PETERSON REVIEWS
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‘Sherman’s March’ is Pretty Exhausting
It’s easy to see why Ross McElwee’s 1986 documentary was so influential. It can also be enervating.
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‘The Hamptons’ is a Compulsively Watchable Nightmare
Barbara Kopple’s 2002 documentary saps the mythic vacation destination of any romanticization.
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The Triumph and Tragedy of ‘The Joy Luck Club’
Wayne Wang’s 1993 adaptation of the homonymous Amy Tan novel was a breakthrough that deserved to trigger more of an industry ripple effect than it ultimately did.
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What This Northwest ‘Drag Race’ Alum Has Planned for Her Seattle Tour Stop
For 425: Bosco wasn’t originally going to bring her new show to her adopted hometown. Here’s why that changed.
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‘The End of Oak Street’ is Entertainingly Derivative
Plus: The much-delayed Looney Tunes comedy ‘Coyote vs. Acme’ is, for the most part, worth the wait. (For 425)
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Love Letters
‘Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma,’ ‘A Sad and Beautiful World,’ and ‘Cactus Pears,’ reviewed.
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Strong, Stoic Types
Director-star Paul Newman’s 1971 treatment of Ken Kesey’s ‘Sometimes a Great Notion’ perceptively observes the corrosiveness of toxic masculinity.
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Coming-of-Age Drama ‘Sugar Cane Alley’ Doesn’t Sugarcoat Things
Euzhan Palcy’s excellent debut feature set the stage for a career making social issue-forward movies that managed to be both hopeful and unsentimental.
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‘My Mom Jayne’ is a Moving Act of Familial Investigation
Mariska Hargitay’s 2025 voyage into her iconic mother’s past abounds in tenderness and hard truths.
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‘Dark Star’ Hinted at What Was to Come
Serving as the feature-length debuts of both John Carpenter and Dan O’Bannon, the 1974 space comedy has several of the traits for which both filmmakers would come to be recognized.
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For ‘Belly,’ Looking Amazing is Nearly Enough
Music-video extraordinaire Hype Williams’ one and only feature film has long had a negative reputation for preferring style over substance. That’s not a bad thing.
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‘Her Private Hell’ is a Provocative Bore
Nicolas Winding Refn’s first feature-length project since 2016’s ‘The Neon Demon’ is too uninteresting to make you want to give too much air to the outrage it seems to half-anticipate.
NOVEMBER 2026
The Theme is ‘Sibling Bonds’
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‘Visible Secret’ is a Low-Key, Surprisingly Spooky Romantic Comedy
Ann Hui’s 2001 movie posits what a rom-com might look like with a ‘Sixth Sense’-esque underlay.
October 16, 2026
August 19, 2026
May 25, 2026
Smoke and Mirrors
Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim’s inventive documentary isn’t just about the disgraced entrepreneur Elizabeth Holmes.
October 19, 2026
Ghost World
Kaneto Shindō’s ‘Kuroneko’ is still forward-looking in its contempt for patriarchal devastation.
October 15, 2026
Strong, Stoic Types
Director-star Paul Newman’s 1971 treatment of Ken Kesey’s ‘Sometimes a Great Notion’ perceptively observes the corrosiveness of toxic masculinity.
August 7, 2026
