Fresh
| Fresh 97%
| The Song of Sparrows (2009) | "
Achingly poetic in a way that recalls the Italian neo-realism of The Bicycle Thief." Posted Jun 12, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 64%
| Watchmen (2009) | "
... a total immersion experience." Posted Mar 10, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 94%
| Moscow, Belgium (2008) | "
Barbara Sarafian's performance in this incongruously scintillating little film is a joy." Posted Mar 4, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 74%
| A Jihad for Love (2007) | "
To be called a monster and then be stoned to death is pretty much as bad as it can get." Posted Aug 29, 2008 |
Fresh
| Fresh 98%
| For the Bible Tells Me So (2007) | "
The Bible Tells Me So" Posted Oct 30, 2007 |
Fresh
| N/A | Sound of the Soul (2005) | "
Part travelogue, part primer on world religions, part concert film, Sound of the Soul delivers a powerful and timely message to a world increasingly seized in the paralyzing grip of self-destructing partisan fundamentalist-fueled strife." Posted Aug 4, 2007 |
Fresh
| Fresh 84%
| The Witnesses (2008) | "
Never polemical, frequently philosophical, occasionally saturnine, and beautifully filmed and acted, this film is a minor masterpiece, and one of the best films about AIDS to date." Posted Jul 11, 2007 |
Fresh
| Fresh 100%
| The Rape of Europa () | "
The relationship between Hitler's obsession with art, as a means to dehumanize his enemies and apotheosize his master racial aesthetic values -- and just how integral to Hitler this strategy to redraw the geopolitical map through bald physical brute force" Posted Jul 10, 2007 |
Fresh
| Fresh 75%
| Four Minutes (2007) | "
A riveting film-going experience, Four Minutes may prove "too German" for many non-German-speaking audiences." Posted Jul 10, 2007 |
Fresh
| Fresh 74%
| La Vie En Rose (2007) | "
A memorable cast, vivid cinematography, crisp and resonant sound recordings, and dramatic storytelling make this a must-see film for fans and novices alike. Though, at 140 minutes, the film may feel like it runs as long as Piaf's tragically short life." Posted May 14, 2007 |
Fresh
| Rotten 54%
| Marie Antoinette (2006) | "
As a serious film, only an American could love Marie Antoinette. To the French, it must be gravely insulting. As an unwitting camp, it may have a great future." Posted Mar 27, 2007 |
Fresh
| Rotten 37%
| Death of a President (2006) | "
There is little of the fall of the Twin Towers trauma, but much of All the President's Men here. That this film's buzz has launched such vitriol and condemnation is not surprising. Range's film exposes wider audiences to some basic truths of our times." Posted Mar 27, 2007 |
Fresh
| Fresh 62%
| Summer in Berlin (2005) | "
In Summer in Berlin, director Andreas Dresen presents the portrait of a friendship between two women, Nike (Nadja Uhl) and Katrin Engel (Inka Friedrich). In the German tradition of the Kammerspielfilm, this is a closely and lovingly observed study in psyc" Posted Mar 26, 2007 |
Fresh
| N/A | Pervert! (2005) | "
The heteros become homos, the unsatisfied virgins become red meat, over and over. If you liked Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill!, you will like this bit of silliness. And, if you understand this film, then, truly, you are a pervert too. Go, be with your peopl" Posted Mar 20, 2007 |
Fresh
| Fresh 87%
| Man Push Cart (2006) | "
A sad, powerful, austere experience of a movie, this is the story of a man who has known profound, compound loss." Posted Mar 12, 2007 |
Fresh
| N/A | The Fisherman and His Wife (2005) | "
Meanwhile, Dörrie sends up, more with humor than rebuke, the present decade's global-wide obsession with its win-at-all-cost competitive spirit, the blurring of boundaries between profit-making and service providing, the West's infatuation with Japanese d" Posted Mar 12, 2007 |
Fresh
| Fresh 94%
| Three Kings (1999) | "
Keilich strikes a sweetly engaging balance between humor and pathos." Posted Mar 12, 2007 |
Fresh
| Fresh 93%
| The Lives of Others (2006) | "
Relative newcomer screenwriter and director Florian Henkel von Donnersmarck makes a remarkably self-confident and promising debut with the tensely sublime film The Lives of Others...The Lives of Others is a rare film achievement, arguably a "perfect" film" Posted Mar 12, 2007 |
Rotten C-
| Rotten 58%
| The Astronaut Farmer (2007) | "
It could be portending the decline and fall of Hollywood, except that it is so unexceptionally bad, and unexceptionally typical of the studio fare right now." Posted Feb 25, 2007 |
Fresh
| Fresh 72%
| Stranger Than Fiction (2006) | "
When it flies, it soars. But it develops leaden feet as it spins over into a convoluted, overly long wind down. This is an intelligent, engaging film that gets it right, for the most part, before ultimately capitulating to the demands of Hollywood." Posted Dec 30, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 91%
| Volver (2006) | "
It is an impossible hybrid, (in the words of at least one observer) an epic comedy." Posted Dec 30, 2006 |
Fresh
| Rotten 59%
| Al Franken: God Spoke (2006) | "
Always engaging, often insightful, [and] at times deeply moving." Posted Nov 11, 2006 |
Rotten
| Rotten 13%
| Haven (2006) | "
By the time this quasi Robert Altman-like meeting of unrelated characters happens -- and even if the viewer has kept track of all the characters -- it's hard to care about much of anything, other than knowing the film is nearly over." Posted Oct 16, 2006 |
Fresh
| Rotten 29%
| Zen Noir (2006) | "
The acting is stylized, the sets are stylized, the editing is stylized, all toward a Zen-like minimalist aesthetic." Posted Oct 16, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 86%
| My Country, My Country (2006) | "
Journalism at its finest, as has not been practiced in the U.S. in some time." Posted Sep 5, 2006 |
Rotten
| Rotten 22%
| The Quiet (2006) | "
In the most inappropriate moments, the film slides into archly dark humor, even bombast. The prompted urges to laugh tend less to defuse the sting and more to render banal." Posted Aug 31, 2006 |
Fresh
| N/A | The Fifth Horseman Is Fear (1964) | "
Brynych draws upon German Expressionist film techniques, blending both Hollywood noir and classic horror film styles." Posted Aug 28, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 90%
| Half Nelson (2006) | "
Philosophically sound, dramatically absorbing, highly entertaining and highly instructive, 'Half Nelson' is hands down one of the best films of the year." Posted Aug 26, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 75%
| Factotum (2006) | "
Dillon shambles, dishevels and enunciates, simulating with precise timing and bearing a wholly satisfying portrayal of Charles Bukowski." Posted Aug 25, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 78%
| House of Sand (2005) | "
The slow-moving plot, the oppressively vast and empty landscapes of The House of Sand hearken back to the moral landscapes of John Ford and seem to fill up with the deep passions of Greek heroines." Posted Aug 10, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 86%
| Quinceanera (2006) | "
Set in a cultural borderland, the film...straddles realism and melodrama, telenovela and parable." Posted Aug 10, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 70%
| Leonard Cohen: I'm Your Man (2006) | "
A mostly engaging, informative, entertaining film" Posted Jul 15, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 97%
| Army of Shadows (1969) | "
Taut, superb acting, narrative told by mood rather than action, the understated visuals, the elements of 'Army of Shadows' merge to seep in under the skin and create an unforgettable and disturbing experience." Posted Jul 8, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 76%
| Superman Returns (2006) | "
[Director Singer] reinvigorates an original American archetype. 'Superman Returns' gets it exactly right." Posted Jun 28, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 70%
| Lemming (2006) | "
A transparently formal film that plays along the narrative boundary between the psychological and the supernatural." Posted Jun 17, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 74%
| 12 and Holding (2006) | "
The excellent casting and acting, the strong script and subtle plotting build into a carefully crafted roller coaster ride." Posted Jun 16, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 75%
| Cars (2006) | "
Richly silly, but also solid, with something for the kids and the adults" Posted Jun 8, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 93%
| An Inconvenient Truth (2006) | "
Gore's multimedia presentation is like a rock concert: ever-changing visuals and on-stage mini-shticks that draw the audience into a mountain of scientific data, anecdotes that connect the dots and make the larger picture clear..." Posted Jun 2, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 73%
| Cavite (2006) | "
The directing duo brilliantly stretch the limits of their very low budget to moving aesthetic and dramatic effect." Posted Jun 1, 2006 |
Fresh
| Rotten 24%
| Peaceful Warrior (2006) | "
By turns a riveting study of the world of competitive gymnastics, a parable for an alternative vision for today's society, and a study in the psychology of mentoring, 'Peaceful Warrior' is a satisfying movie-going experience, with or without 'the message." Posted Jun 1, 2006 |
Rotten
| Rotten 52%
| Wah-Wah (2006) | "
A somewhat unsettled balance between domestic and epic, serious drama and nostalgic recollection." Posted May 25, 2006 |
Rotten
| N/A | Grain In Ear (2005) | "
The film is entirely without human interiority, the sets and camera work serving as objective substitutes." Posted Apr 12, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 68%
| Evil (2003) | "
The second half of 'Evil' takes this genre into new and challenging territory." Posted Apr 12, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 67%
| On A Clear Day (2006) | "
Refreshing and inspirational" Posted Apr 9, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 88%
| Sir! No Sir! (2006) | "
A 'must-see' documentary which seeks to return to the historical record the pivotal story of the GI anti-war movement during the Vietnam War." Posted Apr 7, 2006 |
Rotten
| Fresh 70%
| Friends With Money (2006) | "
Witty and fast-paced as [some] scenes are, after a while the big picture grows tired and trivial." Posted Apr 6, 2006 |
Rotten
| N/A | The End of August at the Hotel Ozone (1966) | "
Ponderously slow pacing and vague historical, psychological, and moral allusions." Posted Apr 6, 2006 |
Fresh
| Rotten 59%
| Lonesome Jim (2006) | "
The light, understated gallows humor often demonstrates the lack of any clear line separating the comic and the tragic." Posted Apr 3, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 88%
| The Devil and Daniel Johnston (2006) | "
An amazing, mind-boggling, disturbing, hilarious, and utterly moving and unforgettable film experience" Posted Apr 2, 2006 |
Fresh
| Fresh 78%
| Brick (2006) | "
The single most satisfying cinematic experience of 'Brick' lies in witnessing director Johnson's matter-of-fact transformation of the contemporary American suburban landscape into a moral stage of mythic proportion." Posted Apr 1, 2006 |
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