Tomato A- |
A Scanner Darkly (2006) |
"It's the kind of movie that gets under your skin -- and stays there." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato 3/4 |
About Schmidt (2002) |
"There's no actor on the planet like Nicholson, and here he's at the peak of his powers." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato B- |
Across the Universe (2007) |
"Julie Taymor's flower-powery phantasmagoria is ambitious but ultimately tiresome." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato 3/4 |
Acts of Worship (2001) |
"Rodriguez makes a promising debut with this unsentimental drama." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
Adaptation (2002) |
"Cage in particular does his best work in ages, giving each of the Kaufman twins a personality and style all his own." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato A- |
Adventureland (2009) |
"Audiences expecting another dumb wallow will be startled, and I hope enlivened, by this movie's core of feeling." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato 3/4 |
Afghan Stories (2002) |
"The documentary makes up in humane values what it lacks in sociological depth." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
The Agronomist (2004) |
"Watching Demme's documentary is both a crash course in the nation's tumultuous past and a provocative visit with one of its most colorful citizens." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 4/4 |
Aileen: The Life and Death of a Serial Killer (2003) |
"As gripping and suspenseful as anything Hollywood is capable of turning out." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato B- |
Air Guitar Nation (2007) |
"Director Alexandra Lipsitz doesn't do much more than chronicle the noise, but it's intermittently fun stuff." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato B |
Akeelah and the Bee (2006) |
"... a slight but winning heart-tugger ..." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato B |
Al Franken: God Spoke (2006) |
"This scattershot movie, shot over two years, follows the zigzag trail of political satirist Al Franken as he feuds with Bill O'Reilly, campaigns against George W. Bush, and helps establish Air America." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato 3/4 |
Alex and Emma (2003) |
"Alex & Emma isn't nearly as clever as Reiner's classic Misery, a very different look at a male writer and his female companion. But it's diverting fun." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
Alfie (2004) |
"Law is lively and Shyer keeps the action hopping with help from the movie's original gimmick of having Alfie keep up a running monologue to the audience." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
Alias Betty (2002) |
"An engrossing story that combines psychological drama, sociological reflection, and high-octane thriller." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 4/4 |
Aliens of the Deep (2005) |
"A major treat for the eyes." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
All or Nothing (2002) |
"Leigh is one of the rare directors who feels acting is the heart and soul of cinema. He allows his cast members to make creative contributions to the story and dialogue. This method almost never fails him, and it works superbly here." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
Almost Famous (2000) |
"Veterans of the 1960s and '70s will find that Almost Famous captures both the raging excesses of that era and the keen-eyed alertness that allowed some savvy youngsters to survive and even profit from the scene." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
Almost Peaceful (2004) |
"The gently told comedy-drama is more colorful than you'd expect, using wry humor and lively music to keep sentimentality at bay." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato B- |
Alpha Dog (2007) |
"Director Cassevetes has a bit more than he can handle with this complex telling of a real-life tragedy, but he elicits believable performances from the young cast, with Justin Timberlake especially impressive as Johnny's tough-guy-with-a-heart lieutenant." |
M. K. Terrell |
Tomato B |
American Gangster (2007) |
"It's an entertaining pulp pastiche with pretensions." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato 4/4 |
American Splendor (2003) |
"As invigorating as anything I've seen in ages." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato B- |
American Teen (2008) |
"Burstein does indeed capture some of the awkwardnesses that we can all relate to -- the dating scene, the snubs, the cliques, the bad behavior." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato B+ |
American Violet (2009) |
"Director Tim Disney and screenwriter Bill Haney lay out Dee's story with a minimum of fuss. They are smart enough to realize that the material is compelling all on its own." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato 2/4 |
Amistad (1997) |
"Despite its many shortcomings, Amistad has the energy and earnestness of most Spielberg pictures." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
The Amityville Horror (2005) |
"This remake stays close to the eponymous 1979 horror movie it's based on, except for being precisely 10,000 times scarier." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato B- |
Angels & Demons (2009) |
"Angels and Demons is an OK action film, but only the humorless will find it heretical -- or educational." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato 3/4 |
Anger Management (2003) |
"Sandler is terrific, playing a potentially over-the-top part with an understatement that's downright minimalist at times." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
Animal Factory (2000) |
"Gets much of its power from Willem Dafoe's potent portrayal of Copen." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 4/4 |
Another Road Home (2005) |
"It's unlikely there will ever be a more moving portrait of the shared selfhood, usually veiled by politics, common to the Palestinian and Israeli peoples." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
Antz (1998) |
"There's plenty of action in this computer-animated comedy, but it's no match for Toy Story in humor and originality." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato B- |
Appaloosa (2008) |
"In another era, Harris -- and Mortensen, for that matter -- would have already starred in several westerns. Harris should do more of them; only next time, much less carefully." |
Robert Koehler |
Tomato 3/4 |
Apres Vous (2005) |
"Garcia is great in this French dramatic comedy, and Auteuil remains one of the great European stars." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato A |
Araya (1959) |
"Are you one of those moviegoers who likes discovering forgotten gems? Have I got a jewel for you." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato B |
Arctic Tale (2007) |
"The best reason to see this documentary is for the stunning shots of polar bears and walruses in the Arctic Circle. If the filmmakers had just left it at that, they would have accomplished a lot." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato 4/4 |
Army of One (2005) |
"Contains truly eye-opening moments." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato A |
Army of Shadows (1969) |
"In [Melville's] stark and unvarnished film, the violence is routine and ugly, the moral choices painful and uncertain, the relationships deep yet fragile, the victories costly and ephemeral." |
Gregory M. Lamb |
Tomato 4/4 |
Arna's Children (2004) |
"Contains amazingly candid views of warriors behind the scenes of battle." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato |
Art & Copy (2009) |
"Even without the nostalgic aspects, Art & Copy is thoroughly entertaining. But the film ends up being an advertisement for advertising. It's hard not to wonder if we're being sold a bill of goods." |
Andy Klein |
Tomato B |
Ask the Dust (2005) |
"The film is not only an evocation of a bygone era but an emanation of it as well." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato B+ |
The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (2007) |
"I wish this movie wasn't so purposefully elegiac and attenuated -- at times it's like a middling Terrence Malick fantasia -- but it's well worth sitting through." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato 4/4 |
The Assassination of Richard Nixon (2004) |
"This is one of the rare movies to explore American materialism through the eyes of an all-too-ordinary person who isn't up to the challenges of everyday life." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
Assassination Tango (2003) |
"Duvall's latest is a treat for the eyes and ears, but it doesn't always ring true on deeper dramatic levels." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
Assisted Living (2005) |
"Gently filmed, quietly thoughtful, sometimes almost heartbreaking." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 3/4 |
Asylum (2005) |
"Patrick McGrath's novel provides a solid and suspenseful story, even if it loses much of its bite in Mackenzie's hands." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato B+ |
Atonement (2007) |
"Given the difficulties in transferring Ian McEwan's trickily structured 2001 novel Atonement to the screen, director Joe Wright and screenwriter Christopher Hampton have done a commendable job. Commendable but not electrifying." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato B |
August Evening (2007) |
"Loren has an ethereal presence that is, at the same time, indomitable." |
Peter Rainer |
Tomato 3/4 |
Auto Focus (2002) |
"Kinnear plays Crane in one of the year's most pitch-perfect performances." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato 2/4 |
Autumn Spring (2003) |
"Provides a compassionate look at problems of old age that Hollywood rarely bothers to treat seriously." |
David Sterritt |
Tomato B+ |
Avatar (2009) |
"Pandora is still a good place to park yourself for three hours." |
Peter Rainer |
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