s Reviews for April 10th, 2026

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Reviews for April 10th, 2026

 

       Acting is an illuminating and gently engrossing documentary about 8 actors performing Shakespeare's Macbeth with the guidance of Declan Donnellan and Nick Ormerod, co-artistic directors of Cheek By Jowl, an a theatre company. Director Sophie Fiennes uses a laissez-faire approach sans talking-head interviews, archival footage, or including herself in the film. All she does is simply complex: she merely lets the camera observe Donellan and Ormerod directing their actors for 11 days. The result will make you feel like you've been generously invited to sit and watch an acting class. According to Donnellan and Ormerod, good actors shouldn't be trying hard to find the truth of their role because then they get stuck on impossible to fully answer questions like, "Whose truth is it?" Good performances can occur unexpectedly and can be hard to replicate because it depends on so many factors. Interestingly, when the actors first arrive at the Twyford Mansion in London, they're initially instructed to walk around the room to familiarize themselves with it and to look their fellow actors in the eye.

      Cheek By Jowl embraces humanity as well as the complexities of acting. Similarly, Fiennes recognizes the humanity in the audience by including some breaks to exterior shots every now and then so as not to make them feel exhausted. There are even some other forms of levity, i.e. surprisingly funny moments. Fiennes also trusts the audience's patience because this is a long documentary that moves at a slow pace. However, those patient audience members will be rewarded by an enlightening experience. Anyone who loves Shakespeare, acting or theater will find a lot of insights while watching Acting. It might even change the way they look at Shakespeare, acting and theater. At a running time of 2 hours and 25 minutes, Acting opens at Quad Cinema via Juno Films. It would be an interesting double feature with Looking for Richard and Creating a Character: The Moni Yakim Legacy.

Number of times I checked my watch: 2







      Patton James (Daniel MacPherson), ex-MMA fighter and ex-convict who now works as a commercial fisherman and lives with his wife, Luciana (Kelly Gale) and daughter returns to the boxing ring to fight Xavier Grau (Bren Foster) for $150,000 to support his family and pay debt of his estranged younger brother, Malon (Mojean Aria), who's also an MMA fighter, in Beast. He reunites with his former coach, Sammy (Russell Crowe), and trains with Rose (Amy Shark), Sammy's daughter. Director Taylor Atkins and co-writers Russell Crowe and David Frigerio have made a heartfelt, gripping and exhilarating emotional journey. James, beyond a reasonable doubt, has plenty of physical strength, but it's his innate strength and decency that makes him truly strong---and a true man. He loves his family, wants to provide for them like a good father and husband, and, beyond that, he proves to be a great negotiator with Xavier's manager, Gabriel (Luke Hemsworth), who initially offers him $85,00 to fight Xavier, but eventually James convinces him to bump it up $150,000---$50,000 for his beloved brother's debts. Moreover, he shows that he's introspective when he apologizes to his wife for lying to her about accepting Gabriel's offer and promises not to lie to her again. It's uplifting to watch him heal from his traumatic past and to patch up his relationships with Malon, Sammy and Luciana in the process. Whether or not he ultimately forgives himself for hurting others remains open for interpretation, but the potential for that forgiveness remains there because of his emotional maturity.

      Fortunately, Beast feels compelling in its scenes inside the boxing ring as well outside of it. To be fair, some of the dialogue between James and Luciana suffers from being on-the-nose, and the music score often feels intrusive as though the filmmakers don't trust the audience's emotions enough, i.e. in a moving scene with Patton and Sammy. Those are minor, forgivable flaws. The MMA fight scenes are well-shot, rousing and gritty while the final fight will make you stand up and cheer. It's not just MMA, though, nor do you have to be a fan of MMA to find it engaging; it's fundamentally about flawed, broken, relatable human beings who are struggling to conquer adversity and to get a second chance to find light at the end of the tunnel. Patton gradually learns the wisdom behind Pablo Neruda's poem: "They can cut all of the flowers, but they can't stop the spring from coming." Bravo to the filmmakers for making a sports drama that finds right balance between Truth and Spectacle while finding some Spectacle in its many Truths. At a running time of 1 hour and 53 minutes, Beast is a triumph. It opens in theaters nationwide via Lionsgate.

Number of times I checked my watch: 1





 

       In Bunnlovr, Rebecca (Katarina Zhu), a cam girl, develops a relationship with one of her clients, John (Austin Amelio), who gifts her a live in the mail. Meanwhile, she must cope with the news that her estranged father, William (Perry Yung), has been diagnosed with a terminal illness. Writer/director Katarina Zhu has made an undercooked and often anemic drama that's emotionally hollow and forgettable. The premise shows some potential to explore the topics of loneliness, family, self worth and friendship, but it barely even scratches the surface. The screenplay's systemic issue comes from the lack of a window into Rebecca's heart, mind and soul and the by-the-numbers plot. All of the characters remain underwritten and their relationships don't feel organic. There's not enough comic relief, and the third act's emotional beats don't land.  If Bunnylovr were a more unflinching slice-of-life, it could've been a much more powerful and emotionally resonating character study rather than falling flat more often than not. The talented Rachel Sennott, who plays a supporting role as Rebecca's friend, deserves better material. Moreover, there's nothing about this film in terms of its cinematography, mediocre performances or anything else that demands it to be seen on the big screen. At a running time of 1 hour and 26 minutes, Bunnylovr opens at Quad Cinema via Utopia. 

Number of times I checked my watch: 1





 

      Princess ChaO (voice of Anna Yamada), a mermaid, marries Stephan (voice of Oji Suzuka), a human who works as an engineer in  ChaO. She struggles to adapt to the world of human. Director Yasuhiro Aoki and screenwriter Saku Konohana have made an amusing and lively funny fairy tale that's shallow, pedestrian and just fleetingly funny. Theysquander the opportunity to add emotional depth by focusing more on the "fish out of water" love story set in a world where relations between mermaids and humans co-exist. Princess ChaO instantly falls in love with Stephan and, before you know it, proposes marriage. What does she see in him of all humans? It's not very clear. The wrap-around story involving Stephan recalling his unlikely love affair with Chao feels unnecessary and tacked-on. Moreover, the film's use of satire and metaphors are lazy and surface-level.

     Much like the recent All You Need is Kill, ChaO moves at a fast pace which means that the filmmakers don't trust the audience's patience. In turn, the characters, scenes and  the audience are given very few opportunities to breathe, and the characters seem more like hollow plot devices. The hand-drawn animation does look bright and colorful while also providing some warmth that CGI animation wouldn't be able to provide as easily.  It's yet another anime film that sounds like it could be as exhilarating and moving as a Miyazake film like Spirited Away or Princess Mononoke, but comes up short. ChaO would be an interesting double feature with The Little Mermaid, Splash or, for something very different,  The Shape of Water or Mermaid which also happens to this weekend. Kudos to the distributor, GKIDS, for releasing the film in its original Japanese language with English subtitles unlike NEON who made a mistake by only releasing Argo in its inferior English-dubbed version.At a running time of 1 hour and 29 minutes, ChaO opens in select theaters nationwide via GKIDS. 

Number of times I checked my watch: 3





 

       Barnaby (James Corden) and Sally (Jessica Gunning), the estranged children of a famous painter, Julian (Ian McKellen), hire Lori (Michaela Coel), a forger, to finish his incomplete paintings called The Christophers in The Christophers. Director Steven Soderbergh and screenwriter Ed Solomon have made a meandering, clunky and tonally uneven dramedy with a dull screenplay that's ultimately less than the sum of its parts. A lot had happened in Julian's past that haunts him, but the film barely explores his painful memories which have something to do with his unfinished paintings.  Lori's attempts to forge those paintings lacks suspense despite the potential. It doesn't help that Julian sees right through her bullshit and calls her bluff early on. Their relationship could've been like Harold & Maude or something along those lines, but it never even gets close to that kind of deep connection.

       Julian, like Maude, is bitter, cantankerous, intelligent, blunt and witty while coping with a traumatic past. It's too bad that the screenplay shies away from exploring his heart, mind and soul. McKellen gives a raw, convincingly moving performance that invigorates the film while breathing life into his role and adding gravitas. He's the film's MVP and keeps it moderately engaging. The Christophers would be the inferior B-movie in a double feature with the superior Gods and Monsters, also starring Ian McKellen. At a running time of 1 hour and 40 minutes, The Christophers opens at select theaters nationwide via NEON. 

Number of times I checked my watch: 3





 

       The Lonely Man (Kazunari Ninomiya) gets lost in the hallways of a subway station and gets stuck in an endless loop in Exit 8. His only way out is Exit 8, but to get out of the endless loop, he has to spot anomalies and turn around or go forward if there are no anomalies. He's back to square one if he makes an error. Writer/director Genki Kawamura  and co-writer Kentaro Hirase has made a minimalist psychological horror thriller that's pretentious, exhausting and runs out of steam around the hour mark. They take an interesting concept, based on a video game, and stretch it too thinly. The nameless Lonely Man has a girlfriend (Nana Komatsu) whom he's on the phone with before it loses connection in the hallways of the station. Along the way, he meets mysterious characters who also remain nameless like The Walking Man (Yamato Kochi), The Boy (Naru Asanuma), and The High School Girl (Kotone Hanase).

      Exit 8 tries hard to rise above being a B-movie movie through symbolism, but its use of symbolism is often heavy-handed, i.e. an unsubtle reference to Escher paintings, and its flashbacks are clunky. The instructions of the "game" that The Lonely man gets stuck in are even posted clearly on a wall. Very little gets left for interpretation until the somewhat trippy ending that goes over-the-top and tries to be poignant and provocative, but doesn't quite stick the landing. Instead, it leaves the audience feeling frustrated and scratching their heads. Exit 8 probably would've worked better as a short film or should've stayed a video game. As a feature length film, it overstays its welcome. At a running time of 1 hour and 35 minutes, Exit 8 opens at select theaters nationwide via NEON. 

Number of times I checked my watch: 4





 

       Maddie (Barbie Ferreira), an online video content moderator, takes justice into her own hands when she notices someone posting a series of clips reenacting sadistic killings from the 1978 horror cult classic Faces of Death and believes that the killings are actually real in Faces of Death.  Writer/director Daniel Goldhaber and co-writer Isa Mazzei have made a gritty and gory, but by-the-numbers and unsurprising horror thriller that's low on suspense. How could there be no suspense given the premise, you ask? The answer can be found in the systemic issue that plagues the screenplay: the audience already knows from the beginning that Arthur (Dacre Montgomery) is the serial killer and that the video clips that Maddie discovers are real, so you're already steps ahead of her in terms of what information she knows. She can't rely on the authorities to investigate the clips because there's evidence of any crimes yet, so she posts them on Reddit for help which gets instantly from Redditors, one of whom happens to include a forensic crime scene investigator who claims that the blood slatter can only be real. By then, though, the audience already knows that which means that when Maddie is surprised, the audience isn't. A small knife disguised as lipstick that she receives as a gift early on becomes an important weapon for her later on, just as expected. Jermaine Fowler shows up as her gullible superior who has no shame in breaking the rules and risking his job by giving Maddie unauthorized access to his work computer to do his job while he's away at a concert that she happened gave him tickets to at the last minute. She gets fired for a different reason, though, so at least the movie has one small surprise that won't be spoiled here.

      Unfortunately, even the villain is poorly written and forgettable, but he's not nearly as dull as the killer in Psycho Killer. Dacre Montgomery is effectively creepy in the role of the killer while Barbie Ferreira gives a mediocre performance as Maddie. The rushed third act takes a big nosedive with too many implausibilities and coincidences that make the film hard to take seriously even if you suspend your disbelief. Charli XCX is wasted in an underwritten role as one of Maddie's coworkers. At a running time of 1 hour and 38 minutes, Faces of Death opens in select theaters nationwide via Independent Film Company and Shudder. 

Number of times I checked my watch: 3







      In Fiume o Morte!, director Igor Bezinović convinces residents of Rijeka, Croatia, to reenact Gabriele D'Annunzio's takeover of their city, formerly known as Fiume, during the beginning WWI. D'Annunzio served as an officer in the Royal Italian Army. What follows is an occasionally illuminating, but often dull and dry documentary that fails to be compelling enough. It's a mildly engaging introduction to a lesser known part of Italian and Croatian history. Unfortunately, Fiume o Morte! never transcends as a documentary. Moreover, the pace moves too slowly and the film lacks scope without exploring its larger themes with much depth that would make it more provocative or timely. At a running time of 1 hour and 52 minutes, Fiume o Morte! opens at Metrograph.

Number of times I checked my watch: 4







      Hamlet (Riz Ahmed) seeks revenge against his uncle, Claudius (Art Malik), for murdering his father (Avijit Dutt) before marrying his mother, Gertrude (Sheeba Chaddha) in Hamlet. Meanwhile, his father's ghost haunts him. Director Aneil Karia and screenwriter Michael Lesslie have made a modern adaptation of Shakespeare's Hamlet that's gritty, but often clunky and underwhelming. The potential for suspense, intrigue and poignancy is there given the source material, so it's a shame that the screenplay just seems like it's going through the motions without any characters coming to life. Riz Ahmed gives a strong, charismatic performance that tries to rise above the shallow screenplay, but doesn't quite accomplish that challenging feat. He's the film's MVP, though, and keeps it at least mildly engaging. While the cinematography is decent, it's not enough to compensate for the much-needed substance that's lacking. Hamlet doesn't even hold a candle to past adaptations like Franco Franco Zeffirelli's Hamlet from 1990 and Kenneth Branaugh's adaptation from 1996 all of which have much better ensemble cast, superior direction, more suspense, more intrigue, more emotional depth, and more exquisite production design. At a running time of 1 hour and 53 minutes, Hamlet opens in select theaters nationwide via Vertical Releasing.

Number of times I checked my watch: 3







      Tara Nichols (Miranda MacDougall) searches for her brother, Matthew, who mysteriously went missing in the Black Bear Forest with his friend, Jordan Reimer, 20 years earlier Hunting Matthew Nichols. She and a documentary filmmaker, Markian Tarasiuk, investigate their disappearance, interview their family members and the police officer who handled the missing persons case. Writer/director Markian Tarasiuk and co-writer Sean Oliver have made a horror "documentary" that doesn't get points for originality, but it's effectively gripping and creepy. Tarasiuk and Oliver begin with a lot of exposition that helps Tara to get a sense of the events that occurred leading up to her brother's disappearance. She makes a very astute observation when she realizes that there hasn't been any footage of Matthew and Jordan while inside the cabin where their camcorder was found. That footage must be on a missing tape that Matthew and Jordan left behind: the tape that's inside their camcorder. What happens afterward won't be spoiled here, but it's not very surprising or shocking, especially if you've seen many other found footage movies. The filmmakers save the most intense moments for the last 10 minutes or so, so they do a decent job of building up tension. Fortunately, the performances by everyone including Miranda MacDougall are natural enough to convince you that you're not watching someone act. That's not an easy task.

      Interestingly, when Tara first goes on camera, there's some brief comic relief when she's eating as she's about to be interviewed. The rest of the film doesn't have much comic relief which makes sense because otherwise it would've veered into a parody. Just as expected, there's some shaky cam, although not nearly as much as in The Blair Witch Project which this film references---Matthew and Jordan were huge fans of that cult classic. Hunting Matthew Nichols is far better well-written and more captivating than the lackluster and lazy Shelby Oaks, so if you didn't like that disappointing misfire, you'll probably like this one more. At a running time of 1 hour and 29 minutes, Hunting Matthew Nichols opens nationwide via Dropshock Pictures and Moon7 Films.

Number of times I checked my watch: 2







      Doug (Johnny Pemberton), a divorced drug addict struggling to make ends meet, finds an injured mermaid he named Destiny (Avery Potemri), puts her in his bathtub to try to nurse her back to health, and falls in love with her in Mermaid. Meanwhile, Ron (Robert Patrick), a mobster who he owes money to, hunts him down. Writer/director Tyler Cornack has made a wickedly funny and unabashedly absurd horror comedy. Logic gets thrown out of the window from the very first few minutes, but that's okay because, as Hitchcock once wisely observed, logic is dull, and there's something more important than logic: imagination. Although Mermaid doesn't push any boundaries in the comedy or horror department, it does have a pretty good command of tone despite the genre-bending plot. You'd probably enjoy watching this with a large crowd and, ideally, a little high because it's quite a wild, audacious ride that's unafraid to be a bonkers, grotesque and shocking B-movie. It's also worth mentioning the solid makeup and costume design of the mermaid. The best way to describe Mermaid is that it's like The Little Mermaid and The Shape of Water on acid, so if that sounds good to you, you'll enjoy this mindlessly entertaining slice of horror comedy. At a running time of 1 hour and 45 minutes, Mermaid opens at Alamo Drafthouse in Brooklyn via Utopia.

Number of times I checked my watch: 1







      In PH-1, a mysterious caller holds a U.S. Senator Payton Burnham (Mark Kassen) hostage inside his penthouse apartment while his wife and kids are away. Writer/director Mark Kassen and co-writer Cheryl Guerriero have made a spellbinding, suspenseful and provocative political thriller. Why is he being held hostage? Who's the man calling him? The less you know about the plot, the better because it offers more than a few twists and turns. Just when you think it's going in one direction, it surprises you and goes in another, especially with its powerful ending. Everything from the consistently intriguing screenplay that has just the right amount of exposition to the stylish production design to the charismatic performance by Mark Kassen elevates the film above a run-of-the-mill B-movie. It's the kind of thriller that doesn't rely on action or gore to tell its story, but rather on the complex characters and their backstories which humanizes them. The villain isn't a cookie-cutter villain; he's someone who's going through a lot of emotional pain and doesn't know how to channel it in a healthy or legal way. Some suspension of disbelief is required, to be fair, but that's true for every film--even Hitchcock's. As Hitchcock once wisely observed, logic is dull, and imagination is more important. If you like lean, intelligent thrillers in the vein of Phone Booth, you'll love PH-1. At a running time of only 1 hour and 25 minutes, PH-1 opens at AMC Empire via Buffalo 8.

Number of times I checked my watch: 1







      In Steal This Story, Please! is a vital, timely and provocative documentary about Amy Goodman, an independent journalist. Co-directors Carl Deal and Tia Lessin combine contemporary interviews with Goodman herself as well as archival footage to inform the audience of how she became a journalist and what makes her so significant in a country with dysfunctional democracy. She comes across as brave, intelligent, passionate, indignant, blunt and a critical thinker. She's also unafraid to ruffle feathers and to confront politicians and others with provocative and hardball, yet fair and necessary questions. The documentary delves a little into Goodman's life outside of her work, her childhood and what shaped her as a fearless journalist without dwelling on those aspects or being too invasive, so the filmmakers grasp the concept of boundaries.

      Co-directors Carl Deal and Tia Lessin are lucky to have chosen such a compelling and inspirational subject who understands how easy it is to lose democracy, how difficult it is to gain it, and how important it is to fight and protest for democracy---not through violence, but, rather, through words and by asking questions to the government for the sake of truth and justice, essential parts of democracy. It would've been interesting, though, if Goodman were asked how she would describe a functional democracy and whether attaining it would even be realistic in the US. At a running time of 1 hour and 38 minutes, Steal This Story, Please! opens at IFC Center.

Number of times I checked my watch: 1





 

       Simon (Tristan Turner), a struggling documentary filmmaker, lives in NYC with his best friend, Bruce (Anthony Oberbeck), an airline executive, whom he relies on for free flights in The Travel Companion. Those coveted free flights as his "travel companion" are threatened when Bruce begins to date Beatrice (Naomi Asa), another filmmaker, who wants those perks for herself. Co-directors/co-writers Travis Wood and Alex Mallis along with their co-writer Weston Auburn have made a heartfelt, honest and perceptive dramedy about a man who has a lot of growing up to do. Simon isn't a bad person per se, but he's somewhat lost in life, emotionally immature and relies too much on his friend for free flight perks which he uses to shoot footage for his films. Wood and Wallis show empathy toward him, though, without asking the audience to judge him, though; just to experience him.  Simon, warts-and-all, feels like a complex human being who's deeply flawed which makes him more relatable. He's not a complete trainwreck like Marty from Marty Supreme, though, and his innate growth, if there is any, remains open to interpretation.

       The Travel Companion has a lot to say about friendship, filmmaking, maturity and insecurity without being heavy-handed or preachy. More importantly, Wood and Mallis manage to find just the right balance of dark and light tones while grasping the concept that humor can often be derived from tragic elements. It's a film that manages to be both sweet, sad and funny without any clunkiness or tonal unneveness. There are no big Spectacles here like explosions or fight sequences, nor does anyone turn into a vampire or a zombie. Instead, the filmmakers find the Spectacle in something far more intrinsic: Truth. Moreover, they deftly incorporate exposition without over or under-explaining, and they show restraint by keeping the running time under 2 hours unlike the unnecessarily overlong and meandering Marty Supreme. At a running time of 1 hour and 31 minutes, The Travel Companion opens at BAM via Oscilloscope Laboratories. 

Number of times I checked my watch: 1







      The True Story of Tamara de Lempicka & The Art of Survival is a captivating, empowering, well-edited and fascinating documentary about the life and work of Tamara de Lempicka, a Polish Jewish Art Deco painter. Director Julie Rubio combines archival footage along with interviews with art historians, de Lempicka's granddaughter and great granddaughters as well as Eden Espinosa, who portrayed de Lempicka in the Broadway musical Lempicka. You'll learn about what makes de Lempicka a significant painter during a time when the art world was male-dominated. She's the first female artist to become famous all around the world. Her paintings were bold and controversial back in the 1920s and 30s, especially her nude paintings. She was a savvy businesswoman, an eccentric personality and knew to hide the fact that she was Jewish during the Holocaust. It makes sense that Barbara Streisand and Madonna collected some of de Lempicka's artwork and that one of her paintings was featured in L.A. Confidential. Any guess how Texans reacted to her when she moved to Texas? You'll have to see this documentary to find out.

      To be fair, The True Story of Tamara de Lempicka & The Art of Survival documentary covers a lot of ground within the life and work of its immensely talented subject, so it's sometimes overwhelming, especially to those who aren't familiar with de Lempicka. Fortunately, the solid editing and the insightful voice-over narration by Anjelica Huston helps to keep the documentary both illuminating, easy-to-follow and engaging without feeling dry, dull or academic. Director Julie Rubio does a fine job of finding just the right balance between entertaining the audience and provoking them intellectually. At a running time of 1 hour and 36 minutes, The True Story of Tamara de Lempicka & The Art of Survival opens at AMC Empire.

Number of times I checked my watch: 1







      Merriell Sunday, Jr. (Eric Nelsen) and Ellie (Brittany Allen), search for the fathers, Merriell Sunday, Sr. (Corbin Bernsen), an oil tycoon, and Hollis (William Sadler), an adventurer, who went missing in northern Alaska in The Yeti Co-writers/directors Gene Gallerano and William Pisciotta have made an atmospheric horror thriller with stylish production design, but not nearly enough suspense, chills, imagination or thrills. The prologue spoils what happened to Merriell and Ellie's fathers which means that nothing will be surprising once they discover the truth when they head to Alaska to investigate their disappearance. Everything from the choppy editing to the stilted, clunky dialogue to the dull performances makes The Yeti a bland and lackluster B-movie that fails to deliver the goods for horror and sci-fi fans. At a running time of 1 hour and 33 minutes, The Yeti streams on VOD via Well Go USA.

Number of times I checked my watch: 4