'The Boss Baby: Family Business' Review

Because I was going to be reviewing The Boss Baby: Family Business, I knew that meant I would finally have to watch the original Boss Baby. Oof, that movie is awful. The sequel? It ain't much better.

'Black Widow' Review

People are being entirely too kind to Black Widow, which I think is one of the weaker installments in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. I get into it over at Screen International.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: 'F9,' 'False Positive' and 'I Carry You With Me'

We disagreed on two movies this week, but we're on the same page about Heidi Ewing's immigrant love story. You can hear the whole episode down below.

'Press Play With Madeleine Brand': Werewolves, Fast Cars, Love Stories and 'False Positive'

On Friday, I was on Press Play alongside Witney Seibold to discuss Werewolves Within, F9, I Carry You With Me and False Positive. We had some laughs. Check it out down below.

Celeste - "Stop This Flame"

This is the sound of me running from screening to screening before I leave for Cannes.

How '28 Days Later' Changed Zombie Movies (and Post-Apocalyptic Cinema) in the 21st Century

28 Days Later is a beast, and for SyFy, I wrote about this incredibly scary film, which hit U.S. theaters on June 27, 2003. Hope you enjoy.

Tribeca 2021: 'The Novice' Review

A college student is determined to be picked for her school's rowing team. But why? The Novice was one of the big winners at this year's Tribeca, and it's an interesting subversion of sports-movies tropes. (For example, who says that the underdog main character even needs to like the sport she's training to master?) My review is up at Screen International.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: Pixar, Bad Sequels, Sparks and 'Fatherhood'

We dig into four new movies on this week's podcast. We both discuss Luca and Hitman's Wife's Bodyguard. Will asks me about The Sparks Brothers, and I ask him about Kevin Hart's latest, Fatherhood. You can hear the whole thing down below.

Tribeca 2021: 'No Sudden Move' Review

Steven Soderbergh's latest is rich in atmosphere, which is good because I'm not convinced its plot entirely makes sense. But, then again, that's kind of the point with these kinds of moody crime dramas. My review of No Sudden Move is up at Screen International.

Mura Masa (featuring Georgia) - "Live Like We're Dancing"

I wanna feel like I felt it.

Tribeca 2021: 'Werewolves Within' Review

I'd like to see Veep's Sam Richardson in more stuff. But I'd rather it not be Werewolves Within, which I didn't think was very funny or scary. I get into why over here.

Tribeca 2021: 'Fathom' Review

The documentary Fathom follows two separate scientists studying humpback whales. But this isn't one of those nature films that's full of glossy photography and inspiring insights. Instead, it's an examination of just how arduous the pursuit of knowledge can be. (The film features as many setbacks as aha discoveries.) My review is up at Screen International.

'Luca' Review

Luca doesn't have the spectacle and set pieces of most Pixar films. But I found its gentle exploration of friendship to be rather lovely. I reviewed the movie for Screen International.

Tribeca 2021: 'Ferguson Rises' Review

It's been seven years since the murder of Michael Brown. Ferguson Rises returns to his hometown to examines what's changed (and what hasn't) in that Missouri community. My review is here.

Tribeca 2021: 'Queen of Glory' Review

Nana Mensah makes her feature directorial debut with Queen of Glory, where she stars as a woman who's just lost her mother -- and just learned she's inherited her mom's Christian bookstore. Good stuff -- my review is up at Screen International.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: 'In the Heights,' 'Infinite' and 'Sideways'

 

It was the best of new releases, it was the worst of new releases. We both quite liked In the Heights, but Infinite just about snuffed out our will to live. Then, in our Reboot segment, we look back at 2004's Sideways, which I never loved as much as some many other moviegoers did. Hear the whole thing down below.

 

Tribeca 2021: 'No Future' Review

A young man's best friend overdoses. He reaches out to the friend's mother to offer his condolences. A romantic affair begins. I liked Catherine Keener and Charlie Heaton in No Future, which I reviewed for Screen International.

Tribeca 2021: 'God's Waiting Room' Review

There have been several high-profile indies in the last few years set in Florida, including Moonlight and The Florida Project. Now comes God's Waiting Room, which also makes good use of the locales to tell a story of disconnection and uncertainty. The film crafts a spell, even if the plotting starts to fall apart. My review is up at Screen International. 

Tribeca 2021: 'The Kids' Review

In theory, a documentary about Kids ought to be a slam dunk for someone like me who loved the Larry Clark movie at the time but has had serious misgivings about it since. (The film currently isn't available anywhere for streaming.) And yet, The Kids, which talks to the non-actors who were part of the film, is more miss than hit. I explain why here.

Tribeca 2021: 'No Man of God' Review

Thank god, another movie about Ted Bundy. To be fair, I appreciated director Amber Sealey's approach, which was to totally strip away any romanticism around the serial killer's dark allure. (And there's one visual technique she incorporates that I think is actually great.) Still, No Man of God didn't work for me. My review is up at Screen International. 

Tribeca 2021: 'Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain' Review

I have to confess that I was never a big Anthony Bourdain guy. Nothing against him, I just never watched his show. (I think my obstacle was that I'm just not a big foodie.) Nonetheless, I was pretty engaged by Morgan Neville's look back at his life and death. For Screen International, I reviewed Roadrunner.

Is 'Jurassic Park' the Most Important Movie of the Last 30 Years?

The Steven Spielberg film came out this week in 1993. Over at SyFy, I argue that its impact on Hollywood is still felt, for better or worse. Read on.

Chvrches - 'Leave a Trace'

The band's fourth album, Screen Violence, is coming out in August. So far, I haven't heard a single that compares with this 2015 stand-out. 

'12 Mighty Orphans' Review

I'm a sucker when it comes to sports movies: They don't have to be great to give me a little rush. But, man oh man, 12 Mighty Orphans really stinks. My review is up at Screen International.

'The Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard' Review

The wife is kinda fun, but the hitman and the bodyguard are (still) the pits. My review of this needless sequel is live at Screen International.

'Loki' Review

Disney made only the first two episodes of Loki available to critics. For Screen International, I gave the MCU spinoff a try.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: 'All Light, Everywhere,' 'Undine' and 'Lords of Dogtown'

We didn't have much interest in this past weekend's studio releases, so we focused on two indies instead, which were far more rewarding. I had lots of nice things to say about the latest films from Theo Anthony and Christian Petzold. And then I trashed Catherine Hardwicke's 2005 try-hard skateboard drama. Listen to the episode down below.

Moodymann (featuring Amp Fiddler) - "Taken Away"

"Dixon was sitting in a van outside his own building in Detroit when someone reported 'suspicious behavior' and the cops rolled up with their chaos. He made it out alive. Echoes of the conflict are all over his new album."

Moodymann, who was born Kenny Dixon, Jr., put out Taken Away last year, and the title track sneaked up on me this week.

'Spirit Untamed' Review

Do you love horses? Well, you may love Spirit Untamed. Even so, I don't think the movie's so hot.

The Grierson & Leitch Podcast: Sequels, Origin Stories and 'Plan B'

We tackled three new movies on this week's episode. We're both big fans of A Quiet Place Part II, we both disliked Cruella, and we both feel bad we didn't dig Plan B more. Hear the whole thing down below.