Jason Reitman’s “Tully” is, first and foremost, a warning not to have children. That’s not quite the intent of the film, and parents will surely find a relatable story about the...
Editor’s note: A 30 column is a chance for departing permanent staff to say farewell and reflect on their time spent in the The Daily Texan. The term comes from the old typesetting mark (-30-) to...
After a decade of fans demanding Marvel make a film with a lasting impact on the universe, the third Avengers film, “Infinity War,” looks viewers dead in the eye and says one thing: Be careful...
Amy Schumer, one of Hollywood’s most controversial figures, has made the most problematic good movie in weeks. The film is endearing in the way children can be, earnest in a sweet manner but too...
What do you get when you combine every modern teen-based horror film (“Unfriended,” “It Follows,” “Final Destination”) with “Jumanji”? If you said “a...
From the upside-down opening shots of palm trees all the way to a mirrored view at the end, “Gemini” is nowhere near as smart as it thinks it is.
Directed by indie filmmaker Aaron Katz,...
“Pacific Rim: Uprising” is no “Pacific Rim.” It’s not even comparable to a movie in the character-focused “Fast & Furious” franchise. It’s closest to...
There are 375 movies in history with a budget of over $100 million , but the first of these films directed by a woman of color arrives this Friday with “A Wrinkle in Time” from Ava DuVernay.
Much...
Watching “A Fantastic Woman,” I couldn’t help but think about the comments underneath a recent tweet by The Washington Times.
“Is Caitlyn Jenner a woman?,” the tweet reads....
“Game Night” feels like a film conceived by two extraordinarily high filmmakers between tokes: What if David Fincher’s “The Game” met the Steve Carell/Tina Fey vehicle “Date...
On paper, “Early Man” shouldn’t work — it’s a claymation film from a small British studio about a prehistoric world where all of the cavemen play soccer instead of hunting...
The story of Sarah Winchester is one of America’s most famous ghost stories. The heiress to a company founded on weaponry, she believed she was haunted by the ghosts of all those killed by guns bearing...
What is the price of soldiers just following orders?
This is the question at the heart of “Hostiles,” a new Western starring Christian Bale. Not content with simply telling the heroic story...
In 1971, the Pentagon Papers leaked to the American public, revealing years of government lies concerning Vietnam during President Lyndon B. Johnson’s administration. Journalists shed light on America’s...
‘The Florida Project’
Sean Baker once again revisits forgotten America in “The Florida Project,” portraying a summer in the life of young Moonee and her unemployable mother....
Three of Hollywood’s most powerful individuals are collaborating on one superfilm. Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks star in Steven Spielberg’s “The Post,” a movie about The Washington...
As mental health awareness grows, so does representation in popular media. Though representation in this arena has a troubled past and even a troubled present in film — see: “Split”...
Charles Dickens ditches nuanced storytelling for sentimental schlock and flowing locks in “The Man Who Invented Christmas,” the most unashamed exploitation of the Christmas season in recent...
One of the most powerful names in pop music is back, and she’s out to clear her “reputation.” Unfortunately, Taylor Swift’s newest comes up short, settling for a perfectly listenable...
Greta Gerwig, writer and star of indie dramedies such as “Frances Ha” and “Mistress America,” marks her debut as a director in “Lady Bird,” a delightful early-2000s...
ACL Day 3: though it lacked the memorable moments of Day 1’s performance of “The Story of OJ” from Jay-Z and Day 2’s impromptu Longhorns watching party it was still a wonderful...
UT alumnus Ken Aponte faced a difficult choice — bring his child to ACL or end a 12-year tradition.
His wife, Laura, put an end to the conversation by letting him know that not attending was not...
The remaining ACL attendees at the end of Day Two of the fest were not gathered around a stage or a musician, but a television. After Chance the Rapper and the Red Hot Chili Peppers concluded their sets,...
Months ago, Mario Sanchez, a resident of Puebla, Mexico, came across an ad on Instagram for Austin City Limits. When he realized opening day overlapped with one of his closest friends’ birthdays,...
Day one of Austin City Limits brought people of all backgrounds from all parts of the world to the live music capital of the world for acts big and small.
The day started early, with acts officially...
Fantastic Fest 2017 was an abnormal affair. Controversies caused a headlining film to drop out and massively impacted the festival’s atmosphere. Many across the internet demanded a change in the...
Armando Iannucci, veteran writer of “Veep,” understands modern political comedy. His newest effort, “The Death of Stalin,” takes its events from the past, but its themes ring true...
College freshman Thelma is just like everyone else—she’s awkward around new people, shocked by her recent freedom, and her dorm room looks like an Ikea catalog. As unexplainable events begin...
Director Joseph Kahn’s “Bodied” is angry. It’s angry at its characters, its audience, politicians and the culture in general. It’s also legitimately hilarious, and one of...
Puberty sucks. Between forging new friendships, being stuck in between two stages of life and unexpected bodily changes, it is just all terrible. Swiss director Lisa Brühlmann fully understands this,...
Sometimes, a movie comes along that accidentally ends up more timely than it intends. “Arrival,” a film that showed the value in communicating and working with one those you disagree with,...
Stan Lee. Jack Kirby. Bob Kane. The legendary creators of Spider-Man, Captain America and Batman have their names written in history. Wonder Woman creator William Moulton Marston, on the other hand, is...
Horror filmmaking is undergoing something of a modern Renaissance. Just this month saw the release of “It,” the most lucrative horror film of all time, and “mother!,” one...
When most people imagine a Western film, they generally think of a lone (white) cowboy protecting his (Southern) town and the (also white) people he loves against the (often Mexican) criminals terrorizing...
Two parts brutal action film and one part parody, director Jimmy Henderson’s “Jailbreak” is only a few tonal choices away from perfection.
Bokator, a traditional Cambodian martial...
Director S. Craig Zahler’s sophomore feature, “Brawl in Cell Block 99,” is one of the most violent movies of all time. It is a mean-spirited look into the horrors of prison life, and...
“We cannot live in the past; we have to let it go.”
Animated short film “World of Tomorrow Episode Two: The Burden of Other People’s Thoughts” takes an existential look...
Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos’ Academy Award-nominated film “The Lobster” wowed audiences in 2016 as one of the best and most creative films of the year.
His follow-up, “The...
“High School Musical” meets British horror-comedy “Shaun of the Dead” in “Anna and the Apocalypse,” a frequently hilarious and often-touching musical set in the zombie...
The brilliant criminal, the nervous newcomer and the upstanding lawman — Hollywood Western tropes are recognizable across the planet, and French directors Helene Cattet and Bruno Forzani know it....
Elaborate capers are some of the most pulse-pounding scenes in cinema, and this intense Thai film combines those with the most pulse-pounding real-life moments of adolescence — standardized tests.
Unknown...
Based on the true story of the Soviet Space Program’s near-impossible rescue of two cosmonauts stranded on a broken space station, “Salyut-7” is a heart-pounding but overlong voyage to...
Few directors arrive on the scene with as much maturity as Cory Finley does with “Thoroughbreds,” a bleak comedy about the “struggles” of middle-class adolescence.
Anya Taylor-Joy...
Fantastic Fest is an Austin cinephile's dream. Filmmakers, fans and journalists from across the nation come to the Violet Crown to experience a full week of film and take a peek at next year's...
Hollywood has rarely, if ever, seen as bold a wide release as Darren Aronofsky’s “mother!,” a surreal tone-piece that provides two hours of unsettling allegory with just enough narrative...
When you play the game of likes, you win, or you get unfollowed.
Social media platforms have gained fame — or infamy, depending on whom you ask — because of their extraordinary ability...
Editor’s note: Tat-Tuesday is a weekly series that features students around campus and their tattoos.
Karen Dabroi
Using a sewing needle taped to a pencil, visual arts studies sophomore...
UT-Austin’s campus is inarguably beautiful. From grassy malls to awe-inducing architecture — save for Robert Lee Moore Hall — visual grandeur is around every corner.
Artistic elegance...
Christopher Nolan, the master behind thrilling mindbenders like “The Prestige” and “Inception,” has put his own personal spin on classic World War II films with “Dunkirk,”...
Texas director David Lowery surprised filmgoers last year with the brilliant “Pete’s Dragon,” a family-friendly reimagining of Disney’s 1977 hybrid live-action animated film. His...
Texas director David Lowery has thrown his hat into the arena of abstract art films with his newest effort, “A Ghost Story,” and delivers one the most emotionally impactful, thematically rich...
Most films ride on the success of their screenwriters and directors, but sometimes a cast gives a set of performances so wonderful it elevates the film, even with disappointing efforts behind the camera.
The...
After years of being “that guy” who shows up in movies for a few minutes and leaves, comedian Kumail Nanjiani’s newest film “The Big Sick,” provides his first ever leading...
Michael Bay has made good movies in the past. “Bad Boys,” “The Rock” and even the first “Transformers” are fun, visually appealing and competently told. His newest addition...
Ever since the groundbreaking success of Marvel’s “The Avengers” in 2012, film studios have attempted to recreate their successes. Only five years later, there are planned cinematic universes...
Acclaimed comic book writer Gail Simone once said, “If you need to stop an asteroid, you call Superman. If you need to solve a mystery, you call Batman. But if you need to end a war, you call Wonder...
The first Saturday of every May sees massive swaths of people flock to one of the least likely places for a crowd: comic book stores.
Initially pitched by magazine columnist Joe Fields in 2001 as a...
Summer is a busy time for college students, and between summer classes and internships, there remains very little time for the important things in life, like watching movies. Even more difficult is wading...
Eugenio Derbez, named the most influential Latin-American star by Variety, is hugely popular in Spanish-speaking countries, and this week he begins his attempt to make it in America.
He produced and...
Yessenia Herrera
Between her personal love of both music and tattoos, radio-television-film junior Yessenia Herrera has a great appreciation for artistic expression.
Herrera said she dreams...
The director of the acclaimed “Hotel Rwanda,” which chronicled the Rwandan Genocide in tragic detail, returns to historical filmmaking with “The Promise,” a sometimes-brutal look...
Editor's note: Tat-Tuesday is a weekly series that features students around campus and their tattoos.
Zach Royston
English senior Zach Royston became a lifelong fan of the English Premiere...
In the face of numerous obstacles, the members of the Crofut family pursue their shared passion — the wildly popular Good Flow Honey Company.
The beloved honey, now on the shelves of grocers all...
Editor's note: Tat-Tuesday is a weekly series that features students around campus and their tattoos.
Olivia Kean
Though public health and biology junior Olivia Kean has not...
The worst of the three terrible Smurfs films this decade, “Smurfs: The Lost Village” is a stale depiction of one-dimensional characters brought to life by celebrity voice actors.
As the...
Kassidy Sablatura
Biology sophomore Kassidy Sablatura has always chased after the idea of self-liberation. She credits the UT community with helping her redefine her values last year and figure...
For many students, college is a time of self-discovery, but for business freshman McKenzie Powell, the struggle has been more complicated than others. As the child of a white father and a black mother,...
Editor's note: Tat-Tuesday is a weekly series that features students around campus and their tattoos.
Nick Giron
As a child of two pastors, incoming graduate student...
Some films exist to show viewers a new perspective or some simply entertain, but others, like Disney’s live-action remake of “Beauty and the Beast,” fail to present a compelling artistic...
Editor's note: Tat-Tuesday is a weekly series that features students around campus and their tattoos.
Sage Hadley
Though senior Sage Hadley’s major is communication...
Though SXSW Film has been home to many world premieres of Hollywood films, it still devotes time to showing independent films and giving new directors a shot.
The festival’s showcase of low-budget,...
Even with a lineup of world famous directors, the South by Southwest Film Festival always makes space to present micro-budget films and save a few seats for students to access the event.
The ever-expanding...
Under-the-radar cannibal horror film “Raw” finds terror in everyone’s worst nightmare — freshman year.
Also known as “the French cannibal movie that made people faint,”...
Editor's note: Tat-Tuesday is a weekly series that features students around campus and their tattoos.
Annie Ratner
Business sophomore Annie Ratner’s parents raised her...
The range of stories set in Texas is as big as the state itself. From Westerns to slashers to dark comedies, the state gives films a specific flavor other locales cannot.
To...
Editor's note: Tat-Tuesday is a weekly series that features students around campus and their tattoos.
Paulette McDurfee
The tattoo of the letters “PMA” on the...
Nathan Leclear
Graduate student Nathan Leclear’s grandparents were a huge part of his childhood. Leclear said he remembers always feeling close to his grandparents because of the large hand...
After playing Wolverine for 17 years, Hugh Jackman is retiring from his iconic role with “Logan” — one of the most moving superhero films of all time.
In his follow-up to 2013’s...
Whitewashing controversy has dogged the Chinese-American co-production “The Great Wall” since its announcement, but the most repulsive element of the movie is its laziness and fear of innovation....
Director Chad Stahelski‘s “John Wick: Chapter 2” is an adrenaline-fueled epic sequel that is every bit as action-packed and brutal as its predecessor. This time, Wick takes his violent...
“John Wick: Chapter 2” is an espresso shot of a movie, an action epic which ramps up its predecessor’s brutal fight scenes without any excess fat.
Some of the most interesting elements...
Editor’s note: Tat-Tuesday is a weekly series that features students around campus and their tattoos.
Ashley Nava
Ashley Nava, a Mexican-American studies and anthropology sophomore, has always...
Robert De Niro’s legendary career has earned him a place in the pantheon of great actors, but his current streak of mediocrity truly disappoints, with his new film “The Comedian” falling...
Editor's note: Tat-Tuesday is a weekly series that features students around campus and their tattoos.
Matthew Freeman
To economics junior Matthew Freeman, the Greek word...
Many Southeast and East Asian nations celebrate Lunar New Year, and the films they watch fit into each country’s own distinct customs and traditions to honor
the holiday.
For 20 years, New Year...
Cultural and language differences frequently prevent foreign films from connecting with American audiences, but “Toni Erdmann,” a German film from writer/director Maren Ade transcends these...
Josh Weidig
Tattoos and piercings are everything to finance junior Josh Weidig, who has multiple pieces inked on his side.
“This one is ‘Life is Beautiful,’” Weidig said....
The most fascinating performances in film come from actors whose distinct presence elevates the work. Star Annette Bening’s performance, equal parts hilarious and touching, propels “20th Century...
Charles Liu:
“Moonlight”
“Who is you?”
That’s the question Chiron, an African-American boy growing up in Miami, must answer as he comes to terms with his masculinity...
Writer-director Kenneth Lonergan has created his first masterpiece. “Manchester by the Sea” is an unqualified success of intimate filmmaking, storytelling and psychology.
Modern...
Though many films seek to inform, critique or transform their audience, others simply entertain. “Rules Don’t Apply,” Warren Beatty’s first film in 18 years, is the latter...
In a sea of greatness, standing out from the crowd is hard. The near-untouchable history of Disney musical films creates this problem every year, but “Moana” easily shines just as bright.
Young...
In the past weeks, articles from news outlets such as Entertainment Weekly, Time and Huffington Post drew comparisons between the “Harry Potter” films and modern politics. In “Fantastic...
“Doctor Strange” takes the superhero genre on a bizarre and awesome trip into mysticism. With beautiful action, abstract expeditions into the cosmos and a satisfying ending, the film is almost...
Moonlight,” starring former track star and UT alumnus Trevante Rhodes, will be released this Friday. The film tells the story of a man’s life as he comes to terms with his own sexuality. The...
Two-thirds of the way through “Inferno,” a plot twist caused as many exasperated laughs as it did shocked gasps. This reaction defines the movie, as “Inferno” manages to be as contrived...
At New York Comic-Con in early October, Marvel announced its publishing lineup included 23 female-led comic books — its most ever.
By creating new heroes and reimagining classics, Marvel...
Although Ben Affleck was recently on a roll with his directorial effort in “Argo” and well-chosen role in “Gone Girl,” his streak ends as he takes on the titular role in Gavin O’Connor’s “The...
“The Birth of a Nation” director, writer and star Nate Parker created one of the most-discussed films of the 21st century. But while the film’s initial showing at Sundance inspired hype...
