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Ms. Magazine

Ms. Magazine is not a Tomatometer-approved publication. Reviews from this publication only count toward the Tomatometer® when written by the following Tomatometer-approved critic(s): Aviva Dove-Viebahn, Margaret Sloan-Hunter, Michele Meek.

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Rating Title | Year Author Quote
Speak. (2025) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Speak.’s subjects are dynamic, charming kids—and you’ll want to root for each of them, even though only one can win.
Posted Jul 24, 2025  Edit critic review
Prime Minister (2025) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Ardern’s lack of artifice is perhaps one of her most appealing characteristics—especially in a world where politicians so often obfuscate, bluster and pretend. But more significantly, the film highlights Ardern’s determination and resilience.
Posted Jul 24, 2025  Edit critic review
Cutting Through Rocks (2025) Aviva Dove-Viebahn An atmospheric film that fluctuates realistically between hope and strife, Cutting Through Rocks offers a dynamic slice-of-life portrait of the lives of women in rural Iran.
Posted Jul 24, 2025  Edit critic review
Coexistence, My Ass! (2025) Aviva Dove-Viebahn The film encapsulates the deep complexities, horrors and challenges of the crisis in the Middle East and the conundrums of peacebuilding facing its many interlocuters without coming across as either naïve or completely hopeless.
Posted Jul 24, 2025  Edit critic review
Lilly (2024) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Particularly effective is the way Clarkson embodies Ledbetter. She says she wanted to “[put] her back on the ground,” rather than raising her up on a pedestal—a down-to-earth sensibility that really comes through.
Posted Jul 24, 2025  Edit critic review
Coming Soon (1999) Michele Meek It's refreshing to see a film put the female orgasm front-and-center, especially in a genre where it’s usually depicted comically or absent entirely.
Posted Feb 23, 2023  Edit critic review
The Incredibly True Adventure of Two Girls in Love (1995) Michele Meek “The Incredibly True Adventures of Two Girls in Love” depicts consent between the two girls as exploratory and mutual, offering a positive depiction of female sexual discovery.
Posted Feb 23, 2023  Edit critic review
Just Another Girl on the I.R.T. (1992) Michele Meek "Just Another Girl on the IRT," directed by Leslie Harris, won the Special Jury Prize at Sundance for its depiction of Black teen Chantel Mitchell who navigates the pressures of sex, parental expectations, friendship and eventually teen motherhood.
Posted Feb 23, 2023  Edit critic review
Dirty Dancing (1987) Michele Meek “Dirty Dancing” is one of the only films from this era that depicts a girl’s embracing her sexual desire and agency—without regret.
Posted Feb 23, 2023  Edit critic review
Just One of the Guys (1985) Michele Meek This film offers potential to address head-on the considerable differences between transgender identities and Terry’s gender disguise.
Posted Feb 22, 2023  Edit critic review
Unpregnant (2020) Michele Meek "Unpregnant" breaks new ground by bringing the subject of abortion to the foreground of a teen-centered PG-13 comedy. Of course, abortion itself is not the laughing matter; rather, it’s the absurdity of the journey the girls must make to obtain one.
Posted Feb 22, 2023  Edit critic review
Women Talking (2022) Michele Meek "Women Talking" never depicts acts of sexual assault. What it does is more haunting. For an audience desensitized to violence, "Women Talking" evokes the question: Why would anyone stay in a society that systematically perpetuates violence against them?
Posted Feb 16, 2023  Edit critic review
The Persian Version (2023) Aviva Dove-Viebahn A smart, joyful film that neither shies away from, nor lingers on, grief. It borrows the conventional immigrant narrative of resilience and molds it into a nuanced reflection on mother-daughter relationships...and the power of choosing your own story.
Posted Feb 10, 2023  Edit critic review
Going to Mars: The Nikki Giovanni Project (2023) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Seamlessly transitioning from celebratory to contemplative and back again, Going to Mars offers insight into an artist, author and activist that is both wholly engaging and, intentionally, never quite whole.
Posted Feb 10, 2023  Edit critic review
Indigo Girls: It's Only Life After All (2023) Aviva Dove-Viebahn To its benefit, the documentary spotlights The Indigo Girls as artists and activists, through the music and partnership that made them folk icons.
Posted Feb 10, 2023  Edit critic review
Scrapper (2023) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Regan’s working-class British drama has a straightforward premise that belies its nuanced commentary on imagination, grief, love and family.
Posted Feb 10, 2023  Edit critic review
The Stroll (2023) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Lovell and Drucker’s compassionate and authentic portrayal is about solidarity and hope—asking viewers to understand the past while looking forward into the future.
Posted Feb 10, 2023  Edit critic review
The Janes (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn The Janes is so much more than a mere history lesson. It’s a vibrant, attentive film that emphasizes the collaborative spirit and radical potential of a small community able to do tremendous work on a large scale.
Posted Dec 14, 2022  Edit critic review
Nanny (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Arresting and restrained, Nikyatu Jusus horror film Nanny will lure you in and remain with you long after the credits roll.
Posted Feb 11, 2022  Edit critic review
Sirens (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn This documentary is not your typical band movie and, frankly, is far better for it....Sirens homes in on the intricacies of inter-group dynamics and provides a close-up on its subjects motivations and inner demons.
Posted Feb 11, 2022  Edit critic review
Calendar Girls (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Calendar Girls is a documentary on what it means to grow older while exploring the power of friendships, leisure, work and learning new thingseven later in life.
Posted Feb 11, 2022  Edit critic review
Call Jane (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn While the film is artfully crafted and well-acted, the plot itself falls flat, with too much attention on Joys personal challenges and growth and too little on the Janes.
Posted Feb 11, 2022  Edit critic review
Brainwashed: Sex-Camera-Power (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn While what Menkes brings to light is undoubtedly important, I found myself frequently frustrated by the lack of acknowledgement that these issues have been discussed in film and media studies...programs for upwards of the past 50 years.
Posted Feb 09, 2022  Edit critic review
Leonor Will Never Die (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Leonor Will Never Die will make you think, in the best possible ways, about the intersection of art and life, the process of writing and editing, and the innovative promise of film.
Posted Feb 09, 2022  Edit critic review
Girl Picture (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Girl Picture is an introspective film chronicling the tumultuous emotions, bewildering betrayals and passions of young adult friendships and romance.
Posted Feb 09, 2022  Edit critic review
TikTok, Boom. (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn A clearer through-line...may have laid better groundwork for the films interrogation of the platforms relationship to geopolitics, gendered abuse online, and censorship, but, on the whole, its an engaging and compelling film.
Posted Feb 05, 2022  Edit critic review
Master (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Master doesnt pull any punches, and its biting critique of the abysmal state of American race politics, particularly in the hallowed halls of the ivory tower, is vicious and direct.
Posted Feb 05, 2022  Edit critic review
Framing Agnes (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn An insightful documentary, exceptionally engaging and even playful at times, Framing Agnes simultaneously tells a series of untold stories...while sparking a compelling conversation about...what it means to think about trans identity past and present.
Posted Feb 05, 2022  Edit critic review
Am I OK? (2022) Aviva Dove-Viebahn There's something quietly revolutionary about a film that truly does focus on the beauty of friendship and the potential of us all to grow and change alongside each other.
Posted Feb 05, 2022  Edit critic review
The Hill Where Lionesses Roar (2021) Aviva Dove-Viebahn [A]n unflinching slice-of-life view into the friendship of three young women who share a fervent desire to...explore beyond the streets and people they've known since birth.
Posted Oct 01, 2021  Edit critic review
Quickening (2021) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Quickening employs innovative camerawork, atmospheric lighting, and a not-entirely-linear narrative to shine light on the coming of age of a Pakistani Canadian college student.
Posted Oct 01, 2021  Edit critic review
Silent Night (2021) Aviva Dove-Viebahn A rare apocalyptic holiday movie, Silent Night is a philosophical and spirited dark comedy that manages to be equal parts charming and horrifying, but without the gruesome visuals that typify the horror genre.
Posted Sep 27, 2021  Edit critic review
Night Raiders (2021) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Night Raiders is both a sci-fi thriller and a stirring portrait of a mother and daughter...fighting against all odds to maintain a way of life and hope for the future.
Posted Sep 17, 2021  Edit critic review
Violet (2021) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Violet exhibits an admirable and ambitious attempt to deliver a character trying to break free from her anxiety and, in many ways, save her own life.
Posted Sep 15, 2021  Edit critic review
Petite Maman (2021) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Petite Maman is an intimate and striking story about understanding, grief and love.
Posted Sep 15, 2021  Edit critic review
Aloners (2021) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Aloners is a stirring portrait of the cages we build for ourselves-and questions how and when we may want to be free of them.
Posted Sep 15, 2021  Edit critic review
Promising Young Woman (2020) Michele Meek Promising Young Woman shows how an egregious assault is not so dissimilar from the ubiquitous less explicit assaults comprising what we often label 'seduction.'
Posted Aug 30, 2021  Edit critic review
Gunpowder Milkshake (2021) Aviva Dove-Viebahn The talents of the film's six strong women actors are shamefully squandered and exploited in the name of making a film that cares more about design and appearing "edgy" than story or character.
Posted Jul 23, 2021  Edit critic review
Black Widow (2021) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Black Widow may be an enjoyable romp on the surface, but as a triumphant send-off for Natasha Romanoff, it feels hollow: too little, too late.
Posted Jul 15, 2021  Edit critic review
The Old Guard (2020) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Prince-Bythewood's direction is without reproach, as is the acting: The characters are nuanced and varied, the pacing balances fast and spectacular fight choreography with scenes that are almost meditative in their intimacy.
Posted Jul 13, 2021  Edit critic review
Black Swan (2010) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Black Swan is a top-form thriller-visceral, moving, and stunningly beautiful-but it's also a film about the darkness our own minds conjure up when we're overwhelmed by ambition.
Posted Jun 24, 2021  Edit critic review
Secretariat (2010) Aviva Dove-Viebahn If you love horse movies, then you'll probably love Disney's newest, much-hyped Secretariat, which fits firmly in the genre of other recent triumphant equine epics.
Posted Jun 24, 2021  Edit critic review
Alice Walker: Beauty in Truth (2013) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Expressive without being sentimental, revealing Walker as not only a brilliant writer and intellectual, but also a deeply soulful woman who stands behind the power of her convictions.
Posted Jun 24, 2021  Edit critic review
High Art (1998) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Twenty-two years later, High Art...resonates simultaneously as a timeless meditation on love, loss and art and as a trenchant drama,
Posted Jun 24, 2021  Edit critic review
Out in the Night (2014) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Throughout the film, dorosh-walther highlights both the women's vulnerability and their strength, while never losing sight of their humanity.
Posted Jun 24, 2021  Edit critic review
Wonder Woman 1984 (2020) Aviva Dove-Viebahn We should question what allows a film to go so spectacularly astray from what is...the heart of the character and her appeal.
Posted Jun 24, 2021  Edit critic review
Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Portrait of a Lady on Fire is a brilliant and visually stunning meditation on the meaning of art and love, as well as the choices we make as artists and lovers.
Posted Jun 24, 2021  Edit critic review
The Glorias (2020) Aviva Dove-Viebahn In these precarious times, where we seem poised on the brink between democracy and despair, The Glorias still manages to present a message of hope.
Posted Jun 24, 2021  Edit critic review
The World to Come (2020) Aviva Dove-Viebahn In order to enjoy The World to Come, you need to approach it not as a lesbian romance but as a period drama about the hardships of 19th century American settler life.
Posted Jun 24, 2021  Edit critic review
Happiest Season (2020) Aviva Dove-Viebahn Peel back the veneer a little and the...reliance on the ever-ready open wounds that popular culture tends to lay bare in its portrayal of queer women seep to the surface.
Posted Jun 24, 2021  Edit critic review
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