Vikram Murthi is a contributing writer to the Nation and the editor of Downtime magazine. His freelance film writing has appeared in Filmmaker, Reverse Shot, Vulture, and sundry other publications.

Nov 23, 2022 — In Susan Seidelman’s Smithereens, the odyssey of a New Jersey transplant trying to survive in Manhattan is accompanied by the music of one of the Garden State’s most iconic punk bands.

Apr 2, 2026 — The country’s 250th anniversary is only one of several good reasons to watch or revisit the films.

Mar 12, 2026 — A selection of fine writing on this year’s Academy Award nominees.

Oct 29, 2025 — One Battle After Another leads this year’s nominations for the Gotham Film Awards.

Sep 2, 2025 — Premiering in Venice and heading next to the NYFF, Jones’s film stars Willem Dafoe and Greta Lee.

Aug 14, 2025 — MoMI presents a series of films that might be found in the neighborhood of Ari Aster’s fourth feature.

Jul 2, 2025 — Pavements and Videoheaven take us back thirty-odd years, but neither film is merely a nostalgia trip.

May 22, 2025 — The jury honors tales of haunted appliances, an exiled community, and a life-changing diagnosis.

Jan 24, 2025 — We’re sampling new issues of Notebook, Senses of Cinema, and 032c and reading about Eisenstein and Charlotte Zwerin.