ReelViews for R movies

It’s very difficult to kill a slasher film franchise. The existence of Spiral is proof that, no matter how many times you put down a series like this, it keeps coming back for more. The original Saw reached theaters in 2004 and, as I wrote i...

The trailer for Splice might lead a viewer to expect a low-budget retread of Species crossed with Aliens. However, although the film does indeed pilfer a scene directly from the latter movie, the trailer misrepresents its source. Splice is as muc...

Spotlight is a Valentine to investigative journalism and a stark reminder of where we’re headed now that this brand of writing has become an endangered species. The film is unique in that it focuses almost entirely on the process. The character...

When one considers the phenomenon of "Spring Break," images of bikini-clad young women, bronzed guys, and inhibition-shedding parties fill the mind's eye. In general, Hollywood has used Spring Break as a jumping-off point for comedies - some romant...

Spring Summer Fall Winter...and Spring is a gorgeous motion picture. Using perfectly composed shots to amplify an emotionally resonant story, the film successfully argues that "artistic" films do not have to be boring. Although few in the audience...

Summer is the season of bloat and the trait is evident in Spy's excessive running length. At about 90 minutes, this would have been a fresh, breezy action-comedy. However, with an additional half-hour of padding, viewers are forced to endure stre...

The biggest crime committed by The Spy Who Dumped Me isn’t its dearth of humor or reliance on an unimaginative espionage plot but the way it wastes the talents of its leads, Mila Kunis and Kate McKinnon. Their easy rapport, a staple of any wo...

The Square is an indicator that not only Hollywood blockbusters can be afflicted with bloat. At nearly 2 1/2 hours in length, this production takes what could have been a lean, incisive satire of art, commerce, and altruism and turns it into a...

The foundation of any good family drama is interesting characters, and The Squid and the Whale is replete with them. Movies about divorce and dysfunctional families are so commonplace that it's difficult to avoid slipping into clichés yet, as a re...

Stand By Me reinforces something that has been understood in Hollywood for decades: nostalgia sells. With this film, it's "planned nostalgia," meaning that the production was designed from the beginning to encourage older audience members to look ...