“Mother Mary” Thrums with Potential
Mother Mary may lose itself in the spotlight, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find a film that delivers such a wallop in the form of Coel and Hathway.
“Basic Psych” is No Basic Morality Play
When Basic Psych is mining the moral conflict this predicament presents, it’s at its most compelling.
“Buffet Infinity” is 3am Channel Surfing at its Finest
As much as it is a movie, Buffet Infinity is also an experience in the charming, analog oddities of yesteryear.
“Over Your Dead Body” Needs Resuscitating
Over Your Dead Body has too much dead weight to make for a dark look at a romantic relationship.
“Broken Bird” Has Some Wings
For a first-time feature director, Broken Bird is quite the introduction. Mitchell has an eye for performance and design that are excitingly fresh.
“Mārama” is a Gothic, Colonialist Nightmare
Mārama is a revenge tale, but simply calling it that would ignore the fuel that keeps the story running at full force until its final moments. Mārama is retribution.
“Michael” Misses a Note
Michael is another entry in the genre of biopics that doesn’t want to handle the reality of the person they’re shining the spotlight on.
“Erupcja” Puts Charli XCX in a Raw, New Light
Erupcja is an encapsulation of the magic, pain, and lingering loss of a person who has changed.
“Lee Cronin’s The Mummy” Has No Thrills Under its Wrapping
Lee Cronin’s The Mummy lacks that bite in its evil entity, and if the film isn’t fueled by a millennia-long sense of ire, there’s not much that separates it from the standard horror of a popcorn flick.
“Exit 8” Gets Lost in the Monotony
Exit 8 is monotonous. It’s a walk that eventually ends and the audience is told that The Lost Man had some emotional growth without seeing the process of achieving that change.
“Backside” Captures Humanity’s Connection to Horses
It’s a film about the fastest two minutes in sports, but Backside is lovingly languid in its approach to the unseen world of horse racing.
“Faces of Death” (2026) Reinvents its Legacy
The 2026 Faces of Death is introspective and gnarly, making the viewer ask why they’re even watching in the first place.
“The Drama” Struggles with its Secrets
The Drama provides a series of dramatics, but isn’t interested in engaging with them to get to the heart of this relationship.
SXSW ’26:“One Another” Celebrates the Ebbs & Flows of Friends
One Another is a fight against those fear-based actions that lead us to isolation rather than connection.
“Project Hail Mary”’s Head is Lost in the Stars
Project Hail Mary is trying to be both weighty and a bouncy popcorn flick, but that’s a difficult scale to balance.
SXSW ’26: “Ready or Not 2: Here I Come” is Ready to Play
Ready or Not 2: Here I Come builds on the bloody mess its predecessor created to make a sweet, gnarly little popcorn flick about saving the world by making amends with your sister.
SXSW ’26: Is it Suicide or Murder at the heart of “Kill Me”
Part murder mystery, part comedy, Kill Me is a wholly unique beast, much like mental illness.
SXSW ’26: I Loved “I Love Boosters”
I Love Boosters is hard to contain, and that makes for a hell of a ride for the viewer. Big, bold, and truly visionary, Riley has given himself, his cast, and his crew a playground on which to make a film so rooted in madness that it effortlessly captures the absurdity of our world.
“The Bride!” Leaves its Titular Character Voiceless
In The Bride!, there’s enough interesting scaffolding to believe that another version of this movie exists, and that it could capture the distinct feminine rage of feeling voiceless.
Oh, to Be Young, Kidnapped, and On the Run: “Silver Star” Review
The road trip movie has always been about reinvention, and in the case of Silver Star, it’s a rebirth as well. A means of finding a place in this world through a connection with someone else.