Fresh B
| Fresh 70%
| Sherlock Holmes (2009) | "
Like other Ritchie movies, it's violence with an impish sense of humor, and he may have found the perfect imp in Downey Jr." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 23, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 82%
| A Single Man (2009) | "
It's good stuff, and a big reason that Firth is a shoo-in for a best-actor nomination this year." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 23, 2009 |
Fresh B-
| Fresh 83%
| Broken Embraces (2009) | "
Hollywood has become strangely squeamish about sex. That's never been a problem for Pedro Almodovar, who reminds us early on in Broken Embraces why his movies have become a refuge for grown-ups seeking sexual candor." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 23, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 37%
| Nine (2009) | "
It's not often that you can say Day-Lewis is miscast, but he's too gaunt and dour for this role. Even his accent is wrong." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 23, 2009 |
Fresh B-
| Rotten 50%
| It's Complicated (2009) | "
It's Complicated has some of the structure of a classic romantic comedy, but really works better as a farce." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 23, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 74%
| The Young Victoria (2009) | "
Love, respect, romance, partnership, teamwork -- Young Victoria gives you all that in one package, with a monarchy thrown in." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 17, 2009 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 83%
| Avatar (2009) | "
In Avatar Cameron creates an Oz that's as tactile and tangible as if it were made of real materials and real tissue." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 17, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 76%
| Invictus (2009) | "
With apologies to William Ernest Henley, one might say that under the bludgeonings of Clint, Invictus emerges a little boring, but unbowed." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 10, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 83%
| Me and Orson Welles (2009) | "
British actor Christian McKay is Welles, and he's so stunningly good as Welles - he gets both his physical essence and his spirit - that all else fades to the background." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 10, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 83%
| The Princess and the Frog (2009) | "
The Princess and the Frog is a perky, pretty piece of the traditional hand-drawn Disney animation, helped by dandy Randy Newman songs." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 10, 2009 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 89%
| Up in the Air (2009) | "
Jason Reitman's Up in the Air had me thinking that I haven't seen a young filmmaker with such astute command of Hollywood craft since Steven Spielberg." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 3, 2009 |
Fresh B-
| Rotten 46%
| Everybody's Fine (2009) | "
Every parent in the theater will be cursing director Kirk Jones as they honk their way through several dollars worth of Kleenex." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 3, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Rotten 57%
| Brothers (2009) | "
There's something naggingly unconvincing about the whole thing, and that might explain why it often feels exploitive rather than emotional." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Dec 3, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 93%
| Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) | "
Fantastic Mr. Fox is certainly different from Anderson's recent stuff, and that's all good." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 24, 2009 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 85%
| Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans (2009) | "
Cage can be loopy, weird and at the same time sympathetic -- crucial to our response to this character -- and Herzog draws one of his better performances here." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 24, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 72%
| The Road (2009) | "
When the most moving line in a movie is "Do you eat people?" you know you're in for a tough time." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 24, 2009 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 88%
| Red Cliff (2009) | "
The cuts may be appalling to those who've seen the original, but I'm not one of them, and I think this version is pretty solid." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 24, 2009 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 23%
| Planet 51 (2009) | "
An uninspired computer-animated feature that may satisfy undiscriminating pipsqueaks and nearly no one else, Planet 51 is a low-IQ E.T. in reverse..." — Philadelphia Inquirer Posted Nov 24, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 23%
| Planet 51 (2009) | "
The animated sci-fi spoof Planet 51 makes you wonder if things might be more interesting on Planet 52." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 19, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 72%
| The Blind Side (2009) | "
Director John Lee Hancock defuses class resentment by making sure that everybody in the family is as adorable as possible..." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 19, 2009 |
Fresh B-
| Fresh 90%
| The Messenger (2009) | "
The scenes are rendered by director Oren Moverman with an authenticity and realism that makes them as harrowing and heartrending as they deserve to be." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 19, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 28%
| The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009) | "
New Moon, for at least an hour, is laughably silly and unfathomably dull." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 19, 2009 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 91%
| Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire (2009) | "
With so many performers contributing so much solid work, it may be time to acknowledge that Daniels knows what he's doing. The guy can handle actors." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 12, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Fresh 69%
| (Untitled) (2009) | "
Right away, you wonder if the filmmakers are trying hard enough." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 12, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 39%
| 2012 (2009) | "
Emmerich, though, is not fundamentally a funny filmmaker. He's fundamentally cheesy, and there's always something flat and phony to those few scenes meant to give his movies some modicum of humanity." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 12, 2009 |
Rotten C+
| Rotten 55%
| Disney's A Christmas Carol (2009) | "
There's some dazzling stuff here. But you get creepy, dead-eyed and inexpressive performances - even sympathetic characters end up looking like the ventriloquist's doll in that Anthony Hopkins movie." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 5, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 53%
| The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009) | "
t's mostly about a chance to see Clooney in agreeable goofball mode. The movie is forgettable, but his demonstration of the psychic-warrior's "sparkly eyes" technique is destined for his appreciation reel." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 5, 2009 |
Rotten C-
| Rotten 18%
| The Fourth Kind (2009) | "
Nome has seen more than its share of missing and dead people, who deserve better than this kind of hucksterism." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Nov 5, 2009 |
Fresh B-
| Fresh 82%
| Paranormal Activity (2009) | "
There's more going on here than simple scares." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 29, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 50%
| Antichrist (2009) | "
On the whole, I'd rather be dragged to hell by Sam Raimi." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 29, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 22%
| The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day (2009) | "
All signs at the end of All Saints Day point to a Boondock Saints Three, and why not, in a world that makes room for Smokin' Aces 2, American Pie Presents Band Camp and Bring It On Again?" — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 29, 2009 |
Rotten C+
| Rotten 21%
| Amelia (2009) | "
Glossy, stodgy and unfailingly conventional, Amelia sets out to inspire an audience but never feels inspired itself." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 22, 2009 |
Fresh B-
| Rotten 48%
| Astro Boy (2009) | "
The movie never soars like Astro Boy, but it does rise above the lack of promise that prevails in the early scenes, which is a tough thing for any movie to do." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 22, 2009 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 94%
| An Education (2009) | "
The way one character bounces off another in An Education is endlessly interesting. No role, no matter how small, is thrown away." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 22, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 94%
| Good Hair (2010) | "
It's an inside look at an offbeat, under-examined corner of American life -- one of the things that documentaries do best, and Good Hair does it well." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 22, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 73%
| Where the Wild Things Are (2009) | "
Jonze takes great pains to make Wild Things a freewheeling, naive-primitive work." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 15, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 87%
| A Serious Man (2009) | "
The Coens rarely seem completely serious, but there is such art and erudition to their work (and always the visual presentation) that their movies acquire the weight of substance." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 15, 2009 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 82%
| Black Dynamite (2009) | "
Beneath the good-natured retro silliness of Black Dynamite is something smart and new." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 15, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 24%
| Law Abiding Citizen (2009) | "
Somebody has given Law Abiding Citizen a lethal injection of absurdity. Although I have to say, as ridiculous movies go, this one has its moments." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 15, 2009 |
Fresh B-
| Fresh 72%
| The Boys Are Back (2009) | "
A restrained and surprisingly genuine-feeling work from Hicks, who gets the impassively handsome Owen to contribute one of his more expressive performances." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 8, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 12%
| Couples Retreat (2009) | "
Couples Retreat leaves a good cast stranded without a script, although the cast isn't in much of a position to complain." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 8, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 70%
| American Casino (2009) | "
It may be a little too Jack Webb for the masses, but there is value to its sober, just-the-facts approach." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 2, 2009 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 89%
| Zombieland (2009) | "
Brevity is the soul of wit, and in the zombie comedy it's the soul, the head and the headless body. The movie, at a scant and punchy 85 minutes, will be over before you've stopped laughing." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 2, 2009 |
Rotten C+
| Rotten 57%
| The Invention of Lying (2009) | "
The problem with "Invention" is that it ultimately rests not on critiques of religion or evolution, but the nuts and bolts of romantic comedy." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 1, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 83%
| Whip It (2009) | "
Barrymore's movie is as bubbly as she is, and its best feature is the atmosphere of all-girl camaraderie that she creates and captures." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Oct 1, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 27%
| Fame (2009) | "
The new Fame has the feel of diluted imitation -- slick, superficial, short on heart." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Sep 24, 2009 |
Fresh B-
| Fresh 89%
| No Impact Man (2009) | "
We're a long way from algae-based biofuel, and until that day, maybe watching less crappy television and spending more times with your kids isn't such a bad idea." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Sep 24, 2009 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 84%
| Bright Star (2009) | "
I love the way Campion lets the camera rest on an image. Especially when the image is Aussie dish Cornish, who plays Keats' starry-eyed admirer. Has an actress ever been photographed so flatteringly and at such length?" — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Sep 24, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 44%
| Jennifer's Body (2009) | "
The movie fails in ... fundamental ways. Cody and director Karyn Kusama do a poor job of defining Jennifer's character in the early going, so it's hard to measure how she changes/devolves." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Sep 18, 2009 |
Rotten D
| Rotten 18%
| Love Happens (2009) | "
In defense of Love Happens, we can say only that it's not as hair-raising a combination of romance and grief as last year's Seven Pounds, although it's close." — Philadelphia Daily News Posted Sep 18, 2009 |
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