A visual feast that’s too overstuffed.
‘The Phoenician Scheme’
In the latest from Wes Anderson, a shady business tycoon enlists his religious daughter to pull off a convoluted plan.
From our review:
It’s overstuffed, and thus skims and skitters across the surface of everything it touches, only glancing here and there before it’s taking off to the next story beat, the next exquisitely detailed composition. A breath or two or 10 might have been in order, a moment to contemplate what the movie’s getting at. You sometimes get the feeling it’s afraid to look too hard at itself.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Doesn’t earn its black belt.
‘Karate Kid: Legends’
Ralph Macchio and Jackie Chan return as karate masters in this franchise reboot directed by Jonathan Entwistle.
From our review:
There is at once a roughshod, zippy energy coupled with a sedateness here that results from the simple fact that the film never quite knows how to square the pure awkwardness of two teachers — two stars from different eras of a franchise — instructing a karate kid at once. Their fan service pairing, then, leaves us with the distinct feeling of two wink-wink cameos shoehorned into a commercial.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Critic’s Pick
Haunting horror with spirited performances.
‘Bring Her Back’
Directed by Danny and Michael Philippou (“Talk to Me”), this emotionally charged horror film follows two stepsiblings who discover that their new foster mom might not be as friendly as she seems.
From our review:
The movie’s forceful visual shocks (executed mostly with practical effects) are easier to bear than its restlessly mounting anguish. Though more logically muddled than its predecessor, “Bring Her Back” operates from a core of tragedy whose weight offsets the nebulousness of the plot. … Answers will arrive, after a fashion, but they don’t matter as much as they should in a movie with such sublime lead performances.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Critic’s Pick
A sure-handed take on vengeance.
‘Tornado’
After her samurai father is killed by a band of thieves, a young woman seeks revenge.
From our review:
The writer-director John Maclean, who deftly played with genre in his 2015 feature debut “Slow West,” is similarly sure-handed here. The movie quickly establishes itself as a revenge narrative, and each bad guy goes down in a way designed to suit the viewer’s justified bloodlust. In the title role, the singer-songwriter Koki is both charming and indomitable; when she announces “I am Tornado,” you feel your internal applause sign light up.
In theaters. Read the full review.
A taut thriller that takes its time.
‘Ghost Trail’
Hamid (Adam Bessa), a Syrian refugee living in France, believes a man at a nearby university (Tawfeek Barhom) is the same one who tortured him in this thriller directed by Jonathan Millet.
From our review:
Bessa’s brooding performance, which conveys devastating inner struggles without appearing clichéd, adds to the mystery of this first act. Millet keeps his cards close, slowly and inventively revealing the stakes. … The cat-and-mouse game, which involves Hamid tracking his suspect throughout campus, plays out in a relatively low-key manner, with the film relying on Bessa (and eventually, an eerie Barhom) to deepen the survivor’s dilemma.
In theaters. Read the full review.
Compiled by Kellina Moore.
The post 5 New Movies Our Critics Are Talking About This Week appeared first on New York Times.
