For all its additional delights, Cinderella triumphs primarily thanks to the lead performance by Lily James. A refreshingly classic take.
Catherine Stebbins
Catherine Stebbins
Catherine Reviews Jennifer Kent’s The Babadook [Theatrical Review]
Jennifer Kent's debut film The Babadook is as good as you've heard. An exacting portrait of motherhood and grief, it's also the best horror film so far this decade.
Catherine Reviews Charlie McDowell’s The One I Love [Fantasia 2014 Review]
The Charlie Kaufman-lite The One I Love is a flimsy but highly amusing relationship fantasy.
Catherine Reviews Xavier Dolan’s Tom at the Farm [CT LGBT Film Festival 2014]
Xavier Dolan shows what he can do with a genre film (turns out it's a lot) with his fourth outing Tom at the Farm.
Catherine Reviews John Maloof and Charlie Siskel’s Finding Vivian Maier [Theatrical Review]
The revelatory and recently discovered street photography of Vivian Maier, and the unknowable woman behind the photos, are the focus of this inquisitive documentary.
Catherine Reviews Eugenio Mira’s Grand Piano [Theatrical Review]
Eugenio Mira establishes a real taut flair with Grand Piano which always remains entertaining, even at its weakest.
Catherine Reviews Catherine Breillat’s Abuse of Weakness [NYFF 2013]
Catherine Breillat takes on her own story in an opaquely autobiographical piece of fiction starring the incomparable Isabelle Huppert.
Catherine Reviews Guillermo Del Toro’s Pacific Rim [Theatrical Review]
Guillermo Del Toro's new summer popcorn flick is disappointing and cacophonous.
Catherine Reviews Kim Ki-duk’s Pietà [Theatrical Review]
Beating The Master for the coveted Golden Lion at last year's Venice Film Festival, Kim Ki-duk's Pietà is emptily repugnant with no return value.
Catherine Reviews Brandon Cronenberg’s Antiviral [Theatrical Review]
Brandon Cronenberg's debut may not be able to capitalize on its potential, but its ideas and lead actor carry it through a steady intrigue.
Catherine Reviews Sam Raimi’s Oz the Great and Powerful [Theatrical Review]
Disney teams up with Sam Raimi in the hopes of reigniting the magic of Oz, à la 2010’s decidedly unmagical Alice in Wonderland.
Catherine Reviews Mark Kitchell’s A Fierce Green Fire [PIFF 2013 Review]
Mark Kitchell's documentary, a broad overview of the environmentalism's historical trek has is more a schizophrenic introduction than anything revelatory.
Catherine Reviews Werner Herzog and Dimitry Vasylukov’s Happy People: A Year in the Taiga [PIFF 2013 Review]
Constructing his documentary from footage shot by Dimitry Vasylukov, Werner Herzog sadly disappoints with his latest.
Catherine Reviews Moussa Touré’s La Pirogue [PIFF 2013 Review]
A humanistic and moving Senegalese film about immigrating from West Africa to Spain in a dangerous sea voyage.
Catherine Reviews Jean-François Laguionie’s The Painting [PIFF 2013 Review]
This imaginative French animated film gets by just enough on its ideas and visual palette.