Justin Chang
Justin Chang is a film critic for the Los Angeles Times and NPR's Fresh Air, and a regular contributor to KPCC's FilmWeek. He previously served as chief film critic and editor of film reviews for Variety.
Chang is the author of FilmCraft: Editing, a book of interviews with seventeen top film editors. He serves as chair of the National Society of Film Critics and secretary of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.
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Small-town life is upended when 17 schoolchildren suddenly vanish without explanation in the middle of the night. Weapons is a spooky thriller that invites deeper interpretation. -
Denzel Washington plays a New York City music mogul whose teenage son becomes the target of a kidnapping plot. The movie is a remake of the 1963 Akira Kurosawa classic, High and Low.
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The new Naked Gun film, starring Liam Neeson, captures its predecessors' slapstick spirit. Freakier Friday, meanwhile, proves less compelling, despite a solid performance by Lindsay Lohan. -
Eva Victor wrote, directed and stars in this tender film about a woman trying to make sense of life after sexual assault. Although very much a drama, Sorry, Baby showcases Victor's comic smarts. -
Director James Gunn brings an irreverent, borderline-slapstick vibe to the latest Superman film, in which our hero grapples with villains, strange creatures and public opinion.
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Pitt, 61, stars as a Formula One driver whose career was sidelined by a devastating crash. Though the overall arc of F1 is fairly predictable, the film is still hugely enjoyable and dazzlingly well-made. -
Dakota Johnson plays a savvy New York City matchmaker caught between two men in a film that ultimately fails to reconcile the screwball vigor of a comedy with the emotional oomph of a drama.
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Mike Flanagan's new film, a maudlin mystery about a man dying of cancer, feels hobbled by its extreme faithfulness to the Stephen King novella on which its based. -
Benicio Del Toro plays a globe-trotting tycoon trying to convince his estranged daughter (Mia Threapleton) to be his heir. The film is darker, angrier and more violent than Anderson's usual fare. -
This documentary-drama hybrid is one of the best new movies our critic's seen this year. It draws on archival footage to tell a story of two lovers separating and reuniting over roughly two decades.
