Here are some reviews of films coming out at the theater this week as well as others that may be in theaters or newly on home video.
Opening: Nov. 4, 2022
Limited (United States)
Meet Me in the Bathroom
- Excerpt: I found Meet Me in the Bathroom to be a startling disappointment, a documentary that skates through history without telling us anything we don’t already know. If you were wondering what made that era special, you won’t really find answers here—which left me wondering if it was really even special at all.
Nocebo
Jared Mobarak @ The Film Stage
- Excerpt: While everything you can probably guess early on does more or less come to fruition, it won’t be entirely in the way you thought. Because karmic retribution can create as well as destroy.
Something in the Dirt
- Excerpt: A truly DIY affair—Benson and Moorhead serve as co-directors, co-stars, co-editors, writer (Benson), and cinematographer (Moorhead)—Something in the Dirt is proof that massive amounts of ingenuity and invention can still be found in the movies…that is, if one knows where to look.
2022 Films In Theaters Now In Select Areas
The Banshees of Inisherin
For member reviews of this film, follow this link
Barbarian
For member reviews of this film, follow this link
The Innocents
For member reviews of this film, follow this link
See How They Run
For member reviews of this film, follow this link
Tár
For member reviews of this film, follow this link
The Woman King
For member reviews of this film, follow this link
All Quiet on the Western Front
Allen Almachar @ The MacGuffin
- Excerpt: Although this iteration may not reach the cinematic heights of its 1930 predecessor, it is still a stunning comment on the tragedy of war.
All That Breathes
Jared Mobarak @ JaredMobarak.com
- Excerpt: While the brothers speak for themselves and the kites, [Sen] and his cinematographers capture the wild juxtaposition of nature and industry [with] amazing visuals courtesy of multiple slow pans devoid of artifice or intrusion.
The American Dream and Other Fairy Tales
Bev Questad @ itsjustmovies.com
- Excerpt: Oh, how I love Abigail Disney’s films! She has an expectation for a better world and has constructive ways about how to get there “with a little courage and imagination.”
Art & Krimes by Krimes
Bev Questad @ itsjustmovies.com
- Excerpt: Jesse Krimes’ remarkable story will hopefully be nominated for an Academy Award for best documentary. It is that well done and it is that important.
Black Adam
Rick Aragon @ Rick’s Texan Reviews
- Excerpt: After watching Black Adam, my main takeaway is that it is “fine”.
David “DC” Bolling @ DC’s Take
- Excerpt: On the one hand, the script’s formulaic and suffers from heavy exposition. But on the other hand, Dwayne Johnson’s introduction to this universe, visuals, and most of the action sequences shine.
Blue Island
- Excerpt: Blue Island weaves together past and present in Hong Kong, mixing contemporary documentary footage and staged re-enactments of past events to the point that the only conclusion you can draw is that the past is always present in this island nation.
Brother’s Keeper
Jared Mobarak @ The Film Stage
- Excerpt: Yildiz is wonderful as Yusuf—his emotions worn on his sleeve throughout. That said, however, the adults deliver the most memorable performances. Their duplicity. Their indignation. Their terror.
Call Jane
Jared Mobarak @ JaredMobarak.com
- Excerpt: A documentary [would] probably do a better job providing details of what Jane was, but you can’t deny the power of a fictionalized narrative opening the door on an historical topic. What it lacks in historical objectivity, it makes up for with humanity.
Decision to Leave
- Excerpt: An impeccably crafted puzzle box of a film, Decision to Leave cements Park Chan-wook’s place in cinema as our modern master of suspense.
The Deer King
- Excerpt: Beautiful quality animation coupled with a euphonious score by Harumi Fuuki makes The Deer King a treat for the eyes and ears.
Do Revenge
Joao Pinto @ Portal Cinema [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: It’s so much more than that one scene of Sophie Turner that went viral….
Dream Life
- Excerpt: Newly restored in 2K from the original reversal Super 16 mm elements by Elephant – mémoire du cinema Québécois in honor of the film’s 50th anniversary, Dream Life is a lush snapshot of 1970s Montreal as seen through the eyes of two twentysomethings best friends, colleagues at a local production company who spend their free time daydreaming about what else life and love may have to offer.
The Fire That Took Her
Jared Mobarak @ The Film Stage
- Excerpt: While it would be easy to dismiss the package in which these interviews and recordings arrive as conventional, the subject matter can’t help but elevate the material beyond our objectivity too.
The Good Nurse
- Excerpt: This crime drama showcases two probable Oscar® nominees this year. Too bad we don’t get to see their expressions in many important scenes.
Holy Spider
Jared Mobarak @ JaredMobarak.com
- Excerpt: The production value, performances, and underlying themes are enough to warrant a watch despite any letdown [in the final act].
The Invitation
Mark Harris @ Black Horror Movies
Joao Pinto @ Portal Cinema [Portuguese]
Laal Singh Chaddha
Kathy Gibson @ Access Bollywood
Loving Highsmith
- Excerpt: [Loving Highsmith] does better than a more conventional work might in conveying an understanding about the context in which Highsmith lived and worked, and how she interpreted and altered the reality of her world in her creative works.
Luckiest Girl Alive
Joao Pinto @ Portal Cinema [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: Mila Kunis delivers a good show, but something is lacking.
Memories of My Father
Mr. Harrigan’s Phone
Joao Pinto @ Portal Cinema [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: How was this approved by Stephen King?
Please Baby Please
Joao Pinto @ Portal Cinema [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: Andrea Riseborough showcases her true talent!
Gregory J. Smalley @ 366 Weird Movies
- Excerpt: It seems like the script was written to answer the question, what would happen if the leather daddies from ‘Scorpio Rising’ took over the set of ‘West Side Story’?
The School for Good and Evil
Joao Pinto @ Portal Cinema [Portuguese]
- Excerpt: A stunning visual, but a shady story
Wendell & Wild
Jared Mobarak @ The Film Stage
- Excerpt: [Selick] wants us to know this has all been done by hand and recognize the artistry in every frame. It only enhances Argentinian artist Pablo Lobato’s gorgeous character designs.
White Hot: The Rise & Fall of Abercrombie & Fitch
Bavner Donaldo @ Cinejour [Indonesian]
