|
3/4
|
81%
|
Renoir (2013) |
"
"Renoir" is a story of creativity in twilight, and at its dawning. Appropriately enough, most of its scenes are fit to be framed, all soft tones and sun-dappled."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted May 2, 2013
|
|
2/4
|
68%
|
Disconnect (2013) |
"
By constantly weaving these tales together, Rubin takes humanity out of the equation, almost as if all these human intersections were engineered by technology, not an increasingly interrelated world."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted May 2, 2013
|
|
2/4
|
50%
|
Home Run (2013) |
"
Boilerplate rise-fall-redemption stuff that works more when it's trying to do less."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Apr 18, 2013
|
|
2.5/4
|
38%
|
Hyde Park on Hudson (2012) |
"
It's a nearly impossibly tall order, but Murray makes it work with an ease that results in the movie-award year's second-best performance as a U.S. president."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Jan 3, 2013
|
|
2.5/4
|
37%
|
Nobody Walks (2012) |
"
A bushel full of familiar indie-film devices held together by honest writing and charming performers."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Dec 6, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
——
|
Hating Breitbart (2012) |
"
Perhaps because of its subject's unexpected death, "Hating Breitbart" leaves you wondering how far Breitbart could have taken his crusade for new media to topple the old and take back the power of storytelling."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Nov 1, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
88%
|
The Other Dream Team (2012) |
"
Shows sports can have other goals besides winning."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Oct 25, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
35%
|
Butter (2012) |
"
The movie is larded up with distracting subplots and poorly used stars (Hugh Jackman as an Iowa City car dealer? Really?)."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Oct 4, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
67%
|
Unconditional (2012) |
"
In a year where what divides us seems to get more attention than what unites us, it's enough to restore your, well, faith."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 20, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
0%
|
Last Ounce of Courage (2012) |
"
A good reminder that storytelling clichés and inattention to narrative detail can detract from a movie's message."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 13, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
94%
|
Farewell, My Queen (2012) |
"
As a portrait of a world ending, it's frequently compelling stuff."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 6, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
85%
|
Sleepwalk With Me (2012) |
"
Birbiglia's easygoing style makes even his oft-told tales affecting on the big screen."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 6, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
87%
|
Robot & Frank (2012) |
"
"Robot & Frank" is a study of a man who lives with his past mistakes but can't shake how truly alive they made him feel when he was making them, regardless of what they cost him."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 6, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
95%
|
The Queen of Versailles (2012) |
"
For all their garishness, the Siegels are pretty likable, even if attempts to make you sympathetic to their "plight" fall short."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Aug 30, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
88%
|
Neil Young Journeys (2012) |
"
"Journeys" is about looking back - not in sorrow or wistfulness, but in affection and, often, impassioned remembrance of times past and how they still resonate in the present."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Aug 16, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
83%
|
Your Sister's Sister (2012) |
"
The dialogue feels organic and smart - like everyday conversation, only with words you got to try out first."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Aug 16, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
90%
|
Bernie (2012) |
"
As Bernie, Jack Black is about as reined-in as you'll see him. Effeminate, emotional, generous and cuddly, he's easy to root for when push comes to shooting."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted May 31, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
96%
|
The Kid with a Bike (2012) |
"
De France does a terrific job of balancing maternal instinct with matter-of-factness, in a performance that is more human than tender - and all the more powerful for it."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted May 10, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
75%
|
Damsels in Distress (2012) |
"
Stillman cannot only still bring it verbose-style, but he can make it fun, cheerful and even optimistic in the process."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted May 3, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
70%
|
Thin Ice (2012) |
"
The movie's gently snowbound Midwestern setting blunts some of the story's harsher edges, and the characters mostly feel real."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Apr 26, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
11%
|
Apart (2012) |
"
"Apart" is designed to be a so-what- really-happened type of thriller, but since we often know stuff before Noah does, the thrill's sometimes gone by the time you get there."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Apr 5, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
39%
|
Red Tails (2012) |
"
"Red Tails" is an old-school war movie with a pretty ambitious payload. For the most part, it's mission accomplished."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Jan 20, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
73%
|
Like Crazy (2011) |
"
While it sometimes slips into annoying clichés, "Like Crazy's" simplicity and messy honesty keep it from sliding into B-grade melodrama."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Nov 17, 2011
|
|
3/4
|
77%
|
The Swell Season (2011) |
"
The intimacy that results is candid and simple as the movie that, for good and ill, put them both center-stage in the first place."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Nov 3, 2011
|
|
3/4
|
88%
|
The Hedgehog (2011) |
"
A French drama that finds its power in the little moments."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Oct 27, 2011
|
|
3/4
|
84%
|
My Afternoons with Margueritte (2011) |
"
Casadesus - at 97, a French national treasure who has been wowing stage and screen audiences since the 1930s - tenderly manages to make great literature sound like conversation, and vice versa."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Oct 20, 2011
|
|
2.5/4
|
100%
|
Everyday Sunshine: The Story of Fishbone (2011) |
"
The fun and energy of those performances show the promise that was lost - and the pleasure that's still in the music."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Oct 20, 2011
|
|
2.5/4
|
71%
|
Footloose (2011) |
"
A boisterous, almost scene-for-scene remake of the 1984 jukebox-musical-dance hit."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Oct 13, 2011
|
|
2.5/4
|
37%
|
Restless (2011) |
"
"Restless" teeters close to so many screen clichés that, even when it treads in uncharted territory, it feels like you've been there before."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Oct 6, 2011
|
|
3/4
|
92%
|
Senna (2011) |
"
Uses an astonishing wealth of racing and interview footage - including film shot by in-car cameras during races - to chart in a compelling way the dramatic rise and heart-rending end of the Brazilian legend."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 29, 2011
|
|
2.5/4
|
67%
|
Shut Up Little Man! (2011) |
"
Bate sort of lets everyone off the hook under the art-for-art's-sake clause. But at least he raises the still-relevant question of whether just because you can tape your neighbor makes it art - or makes it right."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 29, 2011
|
|
2/4
|
85%
|
Tucker & Dale vs Evil (2011) |
"
Few things are more annoying than a movie that doesn't stick to its over-the-top convictions."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 29, 2011
|
|
2.5/4
|
——
|
The Upsetter (2011) |
"
Is there a method to Perry's madness, or is it just madness? In "The Upsetter," it's hard to say."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 1, 2011
|
|
2.5/4
|
88%
|
Buck (2011) |
"
As a manual for handling animals - and people, for that matter - Brannaman's common-sense teachings broaden his story's appeal."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Jun 30, 2011
|
|
2/4
|
59%
|
Forks Over Knives (2011) |
"
"Forks Over Knives" works really hard to bring you around to its way of thinking, but it's really preaching to the faithful."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Jun 9, 2011
|
|
3/4
|
83%
|
Potiche (2011) |
"
A breezy, smart and sometimes surprising commentary on capitalism, gender roles and idealism disguised as a romantic comedy."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted May 12, 2011
|
|
2.5/4
|
11%
|
There Be Dragons (2011) |
"
As played by Cox, Escriva is earnest, heartfelt and full of tolerance, driven by his message of love and forgiveness for all, regardless of where their politics lie."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted May 5, 2011
|
|
2.5/4
|
80%
|
Barney's Version (2011) |
"
In Giamatti's hands - and especially his mouth - Barney is a font of invective, with a sharp wit and withering glance designed to reduce others to dust. It's an impressive performance, but it makes him, and his version of events, hard to embrace."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Feb 17, 2011
|
|
2.5/4
|
78%
|
The Agony and the Ecstasy of Phil Spector (2010) |
"
Even with Spector's dark obsessions and current prison address, you can't dismiss his music's power, or its influence."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Jan 6, 2011
|
|
3/4
|
66%
|
Tamara Drewe (2010) |
"
Always engaging, if disjointed, and dotted with pleasant surprises."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Dec 2, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
50%
|
Cool It (2010) |
"
Unfortunately, "Cool It," even with its better ideas, too often feels like just more talking."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Nov 18, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
——
|
Feed The Fish (2009) |
"
Writer-director Michael Matzdorff, a Green Bay native, clearly has an affection for Door County ... But that makes the weather and other up-nort clichés all the more disappointing."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Oct 7, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
86%
|
Like Dandelion Dust (2010) |
"
An earnest and well-acted, if occasionally flat, drama about what it means to be a parent."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 30, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
81%
|
Cairo Time (2010) |
"
Clarkson, as always, is genuine and terrific."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 23, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
53%
|
Agora (2010) |
"
A landscape where heart and head can collide in a great fury, and when the world felt like it could go one way or the other."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Sep 2, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
64%
|
Harry Brown (2010) |
"
In the hands of a lesser actor, this would feel just as clichéd as it sounds. But Caine brings his smarts as well as his baggage to the character, making him more than another mad-as-hell guy with a gun."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Jun 17, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
82%
|
Solitary Man (2010) |
"
You want to like this Solitary Man. But finally, you're better off without him."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted May 21, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
62%
|
When You're Strange (2010) |
"
The Doors weren't the embodiment of their time; they weren't even the most important rock act of their time. But When You're Strange shows why their music and iconography has lasted beyond their time."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted May 13, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
92%
|
Vincere (2010) |
"
Vincere is big on visual gestures, and many of them are stunning. But the most powerful moments come when the main characters get to speak plainly and passionately."
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Posted Apr 22, 2010
|
43%
44%
96%
99%
65%
61%
