M. Night Shyamalan’s latest high-concept horror flick hits theaters on Friday, and an Oscar nominee finally gets its Portland premiere.
Against all odds, censored Iranian master Jafar Panahi creates another captivating concoction of fact and fiction; Brandon Cronenberg’s third feature is a shocking indictment of the rich and powerful; and Bill Nighy sparkles in “Living,” but it’s no “Ikiru.”
Generationally speaking, what we’ve got here is failure to communicate. And “Everything Everywhere” scores big with the critics circle.
Also showing this week: Portland’s 10th EcoFilm Festival, Bollywood’s “RRR,” and the classic glories of Technicolor.
A pair of movies about women of low and high birth responding to repression; German and Japanese cinema at the Clinton; a flock of revivals: Welcome to 2023.
Marc Mohan picks his best movies of the year. To find out which ones make the list – and which is No. 1 – read on.
In “EO,” six donkeys in search of an auteur find the right one; “Babylon” discovers that Hollywood’s a den of iniquity.
On beyond “Avatar”: a pair of audacious debuts from Filipina and Danish/Iranian directors; big swings in a fat suit; and, yes, those otherworldly special effects.
A stellar adaptation of an “unfilmable” Dom Delillo novel leads a bonanza of big-screen openings, including a gay love story and a documentary on Nan Goldin’s war on OxyContin.
On beyond vengeful Santas: “Nanny” and “The Inspection” tell potent human tales, “Chatterley” is a handsome version of the novel, “Fawn” goes ancient Greek on the thriller format.
“Bones and All” revels in the sins of the flesh; Spielberg looks at anti-Semitism in America; Portlander Mark Gustafson co-directs “Pinocchio.”
Shades of Fellini: “Bardo” is decadent, indulgent, and well worth the ride; “The Menu” gleefully roasts the rich and clueless.
Without the late Chadwick Boseman, a quintet of fierce females leads the Marvel franchise into vivid new territory.
The festivals at the Hollywood Theatre and Cinema 21 provide a rainbow of stories about LGBTQ+ life.
An intriguing but not-too-dangerous apocalyptic tale, a saga of art behind bars, adventures on Mars, Lawrence returning to her indie roots, and one heaven of a sex scandal.
Portland director Dawn Jones Redstone’s debut feature film tells the tale of a woman balancing community activism and raising children.
With “Banshees,” the “In Bruges” team creates another winner; “Jane” brings pre-Roe issues to post-Roe times; Oregon-made animation; unflinching “Western Front”; trouble for trailer parks.
Blanchett does a star turn as a tough musical maestro in former Portlander Todd Field’s newest film, and Portland trio YACHT gets a documentary.
A CIA-tinged tale of danger and lust; Lebanon’s first all-female thrash metal band; a festival of 400-plus films, from Buffalo Soldiers to Storm Large.
A historical comic puzzle in a conundrum in an eccentric Christian Bale; a smart tense mystery; festivals from Lovecraft to the mountains.
“The First Step” looks at how daring to bargain across the aisle in polarized times got a criminal reform bill passed.
The showcase reels ’em in: About 100 regional, national, and international films from 1,600 submissions, available both in-person and virtually.
A charming gay romantic comedy tops the week; Sigourney Weaver and Kevin Kline team up smartly again.
Marilyn Monroe and David Bowie get unconventional biopics that are catnip for their fans; five Saturdays of Bogart; “Mighty Victoria” kick-starts Latin American film fest.
File this one under “to see”: Director J. Rick Castañeda and Portland-based composer Nick Jaina talk with Marc Mohan about their new film comedy.
A rigorous and revealing three-hour look at what’s made the movies the movies; the story of an irascible insider who helped shape a golden cinematic age.
The French director, who never stopped reinventing forms and challenging beliefs, changed the face of cinema, Marc Mohan writes.
A contemporary riff on Fassbinder, the private life of a classic suspense writer, and a host of good revivals: It’s a movie week for looking back.
With “Colors,” a rare chance to revisit three highlights of 20th century cinema (and wonder where the magic’s gone).
The live-theater company, which adapted to film when the pandemic hit, liked what happened and returns with a fresh quartet of topical films.
Idris Elba and Tilda Swinton play the genie-in-a-bottle game in George Miller’s newest; a documentary reveals a battle between cultures in the Amazon rainforest.
Hopes for revival after a beloved neighborhood movie house burns; a crime movie pays off; small gems to stream from student filmmakers.
The Portland Claymation studio founder and Oscar winner had big dreams – and lost them in a legal battle with the Knights.
A tale of a 32-year-old “teenager”; a dad who goes way, way too far; the Criterion Channel’s exquisitely timed look at a chapter in Hollywood’s spotty racial history.
“A safe place inside a dangerous place”: A dozen years in the making, and three after its director’s death, a rare collaboration with inmate actors comes to the screen.
Two brothers with different mothers. One mother who disappears. A quest to find her again, and a family tale 25 years in the making.
A feature documentary on a famous song opens a window on genius and packs an emotional punch.
The director of “the biggest documentary sensation of the summer” tells the volcanic tale of creating a film about fire and ice.
Jordan Peele’s “Nope” is a thrilling summer blockbuster, even if it doesn’t quite fit together; why are good bets skipping Portland’s indie houses?
An Oregon writer and director’s pandemic-delayed feature makes its debut at Portland’s Hollywood Theatre.
A radiant Juliette Binoche adrift in a simplistic story; a fierce and rhythmic and promising debut tale of magical realism; an insane visual spectacle in search of a story.
From a Penelope Cruz and Antonio Banderas showbiz satire with a dark twist to a toothless take on an Austen-esque romcom.
From old movie trailers to car culture to “educational” reels to documentaries by the great Les Blank, if it’s 16 mm and offbeat, the Portland film curator is on it – and putting on a show.
Baz Luhrmann’s latest is myth, not history, but Austin Butler is a knockout as The King. And if you’re up for the joke, the gory “Evil” is a hoot.
A new feature documentary from former Portlander Warren Pereira talks about his quest to discover the answer.
Emma Thompson, Mark Rylance, Dakota Johnson and some fresh faces shine in a trio of movies for grownups.
From battered up to batter up: A week at the movies that runs from Cronenberg’s eviscerations to the 30th anniversary of the women’s baseball classic.
Cronenberg’s newest in hiding? A trio of tales steps up, including a Calabrian mob story, a look at the life and times of poet Siegfried Sassoon, and a terse little terror.
As theaters gear up for big-budget Summer Movie Season, several intriguing small films slip into town. Plus: some big, loud flicks that AREN’T “Top Gun: Maverick.”
Set against Big Sky country, the filmmaking duo’s intimate tale of family conflict is rooted in the past but unfolds resolutely in the present.
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