“Snatched” is the highest of high-concept comedies. Goldie Hawn and Amy Schumer star as a polar-opposite mother and daughter who get kidnapped while reluctantly vacationing together in Ecuador. It’s a mismatched-buddy comedy. It’s a fish-out-of-water comedy. It’s a raucous girl-power comedy. But it’s not much more than a concept. My...
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Reviews
RogerEbert.com — 3 Generations
This drama about a transgendered teen and her family in New York City has the best of intentions and a strong cast in Elle Fanning, Naomi Watts and Susan Sarandon. But it skims the surface of an emotionally complicated topic and focuses on a romantic history that isn’t nearly as...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Sleight
“Sleight” is an ambitious genre mash-up about a young street magician that pulls off a nifty bit of trickery itself. With his debut feature, director and co-writer J.D. Dillard deftly mixes intimate sci-fi thrills with dramatic, big-city dangers. Think “Chronicle” meets “Dope,” with a hugely charismatic lead performance from rising...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Unforgettable
“Unforgettable” is what my mom would have called “good trash.” Like Sidney Sheldon novels. Its stars — Rosario Dawson and Katherine Heigl — know exactly what kind of movie they’re in, and they’re reveling in it. This sexual thriller isn’t exactly good, but I had a good time watching it....
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Norman: The Moderate Rise and Tragic Fall of a New York Fixer
How you feel about Norman the character will determine how you feel about “Norman” the movie. Is he a shameless hustler? Or merely an overbearing yet well-intentioned mensch? And yet, in Richard Gere’s deft, veteran hands, would-be fixer Norman Oppenheimer is consistently, completely fascinating. It’s one of the best performances...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Going in Style
An update of the 1979 comedy of the same name, “Going in Style” also is about three lifelong, elderly friends (Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman and Alan Arkin) who rob a bank — but this time, they do it for retribution. That’s one of the many ways this remake plays it...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Carrie Pilby
As the title character — a 19-year-old woman who’s brilliant beyond her years and miserable — Bel Powley is so enormously compelling that she breathes life into Carrie’s quirks and the story’s contrivances. It’s clear that the women behind the scenes have great affection for Carrie in all her self-sabotaging...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — T2 Trainspotting
If you loved “Trainspotting,” well … here it is again. Danny Boyle’s sequel to his generation-defining 1996 film offers more of the same, for better and for worse. An opportunity to wallow in grimy nostalgia seems to be its sole purpose. It’s got all of the director’s visual verve, but...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — Raw
It’s French cannibalism as feminist manifesto, and it’s one of the year’s most daringly alive films. The debut feature from brilliant writer-director Julia Ducournau is a celebration of female power—of realizing who you are, what you want and how to go after it, albeit with brutally bloody results. My rave,...
Read moreRogerEbert.com — XX
“XX” begins with a promising premise: It’s a horror anthology consisting of four short films by women, about women. But the result is frustratingly inconsistent. Each film has its moments, but some are way stronger than others. Still, it’s encouraging to see so many women in one place working in...
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