‘The Moment’ (2026)
We’ve rarely seen a pop star as cinematically carnivorous as Charli XCX, so the question of a feature-length Charli movie seemed not a question of “if” but “when.” Yet when this A24-branded vehicle landed in January, some critics seized on its glancingly mockumentary style to compare it unfavorably to “This is Spinal Tap”; in fact, it’s much closer to “A Hard Day’s Night,” a mostly-comic snapshot of stardom crafted with a sheen of verisimilitude. Charli has crackerjack comic timing, and is well-supported by the surrounding ensemble (Alexander Skarsgard brings just the right energy to his role as foil). But it also gets at serious questions of artistic integrity and growth, image-making and consumerism, and the star works in her own insecurities while conveying the discomfort of sitting in the center of a whirlwind. We may not all know what it is to mount a stadium tour, but who among us can’t relate to the exhaustion and embarrassment of “trying so hard all the time?”
‘The Starling Girl’ (2023)
Eliza Scanlen, who made an indelible impression in “Little Women” and “Babyteeth,” confirms the enormity of her talent with her front-and-center role in this wrenching drama from the writer and director Laurel Parmet. Scanlen’s Jem Starling is a 17-year-old member of a fundamentalist Christian sect whose fierce devotion to the faith gets a little shaky in light of her rapid maturity — particularly when she embarks on a secret affair with her youth pastor (Lewis Pullman, playing the character’s sensitivity and exploitative impulses with equal weight). Parmet builds a nuanced, knowing narrative that resists the simplicity and condescension that can be present in films about people of faith; she understands both its appeal and its dangers. And she creates a star-making showcase for Scanlen, who plays Jem with complexity, sensitivity and strength.
‘Daddio’ (2024)
It’s easy to dismiss Christy Hall’s chatty two-hander — in which an attractive young Manhattanite (Dakota Johnson) and her rough-edged cabdriver (Sean Penn) let down their guards while stuck in traffic from Kennedy Airport to Midtown — as merely an acting exercise. But even if that’s true, it’s a pleasure to watch two of our most charismatic actors prod and puzzle at each other for 100 minutes; it’s like viewing a spring training exhibition game, where nothing’s at stake, yet you can’t help but admire the skill and form. Hall’s script deploys a classic opposites-attract formula (he’s a rough-edged straight shooter to her enigmatic professional), but thankfully avoids romantic byplay, instead opting for the kind of accidental encounter that might change them.
‘Kajillionaire’ (2020)
The third feature from the writer and director Miranda July was another victim of pandemic blur, which is a shame; it finds the filmmaker retaining the virtues of her earlier “Me and You and Everyone We Know” and “The Future,” while expanding her emotional and tonal palate. It’s also proven a timely piece of work, focusing as it does on a family of grifters and scam artists, brought to forceful life by the can’t-miss trio of Richard Jenkins, Debra Winger and Evan Rachel Wood. All three are masters of filling in the blanks, and the details they provide with a mere look or gesture are rich and often surprising. Gina Rodriguez adds sunshine and sparks as the outsider who slams into their world and shifts it on its axis.
‘The Rover’ (2014)
The writer and director David Michôd followed up his startling breakthrough feature “Animal Kingdom” (2010) with this gnarly, harrowing, sweaty thriller, set in a dystopian Australia that feels just a couple of steps away from “Road Warrior” territory. Michôd again shows himself gifted at building dread and discomfort from the bare-bones material, turning his simple story of a car theft gone wrong into a tough, unforgiving indictment of a toothless yet dangerous masculinity. And it certainly doesn’t hurt to have Guy Pearce, Robert Pattinson and Scoot McNairy filling out the leading roles with their customary vigor and intensity.
‘The Gambler’ (2014)
There were some snickers when Mark Wahlberg was tapped to step into James Caan’s role as the title character in this remake of the 1974 drama — a gambling addict who spends his days as a modern literature professor. Wahlberg doesn’t exactly read as bookish, but then again neither did Caan, and this may well be Wahlberg’s best screen work to date, thoughtful and searching and robustly internal. The director Rupert Wyatt wisely surrounds him with a deep bench of excellent character actors, with John Goodman and Michael K. Williams making particularly strong impressions as the unsavory characters our protagonist inevitably crosses.
‘Swamp Dogg Gets His Pool Painted’ (2025)
Stream it on Amazon Prime Video.
I had never heard of the songwriter, producer and performer Swamp Dogg (né Jerry Williams Jr.) before pressing play on this affectionate bio-documentary, so don’t feel bad if you haven’t either. For decades, he has been floating through the periphery of funk, soul, hip-hop and country (and left-wing politics — he performed in Jane Fonda’s 1971 antiwar tour) without ever breaking through to mainstream success. But the ups and downs of a hard-grinding, regional musician are far more compelling a documentary subject than the life of a superstar, and as this cheerful raconteur tells his stories and hangs out with his friends (all while, per the title, supervising a custom paint job for his backyard pool), it feels like we’re getting a guided tour of the back rooms of the music industry.
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