Movies

Every few years, a movie comes along so eager to don the tarnished crown of “epic fantasy”—to conquer, to astonish, to graft itself onto the sagging limbs of a post-Lord of the Rings landscape—that it forgets the very sinews that hold stories together. Into the Lost Lands, Paul W.S. Anderson’s latest incursion into genre upheaval, is not so much an adventure as it is a protracted reminder that the land of cinema has indeed been lost.

There’s nothing quite as dispiriting in cinema as a film that mistakes product placement for dramatic architecture, and with iHostage, director Bobby Boermans seems to treat the glass walls and minimalist spaces of Amsterdam’s Apple Store as if they lend themselves to the gravitas of Sidney Lumet’s Dog Day Afternoon. But iHostage only proves that you can’t transcend your ingredients by virtue of logos and lighting alone. This movie—as colorless as the inside of an after-hours Apple showroom—manages to turn a genre built on suspense into an extended exercise in waiting for the Genius Bar to call your name.

In Youth We Trust is the latest offering from acclaimed director Puttipong Nakthong, making its impactful debut amidst a backdrop of stark adolescent turmoil within the confines of juvenile detention. This film continues Nakthong’s exploration of teenage violence, yet veers into a different realm, capturing the harrowing reality of life in a juvenile facility where young lives are shaped—or often distorted—by the brutal hierarchies of prison life.

The Illusionist artfully intertwines historical events with its fictional narrative, lending depth and authenticity to its already tantalizing plot. Among the historical touches is the fictionalized adaptation of the Mayerling incident, which adds an air of palpable tension to the story.

Clooney, alongside steady collaborators Grant Heslov and Willimon, crafts a film that compels viewers to grapple with the sobering realities of idealism in a cynical world. It’s a film that both captivates and challenges, laying bare the cost of ambition in the quest for power.

It’s What’s Inside, the 2024 cinematic cornerstone (or pitfall) brought to you by the innovative Greg Jardin. With a cast that reads like a “who’s who” of talented up-and-comers—Brittany O’Grady, Gavin Leatherwood, and a few others I may forget as soon as the credits roll—you might think I was in for a treat.