My Review of David Thomson's Terrific Book 'A Sudden Flicker of Light'

For the A.V. Club, I wrote about film historian David Thomson's bracing A Sudden Flicker of Light, in which he argues that movies may have done more harm to us than we're willing to acknowledge. You can read my thoughts here.

Robert Duvall's Best Movies

Over at Rolling Stone, I contributed to a roundup of Robert Duvall's essential roles. You can read our list right here. 

Robert Duvall, 1931-2026

Robert Duvall had died. He was 95. I paid tribute to the Oscar-winning actor over at Rolling Stone. 

'Breakfast All Day': Talking 'Ella McCay'

One last Breakfast All Day appearance before the end of the year. I was very happy to join Christy to discuss James L. Brooks' misfire, which has had me thinking about Megalopolis recently. I explain in this segment. 

Diane Keaton, New Hollywood Heavyweight

It's a sad day: Diane Keaton has died. For Rolling Stone, I tried to sum up her brilliance. 

Venice 2025: 'Megadoc' Review

My feelings about Megalopolis are out there for the world to see. So take it from me when I say that Megadoc, which is Mike Figgis' documentary about the making of Francis Ford Coppola's film, is pretty great. Sympathetic but not uncritical, it looks at the act of creation in all its messy, hopeful glory, without snark or judgment. Here's my review.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: 'Megalopolis,' 'A Different Man' and Differing on 'Wolfs'

A supersized episode of the podcast this week, featuring reviews of four new movies. Neither of us liked Francis Ford Coppola's film, but there was much to discuss. Elsewhere, I rave about A Different Man, we debate whether The Wild Robot ends at the right time, and we split on the George Clooney/Brad Pitt action-comedy. Check out this two-hour episode down below.

Cannes 2024: The Wrap-Up and the Rankings

The 2024 Cannes Film Festival is when I finally decided it's not worth debating whether a particular edition was "good" or "bad." Truth is, every Cannes is filled with triumphs, misfires, disappointments, underappreciated gems, surprises, and movies you liked a lot more (or a lot less) than your colleagues did. And because the festival doesn't necessarily front-load its strongest offerings, you really have no idea where the annual ebbs and flows will land. You have to take Cannes in its entirety, judging it not by one day but by the whole two-week experience. There's no festival like it because it's longer and, therefore, harder to process as it's happening. Only distance will tell you for sure -- and even then, you may be shocked to catch up with a few films you missed (or revisit ones you saw) and discover what a great year it had actually been. There's no such thing as a "bad" Cannes, just degrees of good.

That said, do I think I found a film this year that could match 2023's twin stunners in The Zone of Interest and Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell? No, but looking over my rankings, I'm pleased by how many strong films I saw, with the possibility of more bangers to come. (I wish I'd had time for The Balconettes, The Kingdom, Armand, Black Dog, Flow, Santosh, Viet and Nam and others. And I wish my screening of Universal Language had had English subtitles like it claimed it would.) 

Here's a list of everything I saw at Cannes, from worst to best, with links leading to individual reviews. And please note that I'm not including the first half of the restoration of Abel Nance's extraordinary Napoleon, which I saw and was completely blown away by.

34. Megalopolis
33. The Surfer
32. The Second Act
31. The Apprentice
30. Oh, Canada
29. Beating Hearts
28. Emilia Perez
27. Wild Diamond
26. Rumours
25. The Shrouds
24. Visiting Hours
23. Misericordia
22. Being Maria
21. I, the Executioner
20. Motel Destino
19. The Substance
18. It's Not Me
17. Christmas Eve in Miller's Point
16. Elementary
15. The Girl With the Needle
14. Bird
13. Three Kilometers to the End of the World
12. Blue Sun Palace
11. On Becoming a Guinea Fowl
10. Eephus
9. Good One
8. The Invasion
7. All We Imagine as Light
6. Anora
5. Grand Tour
4. Caught by the Tides
3. Kinds of Kindness
2. The Seed of the Sacred Fig
1. September Says

A few words about my No. 1 film. I went into Ariane Labed's directorial debut basically blind. (I knew the plot description, plus who had worked on the movie.) And from the first moment, I was enraptured, its spell never breaking. September Says (pictured above) was part of Un Certain Regard, but it crushed me more completely than anything in the Competition, although Mohammad Rasoulof's The Seed of the Sacred Fig got awfully close. When I review movies at a festival, I go home straight from the screening and write -- I don't talk to anyone or check online reactions. So I'm basically in a bubble, unaware of how others feel, and what I quickly discovered was that I was higher on September Says than, basically, anyone else. (As one colleague, who hadn't seen it, put it derisively, "It sounds like a Toronto film.") Maybe a second viewing will diminish the film in my estimation -- maybe revisits of The Seed of the Sacred Fig or Caught by the Tides or Anora or All We Imagine as Light will vault them up the rankings. But for now, this tale of two peculiar sisters -- too delicate and strange for this world -- earns the top spot.

Because I am historically awful at predicting the Palme d'Or winner, my guess is worth nothing. Nonetheless, I'm with the consensus that it's going to be either All We Imagine as Light or The Seed of the Sacred Fig. It's impossible to know what a Cannes jury will go for, but my gut tells me that All We Imagine as Light's gentle beauty will win out over The Seed of the Sacred Fig's darker, more challenging tone -- although filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof's emotional appearance at the latter's premiere may be too much for the jury to resist. Could Anora pull off the upset? Emilia Perez? Absolutely. But I'm going with All We Imagine as Light, which premiered late this year and has all the momentum going into the weekend. Not that you should bet your mortgage on my hunch.  

'Press Play With Madeleine Brand': The Highs and Lows of the 2024 Cannes Film Festival

I was so pleased to be on with Madeleine talking about four of the buzziest films at this year's Cannes. You can check out my segment down below.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: Will's Talking New Movies, I'm Talking Cannes

A unique episode this week: With me here in France, we decided to divide and conquer. Will reviewed If and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, while I recorded a segment in my apartment discussing some of the highlights from the first half of the Cannes Film Festival. (I also offered my quick thoughts on Kingdom.) Check it out down below.

Cannes 2024: 'Megalopolis' Review

I was so rooting for Francis Ford Coppola's first film in 13 years. But I think Megalopolis is a failure. My review is up at Screen International.

My 2024 Cannes Preview

What are the films I'm most intrigued by this year at the world's most prestigious festival? Take a look.

When Movies Change After the Premiere

Sometimes, a film undergoes major alterations after its world premiere at a prestigious festival. Maybe the director realized parts of the story weren't working. Maybe the reception was so toxic that it prompted a massive re-edit. For RogerEbert.com, I wrote about some of the most famous examples.

How Eleanor Coppola Helped 'Apocalypse Now'

For RogerEbert.com, I wrote about Eleanor Coppola, who died last week. My focus: her massive contribution to her husband's 1979 war epic, Apocalypse Now.

Your 2024 Cannes Competition Preview

This was very fun: For RogerEbert.com, I wrote about every film that will be screening in the Official Competition at Cannes. (A few more movies are expected to be added in the next couple weeks.) Which movie, sight unseen, do I think has the best chance of winning the Palme d'Or? Read on.

What Are the Best Films of the 1970s?

Rolling Stone asked me and others to send in ballots for the best 1970s movies. Then, the editors put together a list of the top 100 and had us write up capsules. You can read me on Harlan County U.S.A., Carnal Knowledge, A Woman Under the Influence, Stalker, Scenes From a Marriage, The Last Waltz and The Godfather here.

Which Best Picture Winner Is the Funniest?

I spent way too long trying to figure out the answer for Cracked.

What James Caan Brought to 'The Godfather'

In honor of James Caan's passing, Rolling Stone asked me to write about his impact on The Godfather, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. It was my honor to do so.

Talking About Film Festivals and Scouting (and 'The Godfather') With Keith Law

Recently, I was thinking about how Keith Law's job isn't that different than mine when I go to a film festival. Weirdly enough, completely independently he was thinking the same thing. So we had a talk about it. (Plus, he and his wife just watched all three Godfather movies for the first time, and he wanted to discuss that trilogy and Al Pacino's role in it.) Very happy to be back on The Keith Law Show. You can hear my episode below.

Weighing 'The Offer'

I probably enjoyed this silly, shallow Paramount+ series more than most. But this dramatized look at the making of The Godfather isn't without serious flaws. My piece is up at MEL.