The 2024 Gift Guide for Freedom Lovers
From art to vice to games and maybe a little magic, Reason's staff is here to help you with your gift giving.
Movies
Gladiator II Is a Lavish, Empty Spectacle
Ridley Scott heard you liked Gladiator, so he thought he'd give you some more gladiators with your gladiator.
Sean Baker's Anora Is a Riotous Celebration of Working-Class Life
It's Pretty Woman for the modern age, and one of the best movies of the year.
In Juror #2, Clint Eastwood Puts American Justice on Trial
The famed filmmaker's likely final film is an exploration of the jury system and its flaws.
Review: An Action Movie About Civil Asset Forfeiture
Netflix's Rebel Ridge is a thrilling tale about an ordinary man wronged by an unjust system.
Venom: The Last Dance Is a Camp Buddy Comedy Disguised as a Comic Book Movie
The series ends with an oddly sweet romp about a mismatched couple on a zany road trip across the American West.
Review: A Rap Trio Fights the Power In Gaelic
Kneecap is a semi-dramatized biopic of the Belfast music group of the same name.
If You See the Trump Biopic Before Election Day, Thank Citizens United
At its core, the oft-denigrated decision revolved around whether the government can censor information leading up to an election.
Watch Now: Classified: The War on Backpage.com
Reason's new documentary is now streaming on the video platform CiVL. I hope you'll watch.
Joker: Folie à Deux Is a Miserable Musical Slog
The comic-book sequel is a dull, dismal, event-free recap of its predecessor.
Megalopolis Is a Mega Mess
Francis Ford Coppola's clumsy passion project is an ambitious misfire.
War Game Documents an All-Star Political Live-Action Role-Playing Game
What happened when some officials role-played a bigger, noisier rerun of January 6, 2021
A Movie Mirrors the Stranger-Than-Fiction Reality of Civil Asset Forfeiture
The outrageous seizure at the center of Rebel Ridge resembles real-life cash grabs.
Rebel Ridge, Netflix's Civil Asset Forfeiture Revenge Flick, Is a Thrilling Political Action Movie
Writer-director Jeremy Saulnier's movie is the rarest of things: a taut, tense thriller about...public policy.
Review: A Fun, Chaotic Moon Landing Conspiracy
Scarlett Johansson and Channing Tatum star in a movie about government incompetence.
Alien: Romulus Is a Slick, Empty Franchise Pastiche
The taut, grisly new entry plays like a greatest-hits reel.
Replacing the 7 Dwarfs in Snow White With CGI Is Not 'Progressive'
Disney said they wanted to "avoid reinforcing stereotypes." The company's solution was to take away roles from a group that has almost no opportunity in Hollywood.
Review: A South Korean Film Explores Nativism and Authoritarianism After a Disaster
Concrete Utopia is a cautionary tale about the dangers of unchecked power under any circumstances.
Rebel Ridge Is an Upcoming Action Movie About Civil Asset Forfeiture Abuse
The explosions may be fake, but the nightmare scenario is ripped from the headlines.
With Deadpool & Wolverine, Marvel Has Lost the Plot
A sad, shallow, and pandering movie that shows the MCU has no real stories left to tell.
Fly Me to the Moon Is a NASA Rom-Com that Fails To Launch
Channing Tatum and Scarlett Johansson star in what may be the first romantic comedy about government funding disputes.
Biden and Trump Are Both Disastrously Wrong About Tariffs
Yes, cheap imports hurt some American companies. But protectionist trade policy harms many more Americans than it helps.
Kevin Costner's Neo-Western Horizon: An American Saga—Chapter 1 Is an Interminable Slog
Costner stars, directs, and writes in what amounts to a three-hour prologue for a better movie.
Is Inside Out 2 Secretly About Helicopter Parenting?
In the sequel to 2015's Inside Out, letting kids grow up means relinquishing control.
The Bikeriders Is a Nostalgic Vision of America's Postwar Counterculture
Jeff Nichols tells the tragic story of a carefree Midwest motorcycle gang that transforms into something uglier.
Netflix's Fake Assassin Movie, Hit Man, Is So Enjoyable It's Almost Criminal
Fake murder, real fun.
Review: How a Catholic Sister Resisted an Oppressive New York City Government
A new film depicts Mother Cabrini, the patron saint of immigrants.
With Ride or Die, the Bad Boys Movies Become Referendums on Masculinity
The fourth Bad Boys film is an uninspired retread.
Review: This Netflix Drama Depicts North Korean Refugees' Tribulations
My Name is Loh Kiwan dramatizes the experiences of refugees escaping oppressive regimes.
Super Size Me Was Not Groundbreaking Journalism
Morgan Spurlock's death and legacy are a reminder that skepticism is a necessary part of any balanced diet.
Review: The Terminator: The Original Killer AI
Arnold Schwarzenegger's classic role colored our perception of AI, for better or for worse.
Furiosa Is a Glorious Apocalyptic Epic From Mad Max Director George Miller
More philosophical and more Shakespearean than Fury Road, it's another ambitious action extravaganza.
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes Is Just a Lot of Monkeying Around
The latest movie in the Apes franchise gestures at interesting ideas about politics and civilizational conflict, but it doesn't develop them.
No, Unions Aren't Having a Resurgence—and That's Good for Workers
Private unions have every right to exist, but that doesn't mean they're actually beneficial on net.
The Fall Guy Is a Crowd-Pleasing Homage to Silver Screen Stunt Work
It's not a great movie. But it is a great time at the movies.
Challengers Is the Horny Tennis Movie Hollywood Needs
A witty, erotically charged three-way love story about tennis, sex, and ambition.
Civil War Is a Brutal, Intense No-Sidesing of American Political Divisions
Alex Garland's latest post-apocalyptic thought experiment is a war movie without a take.
Monkey Man Is No John Wick. But It's Invigorating, Politically Potent Action Cinema.
Dev Patel's action debut is a righteous, wild revenge film.
Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire Is Epically, Enjoyably Stupid
A dumb, loud movie that delivers the promised monster beatdowns.
Review: Musical Movie Doesn't Recapture Mean Girls' Genuine Meanness
The audience's tolerance for the truth about bullying has diminished in our oversensitive age.
New Georgia Law Limits Film Tax Credits. But Marvel Would Still Qualify.
While the state senate's bill would cap tax credits at 2.3 percent of the state's budget, any production filming at a big enough studio would be exempt.
Patrick Swayze's Road House Defined the So-Bad-It's-Good Movie. The Remake? Not So Much.
A just-good-enough remake fails to live up to its predecessor.
Problemista Is a Magical Realist Fable About the Absurdity of America's Immigration System
A story about a young man who just wants to legally work, if only the system would let him.
Cheering From the Press Box
Also: Oppenheimer and Godzilla win at the Oscars, Virginia state lawmakers nuke plans for taxpayer-funded arena, and more...
Oscar-Nominated Robot Dreams Is a Gentle Animated Love Story About Dogs, Robots, and 1980s New York
A charming story of love, friendship, and impersonal urban bureaucracy.
Milei's Free Market Reforms Can Reshape Argentine Cinema
Decades of protectionism have led to the film industry’s decline, but a free market can make it bloom.
Dune: Part Two Is a Glorious Sci-Fi Spectacle
The sequel is about ecology, politics, economics, imperialism, and much more. But mostly it's about worms.
