CODA (2021)::rating::3.5::rating::3.5::rating::3.5

T he title for CODA is a fascinating play on words: In the context of this film, its most obvious use is an.acronym--Child of Deaf Adults. But a coda is also a musical term, representing the end of a musical composition, wherein the piece finds its resolve. As a dramedy, CODA centers on a teenage girl's coming of…

ByTodd WoffordFebruary 10, 20220Comments

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Spencer (2021)::rating::3.5

From the opening scene, Spencer announces itself as a sizzling slice of historical fiction. Put another way, this is an imaginative portrait of Princess Diana (Kristen Stewart), painted against the backdrop of real events. While that approach does absolve the film from having to tether itself to the truth, Spencer still riffs on the same Diana…

ByTodd WoffordFebruary 5, 20220Comments

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As Good as It Gets (1997)::rating::3.5

A s Good as It Gets provokes a dilemma I've never encountered before: On one hand, it blazes a trail through difficult issues, such as OCD and homophobia, places Hollywood had long feared to tread. Over on the flip side, the filmmakers create Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson), a misanthropic monster, to use as a lighting rod for…

ByTodd WoffordFebruary 2, 20220Comments

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Thunder Force (2021)::rating::0.5

I can't say when it happened, but at some point during Thunder Force, my soul left my body. To be clear, we aren't talking about some transcendent spiritual experience. No, this was like being emotionally Hoovered by one of those Harry Potter Dementors. Maybe it was the scene where two people feed each other raw, slimy…

ByTodd WoffordJanuary 28, 20220Comments

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The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021)::rating::3

D espite that title, we never really see the world through the eyes of Tammy Faye Bakker. Instead, the film only serves up a superficial look at the eccentricities we already know: The shimmering eye makeup. The lashes and lipstick that are tattooed in place. Bakker and her fellow televangelists are a fascinating example of…

ByTodd WoffordJanuary 26, 20220Comments

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The Tragedy of Macbeth (2021)::rating::4.5

W ith The Tragedy of Macbeth, director Joel Coen and his longtime collaborators labor greatly to deliver a fresh take on the Shakespearean behemoth. Coen strips the legendary work down to the primer, opting for crisp shades of black and white, along with intimate settings that feel more theatrical than cinematic. The Bard's thicket of Elizabethan…

ByTodd WoffordJanuary 23, 20220Comments

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Last Night in Soho (2021)::rating::3

Y our tolerance for this wacky, atmospheric thriller will depend on your affinity for the freewheeling era known as Swinging London. If the thought of a film built around the music of Cilla Black and Dusty Springfield or the fashion chic of Twiggy and Julie Christie sounds like just your bag, baby, you could probably…

ByTodd WoffordJanuary 20, 20220Comments

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King Richard (2021)::rating::3.5

Let me begin this review with a dose of unvarnished honesty: I've never much liked tennis. In my defense, I grew up in a small town where the three main sports were football, cow-tipping, and silent judgment. So, tennis is largely a foreign enterprise consisting of weird scorekeeping, unnatural grunting, and matches that go…

ByTodd WoffordJanuary 15, 20220Comments

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Belfast (2021)::rating::4

As with Alfonso Cuarón's brilliant Roma, Belfast serves as a conduit for writer-director Kenneth Branagh to explore his own childhood. Both films feature the fading, fragile innocence of youth, juxtaposed with the terrible socio-political upheaval swirling around. At the same time, Branagh infuses his work with a deeply personal passion and aching nostalgia that elevate it…

ByTodd WoffordJanuary 12, 20220Comments

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Being the Ricardos (2021)::rating::4

F ew TV stars, past or present, could breathe the same rarified air as Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. As a power couple, they dominated the Nielsen ratings throughout the 50s, often commanding an audience of over 60 million. At the same time, Aaron Sorkin's wonderful Being the Ricardos also shows the great and terrible burden…

ByTodd WoffordJanuary 7, 20220Comments