Robert Daniels, Author at The Playlist

‘Lingui, The Sacred Bonds’: A Rich Pro-Choice Meditation [Cannes Review]

July 9, 2021 9:40 am

Director Mahamat-Saleh Haroun’s “Lingui, The Sacred Bonds,” a slow burn from the Chadian filmmaker, operates through a deceptively simple premise: A single mother living on the modest outskirts of N'djamena, C...

‘Rehana Maryam Noor’: Obsession And Sexism Make For A Sharp Character Study [Cannes Review]

Robert Daniels

July 8, 2021 9:17 am

Festivals, News, Reviews

“Rehana Maryam Noor,” the second feature film from director Abdullah Mohammad Saad, the first Bangladesh film featured in Cannes, is both a dogged pursuit for justice and a sturdy character study. The titular ...

‘A Choice Of Weapons: Inspired By Gordon Parks’: Is Slightly Out Of Focus [Tribeca Review]

Robert Daniels

June 21, 2021 10:48 am

Festivals, News, Reviews

Acclaimed photojournalist Gordon Parks was something of a renaissance man. A photographer, writer, composer, film director, and activist—he imbued the American Black experience with a sense of gravitas, esteem...

‘Bitchin’: The Sound and Fury of Rick James’: An Uneven Look At The Super Freak Hitmaker [Tribeca Review]

Robert Daniels

June 15, 2021 4:31 pm

Festivals, News, Reviews

For most adults under the age of forty, “I’m Rick James, bitch” was a statement of intent. The artefactual pop-culture catchphrase stems from The Chappelle Show sketch “Charlie Murphy's True Hollywood Stories,...

‘Catch The Fair One’: Josef Wladyka Delivers A Cathartic, Bloody Knock-Out & Instantly Becomes One To Watch [Tribeca Review]

Robert Daniels

June 15, 2021 12:34 pm

Festivals, News, Reviews

Out of the darkness, some voices rise above the others. At the 2021 Tribeca Film Festival, director Josef Wladyka is that voice. The creator first made waves in 2014 when his debut “Manos Sucias” (Dirty Hands)...

“Like A Rolling Stone: The Life & Times Of Ben Fong-Torres”: Is A Must-See For Music Lovers [Tribeca Review]

Robert Daniels

June 14, 2021 3:06 pm

Festivals, News, Reviews

You might know him best from Cameron Crowe’s seminal teenage road trip movie “Almost Famous.” Dressed replete in John Lennon glasses, long ink-black shaggy hair, and loud-open collar shirt, he is the editor fr...

‘All These Sons’: A Fitting Follow-up to Bing Liu’s ‘Minding the Gap’ [Tribeca Review]

Robert Daniels

June 14, 2021 11:32 am

Festivals, News, Reviews

Coming off their acclaimed documentary “Minding the Gap,” Joshua Altman and Bing Liu co-direct the searing, bracingly honest “All These Sons.”

‘The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It’ Commits The Horror Cardinal Sin Of Being Boring [Review]

Robert Daniels

June 1, 2021 12:33 pm

Features, News, Reviews

If asked to name successful non-comic book movie franchises, you’d probably think of “Mission: Impossible,” “Saw,” or “Jurassic Park.” It’d take a while before you landed on “The Conjuring.” Having spawned spi...

‘Port Authority’ Leaves Its Trans-Led Love Story Stranded [Review]

Robert Daniels

May 28, 2021 2:36 pm

News, Reviews

While gems like “Lingua Franca,” “Tangerine,” and “Pose” have given face to transgender women of color through open, real love stories, trans romance movies are still in short supply. Director Danielle Lessovi...

‘Cruella’: Emma Stone Struggles To Redesign This Unfashionable Origin Story [Review]

Robert Daniels

May 26, 2021 9:46 am

Features, News, Reviews

“People need a villain to believe in,” says the snarky two-toned haired Cruella (Emma Stone). Based on the Dalmatian thieving megalomaniac fashion designer that first cackled her way through a 1961 Disney anim...

‘The Outside Story’: Brian Tyree Henry Shines As Romantic Lead [Review]

Robert Daniels

April 30, 2021 4:28 pm

News, Reviews

Since 2017 Brian Tyree Henry has shown a good nose for great films: From the tidy indie “Crown Heights” to the blockbuster hit “Godzilla vs. Kong,”— his supporting performances often shine brightly in these pa...

‘Inbetween Girl’: A Liberated, Clever Coming-of-Age Story [SXSW Review]

Robert Daniels

March 22, 2021 9:00 am

Festivals, News, Reviews

In an SXSW littered with feature directorial debuts, the runway for new voices to emerge has never been wider. While the opportunity has been there, however, the results have been mixed, at best. So you’ll hav...

‘Islands’: Is A Modest Life-Affirming Character Study [SXSW Review]

Robert Daniels

March 21, 2021 11:00 am

Festivals, News, Reviews

A Fillipino-Canadian family prays at an array of ruby red candles. The son in this frame is Joshua (Rogelio Balagtas). He lives a repetitive life, if one can call it that, with his elderly mother, Alma (Vangie...

‘The Fallout’: A School Shooting Makes for an Emotional Heavyweight [SXSW Review]

Robert Daniels

March 21, 2021 10:38 am

Festivals, News, Reviews

A teenage Vada (Jenna Ortega) arrives at her high school with her best friend Nick (Will Ropp). The coarse Vada isn’t part of the in-crowd. She sports oversized t-shirts, basketball shorts, and sneakers. She l...

‘I’m Fine (Thanks for Asking)’: Uneven Pandemic-Themed Story of Hardship [SXSW Review]

Robert Daniels

March 20, 2021 4:46 pm

News

Co-directors Kelly Kali and Angelique Molina’s dark comedy “I’m Fine (Thanks for Asking)” is the newest in what’s become an elongated line of pandemic-themed cinema. Following Danny (Kali) and Wes (Wesley Moss...

Author Robert Daniels