John Patrick Shanley’s Catholic Church-set drama is mildly effective and well-acted but too tidy for its subject matter.
2008
Charlie Kaufman’s minimalist meditation on mortality is as hard to get through as it is oddly rewarding.
Gus Van Sant’s squeaky clean biopic about the famed gay rights activist marks a myopic and pandering misstep in the director’s filmography.
Both tactile and ethereal, Gus Van Sant’s skateboarding drama saw him expand upon his neorealist work that spanned the 2000s.
Jon Favreau’s acerbic superhero adventure set the template for the Marvel Cinematic Universe — and rehabilitated Robert Downey Jr. into a movie star once again.
With its lo-fi aesthetics and quietly chaotic presentation, Jonathan Demme’s 2008 drama never goes for the easy conflicts at hand.
Sam Mendes’s tale of forlorn love works best as a study of the pitfalls that litter the American Dream.
Martin Scorsese shone a light on The Rolling Stones for this rollicking concert film, two cultural titans at the top of their game.
The Wachowskis’ kaleidoscopic 2008 adaptation of the clasic ’60s anime is as bright, bold and weird as the rest of their late-period output.
One of Hayao Miyazaki’s lighter, sentimental films is a celebration of ordinary life & parental love as seen through the eyes of a child.