‘Ali & Ava’ review: A well-rounded, typically British, social realist study [Grade: B] (London Film Festival)
Coming off the Ruth Wilson-starring film Dark River, Clio Bernard’s new film, Ali & Ava, is a sensitive exploration of two complexly troubled people, who... Read More
Film Festivals
‘Great Freedom’ review: Franz Rogowski is transformative in this sombre period prison drama [Grade: A-] (London Film Festival)
Take it from someone who has lived here for all of his twenty-five years: Englanders, for the most part, are so blinded by exceptionalism as... Read More
‘The Tender Bar’ review: Ben Affleck raises the bar in George Clooney’s largely inept newest directorial outing [Grade: D+] (London Film Festival)
When you’re at a festival populated by indie slow-burners, a maudlin, easy-to-watch soap opera can be a wonderful, soupy balm. Just before the pandemic sent... Read More
‘The Humans’ review: Richard Jenkins and Jayne Houdyshell marvel in the year’s most haunting film – Nashville Film Festival [Grade: A]
Play to film adaptations have always been a thing, but it seems like over the past few years they have really started to become a... Read More
‘Luchadoras’ review: A haunting film that goes behind the mask with the female wrestlers of Juárez [AFI Docs]
Luchadoras is a powerful look at standing up to threats and finding pride and power in one’s identity and strength. A fundamental piece of Mexican... Read More
Review: ‘Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain’ honors the legacy and vibrant spirit of a brilliant but broken soul
When one thinks of Anthony Bourdain it’s easy to fall in love with the image of a towering man who went to all corner of... Read More
New Directors/New Films Festival review: In ‘Short Vacation,’ the end of the world is just the beginning
If you knew that the number of photos you could take on your phone on any given day was limited, and that instead of deleting... Read More
New Directors/New Films Festival Review: ‘All Light, Everywhere’ teaches us how to see
Theo Anthony’s experimental documentary All Light, Everywhere confronts you with images you might not want to see: An inside look at someone’s sinewy optic nerve;... Read More
Film Review: ‘Raya and the Last Dragon’ is a personal, pulse-pounding adventure
Kumandra, the setting of Raya and the Last Dragon, is fictional, but it is also not. It is not on any map, but one can... Read More
Amplify! Film Fest review: Viggo Mortensen’s directorial debut ‘Falling’ is misguided and reductive
It’s truly remarkable just how much Viggo Mortensen has mellowed out over time. After reinventing himself as a darling of the gritty arthouse following the... Read More
Director Watch Podcast Ep. 78 – ‘The Holiday’ (Nancy Meyers, 2006) 
Hollywood Biopics and Mental Health Through the Lenses of ‘The Aviator’ (2004), ‘A Beautiful Mind’ (2001) and ‘Love & Mercy’ (2014) 
2024 Online Association of Female Film Critics (OAFFC) Winners: ‘The Substance” Dominates 
2024 Greater Western New York Film Critics Association (GWNYFCA) Nominations