Tomato B |
Baby Mama (2008) |
"It's not a perfect film by any means, but as a debutante ball for Fey and Poehler as big screen leading ladies, it's a dream." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat C- |
Babylon A.D. (2008) |
"Babylon A.D. is adrift, lost somewhere between the demands of a profit-manic studio and a passionate, unleashed director. There's no way great cinema could emerge from that combustible mix." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat D+ |
Baghead (2008) |
"Once the threat arrives, I was praying to return to the childish mating rituals of these monotonous characters. Watching lousy actors try to express heartache through limited gifts is far more frightening than any masked, crazed killer." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B+ |
Ballet Shoes (2008) |
"It's a caloric helping of melodrama, but it's rendered effective by the exceptional performances and observant direction by the vastly talented Sandra Goldbacher." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat C- |
Bandslam (2009) |
"It feels like three years to get to a point of resolution. Bandslam should take the lead of the rock gods: keep it moving, keep it simple, and know when to get off the stage." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat D |
Bangkok Dangerous (2008) |
"It turns out Bangkok isn't very dangerous. It's glacial, abysmally photographed, dreadfully acted, faintly plotted, and frequently absurd. But dangerous? Not really." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B+ |
The Bank Job (2008) |
"The material is Viagra to director Roger Donaldson...lively and effective, rolling around the known gray qualities of heroes and villains." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato A- |
Batman (1989) |
"The element of surprise appears in every frame of this motion picture, creating a rich sense of joy and mystery that seems to befuddle Burton and his primitive instincts." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B+ |
Battle for Terra (2009) |
"It may not possess the budget to overtake animation titans Pixar and Dreamworks, but Terra has a rich sense of purpose and intelligence, carried out by talented filmmakers and their clear adoration for the medium." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B- |
Battle in Seattle (2008) |
"While stiff where it counts the most, Seattle does stimulate the senses, projecting rage and discontent, reminding the viewer that mobilization is a critical step toward any form of change. It's hard to argue such passion." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat C+ |
Bedtime Stories (2008) |
"Sandler's mischievous heart just doesn't belong in a straight-up kid zone like Bedtime Stories, especially one with a script that doesn't elevate beyond the expected." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat D- |
Beverly Hills Chihuahua (2008) |
"Portraying Mexico as a breeding ground for criminal activity, imagining the local police as incompetent fools, and encouraging lines such as "hold your tacos!," the movie doesn't exactly make a strong case for racial harmony." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B+ |
Big Fan (2009) |
"The rough edges suit Big Fan well, making for a fragrant depiction of pro sports appreciation slowly asphyxiated to a gasp of inconsolable delirium. In other words, don't mess with a Giants fan." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B+ |
Big Man Japan (2009) |
"Hitoshi Matsumoto's graceful satire Big Man Japan is a viewing experience akin to a leisurely acid trip, but it's also one of the more original, surprising visions of the year." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat C |
The Big Shot-Caller (2009) |
"Shot-Caller is more of a kissin' cousin to Napoleon Dynamite, with delayed, deadpan performance beats that crackle with dried irony and deliberate oddity, performed by a cast of amateurs." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B |
Bigger, Stronger, Faster* (2008) |
"Bell isn't much of a camera presence, and he's an even worse journalist, but his ambitions for this documentary are commendable and, at times, incredibly eye-opening." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B+ |
Black Dynamite (2009) |
"A feisty, gleefully harebrained spoof of all things Shaft and Superfly, Dynamite is a jubilant ode to the firm cinematic pimp hand, which, in this picture, smacks bad guys around and tickles the audience with the same devotion." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat C+ |
The Blind Side (2009) |
"The tender interaction between Leigh Anne and Michael sustains the Blind tension, not plastic acts of tragedy or insensitive supporting characters. Too bad Leigh Anne wasn't allowed in the editing room to knock some sense into Hancock." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B |
Blindsight (2008) |
"Blindsight is an undeniably engrossing, heart-tugging documentary, rightfully departing at critical intervals from heroics to simply extol the wonders of the spirit." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat C- |
Blood Creek (2009) |
"Creek nevertheless fails to live up to the director's proven talents as a convincing screen stylist. It's ugly, raw, and marginally tasteless, so perhaps the irksome inability to clearly see what's going on is an unintentional gift." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B |
Boarding Gate (2007) |
"It's not a perfect movie. At times, it's not even a movie. Yet the overall taste Boarding Gate leaves behind is intriguing enough to appreciate the whole elongated enterprise." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat C- |
Body of Lies (2008) |
"Lies is a turgid Middle Eastern thriller, firing blanks as an action submission and presenting a wet match to light the fire of political discourse." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B |
Bolt (2008) |
"The lack of screenwriting imagination is offset by the inherent charm of the picture, resulting in a pleasing arrangement of CG-animated action set-pieces and slapstick comedy to push Bolt beyond the repetitive family film norm." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat D- |
The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day (2009) |
"Idiotic style over some sorely needed substance....comes across cringingly rusty; a glorified fan film that only manages to make the popularity of the original picture all the more bewildering." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat D |
Bottle Shock (2008) |
"A dreadful directorial effort, robbing the film of personality, wit, and enthusiasm just to run through endless scenes of uninspired conflict and predetermined resolution. Shock can be an absolute bore when it ignores wine." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B- |
The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2008) |
"It's an unnerving film with a knockout punch for an ending, but it feels more acceptable as an educational piece than a profoundly rewarding work of drama." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B+ |
Brick Lane (2008) |
"Ultimately hopeful, Brick Lane feels careful enough to connect with its intentions, leaving behind an engaging, turbulent picture that pays careful concentration to the tender nuances of the longing, unfulfilled heart." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat D |
Bride Wars (2009) |
"Bride Wars is also a missed opportunity for a crackerjack comedy, dropping any hint of mean-spirited delight to kitten play with mundane nuptial wish-fulfillment and half-realized romantic nonsense." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B+ |
Brideshead Revisited (2008) |
"Facing incredible odds against it, this pass at conquering Brideshead is a worthy offering to the period-piece gods, presenting British aristocracy with the perfect edge of contempt." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B |
Bright Star (2009) |
"Bright Star does manage to recharge the director's creative batteries, with material that allows Campion to exercise her amazing ability to depict love's ever scarring touch." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B+ |
Broken Embraces (2009) |
"A riveting sit, due to the filmmaker's incredible storytelling gifts, and the cast, who articulate a dreamy series of toxic encounters with sniper-like precision, tightening Almodovar's noose with exceptional skill." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B- |
Broken Hill (2009) |
"The predictability is draining, hurting the lasting impact of this strange tale of unlikely musicianship. However, there's a curious spirit to the feature that makes it something to enjoy." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B |
Bronson (2009) |
"An unnerving, barking-mad black comedy surveying the fractured mind of "the most violent prisoner in Britain," the picture is a divisive beast, shimmying between cracking wise and cracking skulls, often erratically so." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato A- |
Brothers (2009) |
"A tremendous film, gently reworking its inspiration into a more open wound experience, with three superb lead performances capable of communicating the raw urges and sideswiping confusion of a life lived to the best of intentions." |
Brian Orndorf |
Splat C- |
The Brothers Bloom (2009) |
"Johnson's lube of choice is whimsy, and as the filmmaker pours an endless stream of cutesy behaviors and larger-than-life screenwriting into the stew, Brothers Bloom eventually curdles altogether" |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato B+ |
Bruno (2009) |
"It's a bubbling potion of the staged and the real that supplies a suitable comfort zone for Cohen to manufacture his most outrageous character: a hulking gay fashionista with a tireless libido and a limited appreciation for personal space." |
Brian Orndorf |
Tomato A- |
Burn After Reading (2008) |
"A back-stabbing, double-crossing, exhaustively absurd caper with pitch-black comedic enhancements, "Burn" is a beauty; a charged symphony of impulsive idiots left to their own devices." |
Brian Orndorf |
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