Cinema News: Movies Update: ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ and More

February 17, 2023

By Mekado Murphy

Movies Editor

Hey, movie fans!

If you've been needing a Marvel movie fix, look no further than the latest from the M.C.U.: "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania." It gave our critic, Manohla Dargis, a shrinking feeling. In her review, she wrote that the film is "a hash of recycled ideas and schtick."

If you're an Emily Brontë fan, a new biopic on her life, "Emily," may be more your speed. Dargis had much nicer thoughts on Frances O'Connor's film, calling it "a confident directorial debut and an enjoyably irreverent take on Brontë, one that builds on the scant historical record to construct an imaginary, at times wishful portrait of the artist."

And for those who like the writer Raymond Chandler, and his detective invention, Philip Marlowe, a new movie starring Liam Neeson may be up your alley. Though our critic, A.O. Scott wrote that the film "neither dutifully copies nor cleverly updates detective-movie tropes."

Whatever your taste, enjoy the movies!

Marvel Studios/Disney

'Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania' Review: Splat

The latest installment in the Marvel franchise never takes flight despite its hard-working cast, led by Paul Rudd and a new villain played by Jonathan Majors.

By Manohla Dargis

Michael Wharley/Bleecker Street/Obscure Pictures

CRITIC'S PICK

'Emily' Review: A Brontë Sister's Savage, Hardy and Free Life

Blending fact with generous, liberating fiction, the director Frances O'Connor brings the author of "Wuthering Heights" to pleasurable life.

By Manohla Dargis

Open Road Films

'Marlowe' Review: The Adventures of a Worn-Out Gumshoe

Liam Neeson and Neil Jordan try to breathe new life into Raymond Chandler's hard-boiled hero.

By A.O. Scott

ShortsTV

'The 2023 Oscar Nominated Short Films' Review: Bite-Size Global Tales

This year's selections include a film about the disappearance of a sibling and one about the appearance of 100,000 walruses.

By Jeannette Catsoulis, Amy Nicholson and Ben Kenigsberg

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MOVIE REVIEWS

Grasshopper Film/Gratitude Films

'Pacifiction' Review: Trouble in Paradise

Albert Serra's languorous new film is a dreamy meditation on post-colonial geopolitics.

By A.O. Scott

Alison Cohen Rosa/Apple TV+

'Sharper' Review: The Big Con

The film stars Sebastian Stan and Julianne Moore in a baroque but lackluster story of con artists circling a Manhattan billionaire's fortune.

By Nicolas Rapold

ITN Studios and Jagged Edge Productions

'Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey' Review: Willy-Nilly Killy Old Bear

A childhood favorite gets a threadbare horror treatment.

By Kyle Turner

Samuel Goldwyn

'88' Review: Finding Hate in Numbers

In this new political thriller, a campaign finance manager uncovers a corrupt scheme.

By Glenn Kenny

Dean Francis/Dark Star Pictures

'Lonesome' Review: Using Sex, Finding Intimacy

The Australian filmmaker Craig Boreham's drama credibly depicts characters who feel most comfortable communicating through sex.

By Teo Bugbee

Meridian Hill Pictures/Magic Labs Media

'The First Step' Review: Van Jones Battles for Bipartisanship

This well-meaning documentary follows the liberal commentator as he works with both political parties to pass a criminal justice reform bill.

By Natalia Winkelman

Jeon Young-wook/Netflix

'Unlocked' Review: A Surveillance Thriller Best Left Offline

A woman experiences paranoia, loss and bodily danger after a serial killer hacks her phone.

By Robert Daniels

Well Go USA

'Hidden Blade' Review: Smoke Gets in Your Eyes

Tony Leung stars as a spy chief during a shadowy period in midcentury China, when nationalists, communists and imperialists vied for power and souls.

By Austin Considine

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MORE REVIEWS

'Jethica' Review: Slow Stalker

Two women battle an unusually persistent admirer in this enjoyably offbeat supernatural comedy.

By Jeannette Catsoulis

'Last Night in New York' Review: A Social Chronicler Explains Himself

A slew of well-off New Yorkers, many of them not very nice, sing the praises of their "Boswell," David Patrick Columbia, in a new documentary.

By Glenn Kenny

'A Radiant Girl' Review: Coming of Age in Paris, 1942

This Holocaust drama could have easily passed for a blissful teen romance; instead, it's an awkwardly rendered portrait of a young Jewish woman in denial.

By Beatrice Loayza

NEWS & FEATURES

Sinna Nasseri for The New York Times

THE PROJECTIONIST

At the Oscar Nominees Luncheon, a Crowd in Cruise Control

The "Top Gun: Maverick" star and producer is mobbed as Austin Butler, Angela Bassett, Ke Huy Quan and others angle to chat with him.

By Kyle Buchanan

Lynsey Weatherspoon/Orion Pictures, via Associated Press

CRITIC'S NOTEBOOK

How the Oscars and Grammys Thrive on the Lie of Meritocracy

Despite all the markers of excellence, contenders like Danielle Deadwyler, Viola Davis and Beyoncé weren't recognized for the highest honors. Niche awards don't suffice.

By Salamishah Tillet