Movies

Nicole Kidman stars as Erin Bell in Karyn Kusama's Destroyer.

Arts

Straining For Grit And Settling For Grim, 'Destroyer' Doesn't Deliver

5:00pm December 25, 2018

by Ella Taylor

Director Karyn Kusama has a history of films where women fight back. But Destroyer, despite its transformation of Nicole Kidman, fails to develop a compelling story to support that transformation.

Kevin Spacey Faces Felony Charges In Alleged Sexual Assault Case

5:10am December 25, 2018

Kevin Spacey's arraignment for allegedly sexually assaulting an 18-year-old is scheduled for Jan. 7. David Greene talks to Vox Film Critic Alissa Wilkinson.

Nicole Kidman stars as Erin Bell, a hard-boiled detective facing an old foe, in Karyn Kusama's Destroyer.

Arts

LA Is Grim, And Nicole Kidman Is Grizzled, In 'Destroyer'

7:49am December 24, 2018

by Mandalit del Barco

An LAPD detective with a murky past appears in every scene of Karyn Kusama's new drama. Light and dark, male and female, hero and antihero, it's a thriller that plays with the conventions of noir.

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Music & Culture

The Composer With A Growing Fan Club Among Directors

8:01am December 23, 2018

by Tim Greiving

Two of the buzziest movies this year, "If Beale Street Could Talk" and "Vice," have this in common: composer Nicholas Britell.

In His New Film, Shakespearean Actor Kenneth Branagh Stars As The Bard Himself

4:21pm December 21, 2018

by Bob Mondello

Kenneth Branagh directs and stars in All Is True as Shakespeare in his final years, with Judi Dench as his wife.

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Arts

Venture 'Into The Spider-Verse' For An Exuberant, Visually Stunning Thrill

1:40pm December 21, 2018

by Justin Chang

If you thought you'd seen enough characters in red masks and blue suits to last a lifetime, well, you ain't seen nothing yet: This new animated film puts a fresh spin on the Spider-Man saga.

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Vice President Dick Cheney's Power Is On Display In 'Vice'

5:51am December 21, 2018

by David Greene

In the new film Vice, director Adam McKay teamed up with Oscar winner Christian Bale to portray former Vice President Dick Cheney and his rise to power.

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All dolled up: Mark (Steve Carell) photographs the plastic stand-ins of his backyard miniature town in Welcome to Marwen.

Arts

'Welcome To Marwen,' By Way Of Hollywood Cliches And False Uplift

5:00pm December 20, 2018

by Andrew Lapin

Robert Zemeckis adapts a gripping documentary about one trauma survivor's low-fi art project; the result is a "bloated and lifeless" drama that trivializes his experience.

Charlie (Hailee Steinfeld) and Bumblebee (as himself) are more than meets the eye in Bumblebee.

Arts

Flight Of The 'Bumblebee': Transformers Flick Soars Over (Low) Franchise Expectations

5:00pm December 20, 2018

by Scott Tobias

Director Travis Knight takes over from Michael Bay, and sets about getting viewers to care about characters instead of assaulting our senses. The result is surprisingly watchable.

L to R: Tom (Jack Colgrave Hirst), Judith (Kathryn Wilder), Will (Kenneth Branagh) and Anne (Judi Dench) smile for the ... portraitist, in All Is True.

Arts

'All Is True' Finds Melancholy And Magic In Shakespeare's Final Years

5:00pm December 20, 2018

by Ella Taylor

An aging Bard of Avon (Kenneth Branagh) returns to his hometown to reconnect to the family he barely knows in this touching film about the disconnect between life and art.