Movies

City Hall tags along as Boston mayor Marty Walsh attends various appointments and public appearances — including this meeting about violent crime.

An Action-Packed Doc About Local Government? It's All In Wiseman's 'City Hall'

2:12pm October 30, 2020

by Justin Chang

Filmmaker Frederick Wiseman, now 90, has a gift for making riveting cinema from the minutiae of the everyday. His latest is a four-and-a-half hour documentary starring Boston City Hall, pre-COVID-19.

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Iranian human rights lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh with a poster of South Africa's Nelson Mandela, in a scene from the Nasrin documentary.

World News

'Nasrin' Documentary Spotlights Life And Work Of Jailed Iranian Human Rights Lawyer

11:57am October 30, 2020

by Deborah Amos

A new film focuses on Nasrin Sotoudeh, a leading human rights lawyer whose health is declining in prison. "She is the closest thing that Iran has to Nelson Mandela," says analyst Karim Sadjadpour.

Film Version Offers A New Look At Jack London's 'Martin Eden'

4:08pm October 26, 2020

by Bilal Qureshi

The new film Martin Eden is an epic retelling of Jack London's 1909 novel set in Italy in the midst of a socialist revolution. It may well be a metaphor for the "Don't tread on me" America of today.

This image released by Netflix shows Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Bobby Seale in a scene from The Trial of the Chicago 7.

Yahya Abdul-Mateen II On Playing Bobby Seale In 'The Trial Of The Chicago 7'

8:05pm October 24, 2020

The Emmy-award winning actor reflects on portraying the co-founder of the Black Panther Party in a new film written and directed by Aaron Sorkin about the landmark 1969 trial.

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Anne Hathaway is the Grand High Witch in the film adaptation of Roald Dahl's The Witches.

Arts

Unimaginative 'Witches' Retread Lacks The Magic Of Roald Dahl's Classic

3:27pm October 23, 2020

by Justin Chang

Though Anne Hathaway throws herself into the role of the Grand High Witch with obvious relish, she often seems to be straining for effect — which leaves The Witches feeling flat.

Arts

Major New York LGBTQ Film Festival, Newfest, Goes Virtual

7:29am October 23, 2020

NewFest, an LGBTQ film festival based in New York, has gone virtual this year. The pandemic disrupted the festivities, but it gave the LGBTQ films a chance to be viewed by a larger audience.

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Elle Lorraine plays a woman whose hair has a mind of its own in Justin Simien's new horror-comedy.

Arts

In 'Bad Hair,' The Mane Rebels

5:00am October 23, 2020

by Aisha Harris

Justin Simien's horror-comedy gets tangled in its own mythmaking, but as an '80s workplace comedy period piece, it's spot-on.

Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, starring Sacha Baron Cohen, has become a political football during this presidential election season.

'Borat' Sequel Grabs A Political News Cycle — At Least Momentarily

9:38pm October 22, 2020

by Anastasia Tsioulcas

Borat Subsequent Moviefilm, starring Sacha Baron Cohen, has become a political football during this presidential election season. A scene involving Rudy Giuliani seized social media attention.

Sacha Baron Cohen's 'Borat Subsequent Moviefilm' Reviewed

6:37pm October 22, 2020

by Bob Mondello

Sacha Baron Cohen's outrageous character from Kazakhstan, Borat, is back in a film that's making political headlines. Amazon Prime is set to stream the Borat sequel starting Friday.

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Mrs. Danvers (Kristin Scott Thomas) is forbidding, foreboding and fierce — easily the best thing about Netflix's Rebecca remake.

Arts

A Flat 'Rebecca' Remake For Netflix Is Haunted By The Ghost Of Hitchcock

5:01am October 21, 2020

by Glen Weldon

Netflix's adaptation of Daphne du Maurier's swooning gothic novel strips it of subtext — and sex — and tacks on a ending that misunderstands the "romance" at its center.