On Movies & Media

In which I find myself as a special guest on two separate podcasts, both of them hosted by David Kern, for conversations about Madeleine L'Engle and the best movies of 2018.

Widows starts with a bang and then devolves into an overstuffed, over-serious, and even predictable thriller.

Josephine Decker's wildly imaginative new film is worth seeing for its experimental ambitions, even if, in the end, it's all a bit too much.

Putting Ryan Gosling's feet on the moon, Damien Chazelle has found firmer footing than he did in the eager-to-impress La La Land. This film is modest by comparison, but I find it haunting and enigmatic.

Preachy, but elevated by an excellent lead performance, The Hate U Give is the kind of after-school special that all of America needs right now.

Bradley Cooper's big remake of A Star is Born strums all those predictable chords so hard, all the strings start breaking.

This film looks like a movie made from far-too-familiar pieces. Instead, Puzzle is a delightful and rewarding surprise.

Four years ago this week, I wrote about how I had changed my mind about "Dead Poets Society." This week, I re-post it as a tribute to my favorite professor.