‘Malcolm & Marie’: A Promising Premise With Disappointing Results
Sam Levinson's latest film can't keep up with the excellence of its performances.

Author: Lauren Massuda for Incluvie. Originally posted on Medium for Incluvie

In Knockemstiff, Ohio and its neighboring backwoods, sinister characters converge around young Arvin Russell as he fights the evil forces that threaten him and his family.
Sam Levinson's latest film can't keep up with the excellence of its performances.
Cassie, a musician, and Luke, a man serving in the Marines, form a false relationship and keep it a secret.
Gretel & Hansel falters due to its razor thin story and lack of characterization. It loses sight of horror’s key rule: In order to create an effective tale, characters and emotions must be emphasized.
One of the great achievements of this film is its ability to challenge the mind and to force you to try to process information in a different way than you’re used to.
Naked Gun: The New Police Squad Team delivers exactly what fans want: relentless, expertly crafted chaos that honors the original while cranking everything up to eleven. The gags fire at machine-gun pace—sight jokes layered with wordplay and physical comedy so outrageous it borders on art. It's gleefully self-aware without being cynical, silly without being stupid, and maintains that perfect ZAZ-style balance of treating absolute absurdity with complete seriousness. The film knows exactly what it is: a comedy missile designed for maximum laughs, and it hits its target with surgical precision. Pure, unhinged entertainment that proves spoof comedy still has plenty of life left in it.