Justin Chang
Stories
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Watching a neighbor's cat turns lethal in 'Caught Stealing'
Darren Aronofsky's film is a funny, bloody valentine to 1990s New York City. Though awfully engrossing, Caught Stealing's mix of rambunctious slapstick and bone-crunching violence doesn't always gel.
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'Weapons' exposes the dark underbelly of American suburbia
Small-town life is upended when 17 schoolchildren suddenly vanish without explanation in the middle of the night. Weapons is a spooky thriller that invites deeper interpretation.
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Glorious and messy, 'Highest 2 Lowest' is a Spike Lee joint of the first order
Denzel Washington plays a New York City music mogul whose teenage son becomes the target of a kidnapping plot. The movie is a remake of the 1963 Akira Kurosawa classic, High and Low.
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The laughs land in 'The Naked Gun' reboot, but fall flat in 'Freakier Friday'
The new Naked Gun film, starring Liam Neeson, captures its predecessors' slapstick spirit. Freakier Friday, meanwhile, proves less compelling, despite a solid performance by Lindsey Lohan.
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'Sorry, Baby' is a story about pain and healing you haven't heard before
Eva Victor wrote, directed and stars in this tender film about a woman trying to make sense of life after sexual assault. Although very much a drama, Sorry, Baby showcases Victor's comic smarts.
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This new 'Superman' takes the Man of Steel seriously — but not self-seriously
Director James Gunn brings an irreverent, borderline-slapstick vibe to the latest Superman film, in which our hero grapples with villains, strange creatures and public opinion.
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Brad Pitt plays a veteran racer who won't slow down in 'F1'
Pitt, 61, stars as a Formula One driver whose career was sidelined by a devastating crash. Though the overall arc of F1 is fairly predictable, the film is still hugely enjoyable and dazzlingly well-made.
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Drama or comedy? Matchmaker movie 'Materialists' is undone by its own ambition
Dakota Johnson plays a savvy New York City matchmaker caught between two men in a film that ultimately fails to reconcile the screwball vigor of a comedy with the emotional oomph of a drama.
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'The Life of Chuck' might leave you brushing away tears -- or scratching your head
Mike Flanagan's new film, a maudlin mystery about a man dying of cancer, feels hobbled by its extreme faithfulness to the Stephen King novella on which its based.
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Wes Anderson peers into the hollowness of extreme wealth in 'The Phoenician Scheme'
Benicio Del Toro plays a globe-trotting tycoon trying to convince his estranged daughter (Mia Threapleton) to be his heir. The film is darker, angrier and more violent than Anderson's usual fare.
