Movie Reviews

A zany showbiz family gets a little zanier when stage manager Rachel (Hannah Pearl Utt, left) and her actress sister, Jackie (Jen Tullock, right) discover the mother they thought was dead is alive, well, and a soap opera star.

Arts

'Before You Know It': A Charming, Soapy Comedy About Family Secrets

5:00pm August 29, 2019

by Ella Taylor

Two sisters (co-writers Hannah Pearl Utt and Jen Tullock) learn that their dead mother (Judith Light) is alive — and starring in a soap opera — in this "wise, witty and richly specific" film.

Fred Durst (yes, that Fred Durst) co-wrote and directed this thriller about a stalker. John Travolta (left), stars as the fanatic and Devon Sawa (right), stars as his movie star prey.

Arts

In Stalker Thriller 'The Fanatic,' Travolta Stalks, But Never Thrills

5:00pm August 29, 2019

by Simon Abrams

In Fred Durst's third feature, based loosely on his experience with an overzealous fan, the director lectures the audience while star John Travolta flails away at a one-note performance.

During NATO's 1999 bombing of Serbia, truck driver Vlada (Leon Lucev) is tasked with crossing his war-torn country to deliver mysterious cargo.

Arts

A War-Ravaged Country, A Mysterious Cargo: 'The Load'

5:00pm August 29, 2019

by Scott Tobias

The dangers are existential in this "anti-thriller," in which a truck driver must navigate Serbia's back roads carrying an unknown payload.

Our favorite incompetent invader is back in Invader Zim: Enter the Florpus.

Arts

'90s Kids, Rejoice: 'Invader Zim,' A Cult-Classic Nicktoon, Returns

9:48am August 23, 2019

by Vincent Acovino

Eighteen years after the short-lived series premiered, Invader Zim is back with a one-off special that lacks the edge of the show's best episodes, but recalls what made it so fun.

In her first starring role on the big screen, comedic actress Jillian Bell of 22 Jump Street and Rough Night plays Brittany, an unhappy and directionless ticket-taker who decides to make a change — by running a marathon.

Arts

A Fun But Familiar Story Of Making Yourself Over In 'Brittany Runs A Marathon'

5:00pm August 22, 2019

by Linda Holmes

Jillian Bell and the supporting cast are charming in this underdog story about a young woman who goes from hating exercise to running a marathon. But don't expect too much that's new.

Gemma Arterton (left) and Elizabeth Debicki (right) star as socialite Vita Sackville-West and novelist Virginia Woolf in this true story about the love affair behind one of Woolf's greatest works.

Arts

'Vita & Virginia': Get A Room (Of Your Own), You Two

5:00pm August 22, 2019

by Mark Jenkins

The film, based on Eileen Atkins' play about the correspondence between Virginia Woolf and Virginia Sackville-West, is a standard British period drama that tries, and fails, to be something more.

Kirill Mikhanovsky directs this dark comedy about a young Russian-American man (Chris Galust, pictured here with Lauren 'Lolo' Spencer) driving a medical transport van around Milwaukee.

Arts

'Give Me Liberty': A Brilliant, Transporting Film About A Medical Driver's Busy Day

5:00pm August 22, 2019

by Andrew Lapin

A young Russian-American (Chris Galust) drives a beat-up medical transport van full of demanding, quirky passengers through Milwaukee's backstreets in this funny, authentic film.

When her doctor suggests she lose some weight, Brittany (Jillian Bell) takes up running in Brittany Runs A Marathon.

Arts

'Brittany Runs A Marathon' Is Formulaic, But Victorious At The Finish Line

1:22pm August 21, 2019

by Justin Chang

The underdog comedy, which centers on a hard-partying woman who signs up for the New York City Marathon, proves that even a predictable plot can be hard to resist if it's well executed.

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Come out, come out, wherever you are! In Ready or Not, a bride takes on her new husband's wealthy, murderous family in a twisted game of hide and seek.

Arts

In The Brisk Horror-Comedy 'Ready Or Not,' Bluebloods Are Out For Blood

12:01pm August 21, 2019

by Glen Weldon

The film, about a wealthy clan who play a deadly game of hide-and-seek with a young woman (the fantastic Samara Weaving) marrying into the family, is fast, fun and not for the squeamish.

Documentary Review: 'One Child Nation'

4:49pm August 17, 2019

by Bob Mondello

China's most far-reaching social experiment — a multi-decade attempt at population control — is the subject of the documentary One Child Nation.