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 6/10 |
Body of Lies (2008) |
"Crowe's a delight as a crafty Deputy Dawg from Arkansas; Mark Strong's Hani has an IQ to match his GQ. Surprisingly, the only undernourished part belongs to DiCaprio." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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8.25/10 |
Bolt (2008) |
"A welcome departure from the deluge of films wherein the characters mirror the facial characteristics of the actors voicing them. Travolta's no more a dog than a '60s housefrau. Wait. Scratch that." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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7.5/10 |
Brideshead Revisited (2008) |
"Whishaw's Sebastian is a creature not completely of this earth. Watching the matriarchal and religious pressures weigh on his thin shoulders is almost too much to bear." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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8.5/10 |
Burn After Reading (2008) |
"What's worse? Victimization by Washington's intel? Or victimization by a total lack of one's own? This is some clever comedy, where casual murder and serial dating go, um, hand-in-gland." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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 5.5/10 |
Changeling (2008) |
"Crooked cops cripple the City of Angels in an impeccably-fashioned 1920s--if only the script had been given the same rigorous treatment as the production design." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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8.5/10 |
Choke (2008) |
"Seduction, abduction and obstruction make for one hell of a slightly inedible, incredible Oedipal romp through the beastly world of novelist Chuck Palahniuk." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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5/10 |
The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian (2008) |
"Ben Barnes looks lost, with a thick Mediterranean accent reminiscent of Mandy Patinkin's avenging Spaniard from The Princess Bride: 'My name is Inigo Montoya--you killed my father--prepare to die!'" |
Kimberly Gadette |
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8/10 |
The Dark Knight (2008) |
"The Joker should be charged with the film's biggest crime: stealing the show." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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6/10 |
Get Smart (2008) |
"Per the latest intelligence report: For a grown-up summer comedy, Get Smart goes to the head of the class." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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8/10 |
Ghost Town (2008) |
"With three strong leads finding depth underneath their respective comedic masks, this isn't your usual 'spirited' rom-com. Like the dentist himself, it stands alone." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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7.5/10 |
Hamlet 2 (2008) |
"Coogan creates a protagonist who's as much a hack as he is an inspiration, an idiot who you root for in the film, but you'd rather not have as a personal friend." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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7.5/10 |
Hancock (2008) |
"Hancock is an irreverent hero for our times--perhaps reflecting our own national zeitgeist, with America's previously untainted superpower image suddenly a matter of debate rather than fact." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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6/10 |
Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008) |
"On this latest Boy Meets Ghoul: Hellboy II's look is red hot. But it lingers too long on the fire, its promising sizzle ultimately losing flavor." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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2.5/10 |
How to Lose Friends & Alienate People (2008) |
"The jerky hero suddenly changes into a cool, well-dressed guy. Then poof! he's an idiot. Then back to cool. Presenting the Peek-a-Boo School of Writing and Character Development." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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5.5/10 |
The Incredible Hulk (2008) |
"Comic book performances trample Norton's attempt at 3D, e.g., Tim Blake Nelson's over-the-top scientist, acting as if he's performing children's theater to a packed matinee of pre-schoolers." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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5/10 |
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) |
"The 'fedora-ble' Indy is back. Sort of. With his wry half-smile, still performing many of his own stunts, it's nice to see an old friend doing so well. But the thrill is gone." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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8.5/10 |
Iron Man (2008) |
"Latest Theory of Flight: This film is politically smart, action-packed, sexy and fun. High-flying suit notwithstanding, this newest entry in the superhero arena has just raised the bar." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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8/10 |
Kung Fu Panda (2008) |
"From a studio that's decimated iconic fairy tale characters with its poison pop-culture pen, i.e., Shrek, comes an age-old fable, poetic, pop-free and timeless...yet still an utter hoot." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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7/10 |
Lakeview Terrace (2008) |
"Under the microscope of this movie, it takes only the smallest spark of ill will to inflame whatever lies directly below the skin--whatever color that skin happens to be." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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3.5/10 |
Mamma Mia! (2008) |
"Sophie invites the three beaus to her wedding, hoping she'll be able to pick her father out of the group. Such a shame that Sophie hasn't heard about DNA testing." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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4/10 |
Miracle at St. Anna (2008) |
"This is like the 'Where's Waldo' of war films: Find the story, locate the characters. You have three hours. Good luck to you." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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2.5/10 |
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008) |
"A solitary highlight--when Emperor and Witch call their dead armies to life, his clay soldiers vs her skeleton troops. It's "The Kilning Fields" taking on a Skeleton Crew." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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4/10 |
Pineapple Express (2008) |
"As for Gary Cole's menacing bossman, he's a hemp-ty suit, a walking life lesson that, um, 'People who live in grass houses should not throw stoners.'" |
Kimberly Gadette |
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5.5/10 |
Pride and Glory (2008) |
"Just as the title itself doesn't give us enough, Pride and Glory needed to plumb deeper in order to rise above the business-as-usual cop family drama." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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5.5/10 |
Quantum of Solace (2008) |
"They certainly know how to do 'Solace.' But we're talking about Bond. The-once urbane testosterone magnet for hot chicks, iced alcohol and oddly-amusing villains has just been replaced by Mr. Mopes." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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3/10 |
Rachel Getting Married (2008) |
"It's as if Demme traded in a plot for time-travel back to his 1984 Stop Making Sense. But rather than filming one group of Talking Heads, Demme shoots dozens -- no matter how dull any of those groups might be." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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2/10 |
Righteous Kill (2008) |
"Why take on new characters when instead, they can play cops? How cutting edge. With a plastic butter knife." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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3.5/10 |
The Rocker (2008) |
"Tuneless execution, with flat writing and inharmonious direction as noticeable as Mötley Crüe's eyeliner. Or Whitesnake's snakeskin pants." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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3.5/10 |
RocknRolla (2008) |
"It seems that 'two smoking barrels' was more than enough. Three is pushing it. Or, as the newly-separated spouse Madonna may have said, 'Enough already.'" |
Kimberly Gadette |
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5.75/10 |
Role Models (2008) |
"Neither fish nor fowl (or, in this case, "foul"), in its attempt to appeal to audiences both over and under 21, Role Models finds itself betwixt and be-tween-er." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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4/10 |
Sex and the City - The Movie (2008) |
"Writer/director Michael Patrick King's first attempt to slip into full-length features from television wears heavily, resulting in as poor a fit as Carrie sporting coveralls and clogs." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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4/10 |
Speed Racer (2008) |
"Belying its own title, it's a mind-boggling bog of slow-witted repetition. After 5 minutes of zippy eye candy, what'll we do for the next 2 hours? You might want to bring along something to read." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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.5/10 |
Step Brothers (2008) |
"Some are touting this as the grown-up version of Superbad. Wrong. That earlier film was excellent. "Super bad," as applied to Step Brothers, is a super understatement." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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4/10 |
Synecdoche, New York (2008) |
"Though the theme isn't new (Pirandello, Fellini), the fact that Kaufman forgot to give the protagonist any spark of personality whatsoever is rather cutting-edge. Yet exceedingly dull. How ironic." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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3.5/10 |
Then She Found Me (2008) |
"Looking an anorexic 15 years older than her character, she grabs onto her role with a grim, two-fisted attack. While the supporting cast in this dramedy swims toward comedy, Hunt drowns in tragedy." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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2/10 |
Towelhead (2008) |
"It turns out that 'Towelhead' is not a slur, it's a directive. Putting towels over our heads, large enough to cover our faces, may be the preferred mode in which to view this film." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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3/10 |
Traitor (2008) |
"Nachmanoff's 'travelogue' consists of a plot that doesn't twist--heck, it doesn't even kink. Let's call it a mild fold and leave it at that." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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8/10 |
Tropic Thunder (2008) |
"Tearing through this wild rumble in the jungle are so many wacky performances, it's challenging to keep them all straight. Even harder--trying to control the laughter so you don't miss the next line." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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3/10 |
Twilight (2008) |
"Soul-searching looks between young lovers can be fine--but when mutually-emphatic eyeballing stands in for a plot, it's insufferable. Bring a thermos of espresso. And an alarm clock." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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5.75/10 |
Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) |
"When these lightweight lovers ramble through their individual midsummer night's dreams, knowing only what they don't want--well, we just can't care all that much." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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9/10 |
WALL-E (2008) |
"A spectacular testament to the life force that beats within us all, WALL·E puts the "extra" back in terrestrial." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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3/10 |
Wanted (2008) |
"It could have been worse--in the original graphic novel, the authors created a villain fashioned solely out of fecal products. Even sans Mr. Stool Head, this project stinks to high heaven." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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6.5/10 |
What Just Happened (2008) |
"Like a waning starlet fresh from her latest Botox treatment, the industry can't stop itself from continually gazing in the mirror." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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2/10 |
The Women (2008) |
"Reinterpreting a 1939 film through a modern day lens -- how's the fit? Like a size ten foot squeezing into a size 4 Manolo slingback, it limps. Painfully." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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6/10 |
The X-Files: I Want to Believe (2008) |
"There's a terrible crime going on against Mulder/Scully. They're being forced to talk to death, beaten about the bush, blued in the face. Crimes like this can break your heart." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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2.5/10 |
You Don't Mess With The Zohan (2008) |
"Cutting to celeb cameos as often as locks of hair fall to the floor of a Supercuts doesn't create comedy -- no more than sticking a person's head in a salon sink means it can wash/cut/style itself." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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8/10 |
Zack and Miri Make a Porno (2008) |
"Porn and true love go 'hand-in-gland' in this latest, arguably best outing by auteur Kevin Smith--making for one DD-cupped hooter of a comedy." |
Kimberly Gadette |
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