Monthly Archives: January 2021

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

Saint Maud
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Drama, Horror, Mystery | Directed by Rose Glass
A disturbed young nurse becomes obsessed with a dying artist in this exceptional horror movie debut from the director Rose Glass.


Morfydd Clark, mesmerizing as the title character in “Saint Maud.”
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

Beginning
NYT Critic’s Pick | Not Rated | Drama | Directed by Dea Kulumbegashvili
Dea Kulumbegashvili’s debut feature ensnares its heroine in circles of religious and patriarchal persecution.


Ia Sukhitashvili in “Beginning.”
By DEVIKA GIRISH

Supernova
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Drama, Romance | Directed by Harry Macqueen
Colin Firth and Stanley Tucci play a longtime couple facing unpleasant facts in this spectacularly moving film from Harry Macqueen.


Colin Firth, left, and Stanley Tucci in “Supernova.”
By GLENN KENNY

— Of Possible Interest —

Finding ‘Ohana
PG | Action, Adventure, Comedy, Family | Directed by Jude Weng
The adventure narrative in this Hawaii-set Netflix film distracts from a deeper story about cultural heritage and family dynamics.


From left, Lindsay Watson, Kea Peahu, Owen Vaccaro and Alex Aiono in “Finding Ohana.”
By KYLE TURNER

L’état sauvage
Drama, Western | Directed by David Perrault
French settlers flee the American Civil War in this heavily allegorical, yet strangely compelling drama.


Alice Isaaz and Kevin Janssen in “Savage State.”
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

The Dig
PG-13 | Biography, Drama, History | Directed by Simon Stone
A small team makes a groundbreaking discovery in this fictionalized account of an actual archaeological expedition close to home.


Carey Mulligan and Ralph Fiennes in “The Dig.”
By GLENN KENNY

Palmer
R | Drama | Directed by Fisher Stevens
Justin Timberlake stars as an ex-convict who interrogates his gender biases after he comes to care for a young boy in this prosaic melodrama.

Justin Timberlake and Ryder Allen in “Palmer.”
Justin Timberlake and Ryder Allen in “Palmer.”
By NATALIA WINKELMAN

Food! Glorious Food!

Cooks Turned Instagram Into the World’s Greatest Takeout Menu
During the pandemic, entrepreneurial chefs have reshaped food culture across the country with tiny, homegrown pop-ups that thrive on social media.
By TEJAL RAO

How America’s Food System Could Change Under Biden
New school meal standards? Help for small farmers? Maybe, but first the new administration has to deal with hunger, food safety and a diminished U.S.D.A.
By KIM SEVERSON

FRONT BURNER
A Taste of Carnival in New Orleans
The parades are canceled and visitors discouraged, but celebrate the season with a king cake shipped to your door.


Brennan’s is sending king cakes nationwide this Carnival season.
Brennan’s King Cakes, $20 plus shipping, brennansneworleans.com/events/kingcakesbybrennans;

Mardi Gras in a Box, $135 plus shipping, bayoubakeryva.com/mardi-gras-box.
By Florence Fabricant

FRONT BURNER
The Impermanence of Beauty
A new cookbook from the restaurant Kajitsu in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Manhattan highlights the intricacies of a vegan-style of Japanese cooking.


“Kajitsu: A Shojin Restaurant’s Season in the City” (FUKA Honten, $90), kitchenartsandletters.com.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

FRONT BURNER
Anita Lo Teaches a Dumpling Class for Lunar New Year
The chef will demonstrate how to make pork-and-shrimp dumplings on the website 100 Pleats.


Anita LoCredit…
Lunar New Year Dumpling Class, Feb. 12, 6:30 to 7:45 p.m., $49.99 per device, 100pleats.com/group.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

Savor Soup Made From Scratch
With this foundation of vegetables and water, delicious, homemade soup doesn’t have to be complicated. Adding personality is up to you.


Carrot-Ginger soup
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

EAT
Treat Yourself to a Parisian Aperitif That Is Easy to Make at Home
In France, savory cakes salé are served as a light nibble before dinner. They’re remarkably versatile and come together in a snap.


By DORIE GREENSPAN

A GOOD APPETITE
It’s Casserole Season. For That, There’s Polenta Lasagna.
Thoroughly miserable weather calls for thoroughly cozy dishes, preferably covered in mozzarella.


Instead of sheets of pasta, this lasagna has layers of polenta.
By MELISSA CLARK

The Crispiest, Creamiest Vegan Pasta
With just a little effort, this no-waste creamy leek pasta delivers a ton of texture and flavor.


The leek greens are boiled and then puréed into a sauce for this pasta.
By ALEXA WEIBEL

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

Derek DelGaudio’s in & of Itself
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Frank Oz
A film of Derek DelGaudio’s idiosyncratic show captures its surreal vibe and unconventional approach.


The star of “Derek DelGaudio’s In & Of Itself.”
By ELISABETH VINCENTELLI

Atlantis
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama, Sci-Fi | Directed by Valentyn Vasyanovych
Ukraine’s official Oscar entry, the movie depicts an all-too-convincing dystopia, with no fancy gadgets or cars.


Andriy Rymaruk in “Atlantis,” directed by Valentyn Vasyanovych.
By GLENN KENNY

Notturno
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Gianfranco Rosi
Gianfranco Rosi’s latest, beautifully shot documentary movingly observes people and places across Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Kurdistan in the aftermath of war.


A scene from Gianfranco Rosi’s documentary “Notturno.”
By NICOLAS RAPOLD

Identifying Features
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Fernanda Valadez
In this confident drama, a mother searches for her son who went missing while trying to migrate from Mexico to the United States.


Juan Jesús Varela in “Identifying Features.”
By TEO BUGBEE

You Will Die at 20
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Amjad Abu Alala
In his debut feature, Amjad Abu Alala deepens a fable-like premise into a lyrical confrontation with the certitudes of faith and the life-giving powers of doubt.


Islam Mubarak in “You Will Die at Twenty.”
By DEVIKA GIRISH

Preparations to be Together for an Unknown Period of Time
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama, Romance | Directed by Lili Horvát
A neurosurgeon pursues the man of her dreams in this simmering portrait of obsession by the Hungarian filmmaker Lili Horvat.


Natasa Stork in “Preparations to Be Together for an Unknown Period of Time.”
By BEATRICE LOAYZA

The Salt of Tears
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Philippe Garrel
In Philippe Garrel’s film, a young Frenchman juggles three women, hoping to be destroyed by love. He gets his wish, but not in a way he imagined.


Souheila Yacoub and Logann Antuofermo in “The Salt of Tears.”
By GLENN KENNY

Food! Glorious Food!

A New Orleans Mardi Gras With a Different Sort of Mask
The bar scene so central to the city’s economy and allure is about to become the stage for an unusually muted and bittersweet celebration.
By BRETT ANDERSON

Vegan Restaurant Gets Michelin Star in France, a First
“We want to show you can eat differently,” said Claire Vallée, whose restaurant won the star. A growing number of chefs are eschewing France’s traditional, meat-focused cuisine.


Claire Vallée, the chef at ONA, which opened five years ago in southwest France.
By AURELIEN BREEDEN

The Sioux Chef’s Indigenous Restaurant Owamni Eyes Spring Opening
The Sioux Chef team will introduce Twin Citians to Native American food without using Euro-centric ingredients. Owamni comes to the Minneapolis riverfront this spring, and it’s 300 years in the making.


by Dara Moskowitz Grumdahl

EAT
I Lost My Appetite Because of Covid. This Sichuan Flavor Brought It Back.
The classic combination in mala of Sichuan peppercorns and chiles makes for a sensation that is spicy, tingly and spicy again.


By TEJAL RAO

A GOOD APPETITE
The Best Butterscotch Pudding Is Homemade
This unfussy, old-fashioned recipe is easy to stir together on top of the stove, and hard to mess up.


The flavor of butterscotch pudding comes from dark brown sugar that’s been caramelized in butter and rounded out with vanilla.
By MELISSA CLARK

WINE SCHOOL
In Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, the Gifts of Simplicity
By Eric Asimov

WINE SCHOOL
In Fleurie, Looking Beyond the Clichés of Beaujolais


By Eric Asimov

With Pastry Beers, Have Your Cake and Drink It, Too
As breweries move beyond challenging flavors, they’re taking inspiration from desserts, snacks and candies.


Oozlefinch Beers & Blending in Fort Monroe, Va., evokes desserts in beers like the Das Yummy sour ale, which is inspired by Key lime pie.
By Joshua M. Bernstein

THOSE WE’VE LOST
Debra Ivory, Smiling Owner of a Barbecue Haven, Dies at 62
In her mid-50s, she cashed out some retirement savings to buy an Oklahoma City eatery, revamping the menu with family recipes. She died of complications of Covid-19.


By STEPHEN KURCZY

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

Acasa, My Home
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Radu Ciorniciuc
A family’s dispossession to make way for a nature park is the subject of this Romanian documentary.


A marshy field of dreams: A scene from Radu Ciorniciuc’s documentary, “Acasa, My Home.”
By A.O. SCOTT

MLK/FBI
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Sam Pollard
Sam Pollard’s fascinating documentary chronicles the F.B.I. director’s obsession with the private life and political affiliations of the civil rights leader.


The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., as seen in Sam Pollard’s documentary “MLK/FBI.”
By A.O. SCOTT

Film About a Father Who
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Lynne Sachs
In her new documentary, Lynne Sachs assesses her relationship with her father, Ira Sachs Sr., who fathered children with multiple women.


Ira Sachs Sr., as seen in Lynne Sachs’s documentary “Film About a Father Who.”
By BEN KENIGSBERG

Some Kind of Heaven
NYT Critic’s Pick | Documentary | Directed by Lance Oppenheim
This documentary co-produced by The New York Times visits a retirement community the size of a small city.

Barbara Lochiatto, a resident of The Villages, in the documentary “Some Kind of Heaven.”
Barbara Lochiatto, a resident of The Villages, in the documentary “Some Kind of Heaven.”
By BEN KENIGSBERG

My Little Sister
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama | Directed by Stéphanie Chuat, Véronique Reymond
A cancer diagnosis only strengthens the bond between adult twins in this perceptive Swiss drama.

Nina Hoss in “My Little Sister.”Credit...
Nina Hoss in “My Little Sister.”Credit…
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

One Night in Miami
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Drama | Directed by Regina King
A 1964 meeting of Malcolm X, Cassius Clay, Sam Cooke and Jim Brown is the subject of Regina King’s riveting directorial debut.

A moment in time: A scene from Regina King’s “One Night in Miami.” Kingsley Ben-Adir, left, as Malcolm X, taking a photo of Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge), Cassius Clay (Eli Goree) and Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.).
A moment in time: A scene from Regina King’s “One Night in Miami.” Kingsley Ben-Adir, left, as Malcolm X, taking a photo of Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge), Cassius Clay (Eli Goree) and Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.).
By A.O. SCOTT

— Of Possible Interest —

Bloody Hell
R | Action, Horror, Mystery, Thriller | Directed by Alister Grierson
Cannibals and comedy are mixed in this deranged ride from the director Alister Grierson.

Ben O’Toole in “Bloody Hell.”
Ben O’Toole in “Bloody Hell.”
By TEO BUGBEE

Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets
R | Drama | Directed by Yaniv Raz
This Yaniv Raz drama, about a Walt Whitman-obsessed teenager with a pigeon as an imaginary therapist, is drunk on its stylistic affectations.

Lucas Jade Zumann in “Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets.”
Lucas Jade Zumann in “Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets.”
By GLENN KENNY

Food! Glorious Food!

LETTER OF RECOMMENDATION
I Recommend Eating Chips
When our horizons are narrow, junk food — shelf-stable, reliably flavored and yet endlessly unique — offers us a taste of infinity.
By SAM ANDERSON

How High-End Restaurants Have Failed Black Female Chefs
Training and advancement as a chef can be hard to find in American fine-dining restaurants, according to Black women who have tried.
By Korsha Wilson

EAT
The Case for Stewed Tripe
There’s abundant offal to be had at the supermarket, and this spicy, slurpable dish is exactly how you should cook it.
By GABRIELLE HAMILTON

SHOPPING GUIDE
Shopping for Kettles
It’s not just for boiling water — so choose something with a little style.


When you’re buying a kettle, “look at it as art, as well as a functional element,” said Sarah Blank, a kitchen designer in Greenwich, Conn. (The Corvo EKG Electric Kettle is $149 at Fellow.)
By TIM MCKEOUGH

A GOOD APPETITE
This Spicy White Bean Soup Is a Poem in a Pot
Filled with winter greens, savory beans and just a little bit of turkey, this piquant soup is both hearty and light.

Lemony white bean soup with turkey and greens.
Lemony white bean soup with turkey and greens.
By Melissa Clark

FRONT BURNER
An Online Lesson in Olive Oil
The Museum of Food and Drink in Brooklyn hosts a discussion, with experts from Tuscany and Calabria, Italy.
Food for Thought: First Pressed, an Olive Oil Exploration presented by MOFAD and the Greene Space, Jan. 25, 8 to 9:30 p.m., $15 or $65 including a tin of olive oil (limited supplies), mofad.org.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

FRONT BURNER
Dream of France, Through Recipes


“Plat du Jour,” a new cookbook by Susan Herrmann Loomis, includes seasonally focused recipes like beef bourguignon.
“Plat du Jour: French Dinners Made Easy” by Susan Herrmann Loomis (Countryman Press, $30).
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

FRONT BURNER
The Easiest Paella Comes From a Kit


Meg Grace Larcom, the chef of the Boqueria restaurants, teaches a virtual paella class next month, and it includes a ready-to-make meal kit.
Boqueria Paella Kit and class, $150, includes shipping; $100 without the class, order by Feb. 18 for national delivery; fully cooked paella for local pickup or delivery, with seafood, vegetables or chicken and chorizo, $24 to $48, depending on the variety and size, boqueriarestaurant.com.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

FRONT BURNER
The Tea’s the Thing


A new tea blend from Harney & Sons raises money for Shakespeare’s Globe in London.
A Midsummer Night’s Tea, 20 sachets, $12, 800-832-8463, harney.com.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

A Foolproof Path to Dinner, by Way of Korea
J. Kenji López-Alt puts his fridge odds and ends to work in crunchy, savory, wildly adaptable jeon.


This sauerkraut jeon is perfect for busy weeknights.
By J. Kenji López-Alt

FRONT BURNER
A New Cassis to Sip or Mix


Current Cassis, from a producer in Greene County, N.Y., is less syrupy than French crème de cassis.
Current Cassis, $28 for 375 milliliters, upstreamwine.com, currentcassis.com.
By FLORENCE FABRICANT

THOSE WE’VE LOST
Thomas Verdillo, 77, Dies; Restaurateur Went from Red Sauce to Blue Ribbon
He put a refined twist on traditional Italian-American cooking at his South Brooklyn restaurant, Tommaso. He died of complications of Covid-19.


Thomas Verdillo was the owner, head chief, sommelier and chief tenor at his restaurant, Tommaso, in Brooklyn.
By GLENN RIFKIN

Food! Glorious Food!

Voices From the Front Lines of America’s Food Supply
Eleven workers, from the factories and farms to the highways and supermarkets, tell how they got themselves — and us — through a catastrophic year.

CRITIC’S NOTEBOOK
From Toxic Chefs to Covid, Restaurant Workers Deserve Better
A former Momofuku employee’s account of a rage-fueled workplace is an all-too-familiar story. But it raises questions about how we treat restaurant staffs in the Covid era.
By PETE WELLS

What’s the First Thing You Will Do When the Pandemic Ends?
We put that question to readers and received more than 800 responses. Here are some of the highlights.
By SARA ARIDI

Some Covid Survivors Haunted by Loss of Smell and Taste
As the coronavirus claims more victims, a once-rare diagnosis is receiving new attention from scientists, who fear it may affect nutrition and mental health.
By RONI CARYN RABIN

BANGKOK DISPATCH
Conjuring Up the World Through the Sense of Taste
Housebound because of the pandemic, an international correspondent finds a way to travel the globe in her kitchen.


Nukazuke pickles at the Nishiki Market in Kyoto, Japan.
By HANNAH BEECH

A Shrimp Creole for Our Times
The dish revels in improvisation, making it perfect for these tumultuous, unpredictable months.


By VALLERY LOMAS

Albert Roux, Chef Who Brought French Cuisine to London, Dies at 85
Mr. Roux and his brother, Michel, opened Le Gavroche in the late 1960s, raising the level of fine dining in the city and offering a training ground for some of the restaurant industry’s future stars.

Albert Roux in an undated photo. Le Gavroche, the restaurant he opened with his brother, Michel, in 1967, is credited with bringing fine French cuisine to London.
Albert Roux in an undated photo. Le Gavroche, the restaurant he opened with his brother, Michel, in 1967, is credited with bringing fine French cuisine to London.
By Christine Hauser

NYT Critic’s Pick Movie(s)

Pieces of a Woman
NYT Critic’s Pick | R | Drama | Directed by Kornél Mundruczó
Vanessa Kirby gives an intensely physical performance as a woman whose life and marriage are upended by the death of a child.


Vanessa Kirby in “Pieces of a Woman.”
By JEANNETTE CATSOULIS

Soul
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG | Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy, Music | Directed by Pete Docter, Kemp Powers
This inventive tale stars Jamie Foxx as a jazz musician caught in a world that human souls pass through on their way into and out of life.


Jamie Foxx voices the character Joe Gardner, right, in “Soul.”
By A.O. SCOTT

Dear Comrades
NYT Critic’s Pick | Drama, History | Directed by Andrey Konchalovskiy
With a bureaucrat as the central character, the film at times takes on a bleakly comic tone as it fills in the circumstances surrounding a massacre.


A scene from “Dear Comrades!”
By BEN KENIGSBERG

Sylvie’s Love
NYT Critic’s Pick | PG-13 | Drama, Music, Romance | Directed by Eugene Ashe
Tessa Thompson and Nnamdi Asomugha star in a swoony love story that wonderfully rethinks the classic Hollywood melodrama.


Lights, camera, romance: Tessa Thompson and Nnamdi Asomugha in “Sylvie’s Love.”
By MANOHLA DARGIS

— Of Possible Interest —

‘Wonder Woman 1984’ Review: It’s Not About What We Deserve
PG-13 | Action, Adventure, Fantasy | Directed by Patty Jenkins
The sequel to the 2017 hit finds Diana Prince, a.k.a. Wonder Woman, pining for love and saddled with a movie unworthy of her.


Truck mayhem: Gal Gadot in Patty Jenkins’s “Wonder Woman 1984.”
By Manohla Dargis