'A Very Murray Christmas' on Netflix

A snark-free holiday celebration

Bill Murray grew up, as I did, watching holiday specials of the ubiquitous variety shows of the '50s and '60s, and he celebrates them in his Netflix special, A Very Murray Christmas. The title encapsulates the overall vibe of the show, which both recognizes the cheesiness of the genre he’s recreating and sincerely respects it.

Judy Weightman

Dec 21, 2015 · Articles · 5 minute read

'Jessica Jones' on Netflix

The future of female superheroes (maybe)

The only thing more deadly than superheroine Jessica Jones's strength is her quick, very snide sense of humor.

Chris Predmore

Dec 11, 2015 · Articles · 3 minute read

Brian Helgeland's 'Legend'

Two for the price of one

Tom Hardy is extraordinary in Legend, Brian Helgeland’s biopic of the East End twins who dominated London’s crime scene in the 1960s. But a more searching film would have had more to say about the connections between high and low society.

Robert Zaller

Dec 07, 2015 · Articles · 4 minute read

‘The Leftovers’ on HBO

Let the mystery be

The change of scene in season two of The Leftovers jolted the show from a meditation on grief into a crisis of conscience — and gave me hope that it won’t spiral into the incoherent plotting of creator Damon Lindelof’s previous show, Lost.

Paula Berman

Nov 30, 2015 · Articles · 5 minute read

'East Jerusalem/West Jerusalem' at the Philadelphia Jewish Film Festival

Make music, not war

East Jerusalem/West Jerusalem documents an eight-day collaboration between Israeli, Palestinian, and American musicians making an album in an East Jerusalem music studio. The project, led by Israeli singer/songwriter David Broza, shows what can be achieved when human interaction replaces politics.

Stacia Friedman

Nov 21, 2015 · Articles · 4 minute read

Tom McCarthy's 'Spotlight' (first review)

Unlocking omerta

Spotlight shows how a group of reporters uncovered the Catholic Church’s decades-long omerta concerning priests sexually abusing children.

Armen Pandola

Nov 17, 2015 · Articles · 4 minute read

Ridley Scott's 'The Martian' (second review)

When science gets sentimental

A space castaway epic demonstrates our psychological habit of crystallizing our empathy within individual stories, as if we can’t comprehend a crisis until it has a single human face.

Alaina Johns

Nov 09, 2015 · Articles · 5 minute read

Danny Boyle's 'Steve Jobs'

The man behind the curtain

Michael Fassbender does a superb job portraying Jobs, but the director Boyle and screenwriter Sorkin go too far in trying to redeem the man's bad behavior.

Ryan Dellaquila

Nov 02, 2015 · Articles · 2 minute read

Sebastian Schipper's 'Victoria'

More than a one-shot wonder

Shot in a single, breathless take, Victoria is a masterful display of cinematography. But this shouldn’t overshadow its successes as both a profound and unconventional character study and, in its second half, a nail-biting thriller.

Peter Myers

Oct 31, 2015 · Articles · 4 minute read

Spielberg's 'Bridge of Spies' (second review)

Crashing stories

In spite of its problems — clunky plotting, two-dimensional characters — go see Bridge of Spies. Tom Hanks is just so good at playing these kinds of roles that you shouldn’t miss it.

Armen Pandola

Oct 20, 2015 · Articles · 4 minute read