Film-Forward

Bad Axe

Do we need another documentary covering the pandemic and the George Floyd protests? Yes, and it’s one of the most surprising films of the year.

Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

This ambitious sequel channels the fallout of Chadwick Boseman’s death into a meaningful, almost meta, reflection of the post-Phase Three Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Salvatore: Shoemaker of Dreams

Luca Guadagnino profiles footwear designer Salvatore Ferragamo’s admirable achievements in this fawning yet dry tribute.

The King’s Horseman

Based on a play by Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka, which, in turn, is based on a real incident.

Sam & Kate

A sensitively drawn if somewhat middling throwback to the dramedies of the 1980s and 1990s, starring Dustin Hoffman and Sissy Spacek.

A Couple

French actress Nathalie Boutefeu stars as Sophia Tolstoy, wife of the great Russian novelist Leo Tolstoy, in a solo tour de force.

Something in the Dirt

How not to make a supernatural phenomena into a cash cow.

You Resemble Me

Director Dina Amer’s incisive and unsettling debut explores how a young French-Moroccan woman ended up becoming radicalized.

The Box

A heartbreaking, resonant coming-of-age film about a 14-year-old boy and his newfound, problematic father figure.