The action is breathless and non-stop in “Ready Player One,” both in the virtual reality and the reality reality, but wallowing in ‘80s nostalgia is only so much fun for so long—even if you’re a child of the era (as I am)—and it only really works when it serves to...
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Reviews
RogerEbert.com — Midnight Sun
“Midnight Sun” does what it means to do for the people it means to do it for — and that might just be enough. Twelve-year-old girls will swoon at this weepy, doomed romance between a beautiful, sick girl (Bella Thorne) and the beautiful, hunky boy who dares to love her...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — 7 Days in Entebbe
You’d never know how thrilling this real-life hostage rescue was from the weirdly sluggish “7 Days in Entebbe.” A back-and-forth narrative structure, a wide variety of perspectives and the bizarre intercutting of a modern dance performance into the action only serve to muddle matters. My mixed review, at RogerEbert.com. Read...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Thoroughbreds
“Thoroughbreds” marks the exciting, assured filmmaking debut from young playwright Cory Finley. In telling the story of two estranged childhood friends (Anya Taylor-Joy and Olivia Cooke) who reconnect and embark on a deadly scheme in an opulent Connecticut enclave, Finley combines the delicious bitchiness of “Heathers” with the tonal restraint...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Red Sparrow
Jennifer Lawrence gets put through the wringer in myriad disturbing ways as a Russian ballerina-turned-spy. In theory, such graphic ordeals are meant to demonstrate her character’s physical and psychological fortitude. But ultimately, these shocking and violent sequences become repetitive and gratuitous, making “Red Sparrow” feel more like a cheap exercise...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Every Day
“Every Day” has a nice idea within nutty packaging. It’s an angsty teen romance based on a Young Adult novel about a spirit — or a soul, or something — that switches bodies every 24 hours. But in one of those bodies, he/she falls for that guy’s girlfriend: a sweet...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Nostalgia
Mark Pellington’s “Nostalgia” is an extremely personal exploration of death, loss and memory. It features a strong cast giving their all, including Jon Hamm, Ellyn Burstyn, Bruce Dern and Catherine Keener. But it is just relentlessly somber. My review, at RogerEbert.com. Read the review here...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — The Female Brain
Whitney Cummings tries to breathe new life into the tired, men-are-like-this, women-are-like-this style of romantic comedy both in front of and behind the camera with “The Female Brain.” But the stand-up comedian’s feature filmmaking debut is frustratingly hit-and-miss. My mixed review, at RogerEbert.com. Read the review here...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Bilal: A New Breed of Hero
“Bilal: A New Breed of Hero” tells an inspiring story from a cultural perspective we don’t hear from enough in film, especially in animation. If only it were good. The narrative jumps all over the place in tone, and with its PG-13 rating, “Bilal” is really too intense and violent...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Maze Runner: The Death Cure
Supposedly, the maze running is over. We’re out of the Glade and the Scorch, and we’ve escaped the flailing, gnashing zombies. The third and final installment in this particular dystopian Young Adult franchise is now complete. While its action sequences are strong — as was also the case in director...
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