Ron Howard Plays It Safe With Solo
Movie Review: Solo: A Star Wars Story
The backstory for the biggest risk-taker in the Star Wars franchise plays it perfectly safe, meaning Solo gets home in one piece -- riding on decades’ worth of character collateral.
Going Solo Has Its Downsides
Movie Review: Solo: A Star Wars Story
The backstory for the biggest risk-taker in the Star Wars franchise plays it perfectly safe, meaning Solo gets home in one piece -- riding on decades’ worth of character collateral.
Deadpool 2 Goes Mega Meta
Movie review: Deadpool 2
Ryan Reynolds still has the magical combination of charm and smarm that makes Deadpool unique in the superhero universe, but this highly self-aware sophomore effort feels like being at a party where everyone is taking selfies.
Breaking In Casts Union as Bad-Ass Momma Bear
Capsule Movie Review: Breaking In
Gabrielle Union plays a mother embracing her grizzly side as she makes a desperate bid to free her two children from armed kidnappers in James McTiegue’s latest round of high velocity action.
Melissa McCarthy and Maya Rudolph May Be the Best Boobs in the Business
Movie Review: Life of the Party
Taking on the part of a middle-aged mom who goes back to school, McCarthy revisits college comedy tropes with a seductive brand of physical comedy and an empathetic edge. Not all the comic concoctions work, but the female perspective makes room for affirmation amid humiliation.
Bad Samaritan Owes a Big Debt to Antonioni
Capsule Review: Bad Samaritan
Dean Devlin, the producer behind Independence Day, steals a page from the indie playbook with a hackneyed story about a young photographer who accidentally captures a sex crime through his lens in this baby Blow Up.
The Mythic West Dies and Rides Again at Hands of Two Atypical Heroes
On Film: Lean on Pete, The Rider
English director Andrew Haigh and Chinese director Chloe Zhao offer eulogies to the American Dream while spurring a new brand of male hero into the Western arena. Though they are barely men, Charley and Brady mark a newfound maturity in the cowboy genre for their ability to cope with loss -- without surrendering a gritty spirit of survival, or a will to love.
Borg vs. McEnroe: Resistance is Futile
Movie Review: Borg vs. McEnroe
“The greatest tennis match of all time” serves as the final destination for Janus Metz’s crafty biopic about polar opposites Björn Borg and John McEnroe, but getting there is half the fun thanks to a sweaty workout from Shia LaBeouf and Sverrir Gudnason.
