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Harriet (2019)
The strongest scene in Kasi Lemmons’ Harriet might be a moment when its indomitable protagonist appears at her weakest.
Light from Light (2019)
I’m tempted to call Light from Light the first ghost story I’ve ever seen that I completely believe.
Of Grief and Ghosts: Interview With Light from Light Writer-Director Paul Harrill
Silence, reflection, the search for meaning, the interior life: These are among the hallmarks of Paul Harrill’s work.
![By the Grace of God [Grâce à Dieu]](/uploads/articles/bythegraceofgod.jpeg)
By the Grace of God [Grâce à Dieu] (2019)
Near the end comes a moment when Alexandre is asked whether he still believes in God. The scene cuts from a complex reaction shot, the question left unanswered. The point, I think, is neither to affirm faith nor to deny it, but to highlight the stakes. By their action or inaction Church leaders make God more credible or less credible, instill faith or shatter it.
Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019)
It’s tempting to suppose that Maleficent: Mistress of Evil opening in the wake of Columbus Day isn’t a coincidence.
Joker (2019)
Is it possible, in the world of Joker, to believe in real heroism? Do the filmmakers even care about that question?
Ad Astra (2019)
There seems to be no reason for the title Ad Astra, meaning “to the stars,” to be in Latin, except to highlight writer–director James Gray’s elevated intentions.
One Child Nation (2019)
Many movies have made me cry. Very few have been as difficult or impossible even to write about without crying as Nanfu Wang and Jialing Zhang’s brilliant, devastating Sundance Grand Jury winner One Child Nation.
![Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood [video]](/uploads/articles/onceuponatimeinhollywood.jpeg)
Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood [video]
Quentin Tarantino’s gifts are impossible to deny, but while I often find his set pieces mesmerizing, I have yet to fully buy into one of his films. This might be the closest one yet, though.
![Midsommar [video]](/uploads/articles/midsommarjpg.jpeg)
Midsommar [video]
Why does Robin Hardy’s disquietingly cheery 1973 British folk-horror classic The Wicker Man work better than this sophomore film from the writer-director of Hereditary?
![The Farewell [video]](/uploads/articles/farewell.jpeg)
The Farewell [video] (2019)
Fans of NPR’s This American Life already knew that Lulu Wang had an extraordinary story. What we now know is that she is also an extraordinary filmmaker.
![Toy Story 4 [video]](/uploads/articles/toystory4-vid.jpeg)
Toy Story 4 [video] (2019)
For the first time, Pixar has made a Toy Story movie that adds nothing essential to the arc of the previous films. It’s still worth seeing.
![The Dead Don’t Die [video]](/uploads/articles/deaddontdie.jpg)
The Dead Don’t Die [video] (2019)
I mean, you can kill them, but that’s not the point. The question is, were they ever alive in the first place?
![The Secret Life of Pets 2 [video]](/uploads/articles/secretlifeofpets2.jpeg)
The Secret Life of Pets 2 [video] (2019)
It’s come to the point where the mere sight of the Illumination logo makes me think “lazy and scattershot.”
‘Conquerors of the moon’: Documentaries commemorating the Apollo project
“Honor, greetings and blessings to you, conquerors of the moon, pale lamp of our nights and our dreams!” Paul VI exclaimed in his July 21 message to the astronauts on the day after the lunar landing. “Bring to it, with your living presence, the voice of the spirit, the hymn to God, our Creator and our Father.”
The Lion King (2019)
Alas, the mission wasn’t to improve The Lion King, only to mount it as realistically as possible. Favreau wasn’t hired as a creative, but as a taxidermist.
The Lion King Chef (a meme essay)
It’s just like the opening act of Favreau’s Chef: Favreau is literally Carl, and Disney is Dustin Hoffman.
Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
Tony, Tony, Tony. How can we miss you if you won’t go away?
Franco Zeffirelli’s complicated, Catholic life: What does it mean for his art?
For Catholics and other Christians, the contradiction between Zeffirelli’s faith and the themes of his religious films on the one hand and his openly homosexual lifestyle on the other raise perennial questions about the mysterious relationship of art and the artist.
Toy Story 4 (2019)
Toy Story 4 does not continue the story of the first three films, but casts about for new things to do in this world with the sprawling cast of characters in Bonnie’s orbit, most of whom once revolved around the now-absent figure of Andy.
Emanuel: Racial violence and Christian forgiveness
Forgiveness in the face of murderous violence is a radical act that remains as shocking and controversial today as it was when a Second Temple–era Palestinian prophet commanded his disciples to love and to pray for those who persecuted them and ended his mortal life praying for divine forgiveness for his own executioners.
The secular apocalypse: Irreligion, pop culture, and the end of the world
All art — even pop art, even bad or offensive art — is in some way a mirror to the soul of the culture that created it. Whether we embrace them, condemn them, or are indifferent to them, these secular apocalypses reveal something about who we are as a culture.
![Amazing Grace [video]](/uploads/articles/amazinggrace.jpeg)
Amazing Grace [video] (2019)
How can you watch a movie when you keep wanting to close your eyes in prayer?
![Dark Phoenix [video]](/uploads/articles/darkphoenix.jpeg)
Dark Phoenix [video] (2019)
The best X-Men movies, by my lights, are about hope. Dark Phoenix doesn’t seem to know what it wants to be about.
Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019)
It’s the classic movie monster’s dilemma: You either die a villain or live long enough to see yourself become the hero.
![A Dog’s Journey [video]](/uploads/articles/dogsjourney.jpeg)
A Dog’s Journey [video] (2019)
Who is the target audience for Precious Moments from hell, or at least from a bad country song?
![Pokémon Detective Pikachu [video]](/uploads/articles/pokemon-detective-pikachu.jpeg)
Pokémon Detective Pikachu [video] (2019)
When they announced The Lego Movie, this is basically the movie I thought we were going to get.
Aladdin (2019)
It’s the story you know already, almost exactly. They say the lines and sing the songs, the same songs, almost exactly. It’s a good story and they’re good songs. There are no spoilers in this review because how could there be?
Tolkien (2019)
“One of my strongest opinions,” J.R.R. Tolkien wrote in a 1971 letter, “is that investigation of an author’s biography … is an entirely vain and false approach to his works.”
Zac Efron’s Ted Bundy is Extremely Wicked — but there are other things he should be, and isn’t (2019)
The real Bundy could be charming, but an honest film about Bundy and Kloepfer’s relationship could just as easily be called Super Weird, Emotionally Abusive and Threatening.
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