Topics for the water cooler and then some
June 12, 2020
By Mekado Murphy
Movies Editor
Hey movie fans!
This week sees a handful of films from big names and big studios coming to your home. There’s a new Spike Lee joint, “Da 5 Bloods,” streaming on Netflix and it’s a Critic’s Pick. “The King of Staten Island,” directed by Judd Apatow and starring Pete Davidson, is on demand. And the action fantasy “Artemis Fowl,” directed by Kenneth Branagh and based on the popular book series, is landing on Disney Plus.
If you’re looking to catch up with a more familiar comedy hit, our chief critics Manohla Dargis and A. O. Scott are throwing another viewing party, featuring “Nine to Five.” (Remember working in an office?) If you’re in the mood to explore, you can learn more about the L.A. rebellion filmmakers, who shined a light on black working-class characters, or dive into the world of 1940s soundies.
In movie news, the Oscars have announced that a diversity requirement will be added for eligibility, HBO Max has pulled “Gone With the Wind” temporarily from its library, citing racist depictions, and the AMC chain says it plans to have “almost all” of its theaters open in July.
In the meantime, have fun at home at the movies.
David Lee/Netflix
Spike Lee’s new joint is an anguished, funny, violent argument with and about American history, with an unforgettable performance from Delroy Lindo at its heart.
By A.O. Scott
Mary Cybulski/Universal Pictures
Judd Apatow’s film should be a meatier Oedipal comedy, but it’s unwilling to explore the tragedy just below its surface.
By Wesley Morris
Nicola Dove/Disney
Kenneth Branagh’s film has no reason to exist, other than to spawn sequels.
By Ben Kenigsberg
STREAMING RECOMMENDATIONS
20th Century Fox
Pour yourself a cup of ambition and watch Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin ignite a comic revolution against their boss, a “sexist, egotistical, lying, hypocritical bigot.”
By Manohla Dargis and A.O. Scott
Milestone Film and Video
Charles Burnett’s “Killer of Sheep” and Billy Woodberry’s “Bless Their Little Hearts” were part of a movement putting the lived experience of black working-class characters onscreen.
Soundies Distributing Corporation of America Photographs/Margaret Herrick Library, via Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
Once upon a time you could drop a dime in a movie jukebox to hear — and watch — musical greats like Duke Ellington and Gene Krupa.
By Manohla Dargis
Clockwise from top left: Jean Christophe Husson/Music Box Films; Suzanne Tenner/Focus Features; Altered Innocence; Glen Wilson/Sony Pictures
After a generation of films about sexual or emotional awakening, these titles showcase lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender characters in all their wonderful complexity.
By Elisabeth Vincentelli
ANATOMY OF A SCENE
Judd Apatow discusses a scene from his film, starring Pete Davidson and Maude Apatow.
MOVIE REVIEWS
Amazon Prime Video
Amitabh Bachchan and Ayushmann Khurrana star in this charmingly low-key Hindi comedy.
By Rachel Saltz
RLJE Films
A documentary tackles a question that has haunted cinephiles for 25 years.
Grasshopper Film
Hong Sang-soo’s film, structured as a letter with the pages out of order, is one of his most daring gambits.
By Glenn Kenny
Monument Releasing
In Jeremy Hersh’s film, a woman agrees to carry a child for a gay couple, and unexpected conflicts arise.
First Run Features
Daniel Karslake’s documentary follows four families navigating issues of faith in relation to the sexual orientations and gender identities of their children.
By Lovia Gyarkye
Outsider Pictures
Boaz Yakin’s movie is fresh in two ways: in its questioning of gender, and in its use of dance as a primary mode of expression.
By Brian Seibert
Tondowski Films
In her debut as a director, the actress Maryam Zaree explores her birth at an infamous Iranian prison.
By Devika Girish
CRITICS’ PICKS
GKids
At the end of her life, a dog reflects on happiness and heartbreak. But the film stays buoyant through its unique and lively animation.
By Teo Bugbee
Sentient.Art.Film
In plain vérité style, the documentary follows an Arrernte Aboriginal family in Alice Springs, Australia.
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