Toronto 2024: 'Sharp Corner' Review

In Sharp Corner, Ben Foster plays a husband and father who has moved his family into what they think is a great new house. It's the darnedest thing, though: Because of a dangerous turn on the road in front of their place, car accidents happen with alarming frequency. The Foster character responds to this in the most intriguing of ways. My review of this psychological drama is here.

Venice 2024: 'King Ivory' Review

Filmmaker John Swab was addicted to opiates for about 10 years. So his latest action-thriller, King Ivory, which is about the War on Drugs, would seem to be something he understood passionately. And yet, the film is oddly generic. My review is live over at Screen International. 

'Emancipation' Review

Will Smith is back. I imagine a lot of people aren't ready to see him in a new movie. (I wasn't sure if I was ready.) But Emancipation is a solid drama, based on the true story of an escaped slave in the 1860s on the run to freedom. My review is up at Screen International.

'The Contractor' Review

Chris Pine is best known for two franchises: Star Trek and Wonder Woman. But in The Contractor, he plays a more ordinary hero, a former soldier who signs up for a contracting gig that turns out to be more harrowing than expected. My review is up at Screen International. 

Toronto 2021: 'The Survivor' Review

With The Survivor, Barry Levinson tells the true story of Harry Haft, a Polish Jew who survived the Holocaust and moved to America. But the way he stayed alive haunted him the rest of his life. Ben Foster elevates familiar material, resulting in a fairly moving film. You can read my review here.

Sundance 2018: 'Leave No Trace' Review

Debra Granik hasn't directed a feature since Winter's Bone. (In the meantime, she made the documentary Stray Dog, which I quite liked.) She returns with Leave No Trace, about a father and daughter living off the grid. Ben Foster and Thomasin Harcourt McKenzie are both quite good, and so is the movie. My review is up at Screen International.