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Movies Update: Labor Day Movies and More

Plus, how white filmmakers address (or avoid) whiteness onscreen.

View in browser|nytimes.com AUGUST 30, 2019

By Kyle Buchanan

Hey, movie fans!

Yesterday, news broke that the director Richard Linklater will spend the next 20 years shooting a movie adaptation of the Stephen Sondheim musical "Merrily We Roll Along," so he can realistically capture the leads Ben Platt and Beanie Feldstein over the two decades the story takes place. This is an exciting, ambitious idea, the sort of thing that only the filmmaker behind "Boyhood" and the "Before Sunrise" trilogy would think to attempt … still, something about that 20-year time span inspired no end of melancholy, existential reactions online yesterday.

After all, will we even recognize the movie industry in 20 years? (When I asked people recently whether the current model of the movie business could survive even one more decade, they were already panicked!) And even more important, will we have managed to fend off imminent environmental disaster? Jason Blum's company Blumhouse is producing the Linklater film, and in a tweet yesterday, they seemed to sum up the prevailing mood: "The most ambitious thing about this tremendous project we are undertaking," read the Blumhouse tweet, "is that we boldly assume there will be a planet in 20 years."

In somewhat more immediate news, we've got a motley crew of new movie releases this weekend. David Oyelowo stars in the thriller "Don't Let Go," Keira Knightley turns whistle-blower in "Official Secrets" and Fred Durst directs John Travolta in "The Fanatic," which … sure. In more limited release are the animated "Ne Zha" and the Critics' Pick "The Load," among others.

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20th Century Fox/Photofest   9 Movies About Work to Watch This Labor Day "Norma Rae," "Night Shift" and "Support the Girls" are among the picks of The Times's critics, writers and editors.

MOVIE REVIEWS Lacey Terrell/Universal Pictures 'Don't Let Go' Review: Murder Leads to a Time-Bending Trip David Oyelowo stars as a Los Angeles detective whose family is slaughtered in this intimate genre mash-up. by manohla dargis Nick Wall/IFC Films 'Official Secrets' Review: Betraying Her Government for Her Country Keira Knightley plays a British intelligence officer turned whistle-blower who tried to stop the 2003 invasion of Iraq. by manohla dargis Well Go USA 'Ne Zha' Review: An Origin Story From Chinese Mythology In this animated feature, a boy is born as the reincarnation of a demon, and that makes things a little complicated. by ben kenigsberg 1091 Media 'Before You Know It' Review: An Old-School Dysfunctional Bohemian Family in New York With Mandy Patinkin as a coming-apart dad and Judith Light as a long-lost mom, 'Before You Know It' is a cozily familiar mess. by glenn kenny Brian Douglas/Quiver Distribution 'The Fanatic' Review: John Travolta as a Troubled Devotee Sporting the worst looking hair of his entire career, the actor plays Moose, a genre-movie enthusiast and autograph hound. by glenn kenny Blue Fox Entertainment 'Killerman' Review: Don't Remember My Name Liam Hemsworth plays an amnesiac money launderer fleeing corrupt cops in this grimily satisfying thriller. by jeannette catsoulis Lionsgate 'Angel of Mine' Review: Baby, Come Back In this chilly, predictable stalker mystery, Noomi Rapace plays a bereaved mother obsessed with another woman's daughter. by jeannette catsoulis Film Movement 'The Miracle of the Little Prince' Review: A Children's Book Turned Rosetta Stone A classic story lends itself to a new tale of endangered languages. by ben kenigsberg

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ANATOMY OF A SCENE anatomy of a scene How 'The Farewell' Makes Exercise Fun and Bittersweet The writer and director Lulu Wang narrates a sequence from her film, starring Awkwafina. by mekado murphy

NEWS & FEATURES critic's notebook White Filmmakers Addressing (or Avoiding) Whiteness Onscreen Movies as different as "The Nightingale," "Midsommar" and "The Last Black Man in San Francisco" are all processing the legacy of privilege. by jenna wortham scenes of summer I Know Where You Lived Last Summer In vacation-home-invasion horror movies like "Funny Games" and "Us," privilege marks families for murder. by lena wilson How Brittany Ran Her 'Marathon' With 50,000 Extras To film a movie inside New York's signature race, three fast-moving crews were required, and the lead actress had to lug equipment. by jen a. miller Matthew McConaughey Joins the University of Texas as a Professor The actor, an alumnus of the university who has taught there as a visiting instructor, will teach a class on filmmaking this fall. by laura m. holson

STREAMING streaming movie review 'Falling Inn Love' Review: A Prize That Needs Some Work It's hard to find a reliable, talented, reasonably priced, eco-friendly contractor these days. by helen t. verongos The 50 Best Movies on Netflix Right Now We've plucked out the 50 best films currently streaming on Netflix in the United States. Take a look. by jason bailey

CRITICS' PICKS critic's pick 'The Load' Review: Meeting History on the Road From Kosovo to Serbia Set in a Yugoslavia wracked by violence, the film puts across powerful questions of individual responsibility in the face of atrocity. by glenn kenny critic's pick 'American Factory' Review: The New Global Haves and Have-Nots A documentary looks at what happened when a Chinese company took over a closed General Motors factory in Ohio. by manohla dargis

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