Round Town Girls (2009)

Spirited inverts the tropes of the holiday musical genre to update an age-old tale for 2022. It's a paean to those who make grand spectacles possible.

It’s easy to dismiss Joel and Ethan Coen for writing from the world they build from outside the box of overarching Hollywood stereotypes, but their inability to compromise their collective vision is precisely what makes the simplistic nature of their world-building and characters so brilliant. It’s also what led Fargo to collect seven Oscar nominations and two wins for Best Original Screenplay and Best Actress for Frances McDormand’s brilliant portrayal of the sincere, motherly detective whose wholesome demeanor seizes the day over the selfishness, corruption and evil of the men who don’t comprehend that there’s more to life than a little money.

A story of a magical dragon brings great representation for Chinese culture.

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. 

When you don’t factor in the plethora of inferior sequels that have been produced, Luca is one of Pixar’s simplest and most unassuming films in years — and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. The film thrives on being a visual feast with a warm message for all ages, so much so that its unoriginal storyline doesn’t feel that big of a problem.

Kat Wahlen’s The Whiteboard tells, or rather shows, a delightful love story between two young women who meet in detention.