She Hosts ‘Women Who Kill,’ and May Be in Love With One
Culture, Yesterday
In Ingrid Jungermann’s droll comedy, ex-lovers who produce a podcast about serial killers find themselves at odds when a new romantic interest emerges.
‘Escapes’ Recounts a Hollywood Storyteller’s Inventive Life
Culture, Yesterday
In this engaging documentary, Michael Almereyda looks at the screenwriter Hampton Fancher, one of the seers behind the 1982 “Blade Runner.”
‘Rumble’ Gives Due to Unheralded Native American Pop Musicians
Culture, Yesterday
Catherine Bainbridge’s “Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World” celebrates performers who never fully got their due for their musical contributions.
A Bullied Boy Gets a Hunting Lesson in ‘First Kill’
Weekend, July 20
A deep-woods thriller stars Bruce Willis as the local police chief and features a bank robbery gone wrong.
Out of Luck, and Seeking a Strongman in ‘Mister Universo’
Weekend, July 20
The Italian directors Tizza Covi and Rainer Frimmel’s hybrid of a film follows a young man on a sort of odyssey across Italy.
‘The Fencer’ Is an Inspiring Figure in a Formulaic Tale
Weekend, July 20
In 1950s Estonia, a principal’s envy of a popular teacher leads him to start investigating his background.
‘The Pulitzer at 100’ Celebrates Awards More Than Winners
Weekend, July 20
A film about a prize for excellence in journalism and the arts shares some winners’ insights, but not enough.
‘The Midwife’ Is Unflappable, Until the Past Blows In
Weekend, July 20
Two great French actresses, Catherine Deneuve and Catherine Frot, share the screen in this film about forgiveness and redemption.
‘Romeo Is Bleeding,’ and Shakespeare Is Relevant
Weekend, July 20
A documentary finds a group of young people in violence-plagued Richmond, Calif., staging their own version of Romeo and Juliet’s romantic tragedy.
In ‘Landline,’ the Family That Strays Together
Weekend, July 20
Jenny Slate, John Turturro and Edie Falco star in Gillian Robespierre’s new comedy, set in 1995.
‘Killing Ground’ Will Make You Rethink That Camping Trip
Weekend, July 20
The movie, set in an Australian national park, features two families and one set of brutal killers.
In ‘The Untamed,’ Close Encounters. No, Even Closer.
Weekend, July 20
A slimy, many-tentacled alien has sex with several unhappy residents of the Mexican city of Guanajuato in Amat Escalante’s movie.
‘The Girl Without Hands’ Tells a Dark Tale, Boldly
Weekend, July 20
In Sébastien Laudenbach’s animated adaptation of a Grimm fairy tale, after her father’s deal with the Devil, a young girl loses her hands and must navigate the world without them.
‘Kekszakallu’ Plunges Into the Unknown
Weekend, July 20
This Argentine film, very loosely inspired by the Bartok opera “Bluebeard’s Castle,” observes the lives of teenage girls on the verge of adulthood.
A Poor, Little Rich Maharajah in ‘Black Prince’
Weekend, July 20
Kavi Raz’s film, based on the true story of Duleep Singh, never finds a rhythm or dramatic arc.
In ‘Amnesia,’ Finding Inner German Peace on a Spanish Isle
Weekend, July 20
Marthe Keller stars in Barbet Schroeder’s movie, set in Spain in the 1990s, about two Germans who confront the lingering horrors of World War II.
‘Valerian’ Is a Rave in Space (but Not Much Fun)
Weekend, July 20
If you can summarize the plot of Luc Besson’s film adaptation of the graphic-novel science fiction series, you weren’t paying attention.
‘Dunkirk’ Is a Tour de Force War Movie, Both Sweeping and Intimate
Weekend, July 20
In his brilliant new film, Christopher Nolan revisits a harrowing, true World War II mission in a story of struggle, survival and resistance.
In ‘Girls Trip,’ Women Giddily Under the Influence
Weekend, July 19
In the affably amusing, sometimes spittingly funny “Girls Trip,” a weekend getaway brings trouble, laughs and sisterhood.
Modern-Day Conflicts Creep Into Idyllic ‘Santoalla’
Culture, July 18
A Dutch couple goes off the grid to live a quiet life in Spain, but their idyll ends in a true crime mystery that is the subject of this documentary.
‘L’Important C’est d’Aimer,’ and Its Complications
Weekend, July 13
A lovely new restoration of Andrzej Zulawski’s third feature is being released. You’ll still want to brace yourself for its emotional intensity.
In ‘Footnotes,’ It’s Out of Work We Go
Weekend, July 13
A Marxist musical comedy follows its heroine into a luxury shoe factory and then into a labor dispute.
‘Chasing Coral’ Bears Witness to the Death Aquatic
Weekend, July 13
Jeff Orlowski’s documentary emphasizes that climate change isn’t just an aboveground phenomenon — warmer oceans mean that coral reefs are in peril, too.
A Music Box to ‘Wish Upon,’ With a (Deadly) Catch
Weekend, July 13
A teenager unhappy with her circumstances falls prey to a strange box, and it doesn’t bode well for the resident high school meanie.
‘Blind’ Aims for Steamy Romance but Hits Silliness
Weekend, July 13
Alec Baldwin and Demi Moore star in a clumsy tale about a cranky blind writer and a married woman who finds him affair-worthy.
Victims or Not? ‘The Wrong Light’ Looks at a Rescue Group
Weekend, July 13
A documentary initially focused on Thailand’s sex industry takes a sharp turn when the filmmakers begin to doubt the activist who is their guide.
‘Endless Poetry,’ Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Surreal Self-Portrait
Weekend, July 13
An 88-year-old polymath’s nostalgic look back on the Chilean literary scene in the late 1940s.
With ‘False Confessions,’ the Play’s Not Quite the Thing
Weekend, July 13
Isabelle Huppert and Louis Garrel star in a screen version of an 18th-century Marivaux play and the last film directed by Luc Bondy.
‘Lady Macbeth’ in Hoop Skirts
Weekend, July 13
Victim or villain, flower or serpent? In this British movie, a young 19th-century woman finds passion, makes mischief and commits murder.
In ‘Almost Sunrise,’ a Long Walk to Postwar Clarity
Weekend, July 13
This documentary by Michael Collins follows two veterans as they try to come to grips with the “moral injury” inflicted by their military tours in Iraq.
In ‘Birthright: A War Story,’ a 40-Year Offensive Against Reproductive Choices
Weekend, July 13
The documentary argues that not just pregnancy-related treatment, but also all manner of health care for women, is under constant attack.
New ‘Planet of the Apes’ Makes You Root Against Your Species
Weekend, July 12
With Andy Serkis reprising his role as Caesar, “War for the Planet of the Apes” is a humane western wrapped around a prison movie, as primates battle for primacy.
Okwui Okpokwasili’s ‘Bronx Gothic,’ From Stage to Screen
Culture, July 11
A documentary revisits a harrowing solo performance piece that explores the sexual awakening of two girls in the Bronx.
‘I Am the Blues’ Visits the Music’s Home Turf
Culture, July 11
Daniel Cross’s film spends time with Delta bluesmen, many in their 80s, still living and playing in the small towns of Louisiana and Mississippi.
‘500 Years’ Looks at a Guatemala Searching for Justice
Culture, July 11
The documentary is the final film in a trilogy by Pamela Yates that examines the country, its people and political corruption.
In ‘City of Ghosts,’ Fighting ISIS With Journalism
Weekend, July 6
In this documentary, Matthew Heineman (“Cartel Land”) focuses on the gutsy Syrian citizen-journalist group called Raqqa Is Being Slaughtered Silently.
Drama Students Aren’t Merely Players in ‘The Rehearsal’
Weekend, July 6
Alison Maclean tells a coming-of-age story in her long-awaited return to the big screen. Her last fictional feature was 1999’s “Jesus’ Son.”...
In ‘The Confessions,’ the Monk Has All the Answers
Weekend, July 6
This political fable by Roberto Andò is rife with talk about power, austerity and capitalism; high-end settings; tasteful music; and implausibility.
In ‘Swim Team,’ Autism Is No Barrier to Competition
Weekend, July 6
Lara Stolman’s documentary follows a Special Olympics team for autistic kids, the Jersey Hammerheads, and the challenges they face.
A Guerrilla Is Born in Hong Kong in ‘Our Time Will Come’
Weekend, July 5
Ann Hui’s deftly directed film depicts an underground leader’s rise during the Japanese occupation in World War II, and the sacrifices asked of her.
In ‘Austin Found,’ Child Abduction Is Played for Laughs
Weekend, July 5
Dumb-comedy season is here: Linda Cardellini stars as a manipulative mother who turns to kidnapping when her pageant dreams for her daughter fizzle.
‘A Ghost Story’ Has a Sensitive Specter With Time on His Hands
Weekend, July 5
Casey Affleck and Rooney Mara play a young couple, one of whom is dead, in David Lowery’s haunting new film.
‘The House’ Is a Comedy Built on Despair
Culture, June 30
Will Ferrell and Amy Poehler play a couple who embark on a nefarious scheme in which the odds are always in their favor.
Spider-Man (Again) and All That Sticky Kid Stuff
Culture, June 29
This superhero is back in a reboot that features both new faces and familiar fights. Tom Holland wears the suit, but Michael Keaton owns the movie.
‘Mali Blues,’ Making Music in the Face of Jihadists
Weekend, June 29
This documentary takes up where the fictional ‘Timbuktu’ left off, focusing on the urgency of four major Malian musicians.
In ‘The Reagan Show,’ No Grenada but Lots of the Arms Race
Weekend, June 29
A documentary assembled from archival video offers a glimpse of the 40th president’s character, but focuses mostly on relations with the Soviets.
In ‘Reset,’ a Mother Enters a Wormhole to Save Her Son
Weekend, June 29
This film, produced by Jackie Chan, is a tense sci-fi action thriller with a strong female lead.
Rural Kentucky With Poet-Farmer Wendell Berry in ‘Look & See’
Weekend, June 29
The documentary offers a glimpse into the fecund mind of a writer-naturalist.
‘Marie Curie’ Recalls a Beautiful Mind and Tough Life
Weekend, June 29
This biopic, starring Karolina Gruszka, highlights about six years in the life of the Nobel Prize-winning scientist.
‘The Skyjacker’s Tale’ Tracks Down a Fugitive in Cuba
Weekend, June 29
A documentary by Jamie Kastner is about a fugitive convicted in the deaths of eight people at a golf course in the Virgin Islands.
‘The B-Side,’ Errol Morris’s Deft Portrait of a Photographer
Weekend, June 29
Elsa Dorfman, a subject of seemingly modest import for a documentary, emerges here as an artist of deep compassion, empathy, humor and wisdom.
From Wooing Women to Plotting Hitler’s Murder in ‘13 Minutes’
Weekend, June 29
A German biopic tells the story of Georg Elser, a carpenter who tried to blow up the Führer in 1939.
In ‘The Little Hours,’ These Sisters Are Neither Chaste Nor Obedient
Weekend, June 29
The film borrows from Boccaccio, with a sprinkling of Monty Python, for this irreverent comedy set in an Italian convent.
‘Darkness Rising,’ a Bland Haunted-House Salad
Weekend, June 29
A woman returns to the site of a family murder only to find the evil spirit that caused it is still hanging around.
‘Despicable Me 3’ Suggests a Franchise Running on Fumes
Weekend, June 29
Steve Carell and Kristen Wiig revisit their familiar characters, but the goings-on show signs of wear even as the energy level escalates.
In ‘Okja,’ a Girl and Her Pig Take on the Food Industrial Complex
Culture, June 27
Bong Joon-ho’s latest film on Netflix is a high-speed satire with a conscience and a heart. And Tilda Swinton in braces.
‘Spell Reel’ Shows a Revolution Filmed, on the Leader’s Orders
Culture, June 27
The documentary digs up movies shot to document Guinea-Bissau’s war of independence from Portugal in the 1960s and ’70s.
Midlife Crisis, With Pachyderm, in ‘Pop Aye’
Culture, June 27
A quixotic Thai drama about a middle-aged architect, an old elephant and their journey into a new life.
In ‘Baby Driver,’ It’s Kiss Kiss, Zoom Zoom
Culture, June 27
Burning rubber and hot licks help propel this action movie about a getaway driver named Baby, played by Ansel Elgort. Edgar Wright directed.