U.S. Release Date: 2021-12-15
MPAA Rating: "R" (Sexual Content, Nudity, Profanity, Drugs)
Genre: Drama
Director: Paolo Sorrentino
Cast: Filippo Scotti, Toni Servillo, Teresa Saponangelo, Marlon Joubert, Luisa Ranieri, Renato Carpentieri, Massimiliano Gallo, Betty Pedrazzi
On the whole, this is a charming and at times moving reminder of what it meant to be young in the 1980s.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-12-10
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Violence, Profanity)
Genre: Musical
Director: Steven Spielberg
Cast: Ansel Elgort, Rachel Zegler, Ariana DeBose, David Alvarez, Mike Faist, Rita Moreno, Brian d’Arcy James, Corey Stoll, Josh Andres Rivera, Iris Menas
This is no soulless cash-grab. Spielberg’s "West Side Story" is a resplendent entertainment.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-12-10
MPAA Rating: "R" (Profanity, Sexual Content)
Genre: Drama
Director: Ric Roman Waugh
Cast: Stephan James, J.K. Simmons, Alexander Ludwig, Lil Rel Howery, Tim Blake Nelson, Andrew Bachelor, Jeffrey Donovan, David Koechner, Kristin Chenoweth, Timothy Olyphant, Uzo Aduba
Effective as an ode to cynical realism but it’s uneven at best as a slice of drama.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-12-10
MPAA Rating: "R" (Profanity)
Genre: Drama
Director: Aaron Sorkin
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Javier Bardem, Nina Arianda, J.K. Simmons, Alia Shawkat, Jake Lacy, Tony Hale
It’s fascinating to watch the minutia of how the TV show was produced. Many of the details are surprising; unfortunately, the movie’s dramatic elements aren’t as compelling.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-12-03
MPAA Rating: "R" (Sexual Content, Disturbing Images, Nudity)
Genre: Thriller
Director: Paul Verhoeven
Cast: Virginie Efira, Charlotte Rampling, Daphne Patakia, Lambert Wilson, Olivier Rabourdin, Louise Chevillotte
Fascinating, garish, and compelling, "Benedetta" dabbles in some of Verhoeven’s career-long weaknesses while highlighting a great many of his strengths.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-12-01
MPAA Rating: "R" (Sexual Content, Disturbing Images, Nudity)
Genre: Western/Drama
Director: Jane Campion
Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kirsten Dunst, Jesse Plemons, Kodi Smit-McPhee
Perhaps not as powerful or wrenching as Campion intended for it to be but "The Power of the Dog" remains an unsettling piece of cinema.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-12-03
MPAA Rating: "R" (Profanity, Violence, Sexual Content, Nudity)
Genre: Drama
Director: Nathalie Biancheri
Cast: George MacKay, Lily-Rose Depp, Paddy Considine, Eileen Walsh
The world-building is inadequate and the storyline is erratic. There are some good performances here, but the movie as a whole doesn’t work.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-11-24
MPAA Rating: "R" (Sexual Content, Profanity, Violence)
Genre: Drama
Director: Ridley Scott
Cast:
Despite excellent performances and isolated moments of limited brilliance, the movie is undone by its low-energy approach and lack of zest.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-11-24
MPAA Rating: "PG"
Genre: Animated/Fantasy
Director: Jared Bush, Byron Howard
Cast: Stephanie Beatriz, Ravi Cabot-Conyers, Rhenzy Feliz, Wilmer Valderrama, Diane Guerrero, Carolina Gaitan, Angie Cepeda, Jessica Darrow, Mauro Castillo, John Leguizamo, Maria Cecilia Botero, Adassa
A welcome maturation of animation beyond the conventional American standard into something both family-friendly and thought-provoking.
U.S. Release Date: 2021-11-19
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Profanity, Violence)
Genre: Drama
Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green
Cast: Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis, Jon Bernthal, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton, Tony Goldwyn, Mikayla Lashae Bartholomew, Daniele Lawson, Layla Crawford
Regardless of how much how much has been softened to suit the movie’s perspective, the end result is compelling drama with top-notch performances and a feel-good denouement.