Rachael Nisenkier

2017 was one of the greatest years of filmmaking we’ve ever seen. On one hand, that made finding enough brilliant nominees to fill each category of the Critics’ Pick Awards a breeze. On the other hand, it made picking winners a nightmare. There were a few things on which consensus came easy (Outstanding Actor came […]

  Rachael Nisenkier

Every once and a while I walk out of a movie and just think “Damn, that movie was perfect.” It doesn’t mean it’s my favorite movie or even my favorite movie of that year. Frequently, it’s not. It means that this was a movie that perfectly executed what it set out to do. Baby Driver […]

  Rachael Nisenkier

In a lot of ways, both for me as a reviewer and for this show that I cover, we end like we began. I started with a two-episode binge that at turns entranced and horrified me, and I end on a two-episode binge that left me agitated and exhilarated – just like June, who ends […]

  Rachael Nisenkier

Now we’re really in the thick of it with The Handmaid’s Tale — exploring the world of Gillead and building the desire to take it on down. This week’s episode will probably end up a favorite (sex clubs! Nick flashbacks! MOIRA!) even as upon first viewing it felt like a table-setting episode for Offred’s turn […]

  Rachael Nisenkier

In 2011, when Captain America: The First Avenger came out, I wrote a review that basically boiled down to: I’d watch the TV show but am bored with the pilot episode. Given my glee and love for Captain America: The Winter Soldier and Captain America: Civil War, I’d say that was about right. I feel the […]

  Rachael Nisenkier

This week’s episode of The Handmaid’s Tale shifted its focus. Star Elisabeth Moss has been an unbelievable asset to the show – making nuance out of Offred’s stuffy and confined life – yet by taking the focus off June for the episode, the show injects some life into the series. “The Other Side” tells us […]

  Rachael Nisenkier

Comedy feels like it’s in a transition zone – from the emotions + improv vibes of mid-aughts Judd Apatow to more traditional, high concept comedies like Amy Schumer’s latest, Snatched. For that reason, Snatched ends up being a movie that, more than anything, . It hits its comedic beats well, and also fails to register […]

  Rachael Nisenkier

In episode five, “A Woman’s Place,” our series explores the complicity of the women in the world of Gillead, and it is terrifying. Not only do we get a deep dive into the history of Serena Joy (more on that later) but we also get a first glimpse at the world outside Gillead and the […]