Justin Chang
Justin Chang is a film critic at The New Yorker. He also reviews movies for NPR’s “Fresh Air.” Previously, he was the film critic at the Los Angeles Times and the chief film critic at Variety. His book “FilmCraft: Editing” was published in 2011. Chang serves as the chair of the National Society of Film Critics and the secretary of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, and is a member of the New York Film Festival selection committee. He teaches at the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California. In 2024, he won the Pulitzer Prize for criticism, for his writing about film at the Los Angeles Times.
In Two Films About Palestinian Struggle, Time Is of the Essence
In “All That’s Left of You” and “The Voice of Hind Rajab,” medical emergencies beget agonizing moral conundrums.
The Zealous Voyagers of “Magellan” and “The Testament of Ann Lee”
In two historical bio-pics, the directors Lav Diaz and Mona Fastvold employ bold formal devices to hold their protagonists at a compelling remove.
Béla Tarr’s Unbroken Visions
In muckily deliberative masterworks such as “Sátántangó” and “The Turin Horse,” the Hungarian director monumentalized the process of decay and the passage of time.
January Festivals Bring the Weird, Wonderful Shows
Also: “Tartuffe” mania, the guitar stylings of William Tyler and Yasmin Williams, Justin Chang’s movies for a new year, and more.
“Young Mothers” Is a Gentle Gift from the Dardenne Brothers
In Jean-Pierre and Luc Dardenne’s latest drama, set in and around a Belgian maternity home, several teen-age moms seek to break through cycles of poverty, addiction, and neglect.
“No Other Choice” Eliminates the Competition with Style
In Park Chan-wook’s adaptation of Donald E. Westlake’s crime novel, Lee Byung-hun plays a newly laid-off executive who launches his own campaign of mass termination.
The Delirious Cinematic Artifice of Bi Gan’s “Resurrection”
In the Chinese director’s third feature, the pop idol Jackson Yee plays a shape-shifting dreamer who gets lost in a densely allusive maze of stories and genres.
“Avatar: Fire and Ash” Mostly Treads Water
In James Cameron’s latest 3-D science-fiction extravaganza, the Na’vi family tree gets more complicated, but our sense of wonderment flattens out.
The Lovably Fragile Exes of “Is This Thing On?”
Bradley Cooper’s latest film, about separated spouses played by Laura Dern and Will Arnett, is scrappy but soul-nourishing.
“Wake Up Dead Man”: A Murder Mystery with God in the Details
In Rian Johnson’s latest whodunnit, Josh O’Connor plays a Catholic priest trying to restore moral order at a church befouled by murder.
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“Train Dreams” Is Too Tidy to Go Off the Rails
In Clint Bentley’s adaptation of a Denis Johnson novella, Joel Edgerton plays a builder of bridges who finds himself increasingly cut off from the modern world.
“Hamnet” Feels Elemental, but Is It Just Highly Effective Grief Porn?
In Chloé Zhao’s film, adapted from Maggie O’Farrell’s novel, the death of a child gives rise to the creation of a literary masterpiece.
“Wicked: For Good” Is Very, Very Bad
In the second of two movies adapted from the Broadway musical, Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo battle fascism, bigotry, and some fairly dreadful filmmaking.
The Ghosts of Girlhoods Past in “Sound of Falling”
Mascha Schilinski’s dark, century-spanning ensemble drama sees four generations of women take up spectral residence in a German farmhouse.
“Sirāt” Is a Harrowing, Exhilarating Dance of Death
In Oliver Laxe’s desert thriller, an intensely agonizing journey reveals both the pitiless nature of fate and the stubborn persistence of compassion.
The Bad Show-Biz Dads of “Sentimental Value” and “Jay Kelly”
In new films from Joachim Trier and Noah Baumbach, success in filmmaking proves depressingly incompatible with success in fatherhood.
In Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein,” a Vast Vision Gets Netflixed Down to Size
The latest reanimation of Mary Shelley’s classic tale, starring Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi, is a labyrinthine tour of a filmmaker’s career-long obsessions.
Emma Stone’s Apocalyptic Showdown Blooms in “Bugonia”
In Yorgos Lanthimos’s film, ripe with eco-paranoia, the actress and Jesse Plemons come to physical and psychological blows.