The secret life of Martin Luther King Jr is explored in Sam Pollard’s doc, “MLK/FBI.” Seen through the lens of an FBI adamant at destroying King’s credibility back in 1963, we learn of the various ways Hoover’s hoodlums managed to infiltrate King’s inner circle and spy on his personal life, sneakily recording hundreds of hours of personal encounters with his mistresses in hotel rooms.

A female undergrad student fakes cancer to nab as much money and fame as she can. This small Canadian indie is not just about deception, but about the fear of being on the wrong side of the moral compass.

Clare Dunne stars in “Herself” as Sandra Kelly, a determined woman who decides to build her own home in this Dublin-set drama. Dunne co-wrote the screenplay with director Phyllida Lloyd (‘Mamma Mia!’). The result is the kind of saccharine-inducing female empowerment tale that may even give hardcore feminists severe allergies.

Here’s the thing about ”Wonder Woman 1984,” it starts off like gangbusters only to whimper out into CGI overkill in its final hour. That’s the sad truth about director Patty Jenkins’ ambitious 2 1/2 hour sequel – it damn-near pummels you to submission by the time its climax is over with. Until then, this sequel to the 2017 mega-hit “Wonder Woman,” for the most part, works.

For 128 minutes, Vanessa Kirby has you hooked to her every move in Kornel Mundruczo’s “Pieces of a Woman.” As Martha, a high-powered executive who loses her child during a harrowing home birth, Kirby mesmerizes by showcasing the human frailty and devastation that happens when tragedy comes knocking at her door. Her acting tour-de-force reminded me of Gena Rowlands’ masterful work in John Cassavetes’ 1974 classic, “Woman Under the Influence.”

Beautifully shot by Director Roseanne Liang and DP Kit Fraser, “Shadow in the Cloud” means to entertain us despite its outrageous script. It revels in its loony blend of genres by never taking itself so seriously.

Paul Greengrass’ “News of the World” (12.25.20), a cautionary western told via conventional, albeit semi-successful, terms, has Tom Hanks hamming up the screen in the form of another Capra-esque character.

“Promising Young Woman” is arriving in theaters on Christmas Day via Focus Features. This is a gamble since we don’t even know how many theaters will be open nationwide by then, but, don’t fret my friends, a digital release is also in the books on that very same day. The film, which I saw this past January at the Sundance Film Festival, has a 74 on Metacritic and a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes. No, it’s not the second coming of cinema, as some have over-excitingly pointed out, but it is a delightfully slick B-movie with an effective performance from Carey Mulligan.

The story of slain Washington Post reporter Jamal Khashoggi was erratically reported by the media back in 2018, so much so that one does wonder what fresh new territory Oscar-winning director Bryan Fogel (“Icarus”) could possibly tackle in his Khashoggi doc, “The Dissident.”

This is a re-posting of my 08.26.20 review of Christopher Nolan’s “Tenet” as it is now available on home video via Blu-Ray, DVD, and rental streaming. I have seen the film three times now, each viewing a little better than the next, but I still contend that this is the weakest film of Nolan’s career.

You may have noticed the rave reviews being thrown at Garrett Bradley’s “Time.” I say, don’t pay attention to them; it is very difficult to sympathize with any of the subjects in this documentary, aside from the children.

Aubrey Plaza fans rejoice, the indie actress gives one of the best performances of her career in Lawrence Michael Levine’s “Black Bear.”