Less than 10 minutes into the 100-minute "Gaga: Five Foot Two," a cinema verite-style documentary about Lady Gaga that emulates Madonna's 1991 documentary "Truth or Dare," the "Poker Face" pop star complains that she's been unfairly accused of stealing Madonna's style and sound.

"I could never wrap my head around the fact (that Madonna) wouldn'...Read more

The English director Stephen Frears has an affinity for odd-couple comedies, particularly whenever Judi Dench gets involved. Their prior collaborations include "Mrs. Henderson Presents" (2005), in which Dench played a wealthy widow enjoying a thorny rapport with a theater manager (Bob Hoskins), and "Philomena" (2013), which cast her as a devout ...Read more

"Stronger" is the title of Jeff Bauman's bestselling memoir about his experience as a survivor of the Boston Marathon bombing, and also of David Gordon Green's fine new film adaptation. It is also a knowing riff on "Boston Strong," a call for local unity and an assertion of hometown pride that rose from the ashes of that 2013 tragedy to become a...Read more

You have questions. I have some answers.

Q: Now that Jerry Lewis has died, will the unreleased movie "The Day the Clown Cried" (1972) ever be released on DVD for serious Jerry Lewis movie collectors?

A: "The Day the Clown Cried" is the major mystery in Lewis' filmography, a film that no more than a handful of people claim to have seen, and ...Read more

Engaging and sunny (literally; this is the brightest, squintiest film in months), as far as it goes, "Battle of the Sexes" is a two-headed biopic reluctant to complicate its coming-out story with too many ... complications.

This will not be a problem for most audiences. Collectively, the "Battle of the Sexes" team knows how to please a crowd. ...Read more

The Facebook-themed horror movie "Friend Request" spooks its way into theaters this weekend, hoping to turn up audiences who are ready for autumn temperatures, Halloween and things that go bump in the night. Shockingly, "Friend Request" delivers. This scare-fest is so gloriously dumb that it is surprisingly a whole lot of fun.

This German/South...Read more

"Stronger" is a movie you need to see, no matter how much you think you don't need to see it.

A less effective version of the same fact-based story, even with the same actors doing the same excellent work -- it's Jake Gyllenhaal's finest, truest two hours on film -- might creak and groan with "inspirational weepie" biopic machinery, over-...Read more

In "Stronger," you hear the falls. Jeff Bauman (Jake Gyllenhaal), recovering from a tragedy that left him a double amputee, falls a lot, and he falls hard: from the toilet, from his bed, from the artificial legs with which he must reacquaint himself, slowly and painfully, with walking. The movie doesn't soften the harshness with which he hits ...Read more

In "Mike Judge Presents: Tales From the Tour Bus," a shaggy-dog documentary series premiering Friday on Cinemax, the creator of "Beavis and Butt-head" and co-creator of "King of the Hill" and "Silicon Valley" finds the dark, crazed heart of country music and turns it into a cartoon, literally.

As a historical meditation that adds new visuals to...Read more

TORONTO -- "Do I look pathetic?" Lady Gaga asks, covering her face with her hands to hide her tears. She is lying on a couch in her apartment, only a towel covering her body. A physical therapist places an ice pack on her cheek and massages her head.

"I'm so embarrassed," she says, sobbing quietly.

For the last few years, the musician has been...Read more

A downbeat, naturalistic and admirably adult dramatic comedy, "Brad's Status" is the story of a bright man who devotes most of his intellectual energy to pessimism and melancholy. He's not a loser, but a frustrated guy in crisis. Midlife crisis. A self-defined second-rater. When you see him in bed, eyes wide open, it's obvious that he's ...Read more

ATOMIC BLONDE. 2.5 stars. Charlize Theron is a rampaging British agent in Berlin as the wall collapses in 1989, teaming with another agent (James McAvoy) to help a defector and find a traitor. Works well as actioner, not so well as espionage thriller. 1 hr. 55. R (violence, nudity) -- Gary Thompson

THE BIG SICK. 3.5 stars. Based on comedian ...Read more

LOS ANGELES -- Britain's secretary of state on Wednesday ruled that the bid by Rupert Murdoch's media company to control the European satellite TV service Sky must undergo more rigorous regulatory scrutiny.

Karen Bradley, Britain's secretary of state for culture and media, formally referred 21st Century Fox's bid to consolidate the Sky service ...Read more