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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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).
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.
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 feature documentary on a famous song opens a window on genius and packs an emotional punch.
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?
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.
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.
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.”
Some like it hot, or just out on the edge. Here comes a handful of boundary-pushing flicks. Enter at your own risk.
The timely topics of abortion and suicide get searing attention onscreen. Plus: A demented take on Shakespeare and a King Crab fable.
Two beautifully performed films – one with child actors, one about old age – defy the ordinary in welcome ways. Plus, streaming picks.
A fresh and poignant Iranian road trip, a David Lynch mind trip, an affair in Estonia, witchery on Clinton Street, decadent Berlin and mind games in a rural house.
Tilda Swinton teams fascinatingly with an inventive Thai director; big-budget bloody battles Viking style; Nic Cage playing (sort of) himself in an action-comedy spy caper.
This week at the movies: From the busy bedrooms of Paris to a pasture near London, with a pop star and a startling prison tale between.
Alternate universes, an IRS office, hot dog fingers, and tons of fun. Plus: Israel, Palestine and “Ahed’s Knee”; French “Gagarine.”
The Project resurfaces with vivid works by Berlin video artist Anouk de Clercq. Plus what’s new on home and big screens.
Mobsters and Mark Rylance with scissors in the entertaining “Outfit,” “X” marks the slashers, plus new & revival releases around town.
Two foreign-film winners: Archaeology and understanding on a Russian train; moral complexity in the Palestinian West Bank.
A fascinating and empathetic sci-fi family drama explores the ever-thinning line between artificial and “real” intelligence, and what being human is.
ABC has dropped several categories from its live Oscars telecast. In the process it’s dismissing some of the year’s best work.
Marc Mohan reviews Dennis Hopper’s punk masterpiece “Blue” and Kentucker Audley’s surreal futuristic “Mansion.”
A smart, engaging, crowd-pleasing winner from Norway; a probing of race in America with righteous resolve and firm facts.
The Film Center honors a “Portlandia” progenitor and other trailblazers; the Cascade Festival of African Films begins, Tim Roth quietly shines.
Also this week: An extra-noirish “Nightmare Alley” and a host of good revivals strut their stuff.
Oscar best-foreign-film candidates from Japan’s Ryûsuke Hamaguchi and Spanish master Pedro Almodóvar highlight Portland’s movie week.
In search of an avatar dragon and a very real snow leopard. Plus: Martin Luther King Jr. tributes, Coen Brothers & more.
A two-time Oscar winner for best foreign film looks at the ambiguities of heroism; a “demented Horatio Alger” keeps on trying.
Spielberg, Del Toro, and the perils & possibilities of remakes. Plus questions of mortality in a sci-fi flick that sends in the clones.
While the big prestige pictures don’t live up to their billing, a satiric Romanian sex farce slides in to save the day.
Jane Campion’s corrosive revelations on the Montana range and Paul Verhoeven’s tale of convent carryings-on dig deeper than their surfaces.
Lush, lively, and luxuriant, Ridley Scott’s high-fashion tale walks a tightrope between campy nighttime soap and insightful true-crime drama with nary a wobble.
Most of the films made before 1950 are lost. A tenacious group is working to rediscover them, and bring them back to public view.
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