A heavyweight star in a featherweight film.
‘The Smashing Machine’
Dwayne Johnson plays a troubled mixed martial arts fighter in this sports drama directed by Benny Safdie.
From our review:
Johnson’s performance is the magnetic center of the film, and unless you’re a huge fan of watching this kind of fighting, it’s also the whole reason to watch the movie. … But the movie built around Johnson leaves a lot to be desired. Part of the issue is how repetitive its plot turns out to be.
In theaters. Read the full review.
A family affair onscreen and off.
‘Anemone’
Daniel Day-Lewis returns from retirement to play Ray, a recluse at odds with his brother in this drama directed by the actor’s son Ronan Day-Lewis.
From our review:
There is, of course, enormous pleasure in watching Daniel Day-Lewis, an actor of extraordinary sensitivity whose ability to convey a character’s interiority — the delicacy and the violence — can seem almost mystical. The problem is that as “Anemone” continues, the strength of the actor’s performance lays bare the banality of the writing, and Ray’s grip on your imagination loosens even as Day-Lewis’s remains fixed.
In theaters. Read the full review.
A tired teacher in a tired melodrama.
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