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David Rooney

Chief Film Critic

As Chief Film Critic, David Rooney reviews the latest releases and premieres from major festivals including Sundance, Berlin, Cannes, Venice and Toronto. He was formerly THR’s Chief Theater Critic and continues to review Broadway when time permits. Based in New York City, he is a member of the New York Film Critics Circle, National Society of Film Critics and New York Drama Critics Circle. Prior to joining THR, he was Chief Italian Correspondent for Variety before moving to New York, where he became Chief Theater Critic. Rooney's work has also appeared in The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times and Rolling Stone. He has served on the nominating panel for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama and multiple times for the Gotham Awards. David’s writing for THR has won three Southern California Journalism Awards and a National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Award.

More from David Rooney

‘Spaceman’ Review: Adam Sandler and Carey Mulligan Navigate Marriage Across the Universe in Absorbing but Trite Netflix Sci-Fi

Isabella Rossellini and Kunal Nayyar also appear in Johan Renck’s film of the Jaroslav Kalfur novel ‘Spaceman of Bohemia,’ featuring Paul Dano as the voice of an alien arachnid.

‘Drive-Away Dolls’ Review: Margaret Qualley, Geraldine Viswanathan and Beanie Feldstein in Ethan Coen’s Strained Lesbian Crime Caper

Colman Domingo, Pedro Pascal and Matt Damon also appear in this nutty comedy set in 1999, written by Coen with his wife Tricia Cooke.

‘The Devil’s Bath’ Review: A Disturbing Psychodrama About a Woman Driven to Extremes in 18th-Century Rural Austria

Genre auteurs Veronika Franz and Severin Fiala’s third feature explores in unflinching detail a dark footnote in early modern European history.

‘Pepe’ Review: A Footnote in the Pablo Escobar Saga Is Dreamily Reimagined as a Hippo’s Reflections on Life and Death

Dominican director Nelson Carlos de los Santos Arias weaves together documentary and fiction as a megaherbivore looks back on being a stranger in a strange land.

‘Sex’ Review: Nordic Drama Digging Into Male Sexuality Is Provocative, Insightful and Entertaining

Dag Johan Haugerud’s candid look at constricting gender roles centers on two friends spurred by different experiences to readjust their sense of self.

‘Dahomey’ Review: Mati Diop Tracks the Return of African Treasures Plundered by the French in Powerful Consideration of Reparations

The director of ‘Atlantics’ shifts her gaze from Senegal to Benin in this documentary with fictionalized elements, viewing art as a repository for memory.

‘Suspended Time’ Review: Olivier Assayas Fails to Find Meaning in the Monotony of Pandemic Lockdown

The French director casts Vincent Macaigne as his alter ego, isolating in the early days of COVID-19 with his brother in their childhood home, together with their respective partners.

‘Another End’ Review: Gael García Bernal Brings Emotional Heat to Otherwise Distancing Mind-Bender About Grief

Following his debut, ‘The Wait,’ Piero Messina’s second feature continues to explore bereavement, with a cast that also includes Renate Reinsve, Bérénice Bejo and Olivia Williams.

‘La Cocina’ Review: Rooney Mara in Explosive Account of Immigrant Restaurant Workers Chasing the American Dream

Raúl Briones also stars in Mexican director Alonso Ruizpalacios’ fourth feature, set in the kitchen of a New York City restaurant, primarily during the frantic lunchtime rush.

‘Cuckoo’ Review: Hunter Schafer and Dan Stevens Keep You Glued Even When This Reproductive Horror Careens Off the Rails

Writer-director Tilman Singer follows his possession chiller, ‘Luz,’ with a stay at a German Alpine vacation resort that uncovers a nightmarish breeding conspiracy.

‘Crossing’ Review: Levan Akin’s Intergenerational Journey Becomes a Stirring Affirmation of Trans Solidarity

The Swedish director follows ‘And Then We Danced’ with a drama that draws from his dual ancestry, traveling from the Black Sea coast of Georgia to Istanbul.

‘Small Things Like These’ Review: Cillian Murphy Is Superb as a Haunted Man in Subdued but Powerful Irish Berlin Opener

Emily Watson also appears in Tim Mielants’ film, adapted from the novella by Claire Keegan, which deals with intergenerational trauma and the Church-sanctioned cruelty of Ireland’s past.