Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 39%
| The Lovely Bones (2009) | "
The Lovely Bones does a fantastic job with revered, complex source material. As terrific on terra firma as it is audacious in its astral plane, it is doubtful we’ll see a more imaginative, courageous film in 2010." Posted Nov 27, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 80%
| Michael Jackson's This Is It (2009) | "
This Is It delivers neither the full-on Jackson stage experience or a revealing portrait of his complex mindset. Yet it does not dishonour his memory and you can’t deny the power of the music." Posted Oct 28, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 98%
| Up (2009) | "
If it had lived up to its golden first five minutes, Up would have been the film of the decade. As it is, it remains the best animated flick of 2009, a funny, moving, beautifully made argument that dreamers can move mountains." Posted Oct 9, 2009 |
Rotten 1/5
| Rotten 0%
| Police Academy 4 - Citizens on Patrol (1987) | "
Oh dear...oh dear, oh dear..." Posted Aug 3, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 43%
| The Proposal (2009) | "
Despite good moments and likable leads, this lacks both heart and humour in a confection that smacks of the over-familiar." Posted Jul 24, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 82%
| Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) | "
Within Allen’s recent output, Vicky Cristina is the highlight. See it for beautiful locales, an ambivalent look at human relationships and a clutch of great performances, especially from Cruz." Posted Feb 5, 2009 |
Fresh 5/5
| Fresh 71%
| The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008) | "
Aptly for a film so concerned with time, Button is 13 minutes shy of three hours and just flies by. If this is Fincher selling out, can he sell out more often please?" Posted Feb 5, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 91%
| Splash (1984) | "
The movie that really showed Tom Hanks' promise as a deliverer of great comedy and heart-warming pathos." Posted Feb 3, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 27%
| Seven Pounds (2008) | "
A collage of strong scenes, dull bits, good filmmaking and a dissatisfying emotional payoff. A laudable attempt to tackle heavyweight subject-matter that ends up just being heavy weather." Posted Jan 16, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 76%
| Role Models (2008) | "
A great example of the Emotionally Stunted Men Grow A Heart sub-genre. Role Models staves off the January blues and puts a marker down as 2009’s laugh-out-loud comedy to beat." Posted Jan 9, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 96%
| Somers Town (2009) | "
Meadows in a minor key but still a major delight; his improvised feel, sparky comedy and interest in the truth of youth services a story that’s both winning and winsome." Posted Jan 1, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 28%
| Trade (2007) | "
If only the whole matched the power and potency of the details. Masquerades as a searing exposé, but turns out to be a lurid and overwrought account." Posted Dec 12, 2008 |
Fresh 5/5
| Fresh 92%
| Of Time and the City (2009) | "
Droll, angry, erudite, moving, this is the most poignant, beautiful, entrancing British film of the year." Posted Oct 30, 2008 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 90%
| Hunger (2008) | "
Anchored by Fassbender’s turn, Hunger is as much about the personal as the political. The real breakthrough, though, is McQueen, who turns in a film that dazzles and challenges in equal measure." Posted Oct 30, 2008 |
Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 28%
| Eagle Eye (2008) | "
A fun techno romp, mixing great bang for your buck with insights into the dangers of restricting civil liberties. Now, anyone for Shia killing blondes dressed as his dead mother?" Posted Oct 17, 2008 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 50%
| The Man with the Golden Gun (1974) | "
Roger Moore's Bond has got a rough deal over the year, but whilst this takes itself a little too lightly it has a lot going for it." Posted Oct 13, 2008 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 96%
| Somers Town (2009) | "
Meadows in a minor key but still a major delight; his improvised feel, sparky comedy and interest in the truth of youth services a story that's both winning and winsome." Posted Aug 22, 2008 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 36%
| You Don't Mess With The Zohan (2008) | "
A strange, mostly enjoyable mix of big political questions and crude comedy, Zohan overcomes its skeletal plotting and uneven gag ratio through Sandler's sheer commitment to nonsense." Posted Aug 15, 2008 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 75%
| City of Men (2008) | "
The likable performances, hot, sweaty atmosphere and decently mounted action scenes make this entertaining fare." Posted Jul 18, 2008 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 86%
| Tucker: The Man and His Dream (1988) | "
A revealing and heartfelt biopic." Posted May 6, 2008 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 86%
| Thunderbolt and Lightfoot (1974) | "
Eastwood is in good, if not great form, Bridges steals the whole show, and Cimino displays a sense of unpretentious fun and appealing grasp of character that should have held him in good stead for a lengthy career. It didn't." Posted May 6, 2008 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 78%
| The Spy Who Loved Me (1977) | "
It may not be Fleming but it is terrific fun." Posted May 5, 2008 |
Fresh 5/5
| Fresh 97%
| The 39 Steps (1935) | "
Hitchcock at his very best." Posted Apr 11, 2008 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 79%
| Silverado (1985) | "
Engrossing western which inspired a huge genre revivial." Posted Apr 9, 2008 |
Rotten 3/5
| Fresh 71%
| Cop Land (1997) | "
A good effort, but the star power on show throws the proceedings off kilter somewhat, hiking up an expectation that the film ultimately cannot live up to." Posted Apr 9, 2008 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 27%
| Love in the Time of Cholera (2007) | "
A valiant attempt to turn a complex novel into a compelling movie is hamstrung by a conventional literary sensibility, an uneven tone and, crucially, a failure to establish a moving, meaningful connection between its two major players." Posted Mar 20, 2008 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 14%
| Untraceable (2008) | "
A competent suspenser, helped by the always-dependable Diane Lane, but it suffers by following the modern thriller playbook to the letter." Posted Feb 28, 2008 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 79%
| American Gangster (2007) | "
An entertaining romp through familiar cop-and-crim cat-and-mousery, bolstered by strong star turns from Washington and Crowe. Still, it has neither the intelligence nor the grip to jump from the merely good to the truly great." Posted Nov 14, 2007 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 32%
| The Good German (2006) | "
This should have been Soderbergh gold. Instead it is mostly unengaging and dull, proof positive that they don’t make them like they used to." Posted Mar 7, 2007 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 76%
| Rocky Balboa (2006) | "
If you hear the Rocky theme and think ‘118 118’, you might wonder what all the fuss is about. For the rest of us, this is a reminder of why we fell in love with the character in the first place." Posted Jan 4, 2007 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 68%
| Babel (2006) | "
It may be too slow for some tastes, but Babel remains emotionally bruising but compulsive viewing." Posted Jan 4, 2007 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 75%
| The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005) | "
It’s an enjoyable adaptation and good enough for us to welcome this new franchise." Posted Dec 30, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 78%
| Ice Age (2002) | "
Delivers solid laughs and thrills wrapped up in an infectious sense of character." Posted Dec 30, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 71%
| Bringing Out the Dead (1999) | "
An exciting, invigorating return to old preoccupations. Welcome home, Marty." Posted Dec 30, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 90%
| Spider-Man (2002) | "
Practically pitch-perfect summer entertainment." Posted Dec 30, 2006 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 38%
| The Nativity Story (2006) | "
Surprisingly sedate telling of the rather well-known tale from Catherine Hardwicke." Posted Nov 29, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 72%
| Stranger Than Fiction (2006) | "
It might be Charlie Kaufman lite, but this is a great date movie for the discerning - smart, ingenious and heartwarming." Posted Nov 29, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 54%
| Marie Antoinette (2006) | "
A hedonistic riot of spirited, capricious filmmaking; a sexy, witty, dynamic romp, fired by more imagination than a thousand Merchant Ivorys and propelled by the best soundtrack of the year." Posted Oct 16, 2006 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 24%
| The Da Vinci Code (2006) | "
One of the most talk driven summer flicks in living memory, an out of sorts Howard transforms what should be a fun treasure trail romp into something inert and borderline dreary." Posted Oct 4, 2006 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 36%
| The Lake House (2006) | "
A compelling idea delicately handled and neatly played, especially by Bullock. It just lacks the emotional directness to turn the good into the great." Posted Oct 4, 2006 |
Fresh 5/5
| Fresh 94%
| Time Bandits (1982) | "
For a kids film this is pleasingly dark with Gilliam delivering as much classical fairy tale as knockabout comedy." Posted Aug 30, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 74%
| Monster House (2006) | "
A scary, sharp, funny movie, this is the best kids’ flick of the year so far." Posted Aug 11, 2006 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 24%
| Lady in the Water (2006) | "
If you place a premium on original vision and creative risk, then there is much pleasure to be had watching a born storyteller juggle more balls than even he can carry." Posted Aug 11, 2006 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 36%
| The Lake House (2006) | "
A compelling idea delicately handled and neatly played, especially by Bullock. It just lacks the emotional directness to turn the good into the great." Posted Jun 24, 2006 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 24%
| The Da Vinci Code (2006) | "
An out of sorts Howard transforms what should be a fun treasure trail romp into something inert and borderline dreary." Posted May 20, 2006 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 56%
| Dementia 13 (1963) | "
Despite some inventive photography and decent gore for its day, its uneven pace renders it a curio for Coppola fans." Posted May 6, 2006 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 52%
| Romance & Cigarettes (2007) | "
Terrific as a musical, indifferent as a drama, the movie’s great cast fails to rescue a scattershot approach. See it, though, for Walken on inspired form." Posted Apr 1, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 52%
| Spanglish (2004) | "
A satisfying and grown-up flick that boasts all of James L. Brooks’ strengths." Posted Apr 1, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 61%
| The New World (2005) | "
Malick’s magic remains undiminished." Posted Apr 1, 2006 |
Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 53%
| Melinda and Melinda (2005) | "
It has great performances, snappy one-liners and a likeably tricksy structure, all wrapped up in an affirmative antidote to life's daunting complexities. Welcome back, Woody." Posted Apr 1, 2006 |
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