BOTTOMS


“Co-scripted with star Sennott while they were working on Shiva Baby, Seligman’s shockingly violent, wildly raunchy follow-up overflows with insane comic conceits and random, fourth-wall-breaking asides. At once a horny high school sex comedy and a self-aware deconstruction of the same, Bottoms feels unhinged, in ways both productive and puzzling.” – WBUR’s Arts & Culture, 08/31/2023

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BARBIE’S ROOTS AT THE BRATTLE


Barbie is crammed with so many homages and allusions to classic films that we critics could spend the entire running time Ken-splaining all the references. A more enjoyable alternative can be found at the Brattle Theatre this week, where their Barbie’s Roots retrospective presents thirteen of director Greta Gerwig’s inspirations for her billion-dollar blockbuster.” – WBUR’s Arts & Culture, 08/28/2023

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TOKYO POP


“Fran Rubel Kuzui’s newly restored 1988 debut is short on story and long on charm, genial in that hangout-movie manner that rewards repeat viewings. Tokyo Pop captures the city’s dreamy, discombobulating energy in ways that clearly made an impression on a young Sofia Coppola. It’s an awfully sweet picture, welcoming and easy to watch.” – North Shore Movies, 08/26/2023

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HIP-HOP CRIME FILMS AT THE COOLIDGE


“The Coolidge’s Hip-Hop At 50 celebration takes a dark detour with a week of gritty crime dramas. All four of these films pulsate with street-level views of American life unseen in suburban multiplexes until the music of the cities started a pop culture revolution. Hip-hop helped reinvent the cops and robbers genre for an era of gangbangers and crack cocaine.” – WBUR’s Arts & Culture, 08/19/2023

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NOTHING FROM NEVERS: HIROSHIMA MON AMOUR


“Is there a way to employ such imagery responsibly? Is it even possible in a piece of entertainment? These are some of the questions haunting Alain Resnais’ thrillingly complicated contemplation of historical trauma and shared memory in the guise of a fleeting romance. Hiroshima Mon Amour spans decades while remaining stubbornly in the present tense.” – Crooked Marquee, 08/18/2023

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SIGHT AND SOUND SUMMER VACATION AT THE SOMERVILLE


“‘The more you love movies the harder it is to make lists,’ says Tamm. ‘When people ask for my favorite film, lately I’ve been saying Singin’ In The Rain. Since lockdown, I must have watched it a dozen times. To see it in the same canon as Tokyo Story and 2001 is great. It’s a movie maybe some people wouldn’t think of as a foundational film, but it absolutely is.’” – WBUR’s Arts & Culture, 08/17/2023

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PAGING MR. HERMAN: PEE-WEE’S BIG ADVENTURE AT THE BRATTLE


“Traveling across a highly stylized, egalitarian America full of loveable weirdos and eccentrics, our hero befriends escaped convicts, toothless hobos, ghost truckers, biker dudes and a diner waitress who dreams of moving to Paris. In its openhearted embrace of misfits on the margins, Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure is basically a John Waters movie for kids.” – WBUR’s Arts & Culture, 08/14/2023

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THE LAST VOYAGE OF THE DEMETER


Alien meets Master And Commander is a hell of a hook for a horror film, which leaves one wondering how they managed to screw it up so badly. The Last Voyage Of The Demeter sucks all the fun out what should have been a tight little fright flick about Dracula snacking on sailors and leaves us with a dour, turgidly paced two hours of maritime monotony.” – North Shore Movies, 08/11/2023

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PASSAGES


“The point is not to play peek-a-boo with people’s private parts but rather to show how these characters communicate during their most intimate moments and the shifts in power dynamics that take place therein. Some people like to complain that sex scenes in movies don’t advance the story, but in the case of Passages, the sex scenes are the story.” – WBUR’s Arts & Culture, 08/10/2023

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AFIRE

“Christian Petzold’s dryly funny comedy of (bad) manners changes tones abruptly, like those suddenly shifting winds. This sneakily profound picture throws into stark perspective just how fleeting are the opportunities for simple pleasures that our work won’t allow. Take a swim. Talk to the pretty girl selling ice cream. Enjoy yourself. It’s later than you think.” – North Shore Movies, 08/04/2023

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