Beyond being an inspirational story focused on Claressa Sheilds, “The Fire Inside” is a coming-of-age story you rarely see Black girls have on the big screen.
A cast of familiar faces, ranging from Lynn Whitfield to J. Alphonse Nicholson, delivers a holiday movie that is dramatic but a bit more serious than your usual fare.
In “Here,” we watch as likable people live on this one plot of land for hundreds of years in a narrative that jumps around a bit much.
“On Becoming A Guinea Fowl” does well in world-building, highlighting a part of Zambia’s less tourist-focused culture, as a family secret gets smothered due to a funeral, rather than getting you into its characters.
“Bagman,” starring Sam Claflin and Antonia Thomas of “The Good Doctor,” lacks everything needed to be a compelling horror film, and not just because it is PG-13.
“Beetlejuice Beetlejuice” may avoid feeling like a cash grab, but there is no denying it doesn’t present anything notable to justify being made.
“Afraid” compensates for not really tapping into the fear it could have consistently produced by giving you characters who deserve a better horror movie.
Blake Lively stars in the adaptation of Colleen Hoover’s hit novel, which focuses on a woman with a traumatic childhood who is trying to secure her purpose, reciprocate love, and break generational trauma.
Josh Hartnett delivers a notable performance under M. Night Shyamalan’s direction and writing, but while the premise is good, things go downhill once it has to be more than a singular idea.
Dave Bautista and Chloe Coleman return as their characters face new dynamics in their relationship that brings laughs, action, and some generic Russian villains.
A young woman with notoriety as a game tester and professional gamer is gifted a new headset that syncs with her brain and brings painful memories to life.
“Tarot” scrapes the surface of the major arcana to create beings good for a jump scare but delivers a story that is more to holdover horror fans than become a classic.
“I Saw The TV Glow” contains a show you’d want to watch, in a movie which may leave you with mixed feelings.
Ryan Gosling reminds you that while “Barbie” was a high point, there is a reason he has been working for three decades.
In this post-apocalyptic tale, Milla Jovovich continues to show she is one of the top action stars out there, but the writing and story don’t deserve her.
“The Greatest Hits” brings visuals to the saying, “Music moves you,” as a woman is repeatedly transported through time when triggered by songs that hold memories of her deceased ex.
In “Música,” Rudy Mancuso may not reinvent the musical genre but gives something different enough to revive your love for the genre if it has left you jaded.
“The American Society of Magical Negroes” has a top-quality romance film, worth its own motion picture, weighed down by the usual conversations and monologues on American racial relations.
While DeWanda Wise delivers a notable performance, the story of “Imaginary” makes it for naught.
While Damsel has a lead and story that could have packed a punch, it avoids the sense of danger and triumph it could have, like Elodie does dragon’s breath.
Seemingly inspired by Jennifer Lopez’s own journey to find her forever love, “This Is Me… Now” encapsulates Lopez’s past in a way that could cause mixed feelings.
Andrea Bang stars in “Float,” which puts a dry romance front and center over all the ways this could have been intriguing.
“Lisa Frankenstein” doesn’t merely ride the wave of Frankenstein-type movies but carves out its own little niche thanks to the combination of those in front of and behind the camera.
In what is another push to transform Kevin Hart from his “Big Little Man” persona into a legitimate action star, he leads a heist crew forced to work for Interpol.
In many ways, “Origins” feels like a one-hour documentary turned 2+ hour drama despite having strong enough thoughts and messages that didn’t need a dramatization.
“Night Swim” may scratch that itch for horror fans who need a jump scare, but it certainly won’t start off the year on a high note for Blumhouse like “M3GAN” did.
While “The Book of Clarence” may seem potentially controversial because it contains Jesus of Nazareth, outside of some of the conversations it could start, it is tame to the point of being boring.
“The Pod Generation” explores what childbearing and rearing might be like in a future where women don’t have to get pregnant.
“Rebel Moon —Part One: Child of Fire,” I’d love to say, was all visuals and no substance, but the visuals don’t necessarily leave you awestruck either.
Between the music and performances, the 2023 version of “The Color Purple” does enough to stand out, but it sometimes falters if you compare it to the 1985 movie.
“Monster,” as it shifts perspectives from one character to the next, pushes you to ask who the real monster of this story is.
“Rustin” depicts a civil rights icon in ways not seen since Denzel Washington played Malcolm X.
As emotionally stirring as it is beautiful, “The Creator” presents the worst case scenario for humanity’s relationship with robots in such a way that the film has the potential to be seen as a modern classic at best or underrated at worse.
“It Lives Inside” deserves praise for how it handles being a first-generation Indian in a White community but might be considered lackluster as a horror movie.
A girl who doesn’t plan as well as she should meets a boy who leaves very little to chance, and rather than this leading to them balancing each other out, it sets up a meet-cute story that will certainly make you a fan of Haley Lu Richardson.
In “A Haunting In Venice,” Hercule Poirot returns and makes it clear that, while the third movie starring the character, there is the potential for a James Bond-level number of movies starring lead and director Kenneth Branagh.
In a woodburning oven type of romance featuring usual romance and LGBT+ tropes, you get “Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.”
“Sitting In Bars With Cake” will push you to be grateful for your best friend, or closest friend, as you watch two best friends hit many monumental moments – of which not all are positive.
“Slotherhouse,” like most horror comedies, are enjoyable as long as you can embrace how ridiculous it is for if you look past the superficial, there isn’t much there.
The overall goal of Wherever I Look is to fill in that space between the average fan and critic and advise you on what’s worth experiencing.
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