Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 82%
| Broken Embraces (2009) | "
As long as Almodovar keeps investing such thought and energy in his work, he can play with whatever themes he desires." Posted Dec 28, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Rotten 50%
| It's Complicated (2009) | "
For Streep, as always, acting is anything but complicated." Posted Dec 25, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 97%
| The Beaches of Agnes (2009) | "
The Beaches of Agnes is a work of delightful contradictions from a filmmaker who has always played by her own rules." Posted Dec 18, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 83%
| The Princess and the Frog (2009) | "
Light on its feet, confident and modern, it's the work of a company hungry for respect and eager to remind moviegoers of its enchanting roots." Posted Dec 11, 2009 |
Fresh 5/5
| Fresh 89%
| Up in the Air (2009) | "
Few recent films have been so adroit at looking outward while burrowing inward." Posted Dec 4, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 31%
| Ninja Assassin (2009) | "
What's a recovering ninja assassin to do? Why, paint the screen bright red, of course. Splatter it on. We're talking streaks and rivers of blood -- bloody swords, bloody clothes and, my personal favorite, bloody stumps." Posted Nov 25, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 92%
| Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire (2009) | "
The real star of this show is director Lee Daniels. He's the one who conjures the film's eerie mix of kitchen-sink realism and gothic symbolism, its deft back-and-forth between the horrific and the sublime." Posted Nov 13, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Rotten 55%
| Disney's A Christmas Carol (2009) | "
A Christmas Carol is a worthy stab at mixing old and new, a vintage tale done with some fresh dazzle and a reminder that the movies can still bring the wow." Posted Nov 6, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 94%
| An Education (2009) | "
t gives a glimmering surface sheen to the glamorous mirage of David's high life and all but asks, "Would you make a better choice?"" Posted Oct 30, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 94%
| The Damned United (2009) | "
A finely constructed and fiercely entertaining soccer movie that deals more in pride and obsession than penalty kicks." Posted Oct 23, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 87%
| The Baader Meinhof Complex (2009) | "
It doggedly refuses easy ways out, and it has the guts, brains and critical eye to plumb the roots of terror and its bloody consequences." Posted Oct 16, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 73%
| More Than a Game (2009) | "
More Than a Game is more than a feature-length profile of LeBron James, and that's good news." Posted Oct 16, 2009 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Rotten 12%
| Couples Retreat (2009) | "
You know those comedies that hit a little dry spell and have a hard time recovering? Couples Retreat has one that lasts about, oh, 90 minutes." Posted Oct 9, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 77%
| The Informant! (2009) | "
It suggests that in a world gone mad, even the good guys can be a little cracked, and that, in an age of self-indulgence, it might be hard for a whistleblower to heed his own alarms." Posted Sep 18, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 87%
| Big Fan (2009) | "
Oswalt nails Paul's mix of sadness and devotion, and Siegel gives the whole affair an air of gloom with just the barest hint of satire." Posted Sep 11, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 78%
| It Might Get Loud (2009) | "
The multigenerational threesome gathers in a spacious but cluttered studio to swap riffs, war stories, tips and inspirations." Posted Sep 4, 2009 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Rotten 15%
| Year One (2009) | "
Let's start with the praise because there won't be much: As comedy pairings go, you could do a lot worse than Jack Black and Michael Cera." Posted Jun 19, 2009 |
Rotten 3/5
| Fresh 66%
| Away We Go (2009) | "
Away We Go pleads so earnestly for emotional resonance that it forgets to earn any." Posted Jun 12, 2009 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 94%
| The Dark Knight (2008) | "
The Dark Knight is easily the most entertaining bummer of the summer." Posted Jul 17, 2008 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 75%
| Gunnin' for That #1 Spot (2008) | "
It's a fly-on-the-wall look at eight prodigiously talented kids hooking up to play ball in the big city, and as such, it's a great deal of fun." Posted Jul 11, 2008 |
Fresh B
| Rotten 40%
| Hancock (2008) | "
Part of the joke lies in seeing a megawatt star embrace his inner grouch with fantastical blunders, and part of the anticipation lies in seeing Hancock become, well, Will Smith." Posted Jul 1, 2008 |
Fresh A
| Fresh 96%
| WALL-E (2008) | "
Dangerously close to the sublime, a film that will be dissected and enjoyed for years to come." Posted Jun 26, 2008 |
Fresh B-
| Rotten 14%
| The Love Guru (2008) | "
Juvenile. Strained. This baggy tale of a loopy Deepak Chopra wannabe is all that and then some. The thing is it's also pretty funny as long as you know what you're in for." Posted Jun 20, 2008 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 66%
| The Incredible Hulk (2008) | "
It moves well for the most part, it delivers a worthy bad guy, and, in Edward Norton, it has a hero constantly on edge and on the run, a more swaggering and modern version of Bill Bixby's Banner from the '70s TV series." Posted Jun 13, 2008 |
Rotten C-
| Rotten 18%
| The Happening (2008) | "
Mr. Shyamalan is plagued by a bad case of Robin Williams Syndrome, characterized by a desire to inspire and change the world through mediocre entertainment – in this case, accompanied by ample and frequently creative bloodshed." Posted Jun 13, 2008 |
Rotten C+
| Rotten 36%
| You Don't Mess With The Zohan (2008) | "
You mess with the Zohan at the risk of your own IQ. But anyone who realizes or cares about such hazards has likely crossed the movie off the to-see list already." Posted Jun 6, 2008 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 77%
| Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) | "
The fourth chapter of the Indiana Jones chronicles feels repetitive and a little gassed, but it has too much bravura filmmaking, and just enough wit, to not recommend." Posted May 21, 2008 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 93%
| Iron Man (2008) | "
A superhero debut with brains and brawn." Posted May 1, 2008 |
Fresh B-
| Rotten 37%
| Street Kings (2008) | "
Street Kings is the cinematic equivalent of solid crime-genre fiction. It keeps the visual pages turning for a couple hours and navigates the dark corners of corruption and dishonor among men." Posted Apr 11, 2008 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 75%
| Paranoid Park (2008) | "
It's always exciting when a film that plays with cinematic language can squeeze in among the flotsam and jetsam of repetitive mediocrity." Posted Mar 14, 2008 |
Rotten C+
| Rotten 46%
| Cassandra's Dream (2008) | "
Funny thing about tragedy: It loses its heft when it has to keep reminding us how tragic it is. It's hard to cozy up to a script that feels the need to toss in casual references to fate and Aristotle. Yo, we get it already. They're doomed." Posted Jan 18, 2008 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 77%
| Cloverfield (2008) | "
A remarkably economical, street-level view of widespread panic caused by an abomination that gets, and ultimately needs, no explanation." Posted Jan 18, 2008 |
Rotten C+
| Rotten 42%
| The Bucket List (2007) | "
Bucket's rush to sentiment leads you to think the film, not its characters, is soon to expire." Posted Jan 11, 2008 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 91%
| There Will Be Blood (2007) | "
A haunting enigma that refuses to conform to any recognizable pattern, period or otherwise. I suppose you could see it as a descendent of Citizen Kane. But such comparisons aren't really fair to either film." Posted Jan 4, 2008 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 79%
| The Great Debaters (2007) | "
With Antwone Fisher and now The Great Debaters, Mr. Washington has made a pair of movies that dodge enough clichés to indulge in a few." Posted Dec 26, 2007 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 81%
| Charlie Wilson's War (2007) | "
Mr. Hanks comes through with an egoless performance -- no movie star is so adept at not acting like a movie star -- and Mr. Hoffman continues his year of doing no wrong" Posted Dec 21, 2007 |
Rotten C+
| Fresh 68%
| I Am Legend (2007) | "
I admire the intent of Mr. Smith, who has made it his mission to mix escapist fare with socially relevant material. Legend seems to split the difference and land in the middle of nowhere. That's a lonely place for moviegoers to be." Posted Dec 14, 2007 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 82%
| Atonement (2007) | "
Atonement does what a tragic romance is supposed to do." Posted Dec 7, 2007 |
Rotten C+
| Fresh 77%
| I'm Not There (2007) | "
I'm Not There would make a fine exercise for graduate school analysis. I'm just not sure how well it works as a movie." Posted Nov 21, 2007 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 92%
| Enchanted (2007) | "
Enchanted isn't just a culture-clash fable, it's also a throwback to one of classic Hollywood's giddiest genres: the screwball comedy." Posted Nov 21, 2007 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 88%
| Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (2007) | "
You feel Before the Devil Knows You're Dead more than you watch it. And the feeling is far from warm and fuzzy." Posted Nov 16, 2007 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 71%
| Beowulf (2007) | "
I can't speak for the standard-issue version, but the souped-up extravaganza is one of those experiences that remind you of the magic that movies are capable of conjuring." Posted Nov 16, 2007 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 94%
| No Country for Old Men (2007) | "
The Coens are geniuses at creating tension through editing. No Country has craft and atmosphere aplenty." Posted Nov 9, 2007 |
Fresh B+
| Rotten 51%
| Bee Movie (2007) | "
The film's charm, quickness and design carry the day." Posted Nov 2, 2007 |
Fresh A
| Fresh 79%
| American Gangster (2007) | "
Ridley Scott packs the film with period detail and vivid, violent energy reminiscent of high-grade Scorsese, then mixes in a Lumet-like, keenly observed outrage at systemic corruption." Posted Nov 2, 2007 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 64%
| Dan in Real Life (2007) | "
Dan in Real Life is an enjoyable if curious creature, a naturalistic ensemble comedy wed to a high-flown sitcom premise. It's infused with a warm optimism that prevails even through the drama's thornier patches." Posted Oct 26, 2007 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 64%
| Things We Lost in the Fire (2007) | "
A supple and angular story of grief." Posted Oct 19, 2007 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 37%
| Reservation Road (2007) | "
For all of the roiling emotion, it feels oddly flat, distant and one-dimensional." Posted Oct 19, 2007 |
Fresh B
| Rotten 34%
| Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007) | "
The Golden Age feels like two movies: one a bodice-ripping romance, the other a study in statecraft and power. But these strands, one private, one public, come together in the title character and the balancing act she must master." Posted Oct 12, 2007 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 75%
| The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) | "
This is a 160-minute art Western, and if you're up for such a beast it is a glory to behold. It's gorgeous, but rarely for the sake of mere gorgeousness, and languorous, but never listless." Posted Oct 5, 2007 |
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