Roger Ebert Reviews

It’s impossible to think about “The Boys” without also thinking about the dying genre in which it finds itself. While the 2010s saw superhero films soaring to heights that not even a telepath could imagine, the 2020s ushered in a new era of theatrical viewing, as well as a new era of superhero film. From […]

Xavier Gens is back with his second stateside release of the year in a film that’s already topped the Netflix charts, the defiantly goofy “Under Paris,” a movie that almost feels like it’s paying homage to the master in its nods to Steven Spielberg’s “Jaws” before going full “Sharknado” in an insane final act that

Back in February, music and movie fans were shocked to hear that “American Beauty” director Sam Mendes was going to be making separate full-length biopics about each of the Beatles. Whether or not you thought that was a good idea, it certainly was unprecedented—and it immediately started speculation about who would play the band members

Sixty years ago, a moviegoing public still grieving JFK’s November 1963 assassination, experienced The Cold War U.S. and national leadership through the lens of the filmmakers who brought them cautionary tales and doomsday thrillers such as “The Best Man,” “Fail Safe,” “Seven Days in May,” and “Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying

Based on Scott Turow’s 1987 legal thriller of the same name, “Presumed Innocent” stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Rusty Sabich, a renowned prosecutor and family man. He’s shown as a loving father and husband, spending a beautiful sunny day with his wife Barbara (Ruth Negga) and their children. There’s just one problem: Sabich is about to

After helping as the second unit director on her father M. Night Shyamalan’s films “Old” and “Knock at the Cabin,” it’s only fitting that Ishana Night Shyamalan’s directorial debut, “The Watchers,” continues the family tradition of mining the horrors of single-setting locations. “The Watchers” focuses on Mina (Dakota Fanning) who gets stranded in a forest

It’s August 1980, and Jake (Blake Jenner) is driving to college. He’s a freshman pitcher on the school’s highly-rated baseball team, and he’s moving into off-campus housing with his teammates, most of whom are upperclassmen. In short order, Jake meets the guys, who razz him because he’s a freshman and he’s a pitcher—all pitchers are

Chaz Ebert recounts her experience at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival, from cell phone usage to panels to chats with critics and correspondents also attending the fest. The famous red carpet has been cleaned, the movies on the beach have been closed, and the Cannes Film Festival for 2024 is complete. But here in France, the

In a big city, avoiding eye contact is a survival tool. Looking at the floor, looking down and to the left, a thousand-yard stare that looks straight through whoever is cramming their body into your personal space at that moment: all are necessary to maintain some level of dignity in crowded spaces. The characters in

Cate Blanchett’s searing performance in “Tár” left such an indelible impression that, for a while in late 2022/early 2023, people actually thought Lydia Tár was a real person.   She is not: The egotistical and tormented conductor is entirely fictional, the vivid creation of writer-director Todd Field. However, many passionate and dedicated female conductors exist, and director Maggie Contreras honors them with her documentary “Maestra.” Sadly, they are still very