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8/10
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Don't Worry Darling
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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In these times of curated picture-perfection on social media, Olivia Wilde warns us that nothing is as flawless as it looks. Beware of paradise, Don’t Worry Darling advises, especially if the way out of it isn’t clear. Real life is messy and often ugly.
Posted Sep 21, 2022
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9/10
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The Woman King
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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The Agojie are regular women — though they are highly skilled ones who have endured arduous training. Their bodies are covered in scars. They die, they kill, they ache, they mourn — but they also laugh, dance and love. Gina Prince-Bythewood shows it all.
Posted Sep 15, 2022
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5/10
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Bullet Train
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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That beauty in the film’s design extends to the wardrobe. The characters are dressed in coats, blazers and layers of clothing that they peel off as the night progresses. They appear different — grubbier, more bloodied — as they keep taking garments off.
Posted Aug 04, 2022
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4/10
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The Gray Man
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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While Civil War or Endgame packed a lot of over-the-top spectacle but still managed the kind of well-rounded story from previous MCU phases, The Gray Man is simply adrenaline, action, chase scenes, hand-to-hand combat and not much glue in the middle.
Posted Jul 21, 2022
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6/10
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Where the Crawdads Sing
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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Even though this movie made me realize the book’s many imperfections — as well as its own — I would probably watch it again. In a way, it reminded me of the 1990s big romantic melodrama movies that don’t get made that often these days, and I was missing.
Posted Jul 12, 2022
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9/10
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Persuasion
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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One thing to be said about this Persuasion, Anne is not only pining for Wentworth. She’s very much horny for him. She’s nursing her heartbreak by drinking red wine alone and going through the mementos she’s kept of the relationship they shared.
Posted Jul 08, 2022
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6/10
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The Sea Beast
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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The Sea Beast makes for the perfect watch for the whole family, but it didn’t appeal to this grownup the same way The Mitchells vs. the Machines did. I still learned a few valuable lessons though, like that sometimes you can be a hero and still be wrong.
Posted Jul 08, 2022
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8/10
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Top Gun: Maverick
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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This cinematic spectacle starts by paying homage to the original movie — with the notes of the “Top Gun Anthem” — and it never stops. If you liked Top Gun, you’ll enjoy Top Gun: Maverick thoroughly. All the ingredients of the original movie are there.
Posted May 12, 2022
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6/10
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Ambulance
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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Jake Gyllenhaal's character has the most out-of-touch yet hilarious reaction after Cam (Eiza González) sprays him with a fire extinguisher. Its cashmere! he complains, upset about his ruined sweater. I did feel for him a bit then.
Posted Apr 08, 2022
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6/10
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The Lost City
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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Maybe it was because I needed the kind of escapist light action-adventure fare The Lost City provides, but the movie made me laugh. A lot. Like when Beth reminds Loretta how to speak in front of the fans: No grumpy face, big words or academic talk.
Posted Mar 24, 2022
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7/10
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The Adam Project
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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Through Ryan Reynolds and Walker Scobells performances, The Adam Project delves into the idea of how much their 12-year-old version would annoy the hell out of anyone and probably not bring them the best of memories.
Posted Mar 10, 2022
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7/10
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Turning Red
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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Even though the connection between Turning Red and other intimate non-franchise Pixar films is palpable it reminded me of Inside Out (2015) but also Soul (2020) the fact that theres a woman at the helm really shows this time.
Posted Mar 07, 2022
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7/10
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The Batman
(2022)
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Patricia Puentes
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Zo Kravitz entered the scene, and two minutes into her first sequence I was already thinking: Couldnt this have been The Catwoman instead of The Batman?
Posted Feb 28, 2022
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8/10
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The Matrix Resurrections
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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It was almost eerie to leave the movie theater and be on the same downtown San Francisco streets where the film was shot. I almost wondered if I too was inside of the Matrix. I imagine that's precisely what Lana Wachowski was aiming at.
Posted Dec 21, 2021
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4/10
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Spider-Man: No Way Home
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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The best parts of this bloated and uneven two-and-a-half-hour movie are the connections to past Spidey versions. Considering that just in the last 19 years we've had eight live-action Spider-Man features, there's a lot of material to draw from.
Posted Dec 17, 2021
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8/10
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Don't Look Up
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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I feel I would have preferred to watch the fun and light version of this movie the trailer manages to somewhat misleadingly depict.
Posted Dec 09, 2021
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8/10
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King Richard
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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You'll recognize Smith in King Richard but, also, you won't. He spends most of the film dressed in tennis shorts, polo shirts and mid-calf socks. He gained weight, and he has a Louisiana accent so thick that this Spaniard had to pay extra attention.
Posted Nov 19, 2021
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6/10
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Belfast
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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I wonder whether I would have liked Belfast more had Branagh told us what Ma's (Caitríona Balfe) name is and had he centered his story on her.
Posted Nov 12, 2021
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5/10
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Eternals
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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Watching Chloé Zhao's The Rider made me want to learn horseback riding. Nomadland illustrated the reality houseless Americans face and offered a window into the American West. Both intertwine fiction and reality. I knew Eternals was going to be different.
Posted Oct 27, 2021
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8/10
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Dune
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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I'll admit to having spent at least half of the movie wondering whether Timothée Chalamet makes for a credible offspring of Oscar Isaac and Rebecca Ferguson. I still haven't reached a conclusion.
Posted Oct 21, 2021
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8/10
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The Last Duel
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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A lot has changed since the 14th century. Swords aren't used in battles. Clothes are simpler. Hairstyles are less unflattering. Some women have agency and power over their bodies and will. The Last Duel makes a point about everything that hasn't changed.
Posted Oct 15, 2021
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7/10
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No Time to Die
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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Where No Time to Die stands out the most is in its treatment of women. These are no Bond girls but women with agency. Ana de Armas plays Paloma, a CIA agent who helps Bond. But even if there's chemistry between them, Paloma is immune to Bond's charms.
Posted Oct 08, 2021
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6/10
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The Many Saints of Newark
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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With its inclusion of a scene where the gang eats at Satriale's, a generous number of theatrical "Oohs!", and Tony's first therapy session with a college counselor who asks him about his mom, the movie is playing constant homage to the show.
Posted Sep 30, 2021
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8/10
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The Eyes of Tammy Faye
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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Jessica Chastain does a lot of interpretative heavy-lifting by depicting this woman throughout her life and capturing her magnetism no matter the hairstyle, fashion choice or makeup usage.
Posted Sep 17, 2021
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6/10
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Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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Awkwafina and Simu Liu make for the perfect acting duo; they have great friendship chemistry and comedic timing. They share the infamous fight sequence aboard a moving Muni bus in San Francisco. She does the hilly driving, he does the kicking of ass.
Posted Aug 23, 2021
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6/10
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Beckett
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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Ferdinando Cito Filomarino does a great job of presenting this story as something that could actually happen to any of us. The violence is never stylized. The fights are not perfect choreographies. Beckett is simply having the worst day of his life.
Posted Aug 13, 2021
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7/10
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The Suicide Squad
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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It's a thrill to look at Viola Davis unmoved face when her character realizes the poor job her staff has done while putting together a team of assassins. Plus, she looks great in a lilac pencil skirt power suit.
Posted Aug 04, 2021
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6/10
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Luca
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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A story simply about a couple of friends in the Mediterranean for the summer could have been unbelievable and fantastical as-is. I didn't see the need to add the supernatural element to something that already is dreamy and almost filled with magic.
Posted Jun 18, 2021
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6/10
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In the Heights
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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The movie is an unapologetic tale about immigrants and their children - and their children's children. It makes a case for them not being invisible and not being powerless.
Posted Jun 10, 2021
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7/10
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A Quiet Place Part II
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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A Quiet Place Part II lends itself perfectly to the big screen experience. On the other hand, the movie - which was shot and initially set for release before COVID-19 hit - almost seems to parallel the situation we're living in at times.
Posted May 27, 2021
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5/10
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The Woman in the Window
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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If you've read the book, the film doesn't provide anything new other than muted colors, dreamy cinematography and a mostly underused cast. Not even Adams abandoning her good looks and glamour to play the distressed Anna manages to elevate this adaptation.
Posted May 14, 2021
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6/10
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Tom Clancy's Without Remorse
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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Without Remorse works just as an action movie that never stops. Director Stefano Sollima dispenses with the artifices, opting for a story told in chronological order and shot in the least interfering way possible.
Posted Apr 30, 2021
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6/10
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The United States vs. Billie Holiday
(2021)
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Patricia Puentes
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Even if the movie is tonally uneven, there's nothing flawed about Andra Day's interpretation of Billie Holiday. Day underwent a total transformation to become Holiday. She went from 163 to 124 pounds. She changed her speaking and singing voice.
Posted Mar 18, 2021
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