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Grief is a fertile, if uncomfortable topic, and Nelson’s book approached it with the kind of open-hearted honesty it deserved, wrapped up in a careful package that made it accessible enough for the teenage audience it was meant to serve. A cinematic version? It could be maudlin or silly, leaning too much into the pain or way too much into the more cutesy elements of the story (its leading lady, musical prodigy Lennie, is prone to penning her thoughts on leaves and napkins and closet walls, a creative if potentially too zany way to show how she processes her pain)....

For Souza, his job as Chief Official White House Photographer offered him the unique opportunity to show what it’s like “on the inside of a presidency.” First hired by the White House when he was just an up-and-comer at the Chicago Sun-Times, Souza learned while doing, honing both his intimate style and the thinking that went into it at the same time. An early segment of the film provides valuable insight into those Reagan years, with Souza — who seems like both a funny and emotionally astute guy — reminiscing on how his philosophy shaped his work, a gig he clearly still has great reverence for....

In IndieWire’s review of the first two episodes, Elliott Smith wrote: “While many view the West with rose-tinted sunglasses, “Them” shows how the corrosive effects of racism were in full rot even in the City of Angels. As soon as the Emory family pulls into the driveway of its new home, their new white neighbors are out in full force to protest, led by a proto-Karen named Betty Wendell (Alison Pill), in all her mid-century modern brittleness....

But what’s kept the events of March 18, 1990 in the public fascination is everything about it that still makes no sense. “This is a Robbery” outlines the circumstances surrounding the pilfering of 13 items from the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston on that legendary day-after-St.-Patrick’s grab. Collectively, it was a nine-figure haul of irreplaceable works from legendary artists like Rembrandt, Vermeer, Manet, and Degas. Despite the built-in chaos of the event itself — most notably: a combination of clear operation planning and a seemingly random sacking of paintings and relatively worthless objects — director Colin Barnicle’s four-part series is a fairly solid summary of the details that journalists, investigators, and witnesses have been able to cobble together in the time since....

“The Woman King,” “Catherine Called Birdy,” “The Menu,” “Moonage Daydream,” and “My Policeman” additionally debut at the festival. Now, the Contemporary World Cinema slate has been announced for 2022 TIFF. The lineup includes features from more than 50 countries spanning the globe. The respective world premieres for “Bones of Crows” and “The Swearing Jar” are among programming highlights, as well as the North American premieres for Koji Fukada’s “Love Life” and Jerzy Skolimowski’s “EO....

Michael Morris’ “To Leslie” is a redemptive drama about a poor Southern white lady played by Andrea Riseborough, who wins $190,000 in the state lottery and only learns the value of sharing after she’s drank all her cash away. But for a while there, the film is almost as slippery and elusive as the actress who plays its title role. Is it going to be — as the first stop along its episodic first half would suggest — a gruesome scream-fest between a bottom-of-the-bottle alcoholic and the semi-adult son (Owen Teague) who’s trying to give her a second chance?...

“Together Together” features an enviable cast of comedy favorites, from big name faves like Ed Helms and Tig Notaro to the recently crowned prince of weird Julio Torres. But the most exciting performance comes from alt-comedy darling Patti Harrison, who makes an understated splash in her first leading film role. As a recurring presence on TV shows like “Shrill” and “Search Party” and a writer for “Big Mouth,” Harrison’s stand-up is marked by a droll deadpan that borders on antagonistic....