|
A
|
74%
|
The Boys of Baraka (2005) |
"
The Boys of Baraka leaves you outraged in the way only the best documentaries can."
—
Oregonian
Posted Mar 17, 2006
|
|
A
|
85%
|
De Battre mon Coeur s'est Arrêté (The Beat That My Heart Skipped) (2005) |
"
It would be hard to overstate just how electric Romain Duris is as Thomas."
—
Oregonian
Posted Sep 2, 2005
|
|
A
|
82%
|
Hustle & Flow (2005) |
"
Writer-director Craig Brewer's movie is sweaty, unpretty and powerfully alive."
—
Oregonian
Posted Jul 22, 2005
|
|
A
|
86%
|
Howl's Moving Castle (2005) |
"
Unnerving and quietly profound."
—
Oregonian
Posted Jun 10, 2005
|
|
A
|
75%
|
The Upside of Anger (2005) |
"
Terry is, in short, a great role for any actress. And Allen, who isn't just any actress, rips into it with the relish of a woman looking to reinvent her career."
—
Oregonian
Posted Apr 1, 2005
|
|
A
|
77%
|
The Mother (2004) |
"
Kureishi takes an unflinching look at the immediate consequences of passion and the quieter, more ruinous consequences of choosing an unsatisfying path through life."
—
Oregonian
Posted Jun 18, 2004
|
|
A-
|
84%
|
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) |
"
Six films in, it almost feels like it's booting up a new-and-improved, darker, earthier, more grown-up and visually sophisticated trilogy."
—
Oregonian
Posted Jul 14, 2009
|
|
A-
|
94%
|
The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) |
"
A minor miracle in a summer full of weak, perfunctory or downright lousy 'threequels'. It's a relentless finale to the Bourne movie trilogy that raises the stakes, pumps up the action and develops old characters while introducing new villains."
—
Oregonian
Posted Aug 3, 2007
|
|
A-
|
85%
|
The Perfect Crime (El Crimen Perfecto)(Crimen ferpecto) (2005) |
"
De la Iglesia is a mercilessly agile talent, turning his department store into its own little film-noir cityscape, only with better lighting and perfume samples."
—
Oregonian
Posted Sep 23, 2005
|
|
A-
|
35%
|
Hostage (2005) |
"
The result is a tough but frightened guy -- someone who can kick down a door, then burst into tears when he finds a dead body inside. Willis isn't playing a hero; he's playing a man."
—
Oregonian
Posted Mar 11, 2005
|
|
A-
|
81%
|
Kontroll (2005) |
"
Making gorgeous use of grimy tunnels, writer-director Nimrod Antal frustrates expectations in the best possible sense."
—
Oregonian
Posted Feb 18, 2005
|
|
A-
|
65%
|
5x2 (5 x 2: Five Times Two) (2004) |
"
The result feels like a happy memory tainted by regret."
—
Oregonian
Posted Feb 18, 2005
|
|
A-
|
93%
|
Spider-Man 2 (2004) |
"
The fights are more exciting, the effects more realistic, the characters deeper, the performances meatier, and the director's love of raw, unbridled cinematic geekery is positively unleashed."
—
Oregonian
Posted Jun 30, 2004
|
|
A-
|
55%
|
The Ladykillers (2004) |
"
With its riotous blowhards, visual gags, inventive camera work and florid language played for laughs, Ladykillers slays."
—
Oregonian
Posted Mar 26, 2004
|
|
B+
|
88%
|
Rango (2011) |
"
The funny and powerfully weird Rango is probably the closest I've seen a big-budget, computer-animated feature get to the comic vibe of my favorite Chuck Jones cartoons."
—
Oregonian
Posted Mar 4, 2011
|
|
B+
|
66%
|
The Brothers Bloom (2009) |
"
Johnson doesn't just make it work: His confident direction takes what could have been self-consciously precious and makes it hugely entertaining and a little moving."
—
Oregonian
Posted May 22, 2009
|
|
B+
|
61%
|
Valkyrie (2008) |
"
The film is a minor Christmas miracle: It succeeds on its own terms, despite the gossip hounds' best blood-sniffing efforts, and dares to be an entertainment rather than a statement."
—
Oregonian
Posted Dec 24, 2008
|
|
B+
|
83%
|
JCVD (Van Dammage) (2008) |
"
Giving the performance of his life, largely in French, Van Damme delivers a soulful self-analysis."
—
Oregonian
Posted Dec 5, 2008
|
|
B+
|
74%
|
The Mist (2007) |
"
It's more than a thrilling horror exercise -- it's a master class in this sort of filmmaking, nailing the fundamentals at nearly every turn."
—
Oregonian
Posted Nov 21, 2007
|
|
B+
|
75%
|
Happy Feet (2006) |
"
[Writer/director] Miller's global harmonizing never feels preachy -- he's too busy cramming Happy Feet with enough entertainment for three movies."
—
Oregonian
Posted Nov 17, 2006
|
|
B+
|
73%
|
Jet Li's Fearless (Huo Yuan Jia) (Legend of a Fighter) (2006) |
"
The movie turns into an inspirational, uncomplicated biopic in which, yes, a series of awesomely violent fight scenes indicate that our worst enemy can be found between our ears."
—
Oregonian
Posted Sep 22, 2006
|
|
B+
|
52%
|
Ellie Parker (2005) |
"
If you're considering a move to L.A. to pursue an acting career, this is your Scared Straight."
—
Oregonian
Posted Mar 24, 2006
|
|
B+
|
40%
|
Running Scared (2006) |
"
It's ridiculous, over-the-top and as allegorical as The Warriors, in its own twisted way, only far more convoluted and darkly funny. And it's probably the year's first action movie spurred by actual, provocative ideas."
—
Oregonian
Posted Feb 24, 2006
|
|
B+
|
75%
|
Zathura (2005) |
"
Your children will probably love it, and you won't feel lobotomized in the process."
—
Oregonian
Posted Nov 11, 2005
|
|
B+
|
84%
|
Three...Extremes (Saam gaang yi) (2005) |
"
All three offer provocative, distinct and gorgeous twists on horror and splatter conventions."
—
Oregonian
Posted Oct 28, 2005
|
|
B+
|
64%
|
Heights (2005) |
"
Fox and Terrio have made a quietly stunning debut here, mounting a fast, sad and often funny study of what 'carpe diem' really means."
—
Oregonian
Posted Jul 1, 2005
|
|
B+
|
93%
|
Travellers & Magicians (2005) |
"
The film works a slow magic."
—
Oregonian
Posted Mar 11, 2005
|
|
B+
|
57%
|
Ju-on: The Grudge 2 (Ju-on 2) (2003) |
"
The shocks are inventive and frequently unnerving ... and the script's too intricate for the contradictions to be anything but deliberate."
—
Oregonian
Posted Aug 20, 2004
|
|
B+
|
96%
|
Festival Express (2003) |
"
Joplin lends Festival Express the raw gravitas that pushes the doc into the realm of near-greatness."
—
Oregonian
Posted Aug 20, 2004
|
|
B+
|
70%
|
Dodgeball - A True Underdog Story (2004) |
"
If you hold a perverse soft spot in your heart for straight-to-video underdog junk like Ski School, you're going to love Dodgeball."
—
Oregonian
Posted Jun 18, 2004
|
|
B+
|
94%
|
The Warriors (1979) |
"
The movie can also be enjoyed, and enjoyed thoroughly, as a mean, dirty piece of pulp mythology."
—
Oregonian
Posted Jun 4, 2004
|
|
B+
|
32%
|
Breakin' All the Rules (2004) |
"
It just keeps building on an extremely complicated sitcom plot ... and the gorgeous, charming cast just keeps hitting scene after scene out of the park."
—
Oregonian
Posted May 14, 2004
|
|
B+
|
81%
|
Hellboy (2004) |
"
Works because of its little poetic moments and some killer casting."
—
Oregonian
Posted Apr 1, 2004
|
|
B+
|
74%
|
Dawn of the Dead (2004) |
"
Tense, bloody, funny and smart; lacks original's conscience, but it's still a surprisingly gritty remake."
—
Oregonian
Posted Mar 19, 2004
|
|
|
77%
|
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) |
"
The movie's pretty good, occasionally very good. But I also kind of hope they don't make another one."
—
Oregonian
Posted May 21, 2008
|
|
|
92%
|
The Host (Gwoemul) (2007) |
"
The Host is wildly entertaining; people who love the genre will get their geek buttons pushed hard by this flick. But what makes the movie an instant classic is that it's also, in its dark heart, a furious lampoon."
—
Oregonian
Posted Mar 9, 2007
|
|
|
68%
|
Snakes on a Plane (2006) |
"
Diving into the merits of a movie where people are dodging snakes whipping through a depressurized cabin is a bit like trying to pick apart the subtext of Space Mountain."
—
Oregonian
Posted Aug 21, 2006
|
|
|
68%
|
Hard Candy (2006) |
"
... while the film's blunter, more thrillerish and sadistic second half is less unnerving than its bloodless first, it still works as a smarter than usual cat-and-mouse death match."
—
Oregonian
Posted Apr 28, 2006
|
|
|
31%
|
Stick It (2006) |
"
... smarter and funnier than it has any right to be."
—
Oregonian
Posted Apr 28, 2006
|
|
|
53%
|
Wolf Creek (2005) |
"
Jarrat's jolly-creepy performance might place Mick in the pantheon of great movie killers."
—
Oregonian
Posted Dec 25, 2005
|
|
|
46%
|
The Ice Harvest (2005) |
"
After Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang, it's the year's second-best Christmas thriller."
—
Oregonian
Posted Nov 23, 2005
|
|
|
83%
|
Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang (2005) |
"
This is one of Downey's most enjoyable performances, and one of Kilmer's funniest."
—
Oregonian
Posted Nov 11, 2005
|
|
|
88%
|
Touch The Sound (2004) |
"
You may find your own sense of hearing transformed by this global tour of the senses."
—
Oregonian
Posted Nov 4, 2005
|
|
|
93%
|
The Squid and the Whale (2005) |
"
The Squid and the Whale isn't easy to watch, but it's beautifully written and acted, with a sharp eye for the small embarrassments of divorce."
—
Oregonian
Posted Nov 4, 2005
|
|
|
69%
|
The Edukators (Die Fetten Jahre sind vorbei) (2005) |
"
If you can look beyond the simple-minded Socratic political discourse, The Edukators reveals itself as warm, humane and sad."
—
Oregonian
Posted Aug 12, 2005
|
|
|
13%
|
Stealth (2005) |
"
Dumb fun."
—
Oregonian
Posted Jul 29, 2005
|
|
|
40%
|
The Island (2005) |
"
Bay's best and worst film."
—
Oregonian
Posted Jul 22, 2005
|
|
|
74%
|
Land of the Dead (2005) |
"
It's Romero doing what he does best: using zombies to create a lowbrow social parable."
—
Oregonian
Posted Jun 24, 2005
|
|
|
31%
|
The Longest Yard (2005) |
"
A definite crowd-pleaser and a perfectly fun night at the movies."
—
Oregonian
Posted May 27, 2005
|
|
|
39%
|
Sahara (2005) |
"
McConaughey and Zahn's casual interplay makes the film."
—
Oregonian
Posted Apr 8, 2005
|
85%
79%
7%
