Many critics have totally panned “Collateral Beauty” as being emotionally manipulative, unworthy of the acting talent collected in the film. I agree that it’s emotionally manipulative but it’s also inspirational and a heartwarming, if unrealistic, reminder to see the beauty all around us. Now, who couldn’t use that reminder from time to time, right?

Set in the immediate aftermath of the assassination of JFK, “Jackie,” is not your usual biopic. The film flits from point to point with no apparent logic but isn’t that what grief is like? That’s what we see here, a woman who has witnessed the brutal murder of her husband, only to have to shoulder, not only her own grief, but that of an entire nation.

“Manchester by the Sea” defies description in a really, really good way. It’s not flashy or formulaic in the way some fish-out-of-water stories are. Instead, the story of a quietly suffering man who gets another wrench thrown into his life when his brother dies captures better than any other film I’ve seen what real life is like.

"Loving," the latest film from director, Jeff Nichols (Midnight Special, Mud), shares the true story of Richard and Mildred Loving (Joel Edgerton and Ruth Negga), a married couple who fought for the right to live together in the 1960’s.

Mel Gibson has done it again. "Hacksaw Ridge" is the cinematic event of 2016-2017. "HR" is the true story of Private Desmond Doss, a Seventh-Day Adventist from Virginia who enlists in World War II, but--as a conscientious objector--staunchly refuses to bear arms. Literally. He won't even touch a gun, let alone go through the required rifle training. His dream is to be a medic and save lives.

A new film aptly entitled "Denial"--about a famous Holocaust-denial court case--is a jewel.

"Birth of a Nation" is the dramatic story of Nat Turner, a slave who led a rebellion in Southampton County, Va., in 1831. The film is not a remake of the controversial 1915 silent film by D.W. Griffith, but reusing the same title is a powerful reminder of the role the institution of the slave trade and slavery played in the founding of the United States.

The story of US Airways flight 1549, landed by Captain Sullenberger on the Hudson River in 2009 seems straightforward, and it is. Director Clint Eastwood has intuited that the power of the story of a man's character over that of an airplane crash might make a better movie, and for my money, it does. But put them together and you get a hero's story of epic proportions.

“The Light Between Oceans” takes place as Tom Sherbourne (Michael Fassbender) returns to Western Australia after World War I. Having lost many friends, he wants a job that allows him peace, quiet, and time to reflect. Accepting temporary employment as a lighthouse keeper on remote Janus Island, he welcomes the solitude.

Set in some small towns of West Texas that modern society seems to have forgotten, “Hell or High Water” offers a commentary on how harmful our profit-driven economy can be and to what lengths people will go to make sure their families have a secure financial future.