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Lorraine Ali
Tomatometer-approved critic
Publications:
Movies reviews only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
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The Many Saints of Newark (2021) |
"The Many Saints of Newark" might have played better as a limited series rather than a truncated self-contained production, with the potential for a deeper story to unfold over several impending episodes. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Oct 01, 2021
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Oslo (2021) |
The film is at its strongest when it uses their individual journeys during the negotiations to serve as metaphors for the complicated emotions and human suffering intertwined in the larger Israeli-Palestinian mess. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Jun 09, 2021
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The Mystery of D.B. Cooper (2020) |
HBO's treatment of the evergreen saga remains fresh, fun, and all-consuming. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Dec 31, 2020
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Kevin Hart: Zero F**ks Given (2020) |
Is it funny? Sort of, but what he discloses about his life in the special is often more memorable than the jokes themselves. - Los Angeles Times
Read More
| Posted Nov 17, 2020
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Black Is King (2020) |
A piece of timely art that entertains with eyes wide open. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Aug 01, 2020
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Dave Chappelle: 8:46 (2020) |
Dave Chappelle was not funny during his first stage performance in 87 days, an impassioned, 27-minute set that spoke to the cultural reckoning triggered by the killing of George Floyd. But the comedian was in top form. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Jun 15, 2020
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Natalie Wood: What Remains Behind (2020) |
She was a larger-than-life success story, a commanding actress, a part of Hollywood when it was glamorous. She was also a mother who was torn from her kids too soon. This film is a love letter from one of those kids. - Los Angeles Times
Read More
| Posted May 05, 2020
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(undefined) |
"My Favorite Shapes" - part performance art, part stand-up and part therapy session - highlights Torres the twisted storyteller. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Nov 13, 2019
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Ramy Youssef: Feelings (2019) |
Egyptian-American comedian Ramy Youssef nails his first HBO stand-up special, Feelings, by tackling universal predicaments from hyper-specific angles. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Aug 01, 2019
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Amy Schumer: The Leather Special (2017) |
The dirtier it gets, the less daring it feels. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Jul 09, 2019
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The Dirt (2019) |
It's as if the film arrived to the streaming service in a bubble, unaware that the culture has moved on and that Netflix is brimming with content written, directed and starring strong women. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Mar 22, 2019
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Brexit (2019) |
The film does an impressive job explaining the complicated operation while still delivering a fast-paced and entertaining story. - Los Angeles Times
Read More
| Posted Jan 21, 2019
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The Judge (2017) |
It's an exceptional, multi-dimensional look at the culture from the inside. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Nov 19, 2018
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Brimstone & Glory (2017) |
But [Brimstone & Glory] deftly captures the skill, passion and peril behind the fireworks, as well as the love of a family whose livelihood is rooted in this booming trade. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Aug 24, 2018
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It Will Be Chaos (2018) |
The harrowing, on-the-ground and by-sea journeys chronicled in It Will Be Chaos... speaks directly to our own immigration crisis... - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Jun 18, 2018
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John McCain: For Whom the Bell Tolls (2018) |
McCain's frank discussions about his limited time left here on Earth and the end of a mission of "serving something more important than myself" are profound and moving. - Boston Herald
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| Posted May 30, 2018
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Fahrenheit 451 (2018) |
Fahrenheit 451's main problem stems from the fact that it jams a series' worth of story into 100 minutes. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted May 21, 2018
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Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert (2018) |
But by the grace of God, or maybe a great cast and lots and lots of expert staging, a great musical became a great TV production. - Los Angeles Times
Read More
| Posted Apr 02, 2018
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Notes From The Field (2018) |
Its stories are pulled from intimate accounts of life at the bottom. But the artistic flourishes here let in some light. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Feb 26, 2018
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Gaga: Five Foot Two (2017) |
A star isn't born here, she's diminished. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Sep 22, 2017
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The Wizard of Lies (2017) |
As Ruth, Pfeiffer convincingly portrays a pampered woman left with utterly nothing - she's lost her homes, status and, most important, her relationship with her sons. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted May 19, 2017
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Hell on Earth: The Fall of Syria and the Rise of ISIS (2017) |
The 100-minute film does a phenomenal job detangling the numerous scenarios that led to Syria's civil war and current bloodbath, dispelling the notion that this conflict is too complicated for those not versed on the Middle East to understand. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted May 18, 2017
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Last Men in Aleppo (2017) |
A tightly focused, on-the-ground account of three men who serve in the White Helmets. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted May 18, 2017
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American Jihad (2017) |
[It] goes beyond the hysteria and fear to offer a smart, measured and methodical look at how these men were indoctrinated into terror organizations such as the Islamic State, Al Qaeda and Shabab. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Mar 27, 2017
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Rock and a Hard Place (2017) |
The few times we do get to see cadets outside of drills, lessons and routines are some of the most illuminating. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Mar 27, 2017
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Dead 7 (2016) |
The spot-your-favorite-boy quotient here, and the fact that they all appear to be in on the joke, makes Dead 7 a blast to watch. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Apr 01, 2016
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Janis: Little Girl Blue (2015) |
From this pastiche Joplin emerges as we've never seen her before, articulate, ambitious, torn between her wild self and her desperate need for stability. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Dec 03, 2015
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Dear White People (2014) |
The complicated narratives don't distract from what this film does best: make you laugh about the things that make you furious. - Los Angeles Times
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| Posted Oct 16, 2014
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The Liberator (2013) |
Simple enough for audiences who know nothing about Bolvar, poetic enough for those who grew up reading about El Libertador in school books. - Los Angeles Times
Read More
| Posted Oct 02, 2014
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