There are six well-known movies in the across entries, clued with jokey puns (and the year of their release). The longest entries, at the top and the bottom, are two of the newer examples, both popular beginnings of franchises. Then there’s an R-rated blockbuster that’s clued “PG” for a reason that makes sense (I hope), once you look at the title. The title of the grid is “Cinéma Vérité,” which is a specific genre of moviemaking that avoids special effects and artifice, instead using simple equipment and real (or at least realistic) situations to create windows into other lives and worlds. I think that the title refers to the fact that each clue, apart from being funny, is a very simple truth, or vérité, about the movie it refers to.

Source: New York Times December 12, 2020 22:52 UTC