Aarcflick

 Sundance: If anything, the documentary by Judd Apatow and Neil Berkeley about this beloved and wonderfully honest comedian suffers from having too much good material. Here is a problem any comedian would love to have: an excess of good material. That is the case with the documentary by Judd Apatow and Neil Berkeley, "Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story," which centers on a subject who is 1) incredibly funny and captivating, 2) open to sharing her life, and 3) has experienced enough ups and downs to fill half a dozen documentaries.  Directors: Judd Apatow, Neil Berkeley Stars: Judd Apatow, Joel Bamford, Maria Bamford Add to this a long list of interviewees—ranging from Bamford’s family to Ted Sarandos, Sarah Silverman, Conan O’Brien, Tig Notaro, Patton Oswalt, and many others—a wealth of archival footage, and a final 20 minutes that feel remarkably "timely," and the duo’s documentary comes across as overloaded—in both the best and worst ways. In other words: ...

Emanuel Diez and Hernán Goldfrid seem content with the superficial pleasures of their story—a satisfaction that feels, in a way, tediously self-indulgent. Ulises Verón (Ricardo Darín), a renowned therapist, has lost faith in the traditional psychological tools used to treat his patients effectively. The root of his disillusionment is revealed in the opening scene of *Lo dejamos acá* (Let’s Leave It Here), when Ulises declines an award, believing he could have done more for a patient who recently died while hiking. Unable to shake the feeling that conventional therapy failed his patient, Ulises begins to question whether psychoanalysis—with its absolute reliance on the spoken word—is truly adequate for helping those who seek his help.  Director: Hernán Goldfrid Writer: Emanuel Diez Stars: Ricardo Darín, Diego Peretti, Antonia Bengoechea Should he have talked more with his patient? Was there anything else he could have done in his role as a therapist? Ulises has no definitive answers...

 *Clayface* marks DC’s foray into "body horror"—a visceral work that more than justifies its R-rating, so you’d best leave the kids at home. This shift in tone from previous installments works in its favor; faced with tighter budgets and a relentless deluge of comic book-based films—which seem to premiere every single week—audiences have, understandably, become more selective.  Matt Hagen (Tom Rhys Harries) embodies the classic antihero who goes from glory to ruin: a handsome movie star whose life takes a tragic turn after a confrontation with a mob boss leaves his face so disfigured that he becomes unrecognizable. With nothing left to lose, Hagen turns to Dr. Caitlyn Corr (Naomi Ackie), whose controversial experimental research might be his only hope for restoring his appearance and reclaiming his former life. Director: James Watkins Writers: Mike Flanagan, Hossein Amini Stars: Tom Rhys Harries, Ruby Sear, Naomi Ackie Although the initial results of the treatment are promisi...

 Avinash Arun seems content to translate Sumit Roy’s text with a sense of responsibility and conscientiousness. Given the complex situation in which India has found itself for some years now, it is understandable that filmmakers—much like many ordinary citizens—feel the need to express their frustrations through cinema. Some, such as Anurag Kashyap and Anubhav Sinha, use social issues as a springboard for personal expression, simultaneously expanding the scope of their own style and subject matter. Others, like Pulkit and Vijay Krishna Acharya, buckle under the weight of their own good intentions, resulting in mediocre, self-indulgent work.  Director: Avinash Arun Writers: Dushyant Arora, Sumit Roy, Vishal Tiwari Stars: Wamiqa Gabbi, Jaideep Ahlawat, Rajkummar Rao Even Sriram Raghavan and Imtiaz Ali have released films this year that feel more like a "fulfillment of duty" than an act of artistic expression. This sense of "duty-bound" filmmaking is evident once again...

 In *Jailer 2*, Nelson Dilipkumar focuses more on worshipping Rajinikanth’s image than on crafting a story that might actually lend him some credibility. While *Jailer 2* is—by almost any standard—an improvement over *Jailer*, one has to ask: given that *Jailer* was as excruciating as a toothache, is there really anything to celebrate? The answer? Nothing at all. The most disappointing aspect of this sequel is not just that it is exhaustingly overstuffed and tediously numbing—a veritable cinematic tumor that would require surgical removal from one’s brain—but something even more disheartening that becomes clear scene after scene: those of us who once valued Nelson Dilipkumar for his deliciously sharp, dark humor (in *Kolamavu Kokila* and *Doctor*) should not expect to find that same sensibility or those same clever pleasures in a filmmaker who has been swallowed by the void of monotonous "hero-worshipping" montages, stylized violence, and a barrenness that stifles any spark o...

True stories are rarely limited to a single interpretation, and *American Hostage* takes on the challenge of dramatizing one that has already appeared on screen quite recently. The 1977 Tony Kiritsis hostage crisis also served as inspiration for Gus Van Sant’s *Dead Man’s Wire*, making much of the action in this first episode feel immediately familiar.  Conceived as an anthology series that focuses on a different real-life hostage situation each season, *American Hostage* provides far more room for the Kiritsis story to unfold. Yet, this familiarity hardly diminishes the effectiveness of the pilot episode; its focus—centered on the people who lived through the ordeal—quickly makes it clear why this story is worth retelling. Stars: Jon Hamm, Giovanni Ribisi, William Jackson Harper This narrative confidence takes a moment to emerge. The first fifteen minutes raise some questions regarding the episode’s pacing, but these concerns vanish as soon as Tony Kiritsis sets the central events...