It Goes all the Way to the Top: Motherless Brooklyn
'Motherless Brooklyn' is a 1950s whodunit made by its star, Edward Norton. Like most detective films in this setting, the cast is mostly white males (with a few notable exceptions).

'Motherless Brooklyn' is a 1950s whodunit made by its star, Edward Norton. Like most detective films in this setting, the cast is mostly white males (with a few notable exceptions).
Him is visually stunning—all concrete cathedrals and bone-rattling impact shots that look like a nightmare highlight reel. Marlon Wayans is magnetic as this legendary quarterback who's basically selling salvation with a smile that never quite reaches his eyes. But the story keeps running in circles: more tests, more cryptic pep talks, more ritualistic drills. The sports-as-religion metaphor beats you over the head when subtlety would've been more effective. The middle drags, and that finale chooses spectacle over substance. It's undeniably stylish, but left me cold. Also worth noting: despite the Monkeypaw connection, this isn't actually a Jordan Peele film—he didn't write or direct.
Greta Garbo, a queer actress playing a real-life queer Queen is the best of both worlds.
Netflix's new thriller Apex, starring Charlize Theron, puts a twist on survival horror. Despite its setting in the beautiful- yet-dangerous Australian wilderness, Apex is not a movie about man vs. nature. Instead, it’s woman vs. man. While checking out the title card and its unpretentious Netflix release might lead viewers to believe Apex is just another celebrity project churned out of the streaming machine, Apex - whether by luck or by intention - is a consistently harrowing film about the reality of being a woman in a public space.
'Little Woods' rethinks the Western genre and examines the misogyny and classism inherent in the healthcare industry.