any other World War II film, with a structure distinct […]
Devara Review: A Tale of Two Halves-Highs, Lows, and Missed Opportunities
Devara is a mixed bag of emotions, making the audience soar to great heights only to be dragged down into mediocrity. I’ve never been fond of dividing a film into neat categories like first half […]
Killers of the Flower Moon Review: Echoes of Blood Beneath a Silent Sky
It feels like as Quentin Tarantino gets older, his work dives into the past where he can change history and create a better world than our present. But as Martin Scorsese grows older, his work […]
Malcolm X Review: Spike Lee’s Epic Odyssey of Revolution, Redemption, and Legacy
“… the very first time I ever saw you standing up on the podium, you were cleaning your glasses, and I felt sorry for you. Because no one as young as you should be so […]
Zwigato Review: Kapil Sharma Shines in a Heartfelt Ode to Middle-Class Resilience
On the surface, “Zwigato” is a story of Manas (Kapil Sharma), who, after his last job at a factory left, found himself in gig economies by becoming a food delivery rider in Bhubaneswar and his […]