Tomato 3/5 |
A Crude Awakening: The Oil Crash (2006) |
"Depressingly compelling." |
Tom Charity |
Tomato |
A Prophet (2009) |
"A Prophet is a compelling, forceful drama." |
Jamie Graham |
Tomato 3/5 |
A Throw of Dice (1929) |
"This silent Indian melodrama offers proof positive that America didn’t have the monopoly on epic cinema in the ‘20s." |
|
Splat 1/5 |
The Accidental Husband (2009) |
"Limp, transparently plotted flight fodder." |
Jane Crowther |
Splat 2/5 |
Across the Universe (2007) |
"All you need is love… but a coherent vision doesn’t hurt either." |
Tom Dawson |
Splat 2/5 |
Adam (2009) |
"Cookie-cutter characterisations, homily-heavy script and over-reliance on maudlin musical prompts are all too chocky-box icky in their own right." |
Kevin Harley |
Tomato 4/5 |
Adventureland (2009) |
"One from the heart, a clear-sighted love letter to his own teenage tribulations. Starting out in high spirits then skewing more serious, it’s a funny, poignant, bittersweet treat. Get in line…" |
Tom Charity |
Tomato 3/5 |
Afghan Star (2009) |
"Tracking the rebuilding of this decimated, divided country through the prism of trash TV might seem trite, but Havana Marking’s ambitious if overstretched documentary is sobering stuff." |
Matt Glasby |
Splat 2/5 |
Afro Saxons (2008) |
"It’s a warm-spirited, well-intentioned movie, yet offers a repetitive, visually humdrum and ultimately superficial portrait of its chosen milieu that seems much better suited to the small screen." |
Chris Hicks |
Tomato 3/5 |
Afterschool (2009) |
"Gripped with an unnerving iciness, Afterschool has style and smarts, but Campos never really manages to slice cleanly into his mega-relevant themes of voyeurism and violence, isolation and info-culture." |
Jonathan Crocker |
Tomato 3/5 |
The Agent (2009) |
"While unmistakably a stage adaptation, Martin Wagner’s droll dialogue makes the cut-and-thrust reasonably dynamic, even if Wagner’s barbs about the parlous state of modern publishing will surprise no one." |
Simon Kinnear |
Tomato 3/5 |
Air Guitar Nation (2007) |
"you will be entertained even if, in rock’n’ roll terms, it’s less satanic metal than cutesy chart pop." |
Tom Hawker |
Tomato 4/5 |
Alexandra (2008) |
"Shot in shades of bleached-out khaki brown and augmented by a heart-rending orchestral score, it’s a unique and intensely moving elegy for wasted lives." |
Sam Wigley |
Splat 2/5 |
Aliens in the Attic (2009) |
"Marred by cheapjack CGI and poor character design (the squishy-faced critters look like they came out of a cereal packet, not outer space), this very kid-centric caper is numbingly mediocre." |
Ken McIntyre |
Tomato 2/5 |
Aliens Vs. Predator: Requiem (2007) |
"With a spike in the gore quotient, hardcore fans left baying for Paul WS Anderson’s blood after the first AVP may be happy. Those interested in anything more than a barely comprehensible bitch-slap between two ill-treated icons should take a rain-check." |
Tony Horkins |
Tomato 5/5 |
All About Eve (1950) |
"Impeccable." |
Neil Smith |
Tomato 3/5 |
Alpha Dog (2007) |
"Lengthy and often off-hot topic, this is still a gripping saga with stand-out turns from Timberlake, Hirsch and kid-in-the-spotlight Yelchin." |
Jonathan Dean |
Splat 2/5 |
Alvin and the Chipmunks (2007) |
"Trite family values, mediocre CGI and a shallow anti-exploitation message do little to fill the fun-gap. Still, hard to deny the buck-toothed buggers their one moment of glory: an a cappella take on ‘Funkytown’." |
|
Tomato 4/5 |
American Gangster (2007) |
"Scott’s best film since Gladiator is a classy cops ’n robbers thriller where the latter outclasses the former. Crowe tries to redress the imbalance with a committed performance, but you can tell he knows it’s Washington’s movie." |
Neil Smith |
Tomato 3/5 |
American Teen (2008) |
"Compelling but not especially insightful, this is like watching nine months worth of reality TV in an hour and a half. Parental discretion is advised: if you have teens, this won’t cheer you up." |
Tom Charity |
Tomato 4/5 |
An American Werewolf in London (1981) |
"Still scary, violent and very, very funny." |
Jamie Graham |
Tomato 4/5 |
An Education (2009) |
"It sounds like a creepy tale of a teenage schoolgirl seduced by a pervert. But it’s also one of this year’s most captivating British dramas, with a breakthrough turn from an actress we’ll be seeing a lot more of." |
Neil Smith |
Tomato 3/5 |
Angel (2007) |
"Like Ozon’s 8 Women, the costumes are magnificent and Angel’s mansion is a shrine to the gods of bad taste. All that’s missing is a heroine worthy of Bette Davis in her heyday." |
Ellen E Jones |
Tomato 3/5 |
Angels & Demons (2009) |
"Atoning for The Da Vinci Code’s cardinal sin – thou shalt not bore – this superior sequel zips along at such a lick you can almost forget the story is utter bollocks. At this rate, The Lost Symbol should be a doozy." |
Neil Smith |
Splat 2/5 |
Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging (2008) |
"Chillingly cynical." |
|
Splat 2/5 |
Anna M. (2007) |
"Unfortunately, as director Michel Spinosa has discovered, making a Fatal Attraction-esque thriller that’s also a serious study of mental illness is a lot harder than it sounds." |
Ellen E Jones |
Splat 1/5 |
Antichrist (2009) |
"This thoroughly pretentious offering is more childish and terrible than enfant terrible. The most startling – and boring – film you’ll see this year." |
Jamie Graham |
Tomato 4/5 |
Anvil! The Story of Anvil (2009) |
"A touching, gripping tale of friendship and forever-young fantasy in failure’s frontline." |
Kevin Harley |
Tomato 4/5 |
Anything for Her (2008) |
"Methodically detailing every stage of his daring plan, director Fred Cavayé serves up a taut tale that tantalisingly leaves the question of his incarcerated heroine’s innocence dangling." |
Neil Smith |
Tomato 3/5 |
Appaloosa (2008) |
"A classics-steeped western that rams home tradition over reinvention, Appaloosa kicks it hard as a buddy pic on horseback. Harris and Mortensen’s study in laid-back companionship is the principal pleasure, leaving Zellweger mired in role that does her and" |
Matt Mueller |
Splat 2/5 |
Are We Done Yet? (2007) |
"US audiences ate it up and there are just enough laughs to appease those whose tastes run to utterly undemanding kiddie slapstick and life lessons." |
|
Tomato |
Arlington Road (1999) |
"Well acted, often tense and certainly atmospheric!" |
Cam Winstanley |
Tomato 3/5 |
The Army of Crime (2009) |
"Though it follows a familiar arc of assassinations and bombings that provoke savage reprisals, it doesn’t flinch from showing the French police’s role in rounding up and deporting Jewish citizens." |
Tom Dawson |
Splat 2/5 |
As You Like It (2006) |
"Unremarkable take on the Bard’s cross-dressing comedy, ostentatiously relocated to 19th-century Japan though wholly shot in the Home Counties." |
Neil Smith |
Tomato 4/5 |
Ashes of Time Redux (1994) |
"Even sword-slashes “sigh like a breeze”. Martial arts fans might gag but Wong fans who were disappointed by My Blueberry Nights should see this. It’s the look of lush." |
Kevin Harley |
Tomato 4/5 |
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) |
"The running time and pacing may scare some, but Dominik has crafted an instant classic, with poetic visuals, sensational performances and a true love for the genre. Magnificent." |
Mark Salisbury |
Tomato 4/5 |
Atonement (2007) |
"Part costume drama, part war epic, Joe Wright’s follow-up to Pride & Prejudice is above all a touching love story with a potent sexual charge. Some viewers may feel cheated by the ending, but fans of the novel won’t be disappointed." |
Neil Smith |
Tomato 3/5 |
August Rush (2007) |
"Packing every cliché, coincidence and contrivance known to man (well, Hollywood screenwriters) into one glossy, saccharine, syrupy package takes some doing; but Highmore’s open-faced charm makes Evan’s sappy story tolerable." |
Rob James |
Splat 2/5 |
Avenue Montaigne (2007) |
"A predictable piece of middlebrow nostalgia – akin to a French Love Actually – in which all the characters’ emotional predicaments and professional problems are miraculously resolved." |
Tom Dawson |
Tomato 3/5 |
Away From Her (2007) |
"This cautionary tale of making the most of life during our winter months successfully lodges itself into the memory." |
Jane Crowther |
Tomato 4/5 |
Away We Go (2009) |
"A rewarding change of pace for Sam Mendes, Away We Go is a small, lovely film that gently sneaks up on you with unexpected depth and feeling. Let it." |
Jonathan Crocker |
Splat 2/5 |
Awaydays (2009) |
"To its credit, Awaydays does not glamorise its hooligans the way The Football Factory and Green Street did." |
Neil Smith |
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