Benita is a heartbreaking, but unfocused documentary about Benita Raphan, an experimental documentary short filmmaker who died of suicide in 2021. Director Alan Berliner, Benita's friend and colleague, combines as much of her work that she left behind including her journal entries and photographs to provide the audience with a glimpse into her mind. What remains a mystery, though, to both Berliner and the audience is the reason(s) why she committed suicide. When the documentary tries to explore her suicide, that's when it feels very emotionall devestating albeit somewhat invasive concurrently. Is Benita ultimately about Benita as a human being, about her as an artist or about the mystery of her suicide and the importance of mental health? Berliner juggles all of those in a way that feels meandering and lacking focus. Moreover, Benita is not thorough or illuminating enough as a biographical documentary because Benita still remains a stranger to the audience by the time the end credits roll. At 1 hour and 20 minutes, Benita opens at DCTV's Firehouse cinema.

 

        Agnes Shakespesre (Jessie Buckley), the wife of William (Paul Mescal), grieves the death of her young son, Hamnet (Jacobi Jupe) in Hamnet. Writer/director Chloé Zhao and co-writer Maggie O'Farrell have made a beautifully shot and poetic, but heavy-handed and maudlin tearjerker with an Oscar-worthy performance by Jessie Buckley. Everything from the music to the excessive scenes showing Agnes crying hits the audience over the head to try to get them to cry. To be fair, every film is manipulative, but there's a limit. A general rule in cinema is that when the characters cry, it's less impactful because the audience are the ones who are supposed to do the crying. After Hamnet dies of a serious illness, Agnes cries most of the time, especially during the last 20 minutes in a scene that overstays its welcome. In other words, Zhao and O'Farrell don't trust the audience's emotions enough. They're lucky to have such a talented cast that also includes Noah Jupe as Hamlet. Jessie Buckley gives a radiant, bravura performance that elevates the film and grounds it in much-needed authenticity. She's Hamnet's MVP. At 2 hours and 6 minutes, Hamnet opens in select theaters via Focus Features.

Number of times I checked my watch: 2




 

       In The Secret Agent, Marcelo (Wagner Moura), a former teacher, gets more than he bargained for when he seeks refuge in Recife, Brazil while searching for his son.  Writer/director Kleber Mendonça Filho has made a slow-burning and overlong, but bold, visually stylish and refreshingly unpredictable political thriller set in 1977. The tonal shifts feel jarring at times as it veers into horror, dark comedy and even a little satire, but it all comes together in a way that makes it unique and unconventional. Filho doesn't bombard the audience with exposition and keeps many things a mystery, especially who the secret agents are and why are there some men trying to track down Marcelo and kill him? Wagner Moura anchors the film with his palpable charisma. The cinematography and production design are also superb while adding both style and substance. To be fair, The Secret Agent does begin to drag around the 2 hour mark, so it could've used tighter editing. At 2 hours and 38 minutes, The Secret Agent opens on November 26th, 2025 at Angelika Film Center via NEON.

Number of times I checked my watch: 3

      In Slide, a guitar player named Slide arrives at the small town of Sourdough Creek run by a corrupt mayor, Jeb, and his brother Zeke. Jeb and Zeke want to build a resort in town and to let a movie studio shoot a film there which, in turn, angers the townspeople including the fisherman and Slide. Writer/director Bill Pympton and co-writer Jim Lujan have made a zany, grotesque and outrageously funny animated film that blends action, Western, comedy and satire. What ensues is an experience that would probably be best enjoyed while high or drunk. There's nothing conventional about Slide and even labeling it in one genre or to adequately describe its plot would be difficult. Logic gets thrown out of the window early on. That said, it compensates for that with an abundance of imagination albeit in a way that feels anarchic and subversive. If you're unfamiliar with the films of Bill Plympton, it'll be a bit overwhelming at first and will take time to get used to the animation style and the tone. His films are an acquired taste. Either way, it's undeniable that a lot of passion, time and creativity went into the meticulously hand-drawn animation. At 1 hour and 12 minutes, Slide opens at Cinema Village via Plymptoons.

Number of times I checked my watch: 2

      The Tale of Silyan is a documentary about Nikola, a Macedonian potato farmer who struggles to make ends meet for him and his family. He bonds with an injured stork that he named Silyan. Director Tamara Kotevska has made a lyrical, engrossing and well-shot emotional journey. It's not unflinching nor very profound, but it does raise awareness of how increased government regulation in Macedonia has a negative effect on the livelihood of farmers like Nikola. Kotevksa interjects the scenes of Nikola and his family with the folktale of Silyan, a young boy whose father turned him into a stork because he refused to work on the family's farm. To be fair, that tale could've been mentioned briefly in its entirety at the beginning instead of being told throughout the film because the way it's told feels somewhat distracting from Nikola's experiences with his family and the stork. Fortunately, that's a minor, systematic issue that doesn't make the film as a whole less emotionally resonating. At 1 hour and 21 minutes, The Tale of Silyan opens at IFC Center via National Geographic Documentary Films.

Number of times I checked my watch: 2




 

       Teenage Wasteland is a mildly engaging and unevenly paced documentary about a group of high school students whose video journalism teacher, Justin Kerswell, taught them how to use a camcorder and investigate a local conspiracy involving toxic runoff back in the early 1990s. Co-directors Amanda McBaine and Jesse Moss combine contemporary interviews with Justin and his students along with the footage that the students captured. Not enough time is spent with Justin or his students to get to know them individually and to understand how they've changed since then, but you do get a general sense of how much they appreciate learning investigative journalism during their teenage years. There are some amusing moments that provide levity, like footage of a whistleblower who is reminiscent of Popeye, but, for the rest of the time, Teenage Wasteland remains serious albeit without emotional resonance. The potential to become powerful, poignant and inspirational is there given the documentary's subject matter, but it doesn't quite accomplish those feats. Tighter editing would've helped, especially during the last 30 minutes, and more profound and provocative questions would have provided more revealing insights about Justin and his former students.  At 1 hour and 52 minutes, Teenage Wasteland opens at Film Forum.

Number of times I checked my watch: 3




 

       Socorro (Luisa Huertas), a lawyer, seeks revenge against the soldier who tortured and killed her brother 50 years ago in We Shall Not Be Moved. Writer/director Pierre Saint-Martin and co-writer Iker Compeán Leroux  have made a bold, engrossing and refreshingly unpredictable revenge thriller that subverts the audience's expectations of the genre. It's part character study, part dark comedy, part satire and part gritty suspense thriller, but it's more than just the sum of its parts. The amalgam of those elements combine in a way that never feels tonally uneven or clunky thanks to the sensitive screenplay. The black-and-white cinematography provides the film not only with stylish visuals, but also substance. Luisa Huertas gives a terrific performance that finds the humanity of her role and breathes life into it while opening the window into Socorro's heart, mind and soul. Be prepared for a refreshingly un-Hollywood roller coaster ride of emotions. At 1 hours and 40 minutes, We Shall Not Be Moved opens at Cinema Village via Cinema Tropical. It would be an interesting double feature with The Secret Agent.

Number of times I checked my watch: 1