Devil

M shyows up in awkward religious voiceover that serves to give otherwise arbitrary horror flick a demonic spine.  What goes up must come to a final destination in this predictably plotted and embarrassingly acted whatdunnit.  Thank Dios for the short runtime of this night chronicle because then there was sun.

Top Five

Rock channels Woody making One Day in New York one of the top five Allen films not made by Allen.  Amusing jokes and characteristic racial quips pepper an otherwise aimless story of career dissatisfaction that certainly seems a tad auto-biographical.  Great set pieces fall short, dropping ones instead of hundreds.

Belle

Beautifully shot film with powerful performances is hampered by stodgy aristocracy and heavy-handed dialog.  Gugu makes men go gaga as she wages war on a society almost as racist as it is sexist.  Overly on the nose casting and utterly impotent finale speech leave audience feeling like neglected old maid.

Dear White People

50 Shades of Racial Tension remains pleasantly ambiguous while carefully addressing stereotypes about racism rather than race.  Solid performances from white guy, black girl and two black guys add emotional investment to an otherwise mildly amusing overlong TV episode.  End credit photos simultaneously emphasize and detract from real world relevance.

The Amazing Spider-man 2

Amazingly comic-booky film fully embraces tone of source despite overlong runtime and villainously deceptive advertising.  A fun physics-free farce featuring plenty of in-jokes, and a few electrifying tidbits of emotion.  Ray plugs in as Spidey takes a dip in the deadpool with endless thread of witty asides.  Oh, and Rhino.

The Babadook

Exceptionally clever allegorical horror film whose symbolism is easily translated without having to be shoved down the viewer’s throat like so much black bile.  Masterfully shot, tightly scripted, perfectly performed and sneaky enough to avoid the trap of losing scares once the monster is revealed.  A spectacular small scale Shining.