|
|
22%
|
The Black Waters of Echo's Pond (2010) |
"
Bloody and gory, but in a friendly way, this is a movie for old-school horror fans who understand that, sometimes, bad is good."
—
Village Voice
Posted Apr 6, 2010
|
|
|
61%
|
Breaking Upwards (2010) |
"
Reportedly drawing on their own romantic relationship, Wein and Lister-Jones have co-written a low-budget romantic comedy that's smart and lively and, in the end, quite affecting."
—
Village Voice
Posted Mar 31, 2010
|
|
|
90%
|
Easier with Practice (2009) |
"
The weird turns that Davy's life takes always feel emotionally honest, thanks in no small measure to Geraghty's achingly true performance."
—
Village Voice
Posted Feb 23, 2010
|
|
|
78%
|
De Helaasheid der Dingen (The Misfortunates) (2010) |
"
A word of advice: Do not invite the Strobbe family over for Christmas dinner, as they're likely to leave the house strewn with beer bottles and broken furniture."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Dec 14, 2009
|
|
|
82%
|
Paranormal Activity (2009) |
"
The fact that its old-school scares caused seemingly jaded 20-somethings at a recent midnight screening to squirm in their seats suggests that there's hope for the world after all."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Oct 8, 2009
|
|
|
94%
|
The Damned United (2009) |
"
These actors are good at what they do -- like those soccer players that dodge and weave with effortless grace."
—
Village Voice
Posted Oct 6, 2009
|
|
|
45%
|
White on Rice (2009) |
"
White on Rice glows with warmth.White on Rice glows with warmth."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Sep 10, 2009
|
|
|
6%
|
All About Steve (2009) |
"
[A] refreshingly quirky comedy."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Sep 10, 2009
|
|
|
——
|
Street Dreams (2009) |
"
First-time director Chris Zamoscianyk nicely captures the boozy, profane silliness of teenage boys on the loose, while drawing believable performances from a cast comprised largely of nonactors."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Jun 11, 2009
|
|
|
61%
|
Newcastle (2008) |
"
Slightly overlong but visually striking."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Apr 30, 2009
|
|
|
50%
|
The New Twenty (2009) |
"
Johnson and co-writer Ishmael Chawla have a light touch that keeps things from turning overly melodramatic."
—
Village Voice
Posted Mar 17, 2009
|
|
|
31%
|
The Uninvited (2009) |
"
We've seen it all before, but that doesn't diminish the accomplishment of first-time directors (and brothers) Charles and Thomas Guard, who clearly believe that a creaking door is scarier than a gouged-out eyeball."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Jan 29, 2009
|
|
|
49%
|
Twilight (2008) |
"
The movie version gives really good swoon."
—
Village Voice
Posted Nov 19, 2008
|
|
|
44%
|
Soul Men (2008) |
"
As swan songs go, Soul Men is pretty sweet."
—
City Pages, Minneapolis/St. Paul
Posted Nov 5, 2008
|
|
|
71%
|
Splinter (2008) |
"
Splinter earns our respect while delivering 82 minutes of lean, mean fun."
Posted Oct 30, 2008
|
|
|
82%
|
Saving Marriage (2006) |
"
Energetic and unapologetically biased."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Oct 16, 2008
|
|
|
50%
|
Breakfast with Scot (2007) |
"
Often quite funny."
—
City Pages, Minneapolis/St. Paul
Posted Oct 9, 2008
|
|
|
66%
|
Save Me (1993) |
"
Light, best known for her TV-sitcom work, turns a cliché -- the zealot with a secret pain of her own -- into an achingly sad woman; it's one of the year's best performances."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Sep 18, 2008
|
|
|
77%
|
Appaloosa (2008) |
"
It could be said that Harris and his co-writer, Robert Knott, haven't done a whole lot of writing, but as Cole himself might say, there's no need to get all fancy with what's plain and true."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Sep 18, 2008
|
|
|
87%
|
Hellboy II: The Golden Army (Hellboy 2) (2008) |
"
Hellboy II doesn't have much on its mind, but few will care, since del Toro and his stellar Pan's Labyrinth team, including Oscar-winning cinematographer Guillermo Navarro, stage one virtuoso set piece after another."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Jul 10, 2008
|
|
|
85%
|
The Take (2007) |
"
Furman stages the final foot chase with brio, but one wishes that he'd found a way to stay at home with Felix and Marina, who don't need guns to thrill."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Apr 10, 2008
|
|
|
58%
|
Shelter (2007) |
"
Rowe displays new authority and confidence, as if lately he's been looking in the mirror and seeing himself, rather than that other, more famous blond."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Mar 27, 2008
|
|
|
42%
|
The Other Boleyn Girl (2008) |
"
The filmmakers deserve credit for being serious-minded, but they might have hinted at the top of the film that all would not be well in the end."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Feb 28, 2008
|
|
|
22%
|
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins (2008) |
"
It's impressive, actually, that Lawrence lets this film's supporting players steal so much of his show -- as movie stars go, he must be a pretty secure guy."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Feb 7, 2008
|
|
|
——
|
Torn from the Flag (2007) |
"
Superb."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Dec 21, 2007
|
|
|
——
|
The Other Side (2007) |
"
Bishop has chops; someone give this man a meeting."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Sep 27, 2007
|
|
|
91%
|
Your Mommy Kills Animals (2007) |
"
That one can't quite decide if these charming men are heroes or villains is a mark of Johnson's calm, even approach to an issue seemingly fueled by emotions run amok."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Sep 27, 2007
|
|
|
66%
|
Shoot 'Em Up (2007) |
"
It's hard to get too worked up about a film whose very title announces its maker's intent."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Sep 6, 2007
|
|
|
33%
|
Marigold (2007) |
"
Marigold is saved from the predictability of its setup by the enthusiasm of its cast, color-drenched sets and costumes, and full-on musical numbers staged outdoors on a beautiful seaside stage."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Aug 16, 2007
|
|
|
19%
|
Rush Hour 3 (2007) |
"
After all these years and all the complex fight scenes [Chan's] been in, the basics are plenty satisfying. He's still the Gene Kelly of martial arts. Tucker and Ratner can't even begin to match Chan's grace, but to their credit, they seem to know it."
—
City Pages, Minneapolis/St. Paul
Posted Aug 9, 2007
|
|
|
——
|
Yellow () |
"
A fresh take on an oft-told tale."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Jun 21, 2007
|
|
|
——
|
Fireworks Wednesday (2008) |
"
This is director Asghar Farhadi's third feature, and it's brilliantly assured, both in the fluidity and unexpected stylishness of the camerawork and in the subtlety with which Farhadi and co-writer Mani Haghighi explore the complexities of modern [Iran]."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Jun 21, 2007
|
|
|
78%
|
Amu (2006) |
"
The flashback sequences are vibrant and intense, and the film's long closing shot is so dense with feeling for a nation and its people that Bose deserves to be noted as a filmmaker to watch."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Jun 14, 2007
|
|
|
——
|
Americanizing Shelley (2007) |
"
Americanizing Shelley isn't original, or the least bit believable, but it's so lovingly made that one's usual resistance to such clichés falls away."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Jun 13, 2007
|
|
|
50%
|
Duck (2005) |
"
The filmmaker is good with actors, and in Hall, she has a lead with such innate authority that you can't take your eyes off him, even when he's manhandling flapping waterfowl."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted May 10, 2007
|
|
|
27%
|
Downtown: A Street Tale (2007) |
"
Clichéd though it may be, this movie was clearly made with love."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted May 10, 2007
|
|
|
50%
|
Race You to the Bottom (2005) |
"
Interesting, well-acted debut feature from writer-director Russell Brown."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Mar 29, 2007
|
|
|
65%
|
Antikörper (Antibodies) (2007) |
"
Antibodies is fairly riveting, thanks to Alvart's command of craft and tone. He's a director to watch."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Feb 15, 2007
|
|
|
83%
|
Sione's Wedding (Samoan Wedding) (2006) |
"
The all-Polynesian cast bring so much energy and glee to the telling that one can only smile and hope they all profit wildly from the American remake that's reportedly in the works."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Feb 8, 2007
|
|
|
43%
|
Funny Money (2006) |
"
... never-hilarious but often-quite-amusing ..."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Jan 25, 2007
|
|
|
48%
|
Driving Lessons (2006) |
"
While Driving Lessons' writer-director, Jeremy Brock, sticks to the all-too-familiar template of such tales, he's given [Julie] Walters her best role since Educating Rita."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Oct 12, 2006
|
|
|
56%
|
Feast (2005) |
"
Gulager and screenwriters Marcus Dunstan and Patrick Melton have come up with some wittily nasty moments."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Sep 22, 2006
|
|
|
85%
|
Hurricane on the Bayou (2006) |
"
A film free of political fury, but full of activist optimism, this tame but heartfelt documentary is a fine companion piece to a day at the science museum."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Sep 7, 2006
|
|
|
66%
|
Brothers of the Head (2006) |
"
Yes, this is another faux rock documentary, but one so dramatically and visually textured that it reinvents that decidedly worn genre."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Aug 3, 2006
|
|
|
95%
|
Wordplay (2006) |
"
[A] charming documentary from first-time director Patrick Creadon."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Jun 22, 2006
|
|
|
27%
|
Waist Deep (2006) |
"
Hall's heart lies not in guns and chases but in finding redemption for his city-ravaged characters."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Jun 22, 2006
|
|
|
9%
|
See No Evil (2006) |
"
Nasty yet taut slice-and-dice-'em horror flick."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted May 25, 2006
|
|
|
37%
|
Keeping Up With The Steins (2006) |
"
As director, Scott Marshall displays an unsurprising flair for selling a joke, but also a fine sense of dramatic pacing and, even better, a gift for brevity, neither of which, it could be argued, are innate skills of his famous filmmaking family."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted May 11, 2006
|
|
|
89%
|
Sir! No Sir! (2006) |
"
David Zeiger's superb documentary about the Vietnam War era's GI protest movement is jammed with incident and anecdote and moves with nearly as much breathless momentum as the movement itself."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted May 4, 2006
|
|
|
84%
|
Akeelah and the Bee (2006) |
"
... a film that makes studying Latin-root flash cards seem like a cool afterschool activity ..."
—
L.A. Weekly
Posted Apr 27, 2006
|
68%
——
98%
