I rated OPPENHEIMER a +3 and the others either a high +2 or just +2 (-4 to +4), so they are listed alphabetically.
OPPENHEIMER: There is a lot of substance to the film, but there is a lot of style as well (it is after all a Christopher Nolan film), and the style sometimes gets in the way of the substance.
BARBIE: Everyone has talked about how the movie makes some salient points about sexism, patriarchy, and consumerism in the real world in the movie, but it seems to overlook the same issues with the sexism, matriarchy, and consumerism in Barbieland (which is yet another parallel world, though unlike most films, in BARBIE we have characters traveling from the world of the imagination to the real world, rather than vice versa). While in the real world, we have scenes of toxic (and non-toxic) masculinity, one can argue that in Barbieland, we have scenes of toxic (and non-toxic) femininity. There are two notable monologues: one is Gloria talking about the problems women face in the real world; the other is Sasha telling Barbie why she is basically evil.
CLOSE TO VERMEER: This documentary covers the planning of a major Vermeer exhibition in the Netherlands, including disputed paintings, the layout of the exhibit, and even merchandising. This is a documentary art lovers won't want to miss--and it doesn't require a lot of background knowledge to appreciate it.
DESPERATE SOULS, DARK CITY AND THE LEGEND OF MIDNIGHT COWBOY: DESPERATE SOULS, DARK CITY AND THE LEGEND OF MIDNIGHT COWBOY is more a chronicle of the period of the 1950s and 1960s and is a history of that period by clips from films, discussion of film makers, and Warhol-esque art than an analysis of the film MIDNIGHT COWBOY. There is some discussion of the effect MIDNIGHT COWBOY had going forward, but writer/director/producer Nancy Biurski primarily looks at how the film came to be at all.
A HAUNTING IN VENICE: A HAUNTING IN VENICE is based primarily on Agatha Christie's HALLOWE'EN PARTY, but it also has elements from A CARIBBEAN MYSTERY and NEMESIS. Somehow Kenneth Branagh does not come up to David Suchet as Poirot.
THE HOLDOVERS: THE HOLDOVERS is worth watching for the performances (Paul Giamatti, Dominic Sessa, and Da'Vine Joy Randolph), but otherwise a fairly standard story.
THE INVENTOR: THE INVENTOR is a combination of stop-motion animation and hand-drawn animation. It is a biopic of Leonardo da Vinci, but it concentrates more on his scientific pursuits than on his artistic ones.
LEAVE THE WORLD BEHIND: LEAVE THE WORLD BEHIND is similar to a "Twilight Zone" episode; in fact, the story has not one but three episodes it has connections to (and a Ray Bradbury story to boot). But it is original in its approach.
MAFIA MAMMA: We watched MAFIA MAMMA primarily because Toni Colette is the lead actress, and we think she is great as a comedy actress. And this film doesn't disappoint in that regard; Colette plays a woman in a boring job who suddenly inherits a Mafia empire (and a vineyard) from a grandfather she never met. Some elements of the film may remind one of TUCKER & DALE VS. EVIL, but with a twist.
THE MONKEY KING: THE MONKEY KING is an animated film that is a prequel to the classic "Monkey King" legend, "Journey to the West", or perhaps more accurately, a secret history. Because the film is a prequel, it requires no prior knowledge of the Monkey King in viewers, though the final scene assumes some recognition.
Mark R. Leeper Copyright 2023 Mark R. Leeper