La La Land (Summit Entertainment, PG-13)
It’s a thrilling combination of musical theater, energetic filmmaking, pageantry, and just about every other thing you need to make a movie downright “fabulous.”
Ryan Gosling
Mississippi Grind (A24, R)
There’s a good time to be had in trying to figure out where the movie’s going and how it’s going to end—reading its tells, if you prefer.
The Place Beyond the Pines (Focus Features, R)
The movie as a whole is a fairly major disappointment, and I just can’t tell you specifically why with a clear film critic’s conscience.
Gangster Squad (Warner Bros. Pictures, R)
Sean Penn is basically the male equivalent to Meryl Streep in the Academy’s eyes, and costar Ryan Gosling is perhaps the best young actor to pop up in the past decade.
The Ides of March (Columbia Pictures, R)
It’s also a thoroughly good political thriller that both works on its own and makes an interesting comment on the current state of the union.
Drive (FilmDistrict, R)
He may want those things (quietly, desperately) but they’re not meant for him.
Crazy, Stupid, Love. (Warner Bros. Pictures, PG-13)
Not that it’s perfect, but it is considerably better than most Hollywood romantic comedies ever even try to be, which is saying something.
Blue Valentine (The Weinstein Company, R)
It’s a novel approach to comic relief in some ways, but more importantly it makes the wallop feel that much harder.
All Good Things (Magnolia Pictures, R)
The story concerns Durst/Marks very likely killing his wife, moving to a different town and trying to pass himself off as a mute old woman, then dismembering his neighbor.