Venice review: Denis Villeneuve’s ‘Dune’ is a gripping and visually arresting opener to an exciting universe [Grade: A]
The two most important lines in Dune come at the very beginning and the very end. First, when Duke Leto (Oscar Isaac) tells princeling son... Read More
Venice Film Festival
Venice review: Kristen Stewart delivers a career-best performance in a fitting and fantastic look at an accidental revolutionary in ‘Spencer’ [Grade: A]
A spiky icon and a gentle iconoclast, Diana Spencer occupies a place in the public consciousness of Britain and the rest of the world which... Read More
Venice Review: ‘The Hand of God’ is Paolo Sorrentino’s sublime masterpiece [Grade: A]
“Thank you to my sources of inspiration: Federico Fellini, Talking Heads, Martin Scorsese and Diego Armando Maradona.” When Paolo Sorrentino went on stage to accept... Read More
Venice Review: With ‘The Power of the Dog,’ Jane Campion and her cast do justice to a literary masterpiece
“Deliver my soul from the sword. My love from the power of the dog” (Psalms, 22:20, David’s address to God to free him from his... Read More
Venice Review: ‘Parallel Mothers (Madres Paralelas)’ is a powerful portrayal of mothers in Almodóvar’s most political film
No matter how hard we try to escape it, we’re all children of history. It defines the life of a country and, by consequence, that... Read More
Venice review: The road to redemption is a long and rocky one in Paul Schrader’s ‘The Card Counter’ [Grade: A]
“If not for the money, why play?” – “It passes the time,” says professional gambler William Tell (Oscar Isaac) when prompted to justify his string... Read More
Venice Review: Vanessa Kirby gives a career-best performance in grief-laden ‘Pieces of a Woman’
The entire heart-rending story of Kornél Mundruczó’s newest feature, Pieces of a Woman, can be deciphered in Martha (Vanessa Kirby)’s fingers – their gestures and... Read More
Venice Review: Regina King’s glorious ‘One Night in Miami’ is a vital and indispensable directorial debut
The feature-film directorial debut of Emmy and Academy Award-winning actress Regina King will leave a significant mark in the history of the Venice Film Festival,... Read More
Venice Review: Luca Guadagnino cobbles together a Ferragamo fantasy in ‘Salvatore – Shoemaker of Dreams’
For three years, since 2017, Italian director Luca Guadagnino has been working on a documentary dedicated to the life and work of shoemaker Salvatore Ferragamo... Read More
2024 Camerimage Film Festival: Danish Oscar Entry ‘The Girl With the Needle’ Wins Golden Frog 
Interview: ‘Gladiator II’ Cinematographer John Mathieson on Reuniting with Ridley Scott and Continuing the Legacy and Lore 
Interview: Alan Menken and Glenn Slater on Creating the Songs and Score for ‘Spellbound’ and the “Perfectly” Cast Rachel Zegler 
2025 Oscar Predictions: BEST PICTURE and BEST DIRECTOR (November)