Kung Fu Panda 4
Kung Fu Panda 4 feels like a fitting chapter in the animated action-adventure franchise, even to those who may not be up to date with the sequels that followed the 2008 family hit.
Awkwafina
The Bad Guys
The Bad Guys is a big screen adaptation of a popular book series for kids, perhaps to tide over the Diary of a Wimpy Kid crowd. But even as someone who was completely unfamiliar with the series, I thought its feature-length debut was great. It’s one of the coolest and most exciting films of the year.
Breaking News in Yuba County
Breaking News in Yuba County is a strange crime-comedy that’s both overdeveloped and undercooked. The movie has a stacked cast of comedic character actors and, it’s true, the audience can’t help but enjoy watching these actors in motion. However, since the story builds off of a deceitful faux pas in such convoluted ways, movie goers also can’t help but grow exhausted and impatient.
Toronto After Dark 2019: ‘Contracts’ and ‘Paradise Hills’
Contracts (DIR. Alex Chung) Critics Jean-Luc Comolli and Paul Narboni once suggested that all films were inherently political because, even when a film lacks an overt political bent, its refusal to question the politics of its world is an acceptance of said politics. This lesson in film theory may sound like it is coming out of nowhere, but it serves a purpose, namely in explaining that Alex Chung’s Contracts—which had its world premiere at Toronto After…
The Farewell
By: Jessica Goddard A poignant and sincere exploration of family, loyalty, and cultural divide, The Farewell turns its writer-director’s quirky anecdote into effective drama.