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Sundance ’26: ‘THE WEIGHT’ Is a Perfect Dad Movie with Arthouse Details

In the midst of the Great Depression, Samuel Murphy, played by the ever-reliable Ethan Hawke, is separated from his daughter and sent to a hard labor camp. His crime? Being poor. And maybe punching the wrong guys. At the camp, Warden Clancy (Russell Crowe) notes Murphy’s quiet intelligence and problem-solving gumption; he might just be able to help the warden out of a bind in exchange for a commuted sentence. That’s the setup for Padraic McKinley’s gorgeously mounted, pulse-thrumming survival adventure The Weight, a film that drapes a muscular, objective-driven plot over lush period-piece trappings. It’s beautifully crafted, yes, but also accessible, energetic, and smarter than it initially lets on. Read More

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Out in Theaters: ‘EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!!’

There’s a moment in Richard Linklater’s Everybody Wants Some where four collegiate athletes hover around an overstuffed bong, listening to the psychedelic crackle of Led Zeppelin, competing to see who can take the biggest bong rip.  It’s an indisputably Linklater moment, one that speaks to the essence of the Austin filmmaker’s disco baseball comedy that forces one to meditate on what friendship and camaraderie meant before the advent of cell phones. There is an enviable sense of authentic connection found in this communal stoned passage, one that finds itself increasingly diluted by distraction in modern day conversation, that’s undercut by an overarching spirit of competition. Community and competition – two forces that rally to make Linklater’s latest film a low key, nostalgiacore home run. Read More

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SXSW ’16 Review: ‘EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!!’

There’s a moment in Richard Linklater’s Everybody Wants Some where four collegiate athletes hover around an overstuffed bong, listening to the psychedelic crackle of Led Zeppelin, competing to see who can take the biggest bong rip.  It’s an indisputably Linklater moment, one that speaks to the essence of the Austin filmmaker’s disco baseball comedy that forces one to meditate on what friendship and camaraderie meant before the advent of cell phones. There is an enviable sense of authentic connection found in this communal stoned passage, one that finds itself increasingly diluted by distraction in modern day conversation, that’s undercut by an overarching spirit of competition. Community and competition – two forces that rally to make Linklater’s latest film a low key, nostalgiacore home run. Read More