FilmWeek

The topic:

Larry Mantle and FilmWeek critics review the latest DC Comics adaptation Clayface starring Tom Rhys Harries and Naomi Ackie along with a lot of gore. They also talk about LAIKA’s stop-motion spectacle Wildwood, the longest stop-motion animation film in history.

The films:

Clayface, Wide Release

Wicker, Wide Release

Wildwood, Wide Release

Klara and the Sun, Wide Release   

The Only Living Pickpocket in New York, In Select Theaters

Possible Love, In Select Theaters | Streaming on Netflix Nov. 6

Fatherland, In Select Theaters 

Once Upon a Time in Harlem, AMC Century City

A Talent for Murder, In Select Theaters

The critics: 

Charles Solomon, film critic for LAist, Animation Scoop and Animation Magazine 

Christy Lemire, film critic for LAist, and co-host of the ‘Breakfast All Day’ YouTube and podcast series 

Tim Cogshell, film critic for LAist, Alt-Film Guide and CineGods.com

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The topic: 

FilmWeek critics Lael Loewenstein and Tim Cogshell discuss the new reboot of Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility, starring Daisy Edgar-Jones and Esmé Creed-Miles, and You Can See Everything, the new documentary on Elizabeth Holmes from Nathan Fielder and Lance Oppenheim. They’ll also review La Bola Negra, winner of this year’s Best Director award at Cannes and Spain’s Best International Feature submission for the 2027 Oscars. 

The films: 

Sense and Sensibility (2026)

You Can See Everything       

Street Fighter (2026)

La Bola Negra

Whalefall

The Devils (1971) [4K restoration]

Norm: The Tale of Norm Macdonald

My Undesirable Friends: Part II - Exile

Capturing Bigfoot

Following Harry

Desert Angel

The critics: 

Lael Loewenstein, film critic for LAist

Tim Cogshell, film critic for LAist, Alt-Film Guide and CineGods.com

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The topic:

In his new book, Funny Business: The Old-School Wedding Crashers and Knocked-Up Virgins Who Changed Comedy Forever, film critic and author Matt Singer discusses the comedy boom of the early aughts, the “Frat Pack” that dominated the era, and the lessons contemporary studios can take from their success. 

Event info: Matt Singer will be at Vroman’s Bookstore in Pasadena on Sunday, Oct. 11 at 2pm talking about his book with Tim Grierson. You can find more info about the event here. 

Guest:

Matt Singer, editor and film critic of ScreenCrush.com. He is the author of Funny Business: The Old-School Wedding Crashers and Knocked-Up Virgins Who Changed Comedy Forever

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The topic:

FilmWeek critics Katie Walsh and Claudia Puig join host Larry Mantle to discuss the biggest releases of the week, including screenwriter Aaron Sorkin’s follow-up to The Social Network, The Social Reckoning of which Sorkin also directs. And they’ll review this year’s Palm d’Or winner at Cannes, Fjord, about a Romanian family in Norway fighting allegations of child abuse.   

The films:  

The Social Reckoning, Wide Release 

Musk, AMC Burbank & AMC Century City | Expanding on October 16

Fjord, AMC Century City & AMC Burbank

Tenzing, Laemmle NoHo & The Cinemas LA [Westwood]|Streaming on Apple TV+ October 16

Misty Green, AMC Century City, AMC The Grove, & AMC Burbank

Kikuyu Land, Laemmle Monica Film Center [Santa Monica]

NAZA, In Select Theaters 

Animals, Landmark Westwood |Streaming on Netflix

The North, Laemmle Glendale, Laemmle Monica Center [Santa Monica], & AMC Burbank

The Beast, In Select Theaters

The critics:

Claudia Puig, film critic for LAist and program director for the Santa Barbara International Film Festival

Katie Walsh, film critic for LAist, the Tribune News Service and LA Times

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The topic: 

Richard Linklater’s 2025 film Nouvelle Vague tries to accurately capture the filming process of one of French New Wave’s most influential films — Jean-Luc Godard’s Breathless (1960). Shot in black and white and almost entirely in French, Linklater transports viewers back to 1959 Paris on  the chaotic and sometimes claustrophobic set.

Criterion release: Originally released on Netflix with a limited theatrical run, Nouvelle Vague now sits alongside Breathless in the Criterion Collection with a 4k Blu-ray and DVD release that features audio commentary by Linklater and interviews with the lead actors Guillaume Marbeck, Zoey Deutch, and Aubry Dullin.

Guest:

Richard Linklater, director of Nouvelle Vague. He is also known for the films Slacker, Dazed and Confused, the Before trilogy, and Boyhood.

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The topic:

FilmWeek critics Tim Cogshell and Christy Lemire disagree on the effectiveness of Alejandro Iñárritu’s new film Digger starring Tom Cruise, but they do agree that everyone should see it, if only to partake in the discussion. Also out this week is the drama Atonement that shows the ramifications of the Iraqi war.

The films:  

Digger, Wide Release

Heart of the Beast, Wide Release

Verity, Wide Release

The Scout, Alamo Drafthouse [DTLA] | Expands Oct. 9

Atonement, Landmark Nuart Theatre [West LA] | Expands Oct. 9 

Appofeniacs, AMC Burbank & AMC Orange

The Last First: Winter K2, Laemmle Noho [North Hollywood] | Streaming on Apple TV

Beware Boiúna, In Select Theaters

Rolling Loud: The Movie, In Select Theaters       

The critics:

Christy Lemire, film critic for LAist, and co-host of the ‘Breakfast All Day’ YouTube and podcast series  

Tim Cogshell, film critic for LAist, Alt-Film Guide and CineGods.com 

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The topic:

Finding humor and fascination in the mundane is John Wilson’s signature. After closing out his acclaimed HBO series How To with John Wilson, the documentarian picks up right where he left off, but this time with a feature film examining one of New York’s most foundational materials: concrete. Wilson joins FilmWeek’s Larry Mantle to talk about his first feature documentary The History of Concrete, his directorial influences, and how he sees the world.

Guest:

John Wilson, documentarian best known for his acclaimed HBO series How To with John Wilson and director of the new documentary The History of Concrete.

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The topic:

Larry Mantle and FilmWeek critics review Primetime, starring Robert Pattinson as NBC Dateline host Chris Hansen, best known for his 2006 series To Catch a Predator. And they talk about the documentary You Had to Be There that attempts to capture the magical 1972 Toronto production of Godspell that launched many famous comedians careers. The events are told through animation and interviews with the original cast.    

The films:         

Primetime, Wide Release

Your Mother, Your Mother, Your Mother, In Select Theaters 

Forgotten Island, Wide Release

The History of Concrete, In Select Theaters

Ha-Chan, Shake Your Booty!, In Select Theaters 

The Stunt Driver, In Select Theaters

Never After Dark, In Select Theaters

You Had to Be There, In Select Theaters

Unabomber, Streaming on Netflix 

The critics:

Christy Lemire, film critic for LAist, and co-host of the ‘Breakfast All Day’ YouTube and podcast series  

Maureen Lee Lenker ,  LAist film critic and freelance journalist (formerly at Entertainment Weekly) who's written for Gold Derby, The Los Angeles Times, The Hollywood Reporter, and Turner Classic Movies. She is also the author of three novels set in the Golden Age of Hollywood.

Visit www.preppi.com/LAist to receive a FREE Preppi Emergency Kit (with any purchase over $100) and be prepared for the next wildfire, earthquake or emergency.

The topic: 

It’s the final weekend of the 51st annual Toronto International Film Festival and a handful of movie premieres are already stirring up buzz for this upcoming awards season. We talk to FilmWeek critics Amy Nicholson and Maureen Lee Lenker about their favorites from this year’s festival and what movies they think audiences should look out for when they hit theaters. 

Films to watch for:

I Play Rocky

Elsinore

The Debut

Being Heumann

Bucking Fastards

The Julia Set 

Ink 

Fjord 

The critics:

Amy Nicholson, film critic for LAist and the LA Times and host of the podcast ‘Unspooled’ 

Maureen Lee Lenker, LAist film critic and freelance journalist who's written for Gold Derby, The Los Angeles Times, The Hollywood Reporter, and Turner Classic Movies. She is also the author of three novels set in the Golden Age of Hollywood.

Visit www.preppi.com/LAist to receive a FREE Preppi Emergency Kit (with any purchase over $100) and be prepared for the next wildfire, earthquake or emergency.

The topic:

The Halloween season begins this week in earnest with the new Shaun the Sheep movie—The Beast of Mossy Bottom—from British stop-motion animation studio Aardman. And director Zach Cregger returns with another horror crowd pleaser, Resident Evil. Our critics also review the dark comedy The Musical about a vengeful teacher out to sabotage the school play. 

The films:         

Resident Evil, Wide Release

Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom, Wide Release

The Weight, Wide Release 

The Musical, In Select Theaters 

Sunny Dancer, Laemmle Monica Film Center [Santa Monica] & AMC Orange

The Oldest Person in the World, In Select Laemmle Theaters

Goody Goody, Streaming on Shudder

Arsa, Laemmle Monica Film Center [Santa Monica]

The critics:

Charles Solomon, film critic for LAist, Animation Scoop and Animation Magazine

Tim Cogshell, film critic for LAist, Alt-Film Guide and CineGods.com

Katie Walsh, film critic for LAist, the Tribune News Service and the L.A. Times

Visit www.preppi.com/LAist to receive a FREE Preppi Emergency Kit (with any purchase over $100) and be prepared for the next wildfire, earthquake or emergency.