Reviews for May 22nd, 2026
Ask E. Jean is a well-edited albeit ordinary and mildly engaging documentary about an extraordinary woman, E. Jean Carroll, a journalist, author and advice columnist. Director Ivy Meeropol combines archival material from Carroll's early years as a journalist during the 1990s when she started the advice column in Elle Magazine called "Ask E. Jean" and hosted the short-lived TV series. She wrote articles for The Atlantic profiling women who were accused Donald J. Trump of sexual misconduct. She wrote in her book What Do We Need Men For?: A Modest Proposal about how Trump sexually assaulted her back in the 90s. The documentary sheds light on her struggles to sue Trump for sexual assault and defamation. If you're already familiar with E. Jean Carroll's work and her legal battles, nothing here will be new or surprising.
However, Meeropol should be commended for not opting for a linear structure which makes the film less dry, and for capturing Carroll's determination, courage, humility, wit, candidness and emotional intelligence. She's lucky to have her as a documentary subject because she's such a great role model and inspiration for anyone who's afraid to speak out. Her battles aren't just legal, though---they're emotional and psychological as well. It's heartbreaking to watch her suffering when she endured public ridicule when she sued Trump the first time around. How she refused to back down and give up is a testament to her innate strength. Unfortunately, this isn't a warts-and-all or thorough biographical documentary about E. Jean Carroll; it's more along the lines of a Reader's Digest glimpse into her life and work. So, if you're hoping to learn more about Carroll's life and work in depth, you'll be disappointed. Unsurprisingly, she has yet to receive a penny from Trump even though he was court-ordered to pay her $88.3 million for damages.
At a running time of 1 hour and 31 minutes, Ask E. Jean opens at IFC Center via Abramorama.
Number of times I checked my watch: 2
Everybody to Kenmure Street is a mildly engaging, but too narrow, incomplete and ordinary documentary about an extraordinary event in British History. Director Felipe Bustos Sierra focuses on the Kenmure Street protests in 2021 when residents gathered on Kenmure Street to stop the deportation of two local men during a UK Home Office raid. He mostly uses footage taken from the protest to tell the story while briefly pausing to look at the history of Kenmure Street. There are some moderately interesting anecdotes like a protestor who was laying under a van and felt something drip on her which turned out to be sweat not motor oil.
Unfortunately, Everybody to Kenmure Street lacks the scope and revealing insights that better documentaries about protest like We Are Many or The Square (2013) manage to offer. If it were to profile some of the protesters instead of just showing the clips of their participation in the event, it would've been more engrossing. Or perhaps it could've delved into the aftermath of the event, especially given the fact that it took place 5 years ago. Unfortunately, Everyone to Kenmure Street ultimately fails to be powerful emotionally resonant or inspirational. At a running time of 1 hour and 35 minutes, it opens at DCTV's Firehouse Cinema via Icarus Films.
Number of times I checked my watch: 1
In Forge, Coco (Andie Ju) and her brother, Raymond (Brandon Soo Hoo), work at their family's dim sum restaurant which serves as a front for their art forgery ring. They take a major risk when they agree to forge paintings for Holden (Edmund Donovan), a millionaire. Meanwhile, Emily Lee (Kelly Marie Tran), an FBI agent, investigates a series of art forgeries. Writer/director Jing Ai Ng has made a slow-burning dramatic thriller that builds up suspense gradually. The screenplay shifts from the perspectives of the siblings to the perspective of the FBI agent who's getting closer and closer to them. So, the suspense is Hitchcockian because it derives from the anticipation of the moment when the FBI's agent will figure out that Coco, Raymond and Holden are the art forgerers. There are no car chases, gun battles or knife fights with edge-of-your-seat suspense. This isn't the kind of thriller that relies on palpable thrills or spectacle that involves violence. Instead, it relies on atmosphere and humanizing the characters so that you care about what happens to them even if they're unlikable because of their illegal actions.
Unlike the recent art forgery movie The Christophers, Forge remains thoroughly captivating from start to finish without any scenes that drag or that feel dull. The plot actually becomes more complex and compelling as it progresses. Moreover, writer/director Jing Ai Ng trusts the audience's emotions, patience and intelligence, and avoids tonal unevenness, clunky exposition, heavy-handedness, on-the-nose dialogue or unnecessary subplots. Those are all major feats for a first-time director, so bravo to her. She also manages to get pretty solid performances from the entire cast, none of whom gives a weak performance. At a running time of 1 hour and 54 minutes, Forge opens at Quad Cinema via Utopia.
Number of times I checked my watch: 1
A gang of shoplifters, Corvette (Keke Palmer), Sade (Naomi Ackie), and Mariah (Taylour Paige), recruit new members, Violeta (Eiza González) and Jianpu (Poppy Liu), to steal expensive designer clothing and to sell it for cheaper prices in I Love Boosters. Their shoplifting angers Christy Smith (Demi Moore), a high end fashion designer whose business the gang has been ruining. Writer/director Boots Riley has made a wildly entertaining, bonkers and outrageously funny satire that becomes increasingly more bold, surreal and absurd. It's best not to spoil the events that transpire once the new members join the gang because there are many surprises, big and small, that try to push the envelope. Everyone including Will Poulter, as the manager of a boutique, gives an over-the-top performance that veers toward campiness occasionally.
The film's message is pretty simple, heavy-handed and not very deep or provocative, to be frank, but it doesn't take itself too seriously, so that's not a major issue. Everything from the use of music, color, editing, costume designs and set designs provide plenty of style that also becomes part of the film's substance. I Love Boosters, from its lively opening credits until the very end, remains a total blast and a crowd-pleasing delight. It's destined to become a cult classic. At a running time of 1 hour and 53 minutes, I Love Boosters opens nationwide via NEON. It would be an interesting double feature with Good Luck, Have Fun, Don't Die which is just as bonkers.
Number of times I checked my watch: 1
In Manas, 13-year-old Marcielle (Jamilli Correa) lives with her mother, Danielle (Fátima Macedo), father, Marcílio (Rômulo Braga), and three younger siblings on an island in the Amazon Rainforest. Her domineering father sexually abuses her while her mother enables it. Even a local woman who works at a store can't help her when she tries to tell her, implicitly, that she's being sexually abused when she buys rope for a hammock. Perhaps that employee was also sexually abused in her childhood. Marcielle puts her life at risk when a friend convinces her to have sex for money with men on a barge. One of the bargemen which she frequently visits becomes her "boyfriend" whom she dreams of running off with. He preys on her naïveté. Meanwhile, there's one woman who seems concerned about Marcielle and might come to her rescue when she's in danger. It has some tender and unflinching moments, but there's nothing sugar-coated about it.
Writer/director Marianna Brennand and her co-writers, Felipe Sholl, Marcelo Grabowsky, Antonia Pellegrino, Camila Agustini and Carolina Benevides, move Manas along at a leisurely pace with an almost documentary-like feeling which is heightened by natural, raw and heartfelt performances. Not a single scene rings false. Moreover, the filmmakers trust the audience's imagination because they don't actually show the sexual abuse-just the aftermath. What happens when Marcielle gets caught with the bargeman by authorities won't be spoiled here, but it's worth mentioning that Manas isn't afraid to veer into dark and grim territory while leaving the audience with a powerful and haunting ending. At a running time of 1 hour and 46 minutes, Manas opens at Film Forum via KimStim Films.
Number of times I checked my watch: 1
Din Djarin (Pedro Pascal), a.k.a. The Mandalorian, and his sidekick, Grogu, embark on a mission to save Rotta the Hutt (Jeremy Allen White) in The Mandalorian and Grogu. They report to Ward (Sigourney Weaver), the leader of the New Republic's Adelphi Rangers. Writer/director Jon Favreau and his co-writers, Dave Filoni and Noah Kloor have made an over-produced, exhausting, bloated and dull sci-fi action adventure that's strictly for devoted fans of the Disney+ series. If you're not already a devoted fan, you'll find it hard to be engaged by the plot which does a poor job of introducing the characters or providing enough exposition to help audiences unfamiliar with the series. The dialogue often suffers from stiltedness and sorely lacks comic relief or any shred of wit. The action sequences have decent visual effects with intermittent thrills, but those thrills come with diminishing returns. The costume designs, set designs and CGI effects are fine without being exceptional.
You'll probably wish you were watching the more visually stunning Avatar which also co-stars Sigourney Weaver and has a far more engaging story than this forgettable blockbuster that's one of the most inane, pointless and shallow cash grabs since The Super Mario Galaxy Movie. At a running time of 2 hours and 12 minutes, The Mandalorian and Grogu opens nationwide via Walt Disney Pictures.
Number of times I checked my watch: 4
May Contain: My Life is an illuminating, captivating and slickly edited documentary that raises awareness of what it's like to live with food allergies and what can be done to make the world safer for those who suffer from it. Director Jennifer Greenstreet should be commended for covering a lot of ground without exhausting the audience or making them feel like they're watching a dry, academic film. She puts a human face on the issue by interviewing kids with food allergies as well as their parents and parents whose kids have died from food anaphylaxis. The film sheds light on how kids with food allergies get bullied by classmates or how the risks of eating the wrong food get diminished when it's actually a life or death situation. Being allergic to peanuts, for example, is not the same as being sensitive to gluten. Restaurants should be ashamed of pointing parents or kids to a "gluten free" menu when they tell the waiter that their son or daughter has a food allergy. EpiPens should be more easily accessible in case someone goes into anaphylactic shock. You'll also learn a little about the science behind how the body of those with food allergies reacts to the ingredient that they're allergic to and what makes it fatal.
May Contain: My Life never has a dull moment and manages to find the right balance between entertaining the audience and provoking them intellectually. It's not enraging like a Michael Moore film nor does it have to be because it's here to raise awareness and to provide some sope through solutions. Most importantly, it's the kind of documentary that might save lives. At a running time of just 1 hour and 18 minutes, May Contain: My Life opens at AMC Empire 25.
Number of times I checked my watch: 1
Hana (Midori Francis), a medical student, gets more than she bargained for when she agrees to participate in a study to lose weight involving a diet pill that contains human ashes in Saccharine. She awakens a ghost after consuming the ashes of one of the cadavers that she and her classmates have been studying. Danielle Macdonald plays Josie, one of her classmates who's also her friend. Writer/director Natalie Erika James has made an effectively grotesque and occasionally creepy, but overlong and often tedious sci-fi horror thriller that bites off more than it could chew, no pun intended. The concept sounds interesting and even provocative, so it's a shame that the screenplay remains shallow and goes for cheap scares without delving into any of its complex, timely themes. Saccharine could've at least been a solid B-movie if it were more bonkers and imaginative.
Unfortunately, it suffers from a barebones plot that's stretched too thinly with underdeveloped, forgettable characters and not nearly enough surprises or palpable scares. There are more than a few images that will make audiences squeamish, though, so at least writer/director Natalie Erika James has a pretty good handle on engaging the audience through the stylish use of visual effects and cinematography. A seemingly simple scene involving the reflections on a spoon creates an effective sense of unease. Those moments are ephemeral, though. Saccharine will ultimately fail to whet the appetite of audiences hungry for an imaginative, scary, smart and provocative sci-fi horror thriller. In a double feature with The Substance or Obsession, it would be the inferior B-movie.
At a running time of 1 hour and 54 minutes, Saccharine opens nationwide via Independent Film Company.
Number of times I checked my watch: 3
Niki (Leo Woodall) works for Harry (Dustin Hoffman) as a piano tuner and secretly as a safe cracker for Uri (Lior Raz), a thief in Tuner. Meanwhile, he romances Ruthie (Havana Rose Liu), a music composition student. Tovah Feldsha plays Marla, Harry's wife. Writer/director Daniel Roher and co-writer Robert Ramsey have made a taut romantic crime thriller with great cinematography and sound design, but somewhat contrived, unfocused and overwrought. The plot begins promisingly as it effectively juggles romance, drama and thriller elements with just the right amount of comic relief. As it tries to become more complex or to add emotional depth, that's when it falls flat. Case in point: the relationship between Niki and Ruthie moves too fast because, before you know it, he's asking her to be his girlfriend and giving her expensive jewelry as a gift. Oh, and he stole the jewelry. Oh, and the jewelry happens to belong to someone who's a Holocaust survivor. Oh, and the holocaust survivor happens to have passed it down to a character who happens to be someone important later on. Ruthie expresses her discomfort in the gift, but he emotionally blackmails her and coerces her into accepting it and becoming his girlfriend. Oh, and at some point Harry gets hospitalized with an unspecified terminal illness.
Does Niki really want a girlfriend or just someone whom he can control? His double life as a safe cracker/jewel thief also doesn't make him a decent person. Will she find out the truth? What will happen if she does? Does Niki have any remorse for how he has hurt Niki? How introspective is he? What's his relationship with his parents like? Does he have any good role models in his life besides Harry? Unfortunately, Tuner seems too busy trying to escalate the tension than in developing its characters or allowing the audience to get to know them beneath the surface. It has a gritty third act, though, which it then abandons for a schmaltzy and sugar-coated ending that's unearned. That said, on a purely aesthetic level, the exquisite cinematography and sound design are among the film's strengths. At a running time of 1 hour and 47 minutes, Tuner opens nationwide via Black Bear Pictures.
Number of times I checked my watch: 2
