A.A. Dowd
Writer
A.A. Dowd, or Alex to his friends, is a writer and editor based in Chicago. He has held staff positions at The A.V. Club and Time Out Chicago, and is a member of the National Society of Film Critics.
25 years ago, The Matrix led a mini movement of sci-fi simulation thrillers
From The Matrix to eXistenZ to The Thirteenth Floor, 1999 was an unusually robust year for sci-fi movies that put the world inside a computer.
Does the sci-fi classic Alien have the best movie marketing campaign ever?
With Ridley Scott's 1979 sci-fi masterpiece Alien back in theaters, let's revisit its iconic tagline, poster, and trailer.
The best Marvel movie just turned 10 this year. Here’s why it’s still a blast to watch
There are funnier and more inventive entries in the MCU, but Captain America: The Winter Soldier is still the platonic ideal of a Marvel movie.
The Beast review: a gonzo sci-fi movie with a touch of David Lynch
David Lynch meets Cloud Atlas meets Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind in the ambitious sci-fi whatsit The Beast, starring Dune 2 actress Léa Seydoux.
Ripley review: Netflix’s terrifically tense thriller
Originally developed for Showtime, Ripley, Netflix's beautifully shot adaptation of The Talented Mr. Ripley, features a brilliant performance by Andrew Scott.
Netflix just remade one of the best thrillers of all time. Is it worth watching?
Netflix just quietly premiered a remake of one of the best thrillers ever made. But is this latest version worth watching or just another disappointing retread?
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire review: a very flimsy monster mash
In Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, Godzilla joins forces with King Kong for a Hollywood monster movie without a fraction of the power of Godzilla Minus One.
Late Night with the Devil review: a fun talk-show Exorcist
David Dastmalchian plays a talk show host summoning evil on live TV in the entertaining but rarely scary found-footage horror movie, Late Night with the Devil.
Before Dune: Part Two, Denis Villeneuve made 2 unnerving Jake Gyllenhaal thrillers
Premiering in the fall of 2013, two Jake Gyllenhaal movies, Prisoners and Enemy, set director Denis Villeneuve on the path to Arrival, Dune, and Dune: Part Two.
All the 2024 Best Picture Oscar nominees, ranked
From Barbenheimer to Poor Things, these are the 2024 nominees for Best Picture, ranked from worst to best.
Dune: Part Two review: a beautifully numbing sci-fi epic
Denis Villeneuve completes his two-part adaptation of Frank Herbert's classic novel with Dune: Part Two, another amazing looking, but plodding sci-fi epic.
You probably haven’t seen this underrated 2004 thriller. Here’s why you should watch it now
Nicole Kidman plays a woman with a very strange dilemma in an oddball 2004 mystery that deserves a second look.
Is Christopher Nolan’s Tenet the misunderstood masterpiece some claim it to be?
Christopher Nolan's only box-office disappointment, Tenet, returns to IMAX theaters this weekend. Is it the misunderstood masterpiece some fans claim it to be?
Drive-Away Dolls review: a wacky Coens caper, minus a Coen
Margaret Qualley and Geraldine Viswanathan take a madcap road trip in Drive-Away Dolls , the first comedy Ethan Coen has made without his brother, Joel.
With Madame Web bombing, it’s time to ask: Who wants a Spider-Verse without Spider-Man?
Madame Web is the latest Sony superhero movie to flop — and further proof that building a Spider-Movie movie universe without Spider-Man was a mistake.
Madame Web review: the worst movie of 2024 so far
Dakota Johnson does not say your favorite line in the remarkably lousy Spider-Man offshoot Madame Web, which should be avoided at all costs.
This 2023 thriller has been criminally overlooked. Here’s why you need to watch it in 2024
Ignored by audiences and critics, this underrated 2023 thriller set in an Australian dive bar from Hell is better than most of this year's Oscar nominees.
At 70, is Godzilla more popular (and better) than ever?
As other franchises falter, the radioactive reptile enjoys new popularity, thanks to Godzilla Minus One and his forthcoming reunion with King Kong.
The Beekeeper review: an awful, hilarious Jason Statham action movie
Jason Statham is hilariously nonchalant in the dreadful but sometimes funny John Wick wannabe The Beekeeper.
Society of the Snow review: Alive gets a dreary Netflix makeover
Though less hokey than the 1993 film Alive, this new Netflix movie similarly fails to get big drama out of the harrowing true of the Andes flight disaster.
Are movie franchises dead, or are we just seeing the start of new ones?
Some of Hollywood's biggest franchises like Indiana Jones, Transformers, DC, and Marvel flopped this year, but are new ones coming to take their place?
Rebel Moon review: A glum Star Wars ripoff from Zack Snyder
Zack Snyder realizes his vision of 'Seven Samurai with Jedis' with Rebel Moon – Part One: A Child of Fire, a glum, unsatisfying sci-fi epic on Netflix.
The 10 most underrated movies of 2023, ranked
From the latest Exorcist and Scream sequels to the blockbuster flop The Creator, these were the 2023 movies that deserved a better reception than they got.
Oppenheimer was the movie of 2023. Here’s why
By almost any major metric, Christopher Nolan's grand historical epic Oppenheimer was the movie of 2023 — and that goes far beyond the whole Barbenheimer thing.
Poor Things review: Emma Stone shines in a Frankensteinian sex comedy
Emma Stone reunites with the director of The Favourite for an even stranger comedy, the captivating feminist Frankenstein story Poor Things.
Godzilla without Godzilla? Stop turning blockbusters into streaming soap operas
Why do the small-screen adaptations The Last of Us, Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, and John Wick: The Continental all fail to live up to their source material?
The Marvels review: the MCU’s shortest film is its biggest mess
Captain Marvel teams up with two Disney+ B-listers for the surprisingly shoddy MCU adventure The Marvels.
The Killer review: David Fincher stylishly roasts himself
Michael Fassbender plays a dispassionate assassin in The Killer, an ultra-stylish and sneakily funny new thriller from David Fincher.
Is Thor: The Dark World really the worst Marvel movie?
Ten years later, the second Thor movie looks less like a low point for the MCU than a concerning harbinger of what the superhero franchise would become.
Priscilla review: The anti-Elvis by Sofia Coppola
Sofia Coppola peers into the gilded cage again with her Priscilla Presley biopic, starring Cailee Spaeny and Jacob Elordi.
Platinum Dunes polished horror’s grimy past for a new generation
Twenty years ago, Platinum Dunes remade almost every major horror classic from the '70s and '80s. Are the Michael Bay horror remakes as terrible as fans say?
Is Final Destination the best horror franchise we have right now?
With five movies and counting, the Final Destination series remains as ghoulishly entertaining as ever.
Killers of the Flower Moon review: Scorsese’s monumental new epic
Martin Scorsese reunites with Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro for a devastating adaptation of the David Grann bestseller Killers of the Flower Moon.
20 years ago, Quentin Tarantino geeked out with Kill Bill
Twenty years ago, Quentin Tarantino returned with the wildly entertaining East-meets-West revenge epic Kill Bill.