Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 88%
| The White Ribbon (2009) | "
The message of this disturbing, nihilistic film is that we’re all Nazis at heart." Posted Nov 13, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Fresh 83%
| We Live in Public (2009) | "
Mercifully, Harris has now run out of money, but I fear we haven’t heard the last of him." Posted Nov 13, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 49%
| Taking Woodstock (2009) | "
A rare misfire for the usually reliable Lee." Posted Nov 13, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Fresh 75%
| Cold Souls (2009) | "
The writer-director Sophie Barthes does her best to keep things moving, but the film runs out of steam about halfway through." Posted Nov 13, 2009 |
Rotten 1/5
| Rotten 21%
| Amelia (2009) | "
Hilary Swank is forced to deliver dialogue that sounds as if it was written in Chinese and then translated into English by a computer." Posted Nov 13, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 47%
| The Horseman (2008) | "
For a revenge thriller, The Horseman strays dangerously close to “torture porn” territory, but it’s so well made that you’re almost willing to excuse the gratuitous close-ups." Posted Oct 30, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 100%
| Citizen Kane (1941) | "
There’s no denying that his bravura performance, both in front of the camera and behind it, is spellbindingly effective." Posted Oct 30, 2009 |
Fresh 5/5
| Fresh 94%
| An Education (2009) | "
This is a wonderful, life-affirming picture that deserves all the prizes it will undoubtedly win. I can’t call it the best British film of the year because it’s still only October. But I’d be amazed if a better one comes along." Posted Oct 30, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 88%
| An American Werewolf in London (1981) | "
But in a “comedy horror” picture, the “horror” bits aren’t supposed to be this scary. He would have been better off dispensing with the comedy altogether." Posted Oct 30, 2009 |
Rotten 0/5
| Rotten 26%
| The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard (2009) | "
It isn’t merely bad, it makes you want to clamp your hands to either side of your face and do an impersonation of The Scream." Posted Oct 23, 2009 |
Rotten 1/5
| Rotten 42%
| Colin (2009) | "
There’s no jeopardy, no conflict, no drama. Indeed, Price doesn’t seem to be aware of the most basic principles of storytelling." Posted Oct 23, 2009 |
Rotten 1/5
| Rotten 37%
| Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (2009) | "
The biggest shortcoming of Cirque du Freak is the absence of a proper, self-contained story. So convinced is Weitz that his film is going to spawn a dozen sequels that he spends most of his time setting up the characters and their relationships." Posted Oct 23, 2009 |
Rotten 1/5
| Rotten 12%
| Couples Retreat (2009) | "
It is this vanity, this overweening self-regard, that makes Couples Retreat such a chore to sit through." Posted Oct 16, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 47%
| Ong Bak 2 (2009) | "
We’re forced to listen to the sound of bones crunching, skulls cracking and throats being slit. Wouldn’t it be nicer to hear some show tunes instead? For his next film, Jaa should make Ong-Bak: The Musical." Posted Oct 16, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 81%
| Triangle (2009) | "
If you can get past its logical inconsistencies — and they are legion — it’s not bad." Posted Oct 16, 2009 |
Rotten 1/5
| Rotten 57%
| Died Young, Stayed Pretty (2009) | "
Hampered by its director’s pretentious, self-advertising style. Eileen Yaghoobian lacks any journalistic sense of the basic information the audience needs in order to grasp what’s happening onscreen and the film is often confusing." Posted Oct 9, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 95%
| Goodbye Solo (2009) | "
You get the sense that writer-director Ramin Bahrani is mystified by America’s abandonment of its elderly, and there’s a whiff of disapproval in his treatment of this theme, but it’s only a whiff." Posted Oct 9, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 18%
| Love Happens (2009) | "
Everyone is trying to re-invent the rom-com at the moment and the makers of Love Happens are no exceptions. The formula they’ve come up with is to remove all the comedy, which is a bold choice." Posted Oct 9, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 98%
| Up (2009) | "
What’s so impressive about Up is that the film-makers never lose sight of their adult concerns." Posted Oct 9, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 45%
| Management (2009) | "
For the most part, Management avoids the standard rom-com clichés in favour of something more delicate and heartfelt." Posted Sep 25, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 55%
| The Soloist (2009) | "
Ultimately, the reason that The Soloist fails is because the writer and the director have been bamboozled by the seriousness of the subject matter." Posted Sep 25, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 85%
| Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (2009) | "
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs lacks the charm of some other recent offerings in this genre, but it has enough grown-up gags to keep the adults amused and their children will laugh themselves silly." Posted Sep 18, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Fresh 94%
| BirdWatchers (2009) | "
BirdWatchers just about manages to hold your interest, but it can’t seem to decide whether it’s a contemporary western or a retelling of Romeo and Juliet." Posted Sep 18, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Fresh 66%
| Away We Go (2009) | "
Away We Go is a reminder that being a successful author does not mean you can dash off a screenplay without learning the craft." Posted Sep 18, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 67%
| The Agent (2009) | "
The Agent never really transcends its roots as a two-hander for the stage, but the director Lesley Manning does a good job of keeping things moving and production values are top notch." Posted Sep 18, 2009 |
Rotten 1/5
| Rotten 8%
| 31 North 62 East (2009) | "
The storyline is hackneyed and nonsensical, as if Loraine had plucked clichés from episodes of The Professionals and strung them together." Posted Sep 18, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 84%
| The September Issue (2009) | "
Director, R. J. Cutler, gradually gets under the surface of this glossy universe, and the resulting film feels accurate and true." Posted Sep 11, 2009 |
Rotten 0/5
| Rotten 4%
| Miss March (2009) | "
Miss March must be a contender for worst film of the year. It’s so poor that you begin to suspect it’s a pastiche." Posted Sep 11, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 75%
| Julie & Julia (2009) | "
Julie & Julia is a highly polished piece of upmarket entertainment, brimming with beautiful interiors. If you throw in the lavish helpings of food porn it’s almost like a colour supplement come to life." Posted Sep 11, 2009 |
Fresh 5/5
| Fresh 88%
| Adventureland (2009) | "
The whole enterprise is infused with a quality of feeling, an integrity, that is rare in such a commercial film." Posted Sep 11, 2009 |
Rotten 1/5
| Rotten 25%
| The Red Baron (2009) | "
The Red Baron is like Le Grande Illusion remade by a German porn director. Never in the field of human film-making was so much money wasted on so little." Posted Sep 4, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Fresh 64%
| Greek Pete (2009) | "
It’s basically a porn movie, though with slightly more developed characters than normal. It should do well on DVD in the video emporia of Old Compton Street, but don’t expect it to light up the multiplexes in Romford." Posted Sep 4, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 96%
| Big River Man (2009) | "
There’s something undeniably charming about such an amateurish attempt to establish a world record." Posted Sep 4, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 86%
| 500 Days of Summer (2009) | "
It is hardly the freshest romantic comedy of the past 20 years. Taking the best bits from other movies and rearranging them in a non-linear sequence does not make for an original film." Posted Sep 4, 2009 |
Fresh 5/5
| Fresh 88%
| Scarface (1983) | "
Scarface has become a touchstone of pop culture, one of the half dozen or so most frequently referenced films of our era." Posted Aug 24, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 45%
| Shorts (2009) | "
So structurally complicated that it almost qualifies as an experimental film and if it fails — as it does — it would be uncharitable to condemn Rodriguez for that." Posted Aug 21, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 15%
| I Love You, Beth Cooper (2009) | "
The real problem is that it doesn’t have any heart. This is by-the-numbers film-making in which even those moments when the characters step off the merry-go-round to catch their breath feel manufactured." Posted Aug 21, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 95%
| Mid-August Lunch (2009) | "
The beauty of this picture is that it doesn’t shy away from depicting the indignities of growing old — not the least of which is that none of your children wants to look after you — and yet manages to invest all of its elderly characters with dignity." Posted Aug 14, 2009 |
Fresh 5/5
| Fresh 100%
| The Young Girls of Rochefort (1967) | "
Reminiscent of a Shakespearean comedy and seems to tap into a romantic yearning that is hardwired into our DNA. Absolutely sublime." Posted Aug 14, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 38%
| Imagine That (2009) | "
You’re left with the feeling that the film-makers don’t see a conflict between the profit motive and paternal love." Posted Aug 14, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 58%
| A Perfect Getaway (2009) | "
A “smart” thriller — the title itself is intended to convey that this is an ideal summer popcorn movie — but it’s a little too tricky for its own good." Posted Aug 14, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Fresh 80%
| Yes Men Fix the World (2009) | "
Mildly diverting, but belongs on TV rather than cinema screens." Posted Aug 7, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 14%
| The Ugly Truth (2009) | "
By the end, you actually want these two cardboard cutouts to get together." Posted Aug 7, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 55%
| Orphan (2009) | "
If you’re not easily offended or upset, there is much to enjoy in Orphan. Horror films this skilfully made don’t come along that often. You probably won’t find a better one this year." Posted Aug 7, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Fresh 79%
| Mesrine: Killer Instinct (2009) | "
Mesrine: Killer Instinct the central character starts out as a callous murderer and doesn’t change. As a result, the film feels episodic." Posted Aug 7, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 92%
| Home (2009) | "
It would have been more effective if Meier had exercised less restraint and allowed her characters to spin out of control." Posted Aug 7, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 51%
| The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (2009) | "
The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 is not a disaster by any means. For most of its running time, it’s a slick, well-crafted piece of entertainment. But you can’t help wondering just how good it might have been in the hands of a less self-advertising director." Posted Jul 31, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 29%
| Mad, Sad and Bad (2009) | "
Like a BBC One sitcom written by someone who thinks he’s Strindberg." Posted Jul 31, 2009 |
Rotten 1/5
| Rotten 24%
| G-Force (2009) | "
Imagine ordering a Diet Coke only to be handed a formula on a piece of paper and you have some idea of what watching G-Force is like." Posted Jul 31, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 43%
| The Proposal (2009) | "
One minute you’re watching a 21st-century remake of His Girl Friday, the next you’re having to endure some awful, dumbed-down “women’s picture”. Bullock deserves better." Posted Jul 24, 2009 |
RSS Feeds