Darren Ruecker

Stronger complicates the notion of the public hero in its heartfelt telling of Boston marathon bombing survivor Jeff Bauman's story, with terrific performances from Jake Gyllenhaal and Tatiana Maslany.

The Killing of a Sacred Deer envelops you in its strange, disturbing world with the manipulative skill of a true surrealist master.

About Ray is not, in the end, a triumph, but is still good and necessary viewing for its subject matter.

La La Land feels like a throwback and also like something we've never seen before, resulting in a dreamy musical that hits just about every note.

It’s a movie where even seasoned cinemagoers who feel like or claim to have seen everything are likely to marvel at how director Kenneth Lonergan was able to achieve something new, interesting, painful, hilarious, or beautiful, or some combination of all these things, in every single scene. It’s the type of movie that makes a person reach for the nearest hyperbole to describe it.

Nocturnal Animals confirms Tom Ford as an essential director, as he gives us two dazzling stories that combine for one powerful movie experience.

American Pastoral doesn't quite nail its tone, but it's a compelling enough adaptation with a few truly inspired moments.

Beneath this movie’s conventions are some interesting gender politics that perhaps could have been made more apparent, but to its credit, are pleasantly subtle.

For sheer craftsmanship and watchability alone, Amanda Knox is a must-see offering on Netflix; for its exposure of the workings of justice systems and media culture, it’s an essential piece of work worth sharing and discussing.

Moonlight captures the limitations of masculine conventions in an incredibly sympathetic, deeply felt way.