All articles by David Kempler

A young girl witnesses a horrific crime and recedes into fantasy in order to maintain her sanity in this unusual coming-of-age story.

True story about a mass murder in Australia is not graphic but is plenty powerful.

This year’s nominees are all very much worth watching.

This supposed dark comedy starts by throwing together a bunch of ideas stolen from other directors and ends up a mess.

This documentary on hardboiled writer Nelson Algren is informative and enjoyable, but not a particularly great film.

Joel Coen’s take on Shakespeare is worthy of Shakespeare.

A photographer is hired to shoot pre-wedding pics but ends up shooting the slaughter of indigenous people. Looks great, but that’s it.

Flawed but utterly fascinating peek into the mind of Albert Speer, one of Hitler’s major players.

World War II Japanese spy flick is a new take and well made, even if not great.

A small diner in a back alley in Shanghai is a magnet for some regulars and drop-ins in this appetizing comedy-drama.