Justin Chang
Justin Chang is a film critic for the Los Angeles Times and NPR's Fresh Air, and a regular contributor to KPCC's FilmWeek. He previously served as chief film critic and editor of film reviews for Variety.
Chang is the author of FilmCraft: Editing, a book of interviews with seventeen top film editors. He serves as chair of the National Society of Film Critics and secretary of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.
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When the pope dies, backbiting, infighting and ruthless smear campaigning taint the effort to find his successor. Ralph Fiennes stars in a film perfectly timed for this nail-biting election season. -
Anora is easily one of Sean Baker’s funniest works — and also one of the saddest. The film won the Palme d'Or at Cannes, and the director says it's dedicated to sex workers "past, present and future." -
Francis Ford Coppola's epic draws parallels between the U.S. and ancient Rome. Forty-some years in the making, it's got wild sex, startling violence, horse-drawn chariots and even nightclub unicorns. -
Two new films seem to be in dialogue: In The Substance, Demi Moore is a Hollywood star chasing eternal youth. The dark comedy A Different Man centers on a New Yorker with a rare genetic condition. -
Natasha Lyonne, Elizabeth Olsen and Carrie Coon play estranged sisters saying farewell to their terminally ill dad. It's a familiar plot, but writer-director Azazel Jacobs manages to sidesteps cliché. -
Director Tim Burton seems more interested in updating than duplicating his 1988 hit. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice demonstrates affection for the characters and genuine curiosity in how they’re doing now. -
Over the past 50 years or so, Spanish filmmaker Víctor Erice has directed just four features. His latest, about a filmmaker who revisits a past project, has the pull of a well-crafted detective story. -
The latest installment of the "Alien" series is an efficient and reasonably entertaining thriller. But dwelling too obsessively on the past won't guarantee a franchise's future. -
On its surface, Good One is about a teen on a backpacking trip with her dad and his friend. But the film is so sharp and engrossing you might not notice the deeper story taking shape underneath. -
Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman have good, thorny chemistry in this odd-couple action hero flick. But brand extension disguised as a satire of brand extension is still just ... brand extension.
