Rotten 3/5
| Fresh 83%
| Avatar (2009) | "
If Cameron were more prepared to challenge our expectations, Avatar might have been what he intended. Instead, it's a beautiful folly, a technical wonder that represents a failure of nerve." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Dec 16, 2009 |
Fresh 4.5/5
| Fresh 83%
| Broken Embraces (2009) | "
Hypnotic beauty and emotion reveal the Spanish director to be still at the height of his powers." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Dec 13, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 85%
| Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (2009) | "
This 3D cartoon based on the popular children's book is sweet and fun -- not to mention a little trippy." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Nov 26, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 60%
| Prime Mover (2009) | "
David Caesar, in his fifth feature, captures something real about the lives of these people. It has a nice brittle quality, a sort of sad and melancholy truth." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Nov 11, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 63%
| The Brothers Bloom (2009) | "
If not for Rachel Weisz, the movie would be too literary, too clever, too pleased with itself. Her character makes it emotional, although she's not the main focus." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Nov 9, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 77%
| Genova (2008) | "
Whether you go with this idea might depend on how many times you've seen it before, in sentimental American films. The fact that the film is more artful doesn't make the ghost of the mother less of a cliche." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Nov 5, 2009 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 91%
| In Search Of Beethoven (2009) | "
As good as the film is, Beethoven remains mysterious. He refuses to roll over, so to speak." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Oct 30, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 64%
| The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009) | "
The film is classic Gilliam, the imaginative brilliance tempered by moments of incoherence and a strange lassitude." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Oct 29, 2009 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Rotten 48%
| Astro Boy (2009) | "
It strays too far from the original to please hard-core fans and it is so confused in tone and purpose that it is hard to tell where it's aimed." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Oct 15, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 81%
| Departures (2009) | "
Takita eventually pushes the emotions too hard but by then I had lost all resistance. It's a beautiful film but take two hankies." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Oct 15, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 89%
| Moon (2009) | "
There might even be a touch of his father in there -- ''your circuit's dead, there's something wrong, can you hear me, Major Tom?'' It is a well-built, concentrated movie with a brain and a purpose." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Oct 8, 2009 |
Rotten 3/5
| Fresh 73%
| Mao's Last Dancer (2009) | "
Beresford hasn't usually allowed himself to become this corny. This new film appears calculated to do two things: make everyone cry and maximise its appeal to those red-blooded, childlike Americans who think "freedom" is a US concept." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Oct 5, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 72%
| Che, Part One (2008) | "
Those who have read something about this will get more out of the movies, but it's not compulsory. I saw both parts in one day and the experience was absorbing." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Oct 1, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 88%
| Looking for Eric (2009) | "
Ken Loach's latest film, starring football star Eric Cantona, is funny, tender, surprising and very wise." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Sep 24, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 78%
| $9.99 (2009) | "
The whole never quite comes together, in fact -- but even without that unity, the film has an oddball charm and intelligence." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Sep 16, 2009 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Rotten 23%
| Push (2009) | "
Push is a chase film dolled up with supernatural powers and chintzy retro design motifs." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Sep 11, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 51%
| The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (2009) | "
Mechanical and unspirited, this is just another goddam remake, as they might say in the Big Apple." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Aug 26, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 88%
| The Age of Stupid (2009) | "
An engaging and urgent attempt to make us all see sense about climate change." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Aug 21, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 100%
| Eden à l'Ouest (2009) | "
The tension is always between Costa-Gavras's dark view of human nature and his main character's hopes for the future. It's an uneven battle, although the film has enough strong and thoughtful moments to make you wish it was better." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Aug 21, 2009 |
Rotten 1/5
| Rotten 36%
| G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009) | "
It is so bad it makes even the worst of George Lucas' second round of Star Wars movies look good." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Aug 5, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 73%
| Rudo and Cursi (2009) | "
Apparently it’s a hit in Mexico, which shows a remarkably generous sense of humour, given that Cuaron leaves no one standing. It’s a funny movie but quite brutal." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jul 31, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 92%
| Drag Me To Hell (2009) | "
Not great horror, but it's good enough to be going on with." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jul 24, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 43%
| Fragments (2009) | "
There's a miserable sense of a country that's terminally sick in the head and spirit. It's a tiresome idea, no matter how well the actors play it." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jul 17, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 83%
| Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) | "
Who would have thought, after five movies and so much hype, that the sixth Harry Potter movie would be better than most of its predecessors?" — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jul 16, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 100%
| Last Ride (2009) | "
Weaving has a brilliant instinct for playing damaged men, as he did in Little Fish. Kev is a heartbreaking character, a hard-shelled survivor. Weaving captures all his brittleness, the years of damage." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jul 10, 2009 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Fresh 65%
| The Escapist (2009) | "
I hate criticising someone for ambition but The Escapist is a victory of ambition over dramatic achievement." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jul 8, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 44%
| Hannah Montana The Movie (2009) | "
It's wholesome hokum, to be sure, but of a very high standard." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jul 3, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 100%
| Noodle (2007) | "
Here, the background of grief helps: it deepens the characterisation, so that the emotion feels earned. Yet there is sentimentality here, leavened by Menahemi's understated humour and sense of purpose." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jun 26, 2009 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Rotten 20%
| Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009) | "
A lot of people put a great deal of effort into this movie to create great effects and exciting action but the whole thing is led by a man who directs by numbers." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jun 21, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 77%
| The Hangover (2009) | "
The Hangover is funny but not deeply so. There's a difference between funny incidents piled up in a line and people who make us laugh because of who they are." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jun 19, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 15%
| Year One (2009) | "
Cut it into small pieces and many bits are a giggle: string them all together and it starts to wear thin. Strangely for Ramis, it's not aggressive enough." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jun 19, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 83%
| I Love You, Man (2009) | "
[Segel's] performance here is loose and confident and very attractive. His star is rising." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jun 12, 2009 |
Rotten 1/5
| Rotten 25%
| Land of the Lost (2009) | "
The original was unbelievably cheesy in its special effects but more sophisticated in its concepts, employing real science-fiction writers to work up ideas. Will Ferrell and partners have succeeded in reversing those priorities in this spoof." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jun 11, 2009 |
Rotten 2.5/5
| Rotten 32%
| Terminator Salvation (2009) | "
Who cares what it means? Just make it loud. This is the way the series ends, not with a whimper but a bang. Except that it will probably go on, a shade of its former glory." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jun 5, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 91%
| Katyn (2007) | "
Katyn is a sobering experience, at times harrowing. It's also extraordinarily compassionate, even as Wajda vents his rage about what happened and the lies that followed." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Jun 5, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 100%
| My Year Without Sex (2009) | "
A year without sex is actually one of the lesser challenges that Watt tackles, with stout heart and a rich instinct for human comedy." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted May 29, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Rotten 54%
| What Just Happened (2008) | "
It's a pungent film about Hollywood power and a useful manual for young producers on how to stay upright in Hollywood or at least, how to lose your soul with grace." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted May 24, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 30%
| Lesbian Vampire Killers (2009) | "
It's a 15-year-old boy's idea of a great night at the movies -- sexy ladies in lingerie who get their heads lopped off." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted May 21, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 67%
| Synecdoche, New York (2008) | "
That's not the half of it. Kaufman has one of the busiest minds in movies. He oozes with the kinds of paranoia and invention that used to make Woody Allen funny; but he's crazier." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted May 15, 2009 |
Rotten 2/5
| Rotten 50%
| Observe and Report (2009) | "
Much of the movie is just plain vicious. At best, it's sad and grotesque, rather than hilarious." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted May 14, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Fresh 71%
| A Film With Me In It (2008) | "
If Mark and Pierce had been two people whose welfare I cared more deeply about, the film might have carried me for the duration. As it is, they were a bit like guests who stayed too long at dinner." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted May 8, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 94%
| Star Trek (2009) | "
The story is constructed so we don't need to know what has come before. At the same time, the filmmakers don't want to alienate the long-termers, so they had to add something new to the canon of Trek lore." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted May 6, 2009 |
Fresh 3.5/5
| Fresh 64%
| The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (2008) | "
We are left in no doubt about the brutality of what's going on there but it's almost entirely off-screen. Still, the film is terribly confronting." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted May 1, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 59%
| Paris 36 (2008) | "
Barratier loves these people, this place, this period. The film is mostly confection, it's true, but of a very high order." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted May 1, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 97%
| Tulpan (2008) | "
When a film arrives on our shores from this far away, you can almost guarantee it's a good one and Tulpan doesn't disappoint." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Apr 24, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 28%
| Fast & Furious (2009) | "
There are only a couple of things to be said about this movie: the cars are fast, the racing is faster and none of it makes the slightest bit of sense." — The Age (Australia) Posted Apr 17, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Rotten 32%
| Good (2008) | "
Mortensen ably carries most of the weight, with a minimalist performance." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Apr 10, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 92%
| Mary and Max (2009) | "
Mary And Max is original, personal, funny and moving; a film of warmth and compassion from a major artist." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Apr 10, 2009 |
Fresh 4/5
| Fresh 93%
| Summer Hours (2009) | "
This is a mature film by an accomplished director." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Apr 10, 2009 |
Fresh 3/5
| Rotten 13%
| The Pink Panther 2 (2009) | "
There are some beautifully constructed, elaborately inventive sequences of mayhem involving sight gags; then there are the scenes in between, when people talk. These are mostly disappointing." — Sydney Morning Herald Posted Apr 3, 2009 |
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