ROTTEN TOMATOES: Moira Sullivan

MOIRA SULLIVAN

Agrees with the Tomatometer 77% of the time.

Biography: I am a film critic based in Europe and the USA. I cover international film festivals such as Venice, Cannes, Udine Far East Film Festival, Göteborg, Stockholm, San Francisco Créteil Films de Femmes and Cineffable (Paris). My specialty is world cinema, festival films and film critical ideas and feminist film criticism. I have written extensively about Maya Deren on the creative use of cinematography and am invited to lecture about her work around the world.

Favorites: Favorite directors: Maya Deren, Jean Cocteau. Favorite films: Meshes of the Afternoon, Orpheus, Le Testament d'Orfée , Le Sang d'un Poet, Beauty and the Beast. Other favorites: Terminator 2, Blackboards, Eraserhead, Thelma and Louise, Last Year at Marienbad, Aliens, Alien Resurrection, Amelie, Lilya 4-ever, Persona, In the Mood for Love, Fire, All About Eve, Blade Runner.

Publications: FilmFestivals.com, Movie Magazine International, Not Coming to a Theater Near You

Total Reviews: 50
Total QuickRatings: 30

Location: San Francisco

LISTING OF ALL REVIEWS & ARTICLES

Rating	T-Meter	Title \| Year	Add Date (default)

Fresh A-	Fresh 93%	Milk (2008)	" The film is not only the story of Harvey Milk but the galvanization of the gay community in San Francisco and while Milk would have been quick to point out that there are very few lesbians in this film - something that Van Sant seems to miss - he would ha" — Movie Magazine International Posted Aug 1, 2009
Fresh A-	Fresh 78%	Dreamgirls (2006)	" Dreamgirls opened on Xmas day and it was every much of a brilliant holiday movie. I guess the only complaint I have is it is too slick." — Movie Magazine International Posted Jul 22, 2007
Fresh A	Rotten 45%	Bobby (2006)	" Emilio Estevez has done a terrific job with Bobby , a film that explores the lives of people who were at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles the day that Robert Kennedy won the California primary and was shot to death." — Movie Magazine International Posted Jul 22, 2007
Fresh A	Fresh 100%	Queen Christina (1933)	" Rueben Mamoulian may have taken great liberty to change the historical facts to fit his film but it's a very entertaining one especially because Garbo is in every scene." — Movie Magazine International Posted Jul 22, 2007
Fresh A	Fresh 85%	Bamako (2006)	" Bamako is a film that grows on you. Its power is subtle and you don't really feel the impact until it's all over. And when it has, its left with you something unshakeably real." — Movie Magazine International Posted Jul 22, 2007
Fresh A	Fresh 90%	Shut Up & Sing (2006)	" Shut up & Sings shows that it is all about freedom of speech and expression and how we had better not forget it. Freedom of speech, speaking out and having a voice. Yeah! On to the Grammies Dixie Chicks. You go girls!" — Movie Magazine International Posted Jul 22, 2007
Fresh A	Fresh 84%	Donnie Darko (2001)	" The directors cut of Donnie Darko by Richard Kelly was screened at the Venice Film Festivals a couple of years ago, a film I missed for sure when it was released in 2001 and one of those pearls like Blade Runner that just is haunting screening after scree" — Movie Magazine International Posted Jul 22, 2007
Fresh A	Fresh 65%	Broken English (2007)	" Zoe Cassavetes' new film Broken English is a delight, and as a debut film shows that we can expect good things from her." — Movie Magazine International Posted Jul 22, 2007
Fresh A	Fresh 68%	Babel (2006)	" Babel directed by Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu is one of the most compelling films to date." — Movie Magazine International Posted Jul 22, 2007
Fresh A	Fresh 94%	Away From Her (2007)	" The strength of Away From Her rests on the laurels of an excellent director and Julie Christie whose demanding role is interpreted with subtlety, humor and wisdom. Polley said she only had Christie in mind when the film was to be cast." — Movie Magazine International Posted Jul 22, 2007
Fresh C+	Rotten 44%	Angel-A (2007)	" The film is slickly constructed with a hip soundtrack and art direction, but its empty, a glowing travelogue for a beautiful city and two maudlin characters that are predictable and two dimensional. I love Paris too but would rather see its reality ...." — Movie Magazine International Posted Jul 22, 2007
Fresh A-	Rotten 54%	Marie Antoinette (2006)	" A period piece is expected from directors with two or three successes under their belt. However, in this respect Coppola has modernized the historical epic, with rock music and an occasional converse footed actor." — Movie Magazine International Posted May 27, 2006
Fresh B+	Fresh 88%	Caché (2005)	" Haneke has made a fine study of guilt and betrayal, and tries to convey what is hidden. Perhaps what is best hidden in the film is the claim that lies are conveyed at 24 frames a second." — Movie Magazine International Posted May 27, 2006
Fresh C+	Rotten 24%	The Da Vinci Code (2006)	" Clipped at the wings in Howard's adaptation is a rich pagaent of esoteric knowledge and French history. Beneath every calling card is a better, truer story... the information is out there in the public domain for modern tropes, however twisted." — Movie Magazine International Posted May 27, 2006
Fresh 3.5/4	Fresh 83%	King Kong (2005)	" *Why make a King Kongfilm now? Since it has been recycled several times, trotting out a new version exposes the story to how it still uses black and white tropes.* " — FilmFestivals.com Posted Jan 26, 2006
Fresh B+	Fresh 86%	Brokeback Mountain (2005)	" *If Brokeback Mountain* is not about 'gay cowboys', perhaps it should be seen as a film about hate crimes and bullying against gays.*" — FilmFestivals.com* Posted Jan 26, 2006
N/A	Fresh 82%	Monster (2003)	" Patty Jenkins is one of the directors on the move whose new film "Monster" on Aileen Wuornos debuted in the US on December 24th." — FilmFestivals.com Posted Jan 27, 2004
Fresh A	Fresh 82%	Monster (2003)	" "Monster" is no "Pretty Woman" or Cinderella story and Theron's role is a fuse that ignites controversy." — FilmFestivals.com Posted Jan 27, 2004
Fresh B	Fresh 92%	Summertime (1955)	" Summertime was shot exclusively in Venice. And for those who have been to Venice, the film is a rare treasure;" — Not Coming to a Theater Near You Posted Jan 8, 2004
Fresh	Fresh 93%	Persona (1966)	" *[Persona] is persistently compelling, primarily due to its contemplative thematic structure, partially devoid of language that allows the spectator to inscribe meaning." — Not Coming to a Theater Near You* Posted Sep 30, 2003
Fresh A-	Fresh 93%	The Seventh Seal (1957)	" Jons and Plog converse about how Lisa should be killed, as all women, for their deception, harking back to the garden of Eden." — Not Coming to a Theater Near You Posted Sep 30, 2003
N/A	Fresh 73%	The Matrix Reloaded (2003)	" Fishburne proclaimed at this year's Cannes that for the action genre there are films "before Matrix"... and "after". It has changed everything..." — Movie Magazine International Posted Sep 30, 2003
Fresh A-	Fresh 86%	Never on Sunday (1960)	" While the film serves to exploit the myth of the happy prostitute, it reveals the charm and powerful simplicity of the Greece people." — Movie Magazine International Posted Sep 30, 2003
Fresh	Fresh 83%	At Five in the Afternoon (2003)	" 24 year old Samira Makhmalbaf is changing the way we see the Middle East." — Movie Magazine International Posted Sep 30, 2003
Rotten F	Rotten 55%	Irreversible (2003)	" The detached clinical methodical style of some reptilian film critics since its release scrutinize the positioning of the camera in the rape scene-- almost like an autopsy." — Movie Magazine International Posted Sep 30, 2003
Fresh C	N/A	Music for Weddings and Funerals (2002)	" Straume is excellent in creating mood with objects, such as a study of intrusion, a bathroom, complete with the accouterments of a male guest or the cold design of interior landscapes." — FilmFestivals.com Posted Aug 1, 2003
Rotten C	Fresh 80%	Japon (2003)	" The sacrificed female body is used to resurrect a condemned soul and with her ascension comes the spiritual renewal of (The) Man." — FilmFestivals.com Posted Aug 1, 2003
Fresh A-	Fresh 100%	A Huey P. Newton Story (2003)	" The film is one long monologue of Huey's inner mind , culminating in a riveting shadow boxing dance by Smith, who then sits down for the final end." — FilmFestivals.com Posted Aug 1, 2003
Fresh A	Fresh 82%	Secret Ballot (2002)	" The sophistication of the Western democratic machinery seems absurd and its elaborate schemes for representation unreal by comparison." — FilmFestivals.com Posted Aug 1, 2003
Rotten C+	Fresh 91%	Y Tu Mama Tambien (2002)	" The allegorical name of the beach (Mouth of Heaven) is one of several obvious sexual innuendoes of the film but in the fantasy of world Cuaron, they all seem ordinary and predictable." — FilmFestivals.com Posted Aug 1, 2003
Rotten C-	Fresh 91%	Domestic Violence (2002)	" So why is Wiseman afraid to call this ‘violence against women’ in such a lengthy expose?" — FilmFestivals.com Posted Aug 1, 2003
Fresh A	Fresh 90%	The Magdalene Sisters (2003)	" Mullan's film is strong, and his philosophy is powerful: "teenage girls are an exploited 'ethnic group'", said the director at the 59th Venice Film Festival." — FilmFestivals.com Posted Aug 1, 2003
N/A	Fresh 83%	Ghosts of the Abyss (2003)	" No, I'm Not Going to Mars" — FilmFestivals.com Posted May 21, 2003
Fresh	Fresh 85%	Swimming Pool (2003)	" At the press conference for Swimming Pool, the wondrous Ozon is asked "How many women will you put in your film next time?" "I will think about it", he laughs." — FilmFestivals.com Posted May 21, 2003
N/A	N/A	Misc: Cannes Film Festival ()	" "How do you define the blues?" Wim Wenders is asked at the 56th Cannes festival press conference for his new collaborative effort 'The Soul of a Man'." — FilmFestivals.com Posted May 17, 2003
Fresh B+	Fresh 73%	Barbarella (1968)	" Why did Jane make a film like this? Even she does not know herself." — Movie Magazine International Posted May 11, 2003
Fresh A+	Fresh 88%	In the Mood for Love (2001)	" Violins tactilely pull at your heartstrings and induce memories of all the unrequited love affairs or unhappy memories you ever had." — Movie Magazine International Posted May 11, 2003
Fresh B	Rotten 53%	Invincible (2002)	" Herzog, a man of detail became enraptured with his subject and was unable to use his editing shears." — Movie Magazine International Posted May 11, 2003
Fresh B	Fresh 88%	Roger Dodger (2002)	" ...Rogers's mouth never stops shut about the war between the sexes and how to win the battle." — Movie Magazine International Posted May 11, 2003
Fresh A	Fresh 93%	The Circle (2001)	" The Circle basically shows that Iran is a police state with severe measures for keeping women in control." — Movie Magazine International Posted May 11, 2003
Fresh B	Rotten 33%	But I'm a Cheerleader (1999)	" But I'm a Cheerleader may seem too elementary to a sophisticated crowd" — Movie Magazine International Posted May 11, 2003
Fresh A	Fresh 89%	Boys Don't Cry (1999)	" Four years ago, said director Kimberly Peirce, she could not have made this film and thought it was spectacular to see the Oscars flash the subject of the story across America and around the world." — Movie Magazine International Posted May 11, 2003
Fresh A	Fresh 74%	Blackboards (2002)	" ...a poignant and powerful narrative that reveals that reading writing and arithmetic are not the only subjects to learn in life." — Movie Magazine International Posted May 11, 2003
Fresh B+	Fresh 60%	Madame Sata (2003)	" *Karim Aïnouz' Madame Satã* has the exquisite cinematography of Walter Carvalho and a unique structure that breaks up narrative linearity.*" — FilmFestivals.com* Posted Apr 24, 2003
Fresh B+	Fresh 83%	L.I.E. (2001)	" Cuesta has succeeded in making a clear and captivating narrative involving the issues of trust, loss and deceit, all of which take place within the space of a week." — FilmFestivals.com Posted Apr 24, 2003
Fresh B+	Fresh 83%	The Warrior (2005)	" *Cross between Sergio Leone and Akira Kurusowa,The Warrior* was made during 11 months in the Rajasthan desert with 600 'extras': horses, camels, scorpions, wild dogs.*" — FilmFestivals.com* Posted Apr 24, 2003
Fresh A-	N/A	Stranger Inside (2002)	" STRANGER INSIDE 'Dunye puts into question how issues of race and class have become a caste system for the incarcerated." — FilmFestivals.com Posted Apr 23, 2003
Fresh B+	Fresh 62%	By Hook or By Crook (2002)	" *It's a buddy movie, albeit the queerest buddy movie ever that makes Midnight Cowboy* look tame in comparison.*" — FilmFestivals.com* Posted Apr 23, 2003
Fresh A	Fresh 86%	Lilya 4-Ever (2003)	" Victorious is this Swedish director who succeeds in playing with dream and reality where fantasy and oblivion are welcome reprieves from harsh daily life." — FilmFestivals.com Posted Apr 23, 2003
Rotten C+	Fresh 85%	Spider (2003)	" Spider (Please Not Another Tall Tale by Freud)" — Movie Magazine International Posted Apr 10, 2003

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MOIRA SULLIVAN

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