Josh Bell
Tomatometer-approved critic
Josh Bell has been a film and TV critic for Las Vegas Weekly since 2002.
Heathers, Fight Club, South Park, Clerks, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, The Craft, Scream, The Big Lebowski, Bound, Wild Things, Almost Famous, Batman (Tim Burton-style), Rosemary's Baby, The Birds, Manhattan, Bring It On, Gattaca, Carrie, Pulp Fiction, Terminator 2, Breathless, Lone Star, La Femme Nikita, Romy & Michele's High School Reunion, Alien, Invasion of the Body Snatchers, Heat
Las Vegas
Movies reviews only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
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Boston Strangler (2023) |
It's a reasonably satisfying procedural, but it offers a fairly superficial examination of the deeper issues surrounding the investigation. - The Inlander (Spokane, WA)
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| Posted Mar 16, 2023
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Craving (2023) |
Drug addiction as a metaphor for demonic possession is a strong hook for a horror movie, but director and co-writer J. Horton never finds a coherent way of expressing it. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Mar 08, 2023
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Punch (2022) |
The cliches outweigh the tenderness in this wispy, meandering drama about the relationship between a macho teenage boxer and his sensitive gay classmate. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Mar 08, 2023
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Sound of Silence (2023) |
The sudden appearance and disappearance of ghosts loses its potency after a while, and the movie doesn't have any other reliable ways of jolting the audience. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Mar 08, 2023
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The Year Between (2022) |
The dark humor is more effective than the earnest family bonding, although Heller's genuine love and gratitude eventually shine through. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Mar 08, 2023
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The Donor Party (2023) |
Characters and subplots come and go seemingly at random, and writer-director Thom Harp has no sense of what's potentially funny about any of them. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Mar 08, 2023
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Creed III (2023) |
After three movies, Adonis is still guarded and insecure, but literally fighting his past isn't a particularly compelling way for him to move forward. - The Inlander (Spokane, WA)
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| Posted Mar 02, 2023
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Linoleum (2022) |
The most disappointing thing about Linoleum is that West seems to give up on making these strange details into something coherent, instead throwing in confusing twists that invalidate rather than enhance everything that came earlier. - CBR
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| Posted Feb 23, 2023
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Jesus Revolution (2023) |
Might be the squarest movie ever made about hippies. - The Inlander (Spokane, WA)
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| Posted Feb 23, 2023
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Who Are You People (2023) |
Writer-director Ben Epstein never quite balances the jarring tonal shifts of his coming-of-age drama. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 22, 2023
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The Welder (2021) |
Director David Liz is better at building vague unease than he is at delivering social commentary. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 22, 2023
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The Other Fellow (2022) |
The structure can be a little haphazard, but the individual stories are fascinating enough to hold the viewer's interest on their own. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 22, 2023
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Devil's Peak (2023) |
The setting and the plot are thinly sketched, and the suspense and thrills are minimal. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 22, 2023
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Lamya's Poem (2021) |
With its blandly educational tone and unremarkable animation, Lamya's Poem is never as rousing or inspirational as it's meant to be. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 22, 2023
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Winnie-the-Pooh: Blood and Honey (2023) |
Despite some reshoots that followed the viral success of the movie's trailer, Blood and Honey is still just a low-budget horror quickie, virtually indistinguishable from any of the 80-plus other movies that producer Scott Jeffrey has worked on since 2016. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 16, 2023
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Consecration (2023) |
Maintains its creepy atmosphere even through its muddled plot. - CBR
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| Posted Feb 10, 2023
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Daughter (2022) |
Immerses the viewer in an eerie world within the house's beige interiors, making Father and his warped ideas scary and mesmerizing, right up to the chilling final shot. - Crooked Marquee
Read More
| Posted Feb 08, 2023
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Line of Fire (2022) |
The filmmakers seem to think they're making a profound existential statement, but that's just window dressing for cheap exploitation. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 08, 2023
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Woman of the Photographs (2020) |
Sometimes it's a little too opaque, but it's compelling even when it's baffling. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 08, 2023
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Frankie Meets Jack (2023) |
Somehow, even the dog acting is bad. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 08, 2023
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Who Invited Charlie? (2022) |
This amiable but listless comedy alternates between awkward humor and awkward sentiment. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 08, 2023
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Living (2022) |
Despite its potentially morbid subject matter, Living is a lovely, tender story about the value of human connection and the power of small gestures of kindness. - The Inlander (Spokane, WA)
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| Posted Feb 03, 2023
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Baby Ruby (2022) |
Wohl has noble intentions in raising awareness about postpartum depression and psychosis, but the result is closer to a feature-length pharmaceutical ad than a psychological thriller. - CBR
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| Posted Feb 03, 2023
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Erin's Guide to Kissing Girls (2022) |
A cute, upbeat take on queer romance, focusing on personal relationships rather than coming-out angst. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 01, 2023
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Exceptional Beings (2023) |
This sci-fi fiasco is startlingly incoherent, a jumble of pseudo-philosophical nonsense, horrendous special effects, and incomprehensible plotting. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 01, 2023
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Petit Mal (2022) |
It's sometimes too sedate for its own good, but even the most mundane moments have an appealing, honest vulnerability. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 01, 2023
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Immortal City Records (2023) |
The characters' motivations are inconsistent, the mystery is almost entirely nonexistent, and the supposed bangers that put the label on the map sound like knock-offs designed to trick Spotify algorithms. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 01, 2023
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Blood (2022) |
The drama is mostly flat, and the true horrors of Owen's condition only manifest when the movie is nearly over. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Feb 01, 2023
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The Son (2022) |
Rather than cultivating empathy, it just inspires scorn. - The Inlander (Spokane, WA)
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| Posted Jan 20, 2023
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Kids vs. Aliens (2022) |
There's a lot of loud, chaotic enthusiasm, but not much coherence or excitement. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Jan 18, 2023
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Actual People (2021) |
Zauhar proves herself a worthy next-generation successor to Lena Dunham or Greta Gerwig. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Jan 18, 2023
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There's Something Wrong with the Children (2023) |
Benjamin relies on tired jump-scare music stings and cheap fake-outs, although the adult stars bring some bite to their characters' internal struggles. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Jan 18, 2023
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The Tomorrow Job (2022) |
The time-travel mechanics are clever and reasonably cohesive, but the heist plot is a convoluted jumble of characters with confusing motivations and relationships. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Jan 17, 2023
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The Seven Faces of Jane (2022) |
The kind of movie that was undoubtedly more enjoyable to make than it is to watch. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Jan 17, 2023
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Skinamarink (2022) |
In making a movie meant to recreate actual childhood dreams, Ball has succeeded in producing something that is likely to put many viewers to sleep, lulling them into slumber rather than filling them with fear. - CBR
Read More
| Posted Jan 13, 2023
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The Drop (2022) |
Smith and co-writer Joshua Leonard present 90 minutes of passive-aggressive jerks being terrible to each other, with improvised comedy that often gives up before finding a punchline. - CBR
Read More
| Posted Jan 12, 2023
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M3GAN (2022) |
Nearly lives up to the expectations set by its advance online fanbase, delivering a fun, stylish variation on familiar horror-movie themes. - The Inlander (Spokane, WA)
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| Posted Jan 06, 2023
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The Old Way (2023) |
Compared to the likes of Pig or Mandy, The Old Way is a letdown, but among Cage's B-movie oeuvre, it's a gem. - CBR
Read More
| Posted Jan 05, 2023
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Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical (2022) |
The story may have been presented in multiple formats already, but Matilda the Musical proves to be a delightful variation. - CBR
Read More
| Posted Dec 23, 2022
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Joyride (2022) |
Whatever quaint small-town Irish charm that Joyride has, it runs out fairly quickly. - CBR
Read More
| Posted Dec 23, 2022
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Babylon (2022) |
Chazelle seems less interested in the artistic and commercial upheaval that accompanied the decline of silent films than he is in the debauched behavior of his characters. - The Inlander (Spokane, WA)
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| Posted Dec 23, 2022
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Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022) |
Proves that Puss is still entertaining to watch, thanks in large part to Banderas' charismatic vocal performance. - The Inlander (Spokane, WA)
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| Posted Dec 23, 2022
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Matriarch (2022) |
Methodically paced and atmospheric, it erupts into glorious, graphic weirdness in the finale, and Steiner expertly navigates the tonal shifts. - Crooked Marquee
Read More
| Posted Dec 20, 2022
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Teenage Emotions (2021) |
An engaging and entertaining portrait of the overwhelming angst and insecurity of being a teenager, with actors who look and behave like genuine high schoolers (because they are). - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Dec 20, 2022
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High Heat (2022) |
A pleasant surprise amid the steady stream of forgettable action B-movies. - CBR
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| Posted Dec 16, 2022
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Mistletoe Time Machine (2022) |
Title aside, the Christmas content is fairly minimal in this good-natured but dull comedy. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Dec 14, 2022
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Merry & Gay (2022) |
It's heartening to see this kind of inclusivity in a lightweight holiday romance, even if the final product is largely forgettable. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Dec 14, 2022
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The Killing Tree (2022) |
Undermines the horror with a cop-out ending that turns the movie into a glum meditation on grief. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Dec 14, 2022
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A Family Matters Christmas (2022) |
A drawn-out, poorly realized journey toward some muddled moral messages. - Crooked Marquee
Read More
| Posted Dec 14, 2022
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A Christmas Karen (2022) |
Neither effective satire nor a satisfying version of a well-worn holiday tale. - Crooked Marquee
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| Posted Dec 14, 2022
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