Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 70%
| The Road (2009) | "
Mortensen warms the film with his presence, creating a vivid portrait of a bereft man clinging to the one thing he has left." — Seattle Times Posted Nov 25, 2009 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 92%
| Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) | "
Wes Anderson's utterly charming Fantastic Mr. Fox is that rarity: a children's movie for all." — Seattle Times Posted Nov 25, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 91%
| Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire (2009) | "
No, Precious is not an easy sit, and isn't meant to be. But it's a film of remarkable strength and poignancy, filled with vivid performances that stay with you long after you've left the theater." — Seattle Times Posted Nov 19, 2009 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 30%
| The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009) | "
The movie gives the 'Twilight' fans exactly what they want but doesn't offer too much for the rest of us." — Seattle Times Posted Nov 19, 2009 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 94%
| An Education (2009) | "
The movie belongs to Mulligan, whose Jenny looks like Audrey Hepburn when she puts her hair up and dons a black dress, and like every teenage girl who's had her heart broken when she cries." — Seattle Times Posted Nov 5, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 54%
| The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009) | "
The Men Who Stare at Goats doesn't stay with you long, but it's good fun while it lasts." — Seattle Times Posted Nov 5, 2009 |
Rotten 2/4
| Fresh 70%
| Chelsea on the Rocks (2009) | "
There's a great movie to be made about the Chelsea Hotel; unfortunately, this isn't it." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 29, 2009 |
Rotten 2.5/4
| Rotten 20%
| Amelia (2009) | "
Amelia is a conventional, competent and often very pretty film; it's just never as interesting as the woman at its center." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 23, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 94%
| Good Hair (2009) | "
It's rich food for thought, though you wonder why little attention is given to the idea that perhaps some women relax their hair because it's easier to style that way, or that elaborate attention to hair is hardly exclusive to black women." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 23, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 93%
| The Damned United (2009) | "
While there's plenty of action, much of it satisfyingly wet and muddy, the reason to watch this film is its splendid cast." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 23, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 42%
| New York, I Love You (2009) | "
As with any such project, some of the films are better than others, but most of the entries in New York, I Love You are very good indeed." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 15, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 74%
| Five Minutes of Heaven (2009) | "
Two marvelous performances from two Irish actors turn Oliver Hirschbiegel's Five Minutes of Heaven into a tour de force." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 15, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 65%
| Coco Before Chanel (2009) | "
The film, understandably, leaves you wanting more about the rest of the designer's life, but Coco Before Chanel is wisely focused on those years in which she became herself." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 15, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 82%
| Black Dynamite (2009) | "
See this one with a crowd, and remember Black Dynamite's immortal words: "Doughnuts don't wear alligator shoes."" — Seattle Times Posted Oct 15, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 70%
| Where the Wild Things Are (2009) | "
Some children, I think, will love this film, some will find it frightening, and some will be bored. Adults, likely, will experience it the same way." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 15, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 86%
| A Serious Man (2009) | "
While there are plenty of oddball touches, some mystifying (like the Yiddish-language prologue, set in a Polish shtetl and seeming to have little to do with what follows it; and the abrupt ending) -- we see in it some genuine fondness for the characters." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 8, 2009 |
Rotten 1.5/4
| Rotten 12%
| Couples Retreat (2009) | "
Imagine that you are listening in on the marriage-counseling sessions of the dullest couple you know. Multiply that by four, and you've got a pretty good approximation of the experience of watching Couples Retreat." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 8, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 82%
| Whip It (2009) | "
Yes, you know exactly where this movie is going. But Barrymore and writer Shauna Cross give us plenty of reason to enjoy the journey, however familiar." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 1, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 72%
| The Boys Are Back (2009) | "
You may well cry -- I did -- at The Boys Are Back, but Hicks doesn't use hammers or harp strings; the emotion is honest and earned." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 1, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 84%
| The September Issue (2009) | "
While it's fun for fashionholics just to watch a movie in which people say "It's a famine of beauty!" and "The jacket is the new coat," the film becomes more substantial as it narrows its focus to two people: an artist and a curator.
" — Seattle Times Posted Oct 1, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 56%
| The Invention of Lying (2009) | "
Someday, Gervais will make a screen comedy both brilliant and consistent; in the meantime, The Invention of Lying will pass the time." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 1, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 56%
| The Invention of Lying (2009) | "
Nobody plays a sad sack quite like British comedian/writer Ricky Gervais; something about his posture and his ever-hopeful-yet-slightly-beseeching expression speaks of a balloon just about to deflate." — Seattle Times Posted Oct 1, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 89%
| No Impact Man (2009) | "
A strange yet riveting portrait of a marriage enduring a year spent making as little environmental impact as possible." — Seattle Times Posted Sep 24, 2009 |
Fresh 2.5/4
| Rotten 28%
| Fame (2009) | "
Much of Fame draws us in, through the irresistible appeal of young people bursting with energy." — Seattle Times Posted Sep 24, 2009 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 96%
| The Beaches of Agnes (2009) | "
The warm, elfin filmmaker makes a fine companion through this vivid story of a life well lived, reminding us at the end of how we create our own safe havens within our families." — Seattle Times Posted Sep 24, 2009 |
Rotten 2.5/4
| Fresh 76%
| The Informant! (2009) | "
Despite an appealing central performance from Matt Damon, disguised in a mustache and complicated swoop of hair, The Informant! feels like a jumble of ideas rather than a concerted whole." — Seattle Times Posted Sep 17, 2009 |
Fresh 2.5/4
| Rotten 45%
| Jennifer's Body (2009) | "
Seyfried approaches her role with such honesty and vulnerability that she transforms the movie; you see, in her bottomless blue eyes, that she long ago accepted being the girl that nobody noticed." — Seattle Times Posted Sep 17, 2009 |
Rotten 2/4
| Fresh 63%
| Extract (2009) | "
Extract has its moments, but not enough of them. Think I'll go ahead and watch Office Space again." — Seattle Times Posted Sep 3, 2009 |
Rotten 1.5/4
| Rotten 6%
| All About Steve (2009) | "
Just the latest entry on a long list of movies that aren't even close to the great screwball comedy Bullock is capable of making. May it be the last." — Seattle Times Posted Sep 3, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 70%
| My One and Only (2009) | "
This isn't exactly untraveled territory, but director Richard Loncraine makes this potentially familiar story fresh..." — Seattle Times Posted Sep 3, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 86%
| Lorna's Silence (2009) | "
Dobroshi, a dark-browed beauty, has an arresting stillness — never smiling (except for one brief, unguarded moment with Sokol), never letting down her guard. It's a slice of a life nobody would want, and a portrait that's not easy to forget." — Seattle Times Posted Aug 27, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 31%
| The Answer Man (2009) | "
While The Answer Man has a meandering pace and ultimately goes precisely where you think it will, first-timer Hindman makes the journey pleasant among these literate and interesting folk." — Seattle Times Posted Aug 27, 2009 |
Fresh 2.5/4
| Rotten 49%
| Taking Woodstock (2009) | "
Taking Woodstock has its pleasures; it's really a sweet-natured coming-of-age tale, with a famously groundbreaking rock concert lurking in the background." — Seattle Times Posted Aug 27, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 60%
| Art & Copy (2009) | "
Occasionally Art & Copy becomes an advertisement for advertising -- some of the talking heads are a little self-congratulatory -- but it offers plenty of food for thought. And makes it taste good, too." — Seattle Times Posted Aug 21, 2009 |
Fresh 2.5/4
| Rotten 18%
| The Marc Pease Experience (2009) | "
The Marc Pease Experience is likable enough; it's just no Rushmore." — Seattle Times Posted Aug 21, 2009 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 9%
| Post Grad (2009) | "
Sweet but instantly forgettable; a fantasy version of post-college life carefully structured to offend no one -- and intrigue no one." — Seattle Times Posted Aug 21, 2009 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 38%
| The Time Traveler's Wife (2009) | "
Suspend your disbelief and you might find The Time Traveler's Wife a charming if mildly depressing fantasy. Or you might, as I did, travel elsewhere during it. Either way, at least it's a picturesque journey." — Seattle Times Posted Aug 14, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 91%
| Ponyo (2009) | "
Hayao Miyazaki's magical Ponyo blends fantasy with just a drop of reality, and the result is irresistible." — Seattle Times Posted Aug 14, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 75%
| Julie & Julia (2009) | "
Nora Ephron's Julie & Julia is one-half delightful and one-half disappointing; luckily, the delightful part stays with you while the rest fades away." — Seattle Times Posted Aug 6, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 95%
| In the Loop (2009) | "
Political satire is a rare bird at the cinema, so fans of the genre should watch and savor Armando Iannucci's In the Loop -- a rapid-fire, profane celebration of the art (and artlessness) of spin." — Seattle Times Posted Jul 30, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 47%
| The Girl From Monaco (2009) | "
Despite Bourgoin's dazzling presence, it's the hollow-eyed Luchini who quietly takes over the film." — Seattle Times Posted Jul 23, 2009 |
Rotten 1.5/4
| Rotten 55%
| Orphan (2009) | "
Overlong and overwrought, Orphan stays faithful to every cliché of the genre." — Seattle Times Posted Jul 23, 2009 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 15%
| The Ugly Truth (2009) | "
A blandly raunchy star vehicle that does its stars few favors." — Seattle Times Posted Jul 23, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 87%
| 500 Days of Summer (2009) | "
A fresh July breeze among recent (and mostly stale) romantic-comedy offerings." — Seattle Times Posted Jul 16, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 83%
| Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) | "
As its 2-½ hours came to a close, I was happy to be reminded that we aren't yet done with Hogwarts, and that there's much pleasure in a story slowly told." — Seattle Times Posted Jul 14, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 75%
| Humpday (2009) | "
Humpday surprises us from beginning to end. It's a fresh take on the familiar topic of friendship -- and a wise one." — Seattle Times Posted Jul 10, 2009 |
Rotten 1.5/4
| Rotten 45%
| Management (2009) | "
You watch Management thinking of the comedy Aniston and Zahn could have made, and wishing you were watching that movie instead." — Seattle Times Posted Jul 10, 2009 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 47%
| Whatever Works (2009) | "
It's a movie that feels assembled from the leftovers Allen found in his fridge." — Seattle Times Posted Jul 3, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 67%
| Public Enemies (2009) | "
Mann knows exactly how to pace this kind of movie, set to a veritable symphony of gunshots, and Public Enemies feels both wonderfully populated and beautifully controlled." — Seattle Times Posted Jun 30, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 97%
| Tulpan (2008) | "
If you surrender to its pace, Tulpan can be intoxicating; it's like nothing else in theaters." — Seattle Times Posted Jun 26, 2009 |
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