ROTTEN TOMATOES: Andrew L. Urban

ANDREW L. URBAN

Agrees with the Tomatometer 70% of the time.

Biography: Andrew L. Urban is Publisher & Editor of Urban Cinefile, Australia’s award winning online weekly movie magazine (est. 1997). Specialising in film journalism, Andrew was Australian bureau chief for London based film trade publications from 1985 to 1994. He was Channel Host for the World Movies subscription movie channel (2002-6), and with his publishing partner and wife Louise Keller, he co-produced and hosted Movies This Week, a short movie review program, broadcast on World Movies and the Ovation arts & entertainment channel (2004-5). Since July 2005, Andrew has presented Movies Now, a contemporary movie appreciation course at Sydney University’s Centre for Continuing Education. In January 2007, Andrew was commissioned by the Australian Film Television and Radio School’s Centre for Screen Business to produce an extensive series of in depth on camera interviews with film and TV industry practitioners, for the CSB website; the series continues into 2008. Andrew is a regular guest on ABC Radio 702 Drive’s Critics Forum with Richard Glover.

Publications: Urban Cinefile

Total Reviews: 372

Location: Sydney, Australia

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Rating	T-Meter	Title \| Year	Add Date (default)

Fresh	Rotten 48%	Dorian Gray (2010)	" It's a morality tale told through amorality and the pursuit of pleasures of the flesh" Posted Nov 6, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 72%	The Boys Are Back (2009)	" It's the two boys, young George Mackay and younger Nicholas McAnulty who walk away with the acting honours in astonishingly mature and controlled performances" Posted Nov 5, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 60%	Prime Mover (2009)	" Prime Mover deals in the everyday lives of recognisably Australian characters in a way that makes their journey matter to us. And it does it in unique style" Posted Nov 5, 2009
Fresh	Rotten 17%	Amelia (2009)	" Amelia reminds us how little we really know about the lives of famous achievers who changed the world, and underlines the power of biography on screen. It's a creatively and technically accomplished film with thrills and emotional action in equal measure" Posted Nov 5, 2009
Rotten	Fresh 77%	Genova (2008)	" I didn't know Michael Winterbottom could make a dull movie until now. Genova, otherwise known perhaps as The Narrow Lanes of Genova, is a strange film which seems to have lost its bearings and its direction somewhere between concept and production" Posted Oct 31, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 69%	Coffin Rock (2009)	" Hold us on the edge of our seats in a tightly made genre film that boasts outstanding performances and dynamic direction" Posted Oct 17, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 83%	Call + Response (2008)	" Laced with the potent music of a dozen bands and solo artists, Call Response is an urgent call to arms in the war against modern slavery." Posted Oct 17, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 93%	An Education (2009)	" Sheer joy of an intelligent, grown up film" Posted Oct 17, 2009
Fresh	Rotten 47%	Whatever Works (2009)	" The result is a stew that is not as satisfying as the gumbo which Boris Yellnikoff (Larry David) gets to enjoy" Posted Oct 8, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 81%	Departures (2009)	" The film has enjoyed tremendous acclaim but I hesitate to recommend it unreservedly. Better to lower your expectations and discover those elements that touch you most deeply without waiting for the film to deliver something that it doesn't really promise" Posted Oct 8, 2009
Fresh	Rotten 48%	Astro Boy (2009)	" The symbolism and the underlying themes within this story may not be relevant to its core audience, but it's interesting to see how filmmakers feed off those elements" Posted Oct 8, 2009
Rotten	Fresh 89%	Moon (2009)	" The filmmakers say they wanted to make a sci-fi story within their limited budget, so used ingredients that would satisfy both. Sadly, the screenplay is a bit low on other things as well, like meaningful content." Posted Oct 2, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 75%	Julie & Julia (2009)	" It's a delicious, irresistible film whose primary exuberance and pull is created by the combined forces of Meryl Streep and Amy Adams %u2013 their second pairing after Doubt, in which they also hit the acting jackpot" Posted Oct 2, 2009
Rotten	Fresh 62%	Che (2008)	" Great showcase for Benicio del Toro, of course, a wonderful actor who gives it his all. But Che, the T shirt hero of three generations, is a myth that so many today THINK Che stood for." Posted Sep 26, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 73%	Mao's Last Dancer (2009)	" A mature work from a master filmmaker relishing his work" Posted Sep 23, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 72%	Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist (2008)	" It's an easy and lightweight date movie for teens who will enjoy also discovering some New York bands." Posted Sep 19, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 92%	Séraphine (2008)	" As far as biopics of painters go, Séraphine is one of the very best" Posted Sep 19, 2009
N/A	Fresh 71%	Van Diemen's Land (2009)	" Read the conversation between Jonathan Auf Der Heide, Oscar Redding (who plays Pearce) and Andrew L. Urban" Posted Sep 19, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 71%	Van Diemen's Land (2009)	" The film is a consummate piece of movie making, with Ellery Ryan's cinematography a powerful contributor to the film's tone and effect" Posted Sep 19, 2009
Rotten	Rotten 38%	Imagine That (2009)	" Ham fisted and formulaic, Imagine That nevertheless has some endearing qualities to save it from the trash can %u2013 notably Yara Shahidi, the cute little bundle whose smartly innocent presence and likeable little face are so loved by the camera that dir" Posted Sep 15, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 78%	Valentino: the Last Emperor (2009)	" This remarkably intimate portrait, made with less formality than you might expect, gives a real insight into Valentino as a living, working phenomenon at the end of his career" Posted Sep 10, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 80%	$9.99 (2009)	" The Jewish melancholy and downbeat humour that oozes from the original writing is overlaid with an Australian idiom, thanks ironically to the great cast, in a transplant that doesn't really take" Posted Sep 10, 2009
Rotten	Fresh 68%	Funny People (2009)	" A surfeit of the kind of crude, sexually graphic jokes that work in a darkly lit stand up comedy stores and Adam Sandler's unremittingly morose George drag the film down" Posted Sep 4, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 80%	Blessed (2009)	" Blessed with cinematic ambition, Ana Kokkinos and her writing collaborators have forged a striking film out of pain and dysfunction, yet managing to pull out a serene sense of closure in the final moments." Posted Sep 2, 2009
Fresh	N/A	Lacombe, Lucien (1974)	" Superbly evocative of the period in both imagery and mood, Lacombe Lucien is a character study of a young man during a dark chapter in French history" Posted Aug 29, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 67%	Ben X (2008)	" From the opening moments, as the graphics of the Archlord online game intercut with the world of Dutch teenager Ben (Greg Timmermans), we know we're in for something special" Posted Aug 29, 2009
Rotten	Fresh 64%	Charlie & Boots (2009)	" It's inoffensive and even sweet at times, rather like a friendly puppy. It's a bit scant for a movie, though, and the underlying tension between the men that is supposed to provide the grist is never properly realised. This omission leaves the film with v" Posted Aug 28, 2009
Fresh	Rotten 28%	Aliens in the Attic (2009)	" Undemanding and occasionally lol, Aliens in the Attic will have the youngsters in stitches at some of the fight scenes... entertaining and sometimes goofy family comedy" Posted Aug 28, 2009
Fresh	Rotten 55%	The Soloist (2009)	" This film isn't as much about homelessness as about helplessness - and how some people are able not necessarily to overcome it, but to manage it. And how people like Steve Lopez, unintentionally help themselves when they try to help others. That's a great" Posted Aug 28, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 98%	Up (2009)	" A triumph of animation and imagination, Up is impossible not to enjoy, with its combination of adventure, true love and humour" Posted Aug 28, 2009
Fresh	N/A	Burning Season (2008)	" This globe trotting doco is a handy insight into the tragic deforestation around Indonesia" Posted Aug 27, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 100%	Last Ride (2009)	" Glendyn Ivin's natural cinematic flair ensures the smooth transition from text to screen in a story that Mac Gudgeon has scripted with a sparse, raw, slow-burning dynamic." Posted Aug 27, 2009
Fresh	N/A	Bastardy (2008)	" Archival black and white footage, newspaper clippings and fresh footage taken over seven years by filmmaker Amiel Courtin-Wilson combine to paint a complex and fascinating profile of Jack." Posted Aug 26, 2009
Fresh	N/A	Wake in Fright (1971)	" A riveting film with exceptional relevance today in its cultural veracity and its observation of not just outback Australian society (if you can call it that), but in human nature." Posted Aug 26, 2009
Rotten	Fresh 86%	The Age of Stupid (2009)	" Does little more than enumerate the ills and evils of today's world in a cry of panic and accusation, regurgitating those images and messages that serve its cause." Posted Aug 21, 2009
Fresh	Rotten 52%	The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (2009)	" Made with all the sinewy economy and storytelling clarity honed by making lots of high end TV commercials, Tony Scott pumps contempo energy and visual style into this classic good story" Posted Aug 20, 2009
Fresh	Rotten 51%	Taking Woodstock (2009)	" Much of the credit must go to Lee's cinematic choices; his use of multi-split screens, the montages that create a clear sense of the vibrantly positive mood infecting everyone and a beautiful acid trip visualisation" Posted Aug 20, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 76%	The Young Victoria (2009)	" Pomp and circumstance are plentiful though not overdone as we worm our way into Victoria's court (and world) at the start of her reign. There is perhaps less clarity in the writing than desirable, but the production is spectacular" Posted Aug 20, 2009
Fresh	Rotten 41%	Fighting (2009)	" Entertaining and engaging, Fighting has action, romance and a buddy element in a tight, professional package" Posted Aug 20, 2009
Fresh	N/A	Bad Bush (2009)	" Based on a true story, Sam Genocchio's thriller has all the hallmarks of a natural filmmaking talent, aware of the various tools and tricks of filmmaking to generate psychological tension in the viewer." Posted Aug 19, 2009
Rotten	N/A	The Age of Stupid (2009)	" The Age of Stupid does little more than enumerate the ills and evils of today's world in a cry of panic and accusation, regurgitating those images and messages that serve its cause" Posted Aug 17, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 84%	The September Issue (2009)	" More a snapshot then a full blown insight into either Vogue, its September 2007 issue or its famous editor, Anna Wintour, the film has many positives and a few irritants. But it does take us at leat half way into the world of fashion bible" Posted Aug 17, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 65%	Adam (2009)	" Max Mayer has written a remarkably engaging screenplay about a relationship that isn't meant to be yet somehow is but not quite as we might expect, from this charming yet down to earth romantic comedy" Posted Aug 17, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 88%	Inglourious Basterds (2009)	" Be prepared for unsettling shifts in pace and tone, be prepared to be shocked and amused, to laugh and guffaw and to be always surprised in this comic fantasy which is cheeky enough to reinvent history and has audiences clapping as it does so" Posted Aug 17, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 90%	District 9 (2009)	" Technically superb, District 9 is a feast of seamless digital work fused to live action, as it is also a smart fusion of documentary format with narrative fiction." Posted Aug 10, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 80%	Bandslam (2009)	" With its combination of high energy music, a terrific young cast (with the relatively youthful Lisa Kudrow as a mum) and its well structured screenplay, Bandslam is an above average coming of age dramatic comedy" Posted Aug 8, 2009
Rotten	Rotten 55%	Orphan (2009)	" There's something wrong with Esther says the marketing tagline to this film, which sums up my response to the film itself." Posted Aug 8, 2009
Fresh	Fresh 95%	The Cove (2009)	" Horror film, spy thriller, disaster movie, corruption expose and more, The Cove is a gripping and devastating indictment of Japan's barbaric and secretive dolphin harvesting program" Posted Aug 8, 2009
Fresh	N/A	The Choir (2007)	" With astonishing levels of access and filmed over four years, Michael Davie documents prison life through the eyes of teenage robber, Jabulani, who shows us his many scars, tells us his savage life story and gradually reinvents himself" Posted Aug 6, 2009
Fresh	N/A	Columbus Day (2008)	" Strange but compelling, with Val Kilmer in top form, this oblique and slightly garbled story holds our interest with a combination of its elements." Posted Aug 5, 2009

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ANDREW L. URBAN

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