movie/book review roundup - February-March 2025

Movies:
Ouija: Origin of Evil (2016, ***½)
The Monkey (2025, ***½)
The Conformist (1970, *****)
Wicked (2024, ***)
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007, ****½)

Books:
The First Bad Man - Miranda July (2015, ****)
Provenance - Ann Leckie (2017, ***)
Monday - Andy Hartzell (2024, ****)
The Bright Sword - Lev Grossman (2024, ****)
Arachne Rising - James Vogh [John Sladek] (1977, ***)
The Message - Ta-Nehisi Coates (2024, *****)
If On a Winter's Night a Traveler - Italo Calvino (1979, ****)
Naked City - Eric Drooker (2024, ***)
World Within the World - Julia Gfrörer (2024, *****)