Movies

The first thing you need to know about comedian-turned-actor-turned-filmmaker John Early‘s performance in “Maddie’s Secret” is that it is, at its core, deeply serious. It is also, at least in Early’s estimation, not drag, despite the central character at...

We certainly have a glut of these shows—you know the ones where thin white people convene on a cold beach to compare notes and solve intrigues. Nicole Kidman has practically made a cottage industry out of them: “Big Little...

The 60th Karlovy Vary International Film is still in its early stages, but it’s already showing a wealth of wonderful films. In this dispatch, you’ll find three films of differing origins. One is a world premiere in the festival’s...

In Czech director Jana Hojdová’s raw, brazenly honest documentary, “Robert Richardson: The White Devil,” the legendary director of photography finds himself in a curious position. After decades capturing a plethora of towering films: “Platoon,” “Born on the Fourth of...

July 4th marks the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America. Speaking as someone old enough to have personally experienced the 200th anniversary way back in 1976—talking to my children about history, I used to...

It’s the 60th edition of Karlovy Vary International Film Festival, a cinematic event, running from July 3-11, that combines world premieres from across Eastern Europe, with festival highlights from Sundance, Berlinale, and Cannes, along with rare restorations and the...

As the United States celebrates its 250th birthday in the middle of a truly divided time for the country, there will be a temptation to watch directly patriotic films as fireworks splash across the sky. The pulse of films...

Every June, Annecy, a sun-drenched lakeside town in France’s Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, becomes the world capital of animation, hosting a festival that has grown in prestige over its six-decade existence. It is with that spirit in mind that CITIA, the...

It can often be a blessing and a curse when a series gets a two-season order. Yes, it’s nice to give creators a vote of confidence to extend their storytelling across multiple seasons. On the other hand, it sometimes...

In 1995, six years before she was introduced to the world in the 2001 film “Legally Blonde,” Elle Woods was a high school student suddenly thrust out of her sunny Beverly Hills comfort zone into the overcast, extremely flannel...