Did you know The New York Times publishes close to 30 film reviews each week?
That’s hard for any film fan to keep up with — and doesn’t even count the immense review archive within TimesMachine, going back nearly a century in film history.
But we’re here to help by curating the most relevant and interesting reviews specifically for our Australian audience in a way that lines up with the local release dates.
This is our first wrap; email us if you like it, and we’ll roll it out monthly.
[Prefer not to go out? Check out our Australian Netflix guide instead.]
“The Death of Stalin”
Starring: Steve Buscemi, Simon Russell Beale, Jeffrey Tambor, Andrea Riseborough, Olga Kurylenko
Directed by: Armando Iannucci
What is it? “An eccentric comic shocker about a strong man and his world of ashes and blood.”
You’ll like it if you liked: The HBO series “Veep.”
Continue reading the main storyCritic’s take: “‘The Death of Stalin’ is by turns entertaining and unsettling, with laughs that morph into gasps and uneasy gasps that erupt into queasy, choking laughs.”
Read the full review by Manohla Dargis.
Australian release date: March 29
Trailer: ‘The Death of Stalin’
A preview of the film
By IFC FILMS on Publish Date February 27, 2018. .“Love, Simon”
Starring: Nick Robinson, Jennifer Garner, Josh Duhamel, Katherine Langford, Alexandra Shipp
Directed by: Greg Berlanti
What is it? A closeted gay high schooler finds solace and, eventually, love in an anonymous email buddy — until a blackmailer stumbles on the secret correspondence.
You’ll like it if you liked: “The Edge of Seventeen,” “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” and “Pretty in Pink.”
Critic’s take: “The emotional resonance may be surprising given the movie’s relentless gloss, but it’s real.”
Read the full review by Glenn Kenny.
Australian release date: March 29
Trailer: ‘Love, Simon’
A preview of the film
By 20th CENTURY FOX on Publish Date March 6, 2018. .“A Quiet Place”
Starring: Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Noah Jupe, Millicent Simmonds, Leon Russom
Directed by: John Krasinski
What is it? “An old-fashioned creature feature with a single, simple hook. The creatures are blind, hungry and navigate by sound.”
You’ll like it if you liked: “It Follows,” “The Babadook” and “Alien.”
Critic’s take: “In its convincing portrayal of a situation where a rusty nail is as lethal as an unexploded bomb, and the few remaining inhabitants seem — much like the audience — more likely to die of stress than anything else, the movie rocks. You may go in jaded, but you’ll leave elated or I’ll eat my words.”
Read the full review by Jeannette Catsoulis.
Australian release date: April 5
Anatomy of a Scene | ‘A Quiet Place’
The director John Krasinski narrates a sequence from his film, in which he stars with Emily Blunt.
By MEKADO MURPHY on Publish Date April 12, 2018. Photo by Paramount Pictures. Watch in Times Video »“Isle of Dogs”
Starring: Bryan Cranston, Koyu Rankin, Edward Norton, Bob Balaban, Bill Murray
Directed by: Wes Anderson
What is it? “An animated movie set in a fantasy Japan. There, cat-fancying villains of the future conspire to eradicate dogs.”
You’ll like if you liked: Any Wes Anderson movie.
Critic’s take: “Too often the movie feels overworked, fussy. And when an explosion darkens Trash Island, evoking the horrors of Japan’s past, Mr. Anderson feels like he’s circling a profundity he doesn’t know how to handle.”
Read the full review by Manohla Dargis.
Australian release date: April 12
Anatomy of a Scene | ‘Isle of Dogs’
Wes Anderson narrates a sequence from the film.
By MEKADO MURPHY on Publish Date March 29, 2018. Photo by Fox Searchlight Pictures. Watch in Times Video »“Truth or Dare”
Starring: Lucy Hale, Tyler Posey, Violett Beane, Sophia Ali, Landon Liboiron
Directed by: Jeff Wadlow
What is it? A group of college friends discover too late that their Mexican vacation has left them with a nasty infection.
You’ll like it if you liked: The “Final Destination” series.
Critic’s take: “‘Truth or Dare’ is a wearying slog through crushed feelings and mangled bodies. So much so that when one poor soul was compelled to drive a ballpoint pen into his forehead, the temptation to emulate him was almost irresistible.”
Read the full review by Jeannette Catsoulis.
Australian release date: April 12
Trailer: ‘Blumhouse's Truth or Dare’
A preview of the film
By UNIVERSAL on Publish Date April 3, 2018. Photo by Peter Iovino/Universal.“Last Flag Flying”
Starring: Bryan Cranston, Laurence Fishburne, Steve Carell, J. Quinton Johnson, Deanna Reed-Foster
Directed by: Richard Linklater
What is it? “Set in 2003, at the stage of the Iraq war when we were assured that the mission was being handily accomplished, it brings together three Vietnam veterans for a somber task.”
You’ll like it if you liked: “The Last Detail,” “Dazed and Confused” or “Waking Life.”
Critic’s take: “Even if ‘Last Flag Flying’ isn’t quite persuasive, it is nonetheless enormously thought-provoking, and its roughness is a sign of how earnestly it grapples with matters that other movies about war prefer not to think about.”
Read the full review by A.O. Scott.
Australian release date: April 25
Trailer: ‘Last Flag Flying’
A preview of the film
By LionsGATE ENTERTAINMENT on Publish Date November 1, 2017. Image courtesy of Internet Video Archive. Watch in Times Video »