While it doesn’t seem as clever a ‘hitman’ film as Linklater probably imagined it to be on paper, his attempt should provide some cursory pleasures, fashioning a mildly transgressive romance between a fake contract killer working for the police and his client.
Glass’ sophomore feature is tense, stylish, violent, sexy and takes some artistic risks, headlined by an excellent Kristen Stewart playing a gym manager who falls in love with a female bodybuilder in a drugs-and-guns-infested small town.
This breakout hit from Sundance about growing up as an Asian-American in the late 2000s is energetic and emotionally resonant, overcoming its sense of familiarity through the sincerity of its filmmaking.
While its plotting might seem too ‘neat’ to really satisfy, this deliberately-paced serial killer flick balances well the ‘procedural’ and ‘occult’ aspects as a greenhorn FBI special agent must solve a series of decades-long murders.
Modest but effective, and unexpectedly moving, this documentary on Taylor Swift gives us the broad strokes of a human being who is always trying to prove herself through her music artistry and compassion for others.
Possibly one of the finest ‘body horror’ films of the post-2000s era, Fargeat’s sophomore film takes on sexism and ageism in the entertainment industry with a middle finger so pointed that the violence and gore become saliently and nihilistically rewarding.
With characteristic deliberate pacing and being deeply tuned to the subtle rhythms of daily existence, Reichardt explores giving life its tangible meaning through art-making, where we create and present for ourselves and others.
This enjoyable and boisterous sequel to one of Pixar’s high watermarks pits its protagonist against the onset of puberty as the appearance of more emotions creates havoc and a crisis of sense of self.
Eschewing narrative economy for an epic five-act saga, this prequel to Fury Road is a different beast of a film, focusing first on drama and then action, effectively deepening the mythos of the Wasteland.
One of the greatest films of all time, Spielberg’s masterstroke was projecting narrative uncertainties against an acute sense of historical certainty that was the Holocaust, resulting in a work that is harrowingly tense but also imbued with moments of cathartic empathy.
Eternality Tan 