margaret qualley – ALLIANCE OF WOMEN FILM JOURNALISTS

THE DOG STARS – Review by T.J. Callahan

August 28, 2026August 28, 2026 T. J. Callahan Jacob Elordi, josh brlin, margaret qualley, peter heller, ridley scott, the dog stars

The dystopian saga features Jacob Elordi as Hig, a widowed mechanic and pilot, who lives with his dog Jasper and a military survivalist named Bangley, played by Josh Brolin. They’ve set up house in an abandoned airplane hangar nestled in a valley between mountains outside of Denver. He spends his days trying to stay one step ahead of the roaming scavengers called Reapers and flying his Cessna into the remains of the city to gather hidden supplies. Until one day, when he hears a distant voice over his cockpit radio. Still believing in humanity over evil, Hig dares to fly past the “safe zone” to see if a better life exists.

Reviews

HOW TO MAKE A KILLING – Review by Susan Granger

April 13, 2026April 12, 2026 Susan Granger ed harris, Glen Powell, How to Make a Killing, John Patton Ford, margaret qualley, raff law, Topher Grace

Have you ever seen a delectable British black comedy called Kind Hearts and Coronets? Released in 1949, it starred Alec Guiness as the debonair son of a woman disowned by her aristocratic family for marrying below her class. After she dies, he decides to acquire his inheritance by murdering eight relatives ahead of him in the line of succession – with Guiness playing all of them! Insipidly written and blandly directed by John Patton Ford, How to Make a Killing re-imagines that rudimentary concept, with casting Glen Powell as the disowned grandson of an uber-wealthy Ed Harris.

Reviews

HOW TO MAKE A KILLING – Review by Leslie Combemale

February 17, 2026February 19, 2026 Leslie Combemale ed harris, Glen Powell, How to Make a Killing, Jessica Henwick, John Patton Ford, Kind Hearts and Coronets, margaret qualley, Topher Grace

I know most people who aren’t film obsessed don’t know the 1949 Alec Guinness classic Kind Hearts and Coronets, but it’s a great film. BFI ranked the black comedy 6th on its list Top 100 British Films. Writer/director John Patton Ford has now mined the film for his new black comedy thriller How to Make a Killing. There was never any way it would live up to its predecessor, and it pushes the envelope in terms of demands for audiences to suspend disbelief. Still, as a dark cautionary tale about greed, and yet another affirmation of Powell’s star power and talent, it succeeds well enough on its own merits.

Reviews

HOW TO MAKE A KILLING – Review by T. J. Callahan

February 17, 2026February 19, 2026 T. J. Callahan ed harris, Glen Powell, How to Make a Killing, Jessica Henwick, John Patton Ford, Kind Hearts and Coronets, margaret qualley, Topher Grace

Glen Powell has been making a killing at the box office with his pretty face, but how long can he rely on his good looks before he’s forced to lean a little more into this acting thing? He takes it to the next level as the leading man in How to Make a Killing, a dark comedy about a son determined to get back what he rightfully deserves.

Reviews

BLUE MOON – Review by Susan Granger

November 24, 2025November 28, 2025 Susan Granger Andrew Scott, BLUE MOON, Elizabeth Weiland, Ethan Hawke, Lorenz Hart, margaret qualley, Oscar Hammerstein II, Richard Llinklater, Richard Rodgers, Robert Kaplow, Simon Delaney

Set on March 31, 1943, Richard Linklater’s Blue Moon recalls the Opening Night of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s genre-redefining musical Oklahoma! at the ‘after-party’ at Sardi’s in NYC’s Theater District, where Lorenze Hart, Rodgers’ former creative partner feels the anguish of being left behind.

Reviews

BLUE MOON – Review by Lynn Venhaus

October 27, 2025October 31, 2025 Lynn Venhaus Andrew Scott, BLUE MOON, Elizabeth Weiland, Ethan Hawke, Lorenz Hart, margaret qualley, Oscar Hammerstein II, Richard Llinklater, Richard Rodgers, Robert Kaplow, Simon Delaney

A bittersweet ode to words and music, Blue Moon is not only a funny valentine to musical theater fans but a piercing exploration of a painful artistic break-up that’s relatable to anyone. Marked by strong, intuitive performances, an insightful and entertaining script, and superior craftsmanship, Blue Moon is superb, sharp storytelling, specific in a heart-tugging way.

Reviews

BLUE MOON – Review by Diane Carson

October 25, 2025October 25, 2025 Diane Carson Andrew Scott, BLUE MOON, Elizabeth Weiland, Ethan Hawke, Lorenz Hart, margaret qualley, Oscar Hammerstein II, Richard Llinklater, Richard Rodgers, Robert Kaplow, Simon Delaney

In director Richard Llinklater’s Blue Moon, Lorenz Hart (Ethan Hawke) must cope with an upended professional life, for, to Hart’s dismay, his former creative partner Richard Rodgers (Andrew Scott) has moved on to work with Oscar Hammerstein II (Simon Delaney). After the triumphant Broadway premiere of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Oklahoma, March 31, 1943, Hart retreats to Sardi’s bar in New York’s theater district, awaiting Rodgers’ and his entourage’s arrival. Told entirely from Hart’s point of view, with Hawke on camera and conquering every scene, Hart bares his pain through witty banter alternating with self-mockery mixed with diffident confidence.

Reviews

BLUE MOON (Middleburg FF 2025) – Review by Leslie Combemale

October 24, 2025October 24, 2025 Leslie Combemale Andrew Scott, BLUE MOON, Bobby Cannavale, Ethan Hawke, Lorenz Hart, margaret qualley, Middleburg FF 2025, Richard Rodgers

Richard Linklater’s new comedy drama, written by Robert Kaplow, follows Lorenz Hart (Ethan Hawke) for one single night at Sardi’s. It’s March 31st, 1943, opening night of Oklahoma!, the first musical released by his now former partner Richard Rodgers (Andrew Scott). The film makes it very clear the reason Rodgers has moved on is Hart’s drinking, and its accompanying and very flamboyant self-sabotage.

Reviews

HONEY DON’T – Review by T. J. Callahan

August 20, 2025August 20, 2025 T. J. Callahan aubrey plaza, Charlie Day, Chris Evans, ethan coen, Honey Don’t, margaret qualley, Tricia Cooke

Sex, thugs and heads that roll. Ethan Coen and his wife, Tricia Cooke must have had a ton of fun…and tequila…as they wrote the witty second installment of their fierce femme fatale trilogy, Honey Don’t, a grizzly homage to the neo-noir gumshoe films that would make Quentin Tarantino proud, but audiences may just say honey, don’t.

Reviews

THE SUBSTANCE – Review by Susan Granger

September 17, 2024September 22, 2024 Susan Granger body horror, Coralie Fargeat, demi moore, Dennis Quaid, margaret qualley, the substance

‘Tis the season for horror movies, specifically body horror as Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley occupy the same body in The Substance. It’s been many years since Elizabeth Sparkle (Demi Moore) got her coveted Star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame. She’s now an aging actress who has built an empire on her TV aerobics videos: Sparkle with Elizabeth. But then a smarmy, misogynistic executive, aptly named Harvey (Dennis Quaid), decides she’s too old, no longer attractive, and should be replaced by a perkier, prettier younger version. “After 50, it stops,” he tells her – in no uncertain terms.

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