Fresh B
| Fresh 71%
| Sherlock Holmes (2009) | "
It's the mad genius of Holmes that Downey Jr. taps into so well. And from that mischievous gleam in the eyes to the unkempt appearance, he's a joy to behold. The same can be said for Law." — Contra Costa Times Posted Dec 22, 2009 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 83%
| Avatar (2009) | "
Wow! No, make that WOW!!!" — Contra Costa Times Posted Dec 17, 2009 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 76%
| Invictus (2009) | "
An intelligent crowd-pleaser anchored by an Oscar-worthy performance from Freeman and directed with invigorating gusto by one of our top film pros." — Contra Costa Times Posted Dec 11, 2009 |
Rotten C+
| Rotten 28%
| The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009) | "
New director Chris Weitz injects more humor and visual style than Catherine Hardwicke did in the original, but The Twilight Saga: New Moon sags and lags like the first one as it senselessly runs on for more than two hours." — Contra Costa Times Posted Nov 19, 2009 |
Fresh 2.5/4
| Rotten 28%
| The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009) | "
Sexier, darker and funnier, New Moon rises well above the anemic 2008 film version of Stephenie Meyer's Twilight." — San Jose Mercury News Posted Nov 19, 2009 |
Fresh B+
| Rotten 39%
| 2012 (2009) | "
Sound idiotic? Preposterous? You bet. But 2012 delivers the disaster-movie goods better than any other popcorn movie we've seen since the '80s." — Contra Costa Times Posted Nov 13, 2009 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 39%
| 2012 (2009) | "
Preposterous? You bet. But 2012 delivers the disaster-movie goods better than any other popcorn movie we've seen since the '80s." — San Jose Mercury News Posted Nov 13, 2009 |
Fresh B-
| Rotten 55%
| Disney's A Christmas Carol (2009) | "
Disney's excessively hyped A Christmas Carol brings Dickensian details to such sumptuous life that you mostly forgive it for possessing a stop-motion soul." — Contra Costa Times Posted Nov 6, 2009 |
Fresh
| Rotten 55%
| Disney's A Christmas Carol (2009) | "
Disney's excessively hyped A Christmas Carol revels so richly in bringing the Dickensian details to sumptuous life that you wind up forgiving it for possessing a stop-motion soul." — San Jose Mercury News Posted Nov 6, 2009 |
Rotten C-
| Rotten 21%
| Amelia (2009) | "
At least Amelia is consistent. It continually squanders potential like that, turning a pioneering woman's soaring story into a conventional love story that never takes flight." — Contra Costa Times Posted Oct 22, 2009 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 75%
| Capitalism: A Love Story (2009) | "
Love him or hate him, liberal filmmaker Michael Moore is something of a modern-day Howard Beale, urging us to get outraged over injustices he perceives to be perpetrated by conservatives." — Contra Costa Times Posted Oct 2, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 84%
| Bright Star (2009) | "
Bright Star is a rich, sumptuous and, yes, challenging experience." — San Jose Mercury News Posted Sep 25, 2009 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 84%
| Bright Star (2009) | "
Cornish and Whishaw give powerful, unforgettable performances, with Cornish assured of an Oscar nomination. Other cast members, such as Schneider and Kerry Fox as Fanny's mother, make the film even stronger." — Contra Costa Times Posted Sep 18, 2009 |
Rotten D
| Rotten 6%
| Whiteout (2009) | "
Its worst offense is assuming the audience is so dumb that it'll be shocked by one of the most telegraphed endings in movie history." — Contra Costa Times Posted Sep 11, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 6%
| Whiteout (2009) | "
Its worst offense is assuming the audience is so dumb that it'll be shocked by one of the most telegraphed endings in movie history. On second thought, maybe the filmmakers got their wish: Whiteout is shocking, shockingly bad." — San Jose Mercury News Posted Sep 11, 2009 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 88%
| Inglourious Basterds (2009) | "
A brawny, rollicking mash-up that is a passionate exploration of the power of filmmaking from one of our finest directors and writers." — Contra Costa Times Posted Aug 19, 2009 |
Rotten C
| Fresh 68%
| Funny People (2009) | "
Funny People comes across tentative and disjointed, with the filmmaker at the helm lacking the confidence to be truly daring." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jul 31, 2009 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 86%
| 500 Days of Summer (2009) | "
Even with its minor imperfections, Summer warmly and brightly defies romantic comedy conventions most of the time and deserves to become a surprise hit while finally turning Gordon-Levitt into a star." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jul 17, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 64%
| Watchmen (2009) | "
From first frame to last, Watchmen holds you in its thrall." — Contra Costa Times Posted Mar 4, 2009 |
Rotten C-
| Rotten 50%
| Twilight (2008) | "
The audience is left with just a whole lot of pretty and not enough soul. Not entirely a bad thing, but you can get that fix by thumbing through an Abercrombie & Fitch catalogue." — Contra Costa Times Posted Nov 21, 2008 |
Fresh B+
| Rotten 56%
| Shelter (2008) | "
In the sweet and sexy romance Shelter, the chemistry between two surfer guys magnetically played by Brad Rowe and newcomer Trevor Wright is so electric, so palatable that even the most ardent nitpickers won't break a sweat over the small stuff." — Contra Costa Times Posted Mar 28, 2008 |
Rotten C
| Rotten 49%
| 30 Days of Night (2007) | "
30 Days the movie conjures the ominous atmosphere that haunted the graphic novel, but squanders much of the rest." — Contra Costa Times Posted Oct 19, 2007 |
Fresh B-
| Fresh 67%
| A Scanner Darkly (2006) | "
This is a deeply personal work on the ravages of drug abuse, and the moral casualties suffered when governments fight it." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jul 7, 2006 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 53%
| Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) | "
The loaded-to-the-gills carnival ride, the second in what's shaping up to be a wildly successful trilogy, is almost as good as the first voyage." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jul 6, 2006 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 98%
| The War Tapes (2006) | "
Repeatedly hits us in the gut with the realities of war and might even make us re-evaluate our perceptions about the men who fight it." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 30, 2006 |
Fresh B
| Fresh 75%
| The Devil Wears Prada (2006) | "
The real reason to see Devil is Streep's extraordinary performance. Without her, this Devil would have wound up a little threadbare." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 30, 2006 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 76%
| Superman Returns (2006) | "
Welcome back, Man of Steel, you've been gone far too long." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 26, 2006 |
Rotten C-
| Rotten 32%
| Click (2006) | "
Why Click fails to click is because of a crass, uncertain script, which wavers between an unfunny Saturday Night Live skit and a Lifetime Channel movie. Only once, near the end, did I care about his plight. But then, maybe it was heartburn." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 22, 2006 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 36%
| The Lake House (2006) | "
The Lake House is the type of movie you hear friends groan about Hollywood not making anymore. It's an old-fashioned romance that scoffs at today's frantic pacing, leisurely seducing us with its heartfelt story about the timeless value of love." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 16, 2006 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 86%
| The Heart of the Game (2006) | "
It's a lively, inspirational achievement that will put a lump in your throat." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 15, 2006 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 39%
| Nacho Libre (2006) | "
Jack Black body slams his way into the heavyweight division of physical comedy with Nacho Libre." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 15, 2006 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 81%
| A Prairie Home Companion (2006) | "
The latest gem from iconoclastic director Robert Altman (The Player, Nashville) mirrors much of his greatest work; another wise, observant multicharacter study that saunters rather than speeds from extended scene to extended scene." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 9, 2006 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 75%
| Cars (2006) | "
The script is unfailingly witty, the animation is breathtaking and clever -- the cast of voice actors is spirited and funny, and the direction as accomplished as any film you're likely to see this year." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 9, 2006 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Rotten 26%
| The Omen (2006) | "
[Moore] realizes creating an unsettling mood, genuine suspense and fully realized characters is as important -- maybe even more important -- than mere bloodshed." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 6, 2006 |
Rotten 1.5/4
| Rotten 24%
| Peaceful Warrior (2006) | "
This 'wake up and smell the roses' philosophy is sweet, but in Warrior, it comes across as trite and manipulative." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 2, 2006 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 93%
| An Inconvenient Truth (2006) | "
Gore's one-man global road show manages to both stagger and humble viewers with an accessible mix of data and evidence." — Contra Costa Times Posted Jun 1, 2006 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 37%
| Keeping Up With The Steins (2006) | "
Director Scott Marshall, Garry's son, and screenwriter Mark Zakarin have their hearts in the right place -- steering clear of Jewish stereotypes and showing the uneasy father-son bonds -- but put their minds on auto-pilot." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 26, 2006 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 87%
| The Proposition (2006) | "
The Proposition isn't single-mindedly cruel just to be cynically chic. Cave accomplishes much more, exposing this period's racism, classism and imperialism, then making it seem particularly prescient." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 26, 2006 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 56%
| X-Men: The Last Stand (2006) | "
True, Ratner is no Singer, but in The Last Stand he delivers the goods with gusto." — San Jose Mercury News Posted May 26, 2006 |
Fresh B+
| Rotten 56%
| X-Men: The Last Stand (2006) | "
X-Men: The Last Stand is punctuated with wows, the most awesome -- the sort that makes you elbow your seatmate and breathlessly say 'ain't that cool' -- coming in its mutant smackdown finale." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 25, 2006 |
Fresh B
| Rotten 52%
| Down in the Valley (2006) | "
Through these complex, strongly realized characters, Jacobson starkly reveals that the Old West has turned into an illusion for most of us, while remaining a delusion for a dwindling few." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 19, 2006 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 74%
| Over the Hedge (2006) | "
Even though the film might not always be as sharp as it could be, it's a welcome departure from recent animated family fare." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 19, 2006 |
Rotten 2.5/4
| Rotten 24%
| The Da Vinci Code (2006) | "
... a mildly satisfying religious thriller that is a bit silly." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 18, 2006 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 44%
| Goal! (2006) | "
Enough sports cliches to fill a soccer field make Goal! The Dream Begins stumble." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 12, 2006 |
Rotten C+
| Rotten 36%
| Art School Confidential (2006) | "
As is, the dark comedy comes off like an ill-prepared yet cocky student, lacking a clear sense of vision and only getting it right every so often." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 12, 2006 |
Rotten C-
| Rotten 33%
| Poseidon (2006) | "
Poseidon traps us in an upside-down ship of fools, where the risk of sinking fails to matter because we don't care about the fate of anyone aboard." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 11, 2006 |
Rotten C+
| Rotten 26%
| Hoot (2006) | "
The characters and situations portrayed never seem clearly defined or mined for comic possibilities. Unlike the clever family film Holes, also based on a beloved book, Hoot isn't always sharp or surprising." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 5, 2006 |
Fresh 2.5/4
| Rotten 31%
| The Promise (2005) | "
It's impossible not to be bowled over by the magnificent costumes, the atmospheric otherworldly sets and the lush cinematography. The tragic, nearly operatic love isn't nearly as impressive." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 5, 2006 |
Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 69%
| Mission: Impossible III (2006) | "
It's a hip action cocktail with a whole lot of kick." — Contra Costa Times Posted May 4, 2006 |
Fresh B-
| Rotten 4%
| The Celestine Prophecy (2006) | "
Celestine functions both as a thriller and a spiritual film." — Contra Costa Times Posted Apr 21, 2006 |
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