Roger Ebert Reviews

Sometimes an actor enters the pantheon because of one unforgettable performance, and surely there is no clearer example of this than Louise Fletcher as Nurse Ratched in Miloš Forman’s film of “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” (1975). With her soft voice and 1940s pageboy and slight smile, Fletcher’s Nurse Ratched is devoted to a […]

When the horror histories of the 2010s are written, the decade will be associated with trauma metaphors the way the ‘80s are with slasher movies. And although it comes on the cusp of a new decade, the new Paramount wide-release horror movie “Smile” fits right in with its PTSD-induced kin. The difference here is that the

Set in the 13th century, “Catherine Called Birdy” is a labor of love for writer/director Lena Dunham, who first read Karen Cushman’s 1994 Newberry-winning novel of the same name when she was just ten years old. But this incredibly loose adaptation leans a little too heavily into Dunham’s economically oblivious feminism, stripping the novel of

“If there were equality of opportunity in this business there would be fifteen Sidney Poitiers and ten to twelve Harry Belafontes. But there is not.” This truth is at the heart of “Sidney,” Reginald Hudlin’s new documentary about the Hollywood star Sidney Poitier. A chronological recounting of Poitier’s odds-defying breakthrough into the classic Hollywood system

When I told my wife that I had to watch “An Allison Janney Action Movie” for a review this week, she was a little startled (although interested in the concept, to be fair). I’m all for unexpected casting, and the truth is that Janney has the range to do just about anything, as she’s proven

“Railway Children” is touching and beautifully produced, but fans of the 1906 E. Nesbit book and the 1970 film need to know that there’s only the most vestigial connection to this latest film, which barely qualifies as “inspired by.” There are children and there is a railway and someone who is unjustly accused. The most

Any art student knows the dread of sitting in front of your professors to dissect and defend your work. The opening scene of “The African Desperate” amplifies this discomfort to 11, as Palace (Diamond Stingily) sits before her four white professors as they spout critiques riddled with obtuse language.  The professors then begin a pissing contest

We expect a lot from our celebrities. We want them to edgy enough to make us feel special. But we don’t want them to be so edgy that they offend someone. And if, God forbid, they do offend someone, we are quick to cancel them. Until we un-cancel them. The cheekily offensive Sex Pistols was

You aren’t likely to see a more rightfully angry film this year than “Athena,” a non-stop opus examining the racism, inequality, and police violence that wreak havoc on France’s banlieue communities of color. That palpable fury rages through the film’s opening sequence, one that director Romain Gavras shoots in a pronounced single take that emphasizes

Bunny King (Essie Davis) walks home after a long day squeegeeing car windshields at a busy intersection. She’s made a couple of bucks. She puts the money into a big glass jar of coins and hides it in her closet. Then she gets undressed, taking off her bra. The bra’s underwire has pierced through the