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John Wick Chapter 4 (Lionsgate)
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John Wick: Chapter 4 is a blood-soaked three-hour symphony of violence

The landmark action franchise finds new ways to top itself, in a closing chapter as bombastic as it is bloody and balletic.

New in March (Universal)
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What’s New on DVD/Blu-ray in March: Women Talking, Animated Batman, Dawson’s Creek and More!

Because in the world of streaming, nothing lasts forever.

Raging Grace (SXSW)
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SXSW 2023: Raging Grace

The Grand Jury Prize winner gives audiences two different flavors of terror.

Swarm (Prime Video)
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In Swarm, Donald Glover and Janine Nabers give stinging commentary

While it may not be everyone’s cup of Lemonade, Swarm gives plenty of thrills and a fantastic performance by Dominique Fishback.

Shazam! Fury of the Gods (Warner Bros. Pictures)
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Shazam! Fury of the Gods curses us with another numbing spectacle from DC Studios

DC hopes lighting strikes twice with this sequel to their hit 2019 film, but this is more of a light drizzle.

Up Here (Hulu)
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Good tunes, great actors lift Up Here

Hulu’s rom-com musical period piece makes sweet music out of a tiresome subgenre.

MOVIES

John Wick Chapter 4 (Lionsgate)J
Main Category
Clint Worthington

John Wick: Chapter 4 is a blood-soaked three-hour symphony of violence

The landmark action franchise finds new ways to top itself, in a closing chapter as bombastic as it is bloody and balletic.
New in March (Universal)W
Main Category
Alonso Duralde

What’s New on DVD/Blu-ray in March: Women Talking, Animated Batman, Dawson’s Creek and More!

Because in the world of streaming, nothing lasts forever.
Raging Grace (SXSW)S
Main Category
Peter Sobczynski

SXSW 2023: Raging Grace

The Grand Jury Prize winner gives audiences two different flavors of terror.
Shazam! Fury of the Gods (Warner Bros. Pictures)S
Main Category
Sean Price

Shazam! Fury of the Gods curses us with another numbing spectacle from DC Studios

DC hopes lighting strikes twice with this sequel to their hit 2019 film, but this is more of a light drizzle.
Boston StranglerB
Main Category
Gena Radcliffe

Boston Strangler is a solid but standard true crime drama

Keira Knightley heads a capable cast as the real-life reporter who defied sexism to break one of the biggest crime stories of the 60s
The Magician's ElephantT
Main Category
Sarah Gorr

The Magician’s Elephant is a modern fairy tale turned empty adaptation

An inoffensive albeit empty mystery box, Netflix's children's fantasy never reaches the heights it aims for.

FILMMAKER OF THE MONTH

Old (Universal)L
Main Category

Life comes at you fast in M. Night Shyamalan’s Old

The writer-director makes a horror film a metaphor for parenting with surprisingly resonant results.
ServantS
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Servant haunts through its isolating setting and stupendous cast

M. Night Shyamalan produces an idiosyncratic ghost story whose reality is far from settled.
GlassG
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Glass shatters the modern superheroic mode to moving effect

M. Night Shyamalan closes the Eastrail 117 trilogy with a deliberate anticlimax and deep empathy in place of spectacle, and the results are striking.

RIGHT ON CUE

Tim Hecker (Infinity Pool)T
Main Category
March 7, 2023

Tim Hecker on the “sonic ecology” of Brandon Cronenberg’s Infinity Pool

The veteran composer and producer talks about building a psychedelic nightmare state for NEON's latest sci-horror.
LISTEN
Filmmaker of the Month: M. Night Shyamalan

FEATURES

New in March (Universal)W
March 17, 2023
Alonso Duralde

What’s New on DVD/Blu-ray in March: Women Talking, Animated Batman, Dawson’s Creek and More!

Because in the world of streaming, nothing lasts forever.
2
March 11, 2023
Douglas Laman

2023 Oscars predictions: Who will win, who should win

Who's going to get the trophy? And who actually deserves it?
The FuryB
March 11, 2023
Peter Sobczynski

Blow out: The Fury at 45

Brian De Palma's follow-up to Carrie remains a messy but fascinating entry in his diverse filmography.
Daisy Jones (Prime Video)A
March 3, 2023
Shannon Campe

A study of adaptation: Daisy Jones & The Six

Exploring how Prime Video's band on the run drama captures and strays from the novel's charms.
SplitS
February 26, 2023
Gena Radcliffe

Split saw Shyamalan give James McAvoy the roles of a lifetime

McAvoy approaches the superpowered Kevin Wendell Crumb and his alters with care and empathy, overcoming sketchy psychology.

TV

Swarm (Prime Video)I
Main Category
Marshall Estes

In Swarm, Donald Glover and Janine Nabers give stinging commentary

While it may not be everyone’s cup of Lemonade, Swarm gives plenty of thrills and a fantastic performance by Dominique Fishback.
Up Here (Hulu)G
Main Category
Tim Stevens

Good tunes, great actors lift Up Here

Hulu’s rom-com musical period piece makes sweet music out of a tiresome subgenre.
Gotham Knights (The CW)E
Main Category
Douglas Laman

Even by the standards of broadcast network superhero fare, Gotham Knights is a massive dud

Everything about the pilot episode of Gotham Knights that could go wrong has gone spectacularly off the rails.
Picard Season 3 Episode 5 (Paramount+)S
Main Category
Andrew Bloom

Star Trek: Picard brings back a familiar face to settle old scores and face down new threats

A surprising coda to an episode of The Next Generation resolves lingering issues while advancing the current story.
Ted Lasso Season 3 Episode 1 (AppleTV+)T
Main Category
Tim Stevens

Ted Lasso starts with its protagonist struggling to find a reason to compete

"Smell Like Mean Spirit" sets up Season 3's challenges, internal and external.
The Mandalorian Chapter 18 (Disney+)G
Main Category
Megan Sunday

Grogu plays hero in a creature-filled episode of The Mandalorian

Clan Mudhorn heads to the Living Waters of Mandalore only to find that the planet possibly isn’t as vacant as everyone has assumed.
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FILMMAKER OF THE MONTH

The VisitT
February 26, 2023
Josephine Maria Yanasak-Leszczynski

The Visit was a Pennsylvania homecoming for M. Night Shyamalan

After a series of disappointments, Shyamalan went back to his beginnings with a PA-set thriller that is as concerned with its cameras as it is with its characters.
The Happening (20th Century Fox)T
February 24, 2023
Sean Price

The Happening is a disaster worthy of love

Shyamalan’s eco-horror misfire almost ended his career, but 15 years later, the film comes off more as a goofy cult classic than box office bomb.
The Village (Touchstone Pictures)S
February 24, 2023
Tim Stevens

Shyamalan struggles on the path to The Village

M. Night Shyamalan’s first big stumble has disappointing twists, but that was never its true problem.
Signs (Touchstone)S
February 23, 2023
Eric Langberg

Signs and the Mediated Apocalypse

M. Night Shyamalan's alien invasion saga draws its power as much from the perception and presentation of the invasion as it does the event itself.
UnbreakableU
February 13, 2023
Chris Ludovici

Unbreakable remains a high point for Shyamalan and Bruce Willis

The first of M. Night Shyamalan's Eastrail 117 trilogy frustrates with its approach to superhero comics as a medium but excels in its drama-and-thrillcraft.
FOTM: M. Night ShyamalanF
February 6, 2023
The Spool Staff

Filmmaker of the Month: M. Night Shyamalan

The Spool's film-by-film exploration of intriguing directors returns with a journey across the career of Philadelphia's one-of-a-kind thrillmaster.