Chocolates and flowers are gifts you could give for Mother's Day. But how about a gift you should give? Up To Date's indie, foreign and documentary film critics suggest one of these movies for a date night with Mom (dinner plans not included).
Steve Walker
Hounds of Love, Not rated
- This Australian psychological thriller about a sexually predatory couple whose latest teenage hostage uses the fissures in their relationship as a survival strategy is so well-acted, it’s doubly unsettling.
Risk, Not rated
- Oscar-winning documentarian Laura Poitras (Citizenfour) embeds herself with WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange prior to his asylum in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, and through the 2016 U.S. presidential election.
Buster’s Mal Heart, Not rated
- Set in the jittery years before the Y2K scare, Rami Malek, of TV’s Mr. Robot, gives a powerful performance as a hotel concierge who becomes emotionally unhinged after a double homicide and takes to living like a hermit in the Montana mountains.
Cynthia Haines
Cézanne et Moi, R
- A historical drama focused on the evolving friendship between painter Paul Cézanne and writer Emile Zola. Director and writer Danièle Thompson deftly captures their mutual respect and rivalry.
Chasing Trane, Not rated
- An engrossing and comprehensive documentary about the life of saxophone legend John Coltrane, including a strong selection of interviews and the voice of Denzel Washington.
Buster's Mal Heart, Not rated
- This trance-like and unsettling mystery follows the psyche of a deranged hotel concierge played by Rami Malek, who tries to piece together his broken past.
