Young CriticThe Housemaid
Paul Feig’s thriller goes wildly, watchably off the rails Despite having cut his teeth making some of the best comedy of the last few decades with The Office (2005-2013), Parks and Recreation (2009-2015), Bridesmaids (20
Reviews tagged: thriller
Young Critic
Young CriticThe Running Man
A bold new cyberpunk vision held back by tonal whiplash and a muted leading man Edgar Wright is a beloved director for many film nerds, known for a winking style and frenetic editing, the Brit has delivered some modern c
Young CriticBugonia
Yorgos Lanthimos' latest is a deconstruction of conspiracy theorists Yorgos Lanthimos has developed an idiosyncratic style, in the same way that Wes Anderson or Kelly Reichardt has. You can identify a Lanthimos film with
Young CriticLos Tigres
Alberto Rodriguez's latest thriller is his best in years The film noir had its height in the mid-century, and shortly revived in the 1970s anti-system surge of independent young filmmakers, where they delivered perhaps t
Young CriticOne Battle After Another
Paul Thomas Anderson delivers yet another American epic To call something an “American epic” should be reserved to a text that captures the complexity, contradictions, promise, and betrayal that the idea of America entai
Young CriticThe Long Walk
Francis Lawrence pares down King’s dystopia but leaves little beneath the surface The dystopian young adult genre dominated the 2010s, but like most trends, it quickly burned out. Oversaturation left audiences weary afte
Young CriticHoney Don't
Ethan Coen's latest solo effort is another half-baked noir After taking Hollywood by storm for decades as a filmmaking duo, the Coen brothers have been striking out solo in recent years. Joel directed his Shakespearean a
Young CriticHighest 2 Lowest
Spike Lee's adaptation of Akira Kurosawa's classic is serviceable if muted Despite being one of the foremost auteurs in American cinema, Spike Lee is no stranger to remakes. He remade the Korean action classic Oldboy (20
Young CriticJurassic World: Rebirth
A formulaic but welcome return to Jurassic basics. Despite some fun sequences in The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) and some nostalgic bait in Jurassic World (2015), every Jurassic sequel has been a face-palm ins
Young CriticSirat
Oliver Laxe’s trance-like odyssey blurs myth and rave The road movie—or road story—has been a device used by storytellers since the first fictional tale was inscribed onto a tablet with The Epic of Gilgamesh . There is
Young CriticAndor (Season 2)
A grounded rebellion tale with the grit of a spy thriller It seems hard to fathom, but the best story to emerge from the Star Wars universe—arguably ever—is a prequel to a spinoff. Yet it proves that what matters most
Young CriticThe Amateur
A Spy Thriller That Plays It Too Safe Spy thrillers have largely disappeared from film slates in the last decade, with the only iterations of this once-lucrative genre coming from established franchises like Mission: Im
Young CriticBlack Bag
A Spy Thriller Where Secrets Cut Deeper Than Betrayal Steven Soderbergh continues his prolific filmmaking schedule, delivering his second film of the year—and we’re only three months in. These two films are also vastly d
Young CriticSeptember 5
The journalism thriller is irresistibly gripping Journalistic thrillers capture the insatiable curiosity and inherent dangers of pursuing the truth. The subgenre has produced some of cinema’s greatest works, including Ac
Young CriticUndercover
This Spanish thriller delivers an unforgettable lead performance The ETA terrorist group disbanded officially in 2018, albeit their violent attacks had stopped in 2010. Spain, however, had been living with this internal
Young CriticHeretic
Scott Beck and Bryan Woods' theological deconstruction fails to fit within a film Scott Beck and Bryan Woods had been making films as a duo for some time before they broke through as the screenwriters of A Quiet Place (2
Young CriticConclave
The Vatican political thriller is gripping if at times melodramatic Vatican politics have long been a rich setting for drama, from Paolo Sorrentino’s The Young Pope (2016) and The New Pope (2020) to Fernando Meirelle
Young CriticThe Front Room
Clashing tones and performances sink this duo's directing debut Siblings can frequently make great filmmaking partners, from the Wachowskis to the Duffer brothers, and of course the Coens. Max and Sam Eggers are a new du
Young CriticBlink Twice
Zoe Kravitz's debut is an effective social horror entry The jump from acting to directing is a ubiquitous one, as performers seek to become the multi-hyphenates that the filmmaking industry lauds. However, the transition
Young CriticA Quiet Place: Day One
The horror prequel struggles to justify its narrative A Quiet Place (2018) was a true experience in cinemas, using a simple concept, of lack of sound in a horror environment. Viewers were unwittingly roped-in to particip
Young CriticThe Watchers
Ishana Night Shyamalan's directing debut is pale imitation of her father's style Hollywood nepotism goes as far back as the creation of the industry, as family dynasties of actors going back centuries were adopted into m
Young CriticCivil War
Alex Garland's take on violent polarization is a chillingly effective watch The concept civil wars breaking out in Western democracies is becoming less a fantastical concept than a probable nightmare. Coups have already
Young CriticLove Lies Bleeding
Rose Glass's second film is a straightforward, satisfying thriller When films try to embody a period of the past, there are usually visual, musical, or political references that are made to constantly remind viewers. Emb
Young CriticEileen
William Oldroyd's psychological thriller is misguided in its third act The psychological thriller is a difficult genre to inhabit. One must build a slow tension and foreboding using only emotion and intention instead of