Critic’s Notebook

Steven Soderbergh's return to the movies is a misfire, above all because it flunks American cultural geography.

Christopher Nolan's "Dunkirk" successfully conveys a chaotic World War II's fiasco that turned into a heroic moment.

In "Berlin Syndrome," Australian director Cate Shortland tugs at Patty Hearst's cape, with mixed results.

Olivier Assayas' "Personal Shopper" has lots of clothes, but the people beneath them are murky.

Haitian director Raoul Peck takes risks by reviving James Baldwin's racial views.

Jordan Peele's sly "Get Out" uses horror to get to the core of American race relations.

Ashgar Farhadi deservedly picks up a second Oscar for "The Salesman," a taught marriage drama.

In Paul Verhoeven's psychological thriller, Isabelle Huppert's Michèle Leblanc is the sum of violence and lies.

Damien Chazelle's "La La Land" is chock with music and dance, but there's a basement at its core.

Writer-director Barry Jenkins' story of a taciturn boy as seen through various stages of life is a stunning accomplishment.

Scott Derrickson's saccharine "Doctor Strange," heavy on time warping and mysticism, is redeemed in part by jack-of-all-trades Benedict Cumberbatch.

In Nanni Moretti's latest, a dying mother plunges a filmmaking daughter into crisis.