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MaXXXine
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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MaXXXine is made by someone who loves movies while being fascinated by the disturbed psyches behind the lens. Despite its slight faults, this is a worthy finale that can cut deeper than another rehashed slasher.
Posted Jul 09, 2024
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Despicable Me 4
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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Genuinely goofy.
Posted Jul 09, 2024
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Horizon: An American Saga - Chapter 1
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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On its own, this is a visually stunning half-serving that can’t fully satisfy because of its very structure.
Posted Jul 03, 2024
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A Quiet Place: Day One
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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Avoiding being thoughtless, “Day One” is good popcorn fun, designed to raise the heart rate for its thankfully brisk 99 minutes.
Posted Jul 01, 2024
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Janet Planet
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Baker simply allows her characters to live and breathe in front of the camera, letting them linger as if they were real people we have met.
Posted Jul 01, 2024
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The Bikeriders
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Nichols soberly looks at the darker elements of motorcycle club culture, but there is also an infectious attitude at play that remains alluring because society is always demanding we conform.
Posted Jun 24, 2024
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Kinds of Kindness
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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It is a free-wheeling challenge that might require more than one viewing to fully process. Even if one viewing might be more than enough for you, it will nonetheless be hard to forget.
Posted Jun 24, 2024
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Bad Boys: Ride or Die
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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We don’t need another “Bad Boys” movie after this one, but it is an early summer guilty pleasure.
Posted Jun 10, 2024
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Robot Dreams
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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The final scenes of this movie are wonderfully bittersweet. They seem to say that good memories with someone are worth cherishing, even as we may find new loves, friends and connections.
Posted Jun 07, 2024
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Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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“Furiosa” balances satire with genuine pathos in a way no other franchise can really pull off. You can chuckle at the wordplay and feel for Furiosa’s painful journey of discovery.
Posted May 28, 2024
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IF
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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Where “IF” is left lacking is in how Krasinski never finds a full arc for this story. Putting aside odd story holes, there’s no real progression.
Posted May 20, 2024
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Back to Black
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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One gets the sense that Amy Winehouse herself would have shunned this biopic for how safe and shallow it all is. She might have even written and dedicated a much bolder, scathing song to disown it.
Posted May 20, 2024
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Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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“Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes” wonderfully continues the trend by continuing the timeline as it recharges the premise.
Posted May 13, 2024
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Evil Does Not Exist
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Hamaguchi’s film is ultimately a meditation on why some of the world’s delicate balances should be left at peace.
Posted May 07, 2024
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The Fall Guy
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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“The Fall Guy” delivers by making fun of its peers and celebrating an essential job in filmmaking.
Posted May 06, 2024
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The Veil
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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“The Veil” is an entertaining game of identities and international suspense, held together by a performance from Moss, who proves she’s still growing after all these years giving us good television.
Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Challengers
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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“Challengers” is in its own, original rush. Everyone involved makes it come alive because they are in it to win.
Posted Apr 29, 2024
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Civil War
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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Garland powerfully poses the reality that wherever humans have settled and built societies, conflict brews.
Posted Apr 15, 2024
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Housekeeping for Beginners
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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“Housekeeping for Beginners” is a true family film, celebrating the difficulties of forming a necessary unit with others to withstand life’s struggles.
Posted Apr 12, 2024
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Monkey Man
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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The energy of “Monkey Man” is infectious while having the merit of being a wholly Indian hero taking names and setting the world on fire.
Posted Apr 08, 2024
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Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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If your sole aim is to see kaiju heavy metal onscreen, “Godzilla x Kong” will work as enjoyably bad.
Posted Apr 01, 2024
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Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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As far as strained continuations go, this one could have been worse. If you put aside any attachment to the original classic, this one comes close to working as a well-produced popcorn escape.
Posted Mar 25, 2024
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Road House
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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Visually it has plenty of style and sets the right environment for a summer escape. And the story keeps its priorities straight.
Posted Mar 25, 2024
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Love Lies Bleeding
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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Amid the grime and melodrama, this is a sincere movie with two striking performances that go for broke.
Posted Mar 16, 2024
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Damsel
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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Alas, its promising starting point gets quickly burned to a crisp by turning into a throwaway dragon chase.
Posted Mar 11, 2024
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Kung Fu Panda 4
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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As with the previous three, this “Kung Fu Panda” still offers fine lessons in moving forward and self-esteem. That makes it just likable enough.
Posted Mar 11, 2024
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Spaceman
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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It’s the kind of movie some will easily term “weird.” We need more weirdness. Spaceman will linger in your memory much longer than the throwaway remakes and sequels we’re bombarded with like an alien invasion.
Posted Mar 05, 2024
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Dune: Part Two
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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Dune: Part Two should be seen on the biggest screen you can find, but the story remains a riveting saga both classical and imaginative.
Posted Mar 02, 2024
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Ordinary Angels
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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What barely saves the movie as an ok tear-jerker is that Gunn never makes it about proselytizing religion and keeps the focus on Hilary Swank.
Posted Feb 27, 2024
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Drive-Away Dolls
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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It is a feminist romp and borderline grindhouse thriller, which takes a few detours to comment on the perils of American conservatism.
Posted Feb 26, 2024
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Madame Web
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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Madame Web tries to stay grounded while being absurd, showcasing actors doing the best they can with a genre that is quickly gathering cobwebs and needs some decent sweeping before starting again.
Posted Feb 20, 2024
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Bob Marley: One Love
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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Bob Marley: One Love isn’t necessarily a misfire. It has so much promise we just wish it had more of everything.
Posted Feb 20, 2024
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Lisa Frankenstein
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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Lisa Frankenstein doesn’t have dynamite, just cuteness with a dash of blood.
Posted Feb 12, 2024
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Tótem
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Tótem manages to encompass in one home how life can be warm, sad and exciting all at once.
Posted Feb 12, 2024
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Argylle
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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This movie feels sluggish and timid because it tries too hard to be a blockbuster.
Posted Feb 05, 2024
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Scrambled
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Scrambled is not a preachy film about finding the right path in life. It never seeks to judge Nellie for her choices. McKendrick’s tone is joyfully quirky, like an assurance that no one has the right answers.
Posted Feb 05, 2024
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The Promised Land
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Arcel’s film is a great entertainment in the best way because it’s gripping and enriching.
Posted Feb 05, 2024
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I.S.S.
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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This is fine, but it just needs a stronger narrative where we understand better the world of these characters before it’s all reduced to a standoff.
Posted Jan 22, 2024
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Origin
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor carries us through it all with a performance of intelligence and compassion...This is a movie about where we come from and what it means to be human, with all of the shame and hope that entails.
Posted Jan 22, 2024
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The Book of Clarence
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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The Book of Clarence is almost a hard film to fully decipher in one review because of how layered and rich it becomes. That’s also what makes it special.
Posted Jan 16, 2024
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Night Swim
(2024)
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Alci Rengifo
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The better moments are quiet, eerie shots of someone swimming across the pool, hinting a menace hiding in the shadows. But once the plot dries up, Night Swim is left gasping for air.
Posted Jan 08, 2024
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Society of the Snow
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Bayona has made a film about survival that truly places us in the shoes of its characters. He gives every character just enough screen time to make us care and to see the differences in personalities.
Posted Jan 08, 2024
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Ferrari
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Ferrari thrives on the presence of an aged Adam Driver pushing for perfection, not realizing how cold and closed off he’s becoming, and Cruz’s would-be matriarch balancing loving this man while feeling betrayed.
Posted Dec 26, 2023
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The Color Purple
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Like many family stories, this is a classic tale that can be passed down for years to come, with new voices that never lose what makes it special.
Posted Dec 26, 2023
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Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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It may not quite be the end, but The Lost Kingdom confirms the format is lost at sea and needs to find new shores.
Posted Dec 26, 2023
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The Iron Claw
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Like many great family tragedies, The Iron Claw is piercing because of the human element.
Posted Dec 26, 2023
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Wonka
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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King makes sure not to slip into overkill with the nostalgia. “Wonka” can be enjoyed on its own as a treat to satisfy our cinematic sweet tooth as the year winds down.
Posted Dec 21, 2023
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American Fiction
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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Everyone in this cast feels like they have something sincere invested in the project. Jefferson has made an excellent American satire about how we see each other and how we shouldn’t.
Posted Dec 21, 2023
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The Zone of Interest
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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The Zone of Interest is his [Glazer's] best film yet because it brings that same disoriented, dreamlike feel to something horrifyingly real. Humans are indeed the real monsters.
Posted Dec 21, 2023
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The Boy and the Heron
(2023)
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Alci Rengifo
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The Boy and the Heron is more than just a great animated film. It is imaginative cinema of the best kind.
Posted Dec 14, 2023
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