Film

"The Zone Of Interest" was named the best picture of 2023 by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association. Our critic Justin Chang, who's a member of that organization, says the movie is a chillingly restrained drama about the real-life Nazi who oversaw the Auschwitz concentration camp. It's the latest from Jonathan Glazer, the English director of the movies "Sexy Beast" and "Under The Skin."

The top prize winner at this year's Venice International Film Festival was the dark comedy "Poor Things," starring Emma Stone as a Victorian woman who embarks on a strange personal journey. It's Stone's latest collaboration with the director Yorgos Lanthimos after their Oscar-winning period drama "The Favourite." "Poor Things" also stars Mark Ruffalo and Willem Dafoe. The movie is now in theaters, and our film critic Justin Chang has this review.

In the new documentary "Anselm," filmmaker Wim Wenders offers a portrait of the German artist Anselm Kiefer, who became famous for grappling with the violent side of 20th century German history. The film, shot in 3D, opens in New York tomorrow and expands after that. Our critic-at-large John Powers says "Anselm" takes you inside the work of one of the world's greatest artists.

Ten years ago, the revered Japanese director and animator Hayao Miyazaki announced his retirement. Now at the age of 82, Miyazaki has returned with a new animated feature called "The Boy And The Heron." Our film critic Justin Chang says it's a gorgeously drawn and deeply moving work from an undisputed master of storytelling.

The new romantic comedy "Fallen Leaves" tells a story about love on the margins of society. The film has won several big international prizes. It was written and directed by Aki Kaurismaki, who first put movies from Finland on the map in the 1980s. Our critic-at-large John Powers says "Fallen Leaves" is a rare bird, a refined art movie that's also a crowd-pleaser.

Five years after directing and acting in the remake of "A Star Is Born," Bradley Cooper is once again in front of - and behind - the camera with "Maestro," in which he plays the famed composer Leonard Bernstein. The movie centers on Bernstein's marriage to the actor Felicia Montealegre, played by Carey Mulligan. "Maestro" began a limited theatrical release this week and will start streaming December 20 on Netflix. Our film critic Justin Chang has this review.

In Todd Haynes' new movie, "May December," Natalie Portman plays a famous actor who's researching a role inspired by a tabloid scandal from years earlier. Julianne Moore and Charles Melton also star in the movie, which opens in theaters today and begins streaming December 1 on Netflix. Our film critic, Justin Chang, has this review.

Adapted from Priscilla Presley's 1985 memoir, the film shows us the cracks in Elvis' Prince Charming veneer — the way he lavishes Priscilla with attention and then suddenly withholds it.

The new comedy "The Holdovers" finds actor Paul Giamatti reuniting with director Alexander Payne for the first time since their Oscar-winning 2004 film "Sideways." In the new movie, Giamatti plays a teacher at a New England boarding school in 1970 left looking after a group of students, or holdovers, staying put through the Christmas break. Our film critic Justin Chang has this review.

The top prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival went to the French film "Anatomy Of A Fall," directed and co-written by Justine Triet. The movie, which opens in theaters this week, is a murder mystery and courtroom drama starring German actor Sandra Huller as a writer accused of killing her husband. Our film critic Justin Chang has this review.