Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 80%
| In Bruges (2008) | "
Even when the film goes off the rails, however, it's still a fun ride." Posted Jan 22, 2008 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 98%
| Nanking (2007) | "
While at times the film begins to feel like a laundry list of bad deeds, the first-person accounts pack a wallop." Posted Feb 3, 2007 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 20%
| Chapter 27 (2008) | "
That anyone would allow this new guy into their lives is a complete stretch." Posted Feb 3, 2007 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 67%
| Snow Angels (2008) | "
With a deep understanding of his characters, Green has crafted a film that's devastating and uplifting without sounding a false note." Posted Jan 30, 2007 |
Rotten 1/5
| Fresh 75%
| Flying: Confessions of a Free Woman (2007) | "
While it might have taken [director Jennifer Fox] several years to figure out what to do, any intelligent audience could do it in 90 minutes. But even if it were shorter, it wouldn't improve the lazy filmmaking." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Fresh 85%
| Wonders Are Many: The Making of Doctor Atomic (2008) | "
The film oddly attempts to combine the backstage production footage with history-lesson segments. While skillfully crafted, the two stories never quite mesh, and neither go deep enough to work on their own." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 89%
| Waitress (2007) | "
Full of off-kilter characters who don't talk like anyone in real life, but sound a truthful chord." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 86%
| Reprise (2008) | "
A work that's deeper, funnier and more inventive than most indie films about young creative types lost in youthful exploits." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 84%
| Protagonist (2007) | "
[Director Jessica] Yu structures the stories in a manner that is not instantly understandable, but inspires attention with its profound puzzle." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 97%
| Once (2007) | "
John Carney's direction is unassuming and without a hint of pretension, and his short screenplay lets the music do a lot of the talking." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 4/5
| N/A | Offscreen (2006) | "
[Director] Boe and co-writer Knud Romer Jorgensen move what could have been a self-indulgent mess unpredictably as their star continues to lose his grasp on reality and find a way to make a satisfying story." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 88%
| Joe Strummer: The Future is Unwritten (2007) | "
[Director] Temple succeeds in creating a portrait neither glowing nor damning, but representative of a remarkable man." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 57%
| The Island (2007) | "
The Island is an aimless and unconvincing parable masquerading as a Bergmanesque art film." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 100%
| Hot House (2006) | "
There's a lot of powerful footage in the film, revealing the startling simplicity with which many of the prisoners view their actions." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 61%
| Grace is Gone (2007) | "
Grace is Gone is a film that depends entirely on whether you feel empathy for its characters. Luckily, John Cusack's brilliant performance as Stan captures the experience of a newly bereaved husband whose wife dies while serving in Iraq." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 100%
| Ghosts (2006) | "
An extremely sincere depiction of the immigrant experience. Its core story isn't particularly better or worse than those of most other films about the immigrant experience, but it captures certain moments with gripping clarity." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Rotten 44%
| Fay Grim (2007) | "
The style never makes enough of an impression to justify the complete disconnect it creates between the story and the viewer." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Rotten 2/5
| N/A | Drained (2007) | "
A dissonant mess, as frustratingly bad as it is boldly ambitious." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 84%
| Delirious (2007) | "
The story's surprises range from clever to annoying, but [director] DiCillo manages to hold it all together with his consistently amusing cast members, who make you laugh at their characters' self-absorbed folly." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 79%
| Chicago 10 (2008) | "
While the story does lightly touch on some of the questionable decisions of the Chicago Seven's leaders, it generates a compelling argument for free speech." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 85%
| Banished: How Whites Drove Blacks Out of Town in America (2007) | "
Banished contains enough insights into race relations to be worth watching." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 94%
| Away From Her (2007) | "
Polley manages it all nicely in her feature debut, confidently relying on the strength of her actors, but with a strong visual sense." Posted Jan 25, 2007 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 69%
| The Secret Life of Words (2006) | "
A series of conversations that are sometimes clever and sometimes feel like screenwriting exercises about the details of life, but are always well acted." Posted Dec 15, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 33%
| A Little Trip to Heaven (2005) | "
A stylish film that captures the bleak gloom of a desolate town and contrasts it with a satire of insurance commercials that concentrate on happy, sunny days -- not the ones that require insurance" Posted Nov 4, 2006 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 85%
| Unconscious (2007) | "
With a little more sex and a little more comedy, this one could have really been something." Posted Oct 7, 2006 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 85%
| Unconscious (2007) | "
The film is a harmless, somewhat clever sex comedy mystery set in 1913." Posted Oct 3, 2006 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 92%
| Shakespeare Behind Bars (2006) | "
Rogerson has crafted an emotionally satisfying exploration of the creative process through people who, before the program started, weren’t comfortable with expressing themselves at all." Posted Apr 8, 2006 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 65%
| Yang Ban Xi - The Eight Model Works (2006) | "
Director Yan Ting Yuen has made an odd combination of the documentary and musical genres that is worth seeing simply for its bizarre feel." Posted Apr 1, 2006 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 52%
| Lucky # Slevin (2006) | "
Reveals a screenwriter who can write snappy one-liners and fill conversations with pop-culture references, but has yet to master story structure." Posted Mar 11, 2006 |
Rotten 3/5
| Fresh 86%
| Thank You For Smoking (2006) | "
Reitman is at his best when observing the state of debate in modern politics. He also gives the film a peppy, professional sheen. But he still has a lot to learn about storytelling." Posted Feb 28, 2006 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 91%
| Neil Young - Heart of Gold (2006) | "
This immaculate filmmaking creates an engaging documentary that makes you forget that you're missing the energy of a live show because it's a completely cinematic experience with its own special energy." Posted Feb 18, 2006 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 59%
| Game 6 (2006) | "
Game 6 fails to make use of its clever dialogue and concepts as it attempts to become something more profound." Posted Feb 4, 2006 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 92%
| The Fall of Fujimori (2006) | "
Thorough and fascinating." Posted Jan 18, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 76%
| Match Point (2005) | "
This dark tale of societal comfort combines Allen’s witty writing with the confusion and distress of making major life decisions." Posted Jan 9, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 94%
| March of the Penguins (2005) | "
The film goes beyond a nature movie with excellent photography and the determination of the animals it documents." Posted Dec 10, 2005 |
Rotten 2/5
| Fresh 75%
| The Forest for the Trees (2003) | "
The movie makes the audience, like many of the other characters in the movie, simply want to get rid of her." Posted Dec 6, 2005 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 84%
| 2046 (2005) | "
The fascinating visuals and performances by Leung and the assortment of actresses like Gong, Zhang Ziyi and Maggie Cheung ensure that the film is still worth watching." Posted Dec 6, 2005 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 82%
| Rock School (2005) | "
The documentary studies the different children at the school, some lazy, some brilliant, some sensitive. Argott traces their development." Posted Dec 6, 2005 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Rotten 58%
| Dark Hours (2005) | "
A rewarding experience." Posted Sep 24, 2005 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 44%
| Steal Me (2007) | "
Nobody in the film is going to steal the audience’s attention span." Posted Aug 20, 2005 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Rotten 34%
| The Chumscrubber (2005) | "
The art of the suburban-culture film has become paint-by-numbers filmmaking. Throw in some insane characters, medication and a little violence, and…voila, it’s a dark and profound satire on the absurdity of modern life." Posted Aug 9, 2005 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 56%
| Happy Endings (2005) | "
Roos creates a slate of interesting characters who find themselves in unexpected situations that lead to realistic -- and in their own way, happy -- endings." Posted Jul 28, 2005 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Rotten 37%
| Dear Wendy (2005) | "
The film is challenging and consistently interesting, but also trite and overbearing to the extent that it damages its message on gun violence." Posted Jul 21, 2005 |
Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 58%
| The Talent Given Us (2004) | "
Wagner achieves a certain intimacy that couldn’t be captured with a camera present in a standard documentary, and couldn’t be recreated by anyone other than a close relative." Posted Jun 18, 2005 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Fresh 70%
| The 3 Rooms of Melancholia (2005) | "
Nothing is sadder than a child who has experienced tragedy, but no trap is easier to fall into than that of dwelling on a moping kid until the image loses its meaning." Posted Jun 4, 2005 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 71%
| Cronicas (2005) | "
Leguizamo and Alcazar are riveting together." Posted May 14, 2005 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 85%
| Unconscious (2007) | "
A clever film with enough good elements that it feels like it should be a bit better than it is." Posted Apr 30, 2005 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 67%
| Reel Paradise (2005) | "
James uses his thoughtful observation to create a portrait of a family that sort of adapted and sort of refused to adapt to a new way of life." Posted Apr 30, 2005 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 86%
| Drum (2004) | "
A solid work of classical storytelling." Posted Apr 9, 2005 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Rotten 53%
| Matando Cabos (2005) | "
A dirty good time, a hilarious tragedy that paints smiles on the sad human condition." Posted Apr 9, 2005 |
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