Category: Review
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‘Black Mama, White Mama’: An Exploitation-Movie Riff on ‘The Defiant Ones’
It’s worth watching just to see Pam Grier gearing up for the action-heroine roles for which she’d soon be famous.
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Odds & Ends: February 2024
Notes from the last month.
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‘The Way He Looks’ is a Deeply Felt Teen Romance
Daniel Ribeiro’s rom-com is anchored by a moving lead performance from Ghilherme Lobo.
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‘Something to Talk About’ Barely Gives You Anything
The movie flimsily approaches potentially rich material.
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The Soul and Sensitivity of ‘The Blue Caftan’
Though driven by a narrative that sounds straight out of a melodrama, this romantic drama proves more emotionally subtle than sensational.
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There’s Always Tomorrow
On ‘Sylvie’s Love’ and ‘One Night in Miami.’
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‘Stepmom’ is a Maudlin, Sometimes Effective, Tearjerker
Chris Columbus’ 1998 melodrama has five credited writers — and it shows.
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‘Millennium Mambo’ is a Haunting, Lyrical Study of a Life in Stasis
‘Millennium Mambo’ doesn’t need us to know too much about its characters’ inner lives; it’s more about capturing feelings and moods — the listlessness of a woman floating through life because she isn’t sure what else to do.
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‘Notting Hill’: A Star-Crossed Romance
Julia Roberts and Hugh Grant do wonders to soften — but not completely distract from — the contrivances of Roger Michell’s romantic comedy.
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‘The Story of a Three-Day Pass’: An Early Triumph for Melvin Van Peebles
Van Peebles would only get bigger — and bolder.
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Small Gestures, Big Problems in ‘Charulata’
On Satyajit Ray’s masterful romantic drama.
