Movies Update: ‘The Last Duel,’ Selma Blair and More

Plus, the lure of "Bergman Island."

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story October 15, 2021 By Stephanie Goodman Hi, film fans! So many movies are being released this week, it's hard to know where to start. That's one sign that the fall season is shifting into high gear. Another is that several of the movies are critic's picks. Manohla Dargis writes approvingly that with "The Last Duel," Ridley Scott "has directed what may be the big screen's first medieval feminist revenge saga." The plot of Mia Hansen-Love's "Bergman Island" may seem slight — a screenwriting couple stays at the home of the great Swedish filmmaker — but A.O. Scott finds it "slippery and enchanting." Ryusuke Hamaguchi's "Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy" is also on the unassuming side, but Dargis describes this talkathon, in which men and women circle one another, as wistful and moving. Other critic's picks include "The Velvet Underground" documentary, the Mexican drama "Son of Monarchs" and the unnerving "Fever Dream." Notably, "Halloween Kills," the latest chapter in the Michael Myers saga, didn't make the cut. What are readers talking about this week? To judge by the lively comments, it's Dave Itzkoff's interview with Selma Blair, the subject of a new documentary about her life with multiple sclerosis. The neurological disease can affect her voice and her ability to walk, among other symptoms. She says that since she went public with the diagnosis, she's been offered roles for aging or disabled characters: "I might be those things, but I'm still everything else I was before, and I shouldn't be relegated to that." Hope your weekend is filled with good movies. Magdalena Wosinska for The New York Times Selma Blair Wants You to See Her Living With Multiple Sclerosis The actress puts herself out there in "Introducing, Selma Blair," an unflinching documentary that she hopes can help others. By Dave Itzkoff Mark Sommerfeld for The New York Times The Velvet Underground Meets Its Match in Todd Haynes In the director's hands, music subjects are as much about their cultural moment as about their sound — a good description of the band led by Lou Reed. By Elisabeth Vincentelli Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT CRITIC'S PICKS Patrick Redmond/20th Century Studios Critic's Pick 'The Last Duel' Review: A Medieval Epic in the Age of #MeToo Ridley Scott and his all-star cast rip the moldy fig leaf off chivalric romance in a he-said, he-said, she-said spectacle. By Manohla Dargis IFC Films critic's pick 'Bergman Island' Review: Love Among the Cinephiles In Mia Hansen-Love's new film, Vicky Krieps and Tim Roth play filmmakers on the rocks in the Baltic Sea. By A.O. Scott Film Movement Critic's Pick 'Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy' Review: What We Talk About In three stories, men and women circle one another as they casually and cruelly share intimacies, express desires and voice doubts. By Manohla Dargis WarnerMedia/HBO Max Critic's Pick 'Son of Monarchs' Review: Of Butterflies and Belonging This lush Mexican drama tells a story about climate change and cultural identity using the allegory of monarch butterflies' migration. By Isabelia Herrera NEWS & FEATURES Chiabella James The Man Who Finally Made a 'Dune' That Fans Will Love How Denis Villeneuve broke the curse. By Helen Macdonald Jingyu Lin for The New York Times Bonding With Léa Seydoux The French actress has roles in "No Time to Die," "The French Dispatch" and the upcoming "France." She sees acting as a way to connect to the world. By Nicolas Rapold J. Emilio Flores for The New York Times Alan Horn, a top creative executive, is the latest high-ranking Disney departure. His retirement adds to brain drain at the world's largest entertainment company as a new generation of executives rise to power. By Brooks Barnes Sunset Boulevard/Corbis, via Getty Images Critic's Notebook Visconti's Operatic Autopsy of German History, Restored Anew The trilogy of "The Damned," "Death in Venice" and "Ludwig" is whole again, in editions that freshly reveal their conflicted queerness. By Joshua Barone Winstar Cinema 'My Dinner With André' at 40: Still Serving Hot Takes The film was a feature-length conversation. And it is still stirring up plenty of chatter today. By Mariella Rudi Kim Best With Whiskers and Wit, the NY Cat and Dog Film Festivals Return After a pandemic-induced hiatus, these celebrations of human-animal bonds are screening in Manhattan and beyond. By Laurel Graeber Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT MOVIE REVIEWS Ryan Green/Universal Pictures, via Associated Press 'Halloween Kills' Review: There Will Be (Copious Amounts of) Blood The newest installment of the "Halloween" franchise, starring Jamie Lee Curtis, is a murderous mess that substitutes corpses for characters. By Jeannette Catsoulis Andrea Giacomini/Roadside Attractions 'Hard Luck Love Song' Review: A Glossy Take on a Gritty Tune Drawn from the plotline of a Todd Snider song, the film follows a pool shark and an escort, taking twists that are both violent and silly. By Glenn Kenny Netflix Critic's Pick 'Fever Dream' Review: Touching From a Distance Claudia Llosa's adaptation of Samanta Schweblin's novel casts a spell, evoking more than it explains. By Nicolas Rapold Kino Lorber 'Luzzu' Review: Capturing Culture on the Coasts of Malta This subtle drama follows a young Maltese fisherman torn between fidelity to his trade and the demands of a modern world. By Natalia Winkelman Icarus Films 'All About My Sisters' Review: Family Matters Wang Qiong's debut feature traces the tragic effects of China's one-child policy on her family. By Devika Girish Lionsgate 'Needle in a Timestack' Review: Put a Pin in It The director John Ridley, who wrote "12 Years a Slave," tries to combine time travel and romance, and comes up short twice. By Elisabeth Vincentelli Netflix 'The Trip' Review: With This Gun, I Thee Shoot In this Norwegian thriller on Netflix, a murderous couple get more bloodshed than they bargained for. By Lena Wilson Martin Dam Kristensen/Samuel Goldwyn Films 'Held for Ransom' Review: Negotiating With Terrorists This thoughtful hostage drama from Denmark depicts the events surrounding the capturing of Daniel Rye, a photojournalist, by ISIS in 2013. By Beatrice Loayza Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT How are we doing? We'd love your feedback on this newsletter. 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