|
2.5/4
|
29%
|
The Vow (2012) |
"
The film is almost awe-inspiring in its unabashed embrace of a love so all-encompassing that Paige even treasures Leo's flatulence (seriously -- she rolls up the car window so the smell won't escape). "
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 11, 2012
|
|
0/4
|
25%
|
This Means War (2012) |
"
This insulting, structureless so-called romantic comedy is a wretched embarrassment for all involved, especially Witherspoon, who is required to act like a ninny while other characters remark on how 'really, really beautiful' she is."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 11, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
21%
|
The Raven (2012) |
"
Directed with no mystery or imagination..."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 11, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
87%
|
The Pirates! Band of Misfits (2012) |
"
Droll and charming, and will probably appeal more to fans of Monty Python and 'The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy' than to young kids... "
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 11, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
51%
|
Contraband (2012) |
"
With its dim lighting and handheld camerawork, the director's 'realistic' visual approach is arguably bogus, but it pays dividends as the narrative becomes increasingly grim."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 11, 2012
|
|
1.5/4
|
25%
|
Act of Valor (2012) |
"
May have you longing for an old-fashioned era of 'square' propaganda, when it wouldn't have been considered a cool recruitment strategy to acknowledge that U.S. troops use constant profanity and splatter opponent's brains against the wall."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 11, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
41%
|
Dark Shadows (2012) |
"
Although imperfect, this may be Burton's most personal project in years -- a film that seems motivated by genuine identification with the 'Dark Shadows' theme, and not by a desire to impose the Burton brand on a pre-sold title."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 11, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
47%
|
The Three Stooges (2012) |
"
A subplot that lands Moe on 'Jersey Shore' will date faster than the Tojo references in 'The Yoke's on Me' (1944), and the use of Talking Heads and Allman Brothers music to score several bits of Stoogery is distracting and inexplicable. "
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 4, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
90%
|
The Cabin in the Woods (2012) |
"
Some fans may not cotton to its over-the-top evisceration and reanimation of genre history, but I found it exhilarating, like one of those special-issue comic-book splash panels in which the artist tries to squeeze in as many superheroes as possible."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 4, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
93%
|
Marvel's The Avengers (2012) |
"
'The Avengers' registers in the red on the Nerdgasmatron. It's a witty, action-packed triumph -- entertaining and coherent for newcomers, yet true to the spirit of its source material."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 4, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
79%
|
The Deep Blue Sea (2012) |
"
The design is stunning and cunning: In one shot, a breath of cigarette smoke comes to brilliant cumulous life as Hester blows it into an otherwise invisible but purposefully placed shaft of light."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 4, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
91%
|
Footnote (2012) |
"
The premise enables Cedar to spoof academic infighting and professorial egomania even as he dissects a love-hate blood connection that has been fraught with tension and mistrust ever since Abraham was willing to slay Isaac."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 4, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
87%
|
Bully (2012) |
"
'Bully' is a heartbreaking documentary about the cruelty some children inflict on those they perceive to be weak. More crucially, it also reveals the almost criminal ineptitude of an adult establishment that insists on defining peer torment as horseplay."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 4, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
43%
|
Blue Like Jazz (2012) |
"
Unlike other 'faith-based' films, it lacks a down-on-your-knees come-to-Jesus moment, presenting its young hero as a conflicted Everyman with the same questions about 'the human dilemma' as any sensitive college freshman."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 4, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
85%
|
Declaration of War (2012) |
"
Horror movies excepted, it's the rare film that suggests the presence of a child doesn't Make Everything Better, as if by magic."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 4, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
97%
|
Tomboy (2011) |
"
'Tomboy' makes its points about gender identity and confusion without resorting to cheap laughs or overwrought drama. "
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted May 4, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
12%
|
W.E. (2012) |
"
An ambitiously conceived and beautifully designed and costumed but disjointed work; each scene is impressive on its own, but the movie -- like its heroines? -- lacks a coherent identity."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Apr 18, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
84%
|
The Raid: Redemption (2012) |
"
How high is the body count? So high that most cast members are identified in the end credits by numeral: 'Hole Drop Attacker #8,' 'Riot Van Shooter #3,' 'Tama's Victim #5,' and so on."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Apr 16, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
90%
|
In Darkness (2012) |
"
What lingers aren't Holland's recreated atrocities but simpler, unexpected moments, as when a little girl who has become used to life in a sewer removes a rat from atop her coloring book as nonchalantly as if it were a fallen leaf. "
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Apr 16, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
99%
|
Le Havre (2011) |
"
Le Havre is presented as an oasis of happy inclusiveness within a regimented, uniformed, legislated and suspicious world at large; to spend time here is a pleasure."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Apr 16, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
76%
|
We Need to Talk About Kevin (2012) |
"
Smug but fascinating: The movie is a woman's cry of anguish for an unjust world that enables men at all levels of age and power to get away with cruelty, brutality, murder and even war because, well, 'that's what boys DO.'"
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Apr 9, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
76%
|
Rampart (2012) |
"
The incendiary dialogue -- as much a performer's showcase as is a jazz instrumentalist's solo -- is signature Ellroy."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Apr 9, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
43%
|
American Reunion (2012) |
"
I've always been more or less indifferent to the 'American Pie' series, but seeing the characters again, I was filled with admiration for the actors' show-business chops -- for their dedication to roles that require them to be routinely humiliated..."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Apr 9, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
79%
|
The Mill and the Cross (2011) |
"
Both painting and film are brought to vivid, extraordinary life by the power of the artist's will: This is Intelligent Design we can believe in."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Apr 9, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
86%
|
Chico & Rita (2012) |
"
Brash and jazzy and -- to use a word not often associated with animated feature films -- sexy."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Apr 9, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
50%
|
Mirror Mirror (2012) |
"
The sets and especially the costumes delight the eye, even if the action they are meant to support is rather static..."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Apr 9, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
25%
|
Wrath of the Titans (2012) |
"
Simple-minded myth-mash..."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Apr 9, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
86%
|
Battle Royale 3D (2012) |
"
Fukasaku's set pieces are dynamic, composed and edited with a neatness that is missing from the shaky-camera esthetic of the movie's successor, 'The Hunger Games.'"
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 30, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
30%
|
Batoru rowaiaru II: Chinkonka (Battle Royale II) (2004) |
"
It's meant to be provocative, but it's muddled and nonsensical, with none of the liveliness or cleverness of its predecessor."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 30, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
84%
|
The Hunger Games (2012) |
"
I found the sardonic satire of the movie's first half in the Capitol (a city that suggests a meeting of L. Frank Baum and Albert Speer) more intriguing than the insufficiently suspenseful depiction of the Hunger Games competition itself..."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 30, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
42%
|
Silent House (2012) |
"
A risky formal experiment that applies an old-fashioned William Castle/Robert Bloch story twist to the subjective-unreality themes of such recent horror thrillers as 'Dream House' and 'High Tension'..."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 30, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
24%
|
October Baby (2012) |
"
May be somewhat distasteful in subject and dubious in theme, but its presentation is as bright and shiny and polished as the fresh face of its pretty young star, Rachel Hendrix."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 23, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
——
|
Thirteen Women (1932) |
"
A rarely seen, undervalued and racially provocative semi-horror film that anticipates the 'body count' movies of future decades, this is a doozy and a knockout, with Myrna Loy at her sexiest and most exotic."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 20, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
26%
|
Project X (2012) |
"
Although much of this obvious yet ingenious film is filler, it may be a game-changer in its genre, and its fiery, almost apocalyptic final act recalls the liberating anarchy of the great 'Rock 'n' Roll High School.'"
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 19, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
85%
|
Chronicle (2012) |
"
Utterly gripping..."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 19, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
85%
|
21 Jump Street (2012) |
"
Funny and clever but ultimately dispiriting, with a finale that affirms the queasy wink-wink legalized bullying of its early police-vs.-citizens scenes, and that associates manhood with a willingness to kill with a gun -- all for a cheap laugh."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 19, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
71%
|
Thin Ice (2012) |
"
A climactic twist tries to make the movie that preceded it more interesting in retrospect than it was while it unfolded, but the plot is too implausible -- too unbelievable, really -- to be clever."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 19, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
74%
|
Norwegian Wood (2012) |
"
As melancholy and fragile and at times even as lovely as the John Lennon composition from which it borrows its name..."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 19, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
——
|
Taxi! (1932) |
"
Is James Cagney the greatest movie star in history? Watching 'Taxi!,' it's hard to vote no. As active as a terrier, as combustible as dynamite, he was made for motion pictures; he's so kinetic he threatens to ignite, like Johnny Blaze in 'Ghost Rider.'"
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 9, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
64%
|
Amigo (2011) |
"
Naysayers might argue that the film's anti-war message is so obvious it doesn't bear repeating; but if that's the case, why do we tolerate so many unnecessary wars?"
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 9, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
52%
|
John Carter (2012) |
"
Comical Woola, a faithful dog-like creature that travels at Road Runner superspeed, steals every scene. He's the 'John Carter' equivalent of Uggie, and the movie, sad to say, needs him."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 9, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
94%
|
Pina (2011) |
"
'Undefeated' won the Oscar, but the most truly inspiring of the Documentary Feature nominees is 'Pina.' I know next to nothing about dance, and I was mesmerized."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 9, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
67%
|
We Bought a Zoo (2011) |
"
Directed by the Norman Rockwell of the classic-rock set, Cameron Crowe, this overdetermined and painfully protracted movie needs more animals and less bathos ('Their happy's too loud,' the sad/wise little girl complains about some partying neighbors)."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 9, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
94%
|
The Secret World of Arrietty (2012) |
"
Another Studio Ghibli wonder, as heartbreaking for its devotion to craft, artistry and intelligent storytelling (for viewers of all ages) as for its themes of inevitable exile and impossible love."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 2, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
42%
|
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (2012) |
"
Silly, colorful, harmless and fun."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 2, 2012
|
|
1/4
|
11%
|
Gone (2012) |
"
So lame the only scare during the first hour is the old cat-jumping-into-frame trick."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 2, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
18%
|
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance (2012) |
"
Under the turbocharged bad-trip direction of 'Crank' auteurs Neveldine and Taylor, this impossible and absurd scenario seems inspired not by a comic book but by a drug fiend's delirium."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 2, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
13%
|
Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked (2011) |
"
If you can't get enough of aggressively cute animated rodents shaking their fuzzy tails while singing helium-voiced covers of funk and hip-hop dance hits and spouting clichéd 'urban' catchphrases ('Oh no she di'int!'), then this 'squeakquel' is for you."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 2, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
95%
|
Undefeated (2012) |
"
Finds the warmth and vulnerability that is sometimes hard for outsiders to see beneath the rough, damaged exterior of the impoverished Memphis neighborhood where much of the action takes place."
—
Commercial Appeal (Memphis, TN)
Posted Mar 2, 2012
|
85%
78%
7%
