Rex Reed
New York Observer
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Past articles by Rex:
‘The Good Mother’ Review: Hilary Swank Can’t Save This Routine Crime Thriller
Hilary Swank is as intensely committed as usual (she's also one of the film's producers), but 'The Good Mother' does not offer her much of a stretch. → Read More
‘New York, New York’: Come For The Songs, Everything Else Is A Mess
This show—questionably claiming to be inspired by Martin Scorsese's 1977 movie—piles up a tidal wave of old John Kander and Fred Ebb songs worthy of applause. But the rest of the evening is of a hike through quicksand in snow shoes. → Read More
Review: Sean Hayes Is a Miracle In ‘Good Night, Oscar’
Sean Hayes is entertaining without pause in his sensational portrayal of Oscar Levant in one of the few Broadway shows that unimpeachably deserves its tumultuous standing ovation. → Read More
‘Chevalier’ Review: An Opulent Footnote to Black History
Kelvin Harrison Jr. dazzles as Joseph Bologne, who shocked and tantalized 18th century Paris with his astounding genius as a composer, violinist, and swordsman. → Read More
Shailene Woodley Delivers Another Blockbuster Punch in ‘To Catch A Killer’
This film wastes no time finding an immediate pace that only occasionally pauses to catch its breath. → Read More
‘Renfield’ Review: Zero Stars for Loud, Obnoxious, Violent Junk
There isn’t a genuine shred of originality anywhere in sight. → Read More
‘Everything Went Fine’ Review: A Life-Affirming Examination of Death
At a particularly bleak time in movie history when a good 90% of everything I see on the screen is regrettably dumb, pointless and forgettable, leave it to the French to elevate the cinema. → Read More
‘Moving On’ Review: Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin Captivate In A Black Comedy With Heart
Fonda and Tomlin have forgotten more about comedy than most actors will ever learn, and languishing in their rapport is a luxury. → Read More
‘Inside’ Review: Willem Dafoe Trapped In An Interminable Slog Of A Movie
Willem Dafoe plays an art thief trapped in a Manhattan penthouse struggling to survive. You will struggle to stay awake. → Read More
‘Righteous Thieves’ Review: Stealing Art Back From The Nazis, But Sluggishly Directed
The cast shows no chemistry and an interesting idea—to give back to the world all of the beauty stolen by the Third Reich—goes nowhere. → Read More
’65’ Review: A Waste Of Time, And Adam Driver
This contrived, empty-headed dinosaur movie is a gruesome thing to watch. → Read More
‘Juniper’ Review: Charlotte Rampling Burns A Hole In The Screen
Charlotte Rampling coming out of semi-retirement is an occasion that should be accompanied by fireworks — and she provides the fireworks herself in this film about healing fractured family dynamics. → Read More
‘Marlowe’ Review: Liam Neeson Is The Dullest Denizen Of A Noir Lacking Energy and Wit
What do you get when you strip Philip Marlowe of Raymond Chandler and use Barcelona as stand in for L.A.? Not much. → Read More
‘Devil’s Peak’ Review: Billy Bob Thornton (Almost) Carries A Southern Gothic Crime Thriller
Thornton is so good as a two-fisted, menacing drug kingpin he makes you overlook a multitude of flaws, but the movie implodes in a cacophony of noise and chaos. → Read More
‘Your Place or Mine’ Review: About As Romantic And Funny As A Root Canal
You might be able to forgive this Netflix rom-com, starring Reese Witherspoon and Ashton Kutcher, for being derivative and preposterous. You won't be able to forgive its witless waste of a talented cast. → Read More
‘Sharper’ Review: One Of The Classiest Thrillers In Ages
A uniformly terrific cast led by Julianne Moore, Sebastian Stan and John Lithgow makes this neo-noir taut, sexy and so full of surprises you may need to see it twice. → Read More
Review: ‘Close’ And ‘The Quiet Girl’ Are Oscar-Nominated Gems
These two coming-of-age films — from Belgium and Ireland — are gentle, heartbreaking and exquisite. → Read More
‘Maybe I Do’ Review: Seasoned Pros Can’t Save This Alleged Romantic Comedy
Diane Keaton, Richard Gere, Susan Sarandon and William H. Macy each get a star-turn at pretentious blather in this talky mediocrity. → Read More
‘The Man In the Basement’ Review: A Provocative, Intelligent And Suspenseful French Film
A real estate dispute becomes an ideological battle — online and in court — in a film that should be required viewing on both sides of the Congressional aisle. → Read More
‘Blood’ Review: Dog Bites Boy, Boy Drinks Blood In This Creep-Show Bomb
This adolescent vampire tale goes downhill so fast it turns inadvertently from horror to comedy. → Read More