|
3.5/4
|
100%
|
Agantuk (The Stranger) (2003) |
"
a beautiful valediction by a great filmmaker anticipating his own departure, whose message is as profound as any in a majestic career"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Jan 26, 2012
|
|
2.5/4
|
80%
|
Conan O'Brien Can't Stop (2011) |
"
...depicts a fiercely talented performer who has created...a temple to his own cult. While the resulting spectacle may be distasteful in its egotism and indulgence, there's no doubting the drive and devotion of a man for whom the world truly is a stage."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Jan 26, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
72%
|
Magic Trip (2011) |
"
a unique historical artifact, to be sure, but one which reveals nothing exceptional about the personalities, the times or the themes explored."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Jan 26, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
96%
|
Born Into Brothels: Calcutta's Red Light Kids (2004) |
"
an absorbing journey over gritty social terrain, driven by a fierce sense of purpose"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Jan 20, 2012
|
|
3.5/4
|
90%
|
DiG! (2004) |
"
fulfills the function and promise of all great documentaries"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Jan 20, 2012
|
|
2/4
|
91%
|
Point Blank (2011) |
"
[Writers] Cavayé and Lemans...dump all manner of double-dealing and good cop-bad cop intrigue into what could have been a wonderfully streamlined, character-driven thriller about an innocent man forced to do the bidding of criminals to save his family."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Jan 19, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
91%
|
City of Life and Death (2011) |
"
...among the greatest war films ever made. Rich in humanist themes and absolutely unflinching in its depiction of the moral chaos and physical violence of war."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Jan 19, 2012
|
|
3/4
|
75%
|
The Names of Love (2011) |
"
It's a credit to the talents of his cast as well as to Leclerc's ability to juggle comedy and drama that The Names of Love manages to be so winning a concoction."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Jan 18, 2012
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948) |
"
an all-time masterpiece of characterization, structure, pacing and storytelling in general"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Feb 15, 2011
|
|
3/4
|
90%
|
The Fighter (2010) |
"
Wahlberg ensures we stay rooted in Micky's journey, for all the script and fellow performers' broad strokes, cliches and conventionalities, and that we root for the scrapper through every round in the ring."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Jan 30, 2011
|
|
3/4
|
96%
|
True Grit (2010) |
"
Joel and Ethan Coen's adaptation of Charles Portis' novel has all the trimmings you'd expect from a film by these brothers extraordinaire"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Jan 24, 2011
|
|
2.5/4
|
90%
|
Zombieland (2009) |
"
It's Zombieland's delightfully offbeat characters that give the movie its staying power."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Jan 21, 2011
|
|
3/4
|
98%
|
The War Tapes (2006) |
"
The direct-cinema authenticity that a soldier's eye gives to this largely street-fought war...lends The War Tapes its primary strength."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 7, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
97%
|
Unforgiven (1992) |
"
Eastwood's best film -- a compelling study of the shame and guilt that attends violence, of the rule of the mighty over the weak and of courage and cowardice."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 7, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
55%
|
Undertow (2004) |
"
a drag-down bore"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 7, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
57%
|
The Underneath (1995) |
"
An absorbing, if an occasionally plodding, experience."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 7, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
86%
|
Les Deux anglaises et le continent (Two English Girls)(Anne and Muriel) (1971) |
"
Georges Delerue's lovely score and fine performances by Markham and Tendeter keep another one of Truffaut's narcissistic escapades...watchable, but just barely"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 7, 2010
|
|
1.5/4
|
59%
|
Twin Peaks - Fire Walk with Me (1992) |
"
This fire dampens fast, and the results are rather dreary, and nonsensical."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 7, 2010
|
|
1/4
|
43%
|
Twentynine Palms (2004) |
"
A movie full of surfaces but with exasperatingly little to say"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 6, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
88%
|
28 Days Later (2003) |
"
a wild cocktail of campy, gory fun"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 6, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
95%
|
The Trials of Henry Kissinger (2002) |
"
An Incendiary piece of a rather innocuous order"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 6, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
96%
|
3 Women (1977) |
"
The first half...is some of Altman's best stuff. The second half downgrades into rather pretentious and dithering malarkey"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 6, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
76%
|
Top Secret! (1984) |
"
The story has almost no momentum and runs out of gas, ending abruptly, but how can you knock a movie with so many gut-busting jokes?"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 5, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
90%
|
Together (Tillsammans) (2001) |
"
effortlessly poetic"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 5, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
89%
|
The Testament Of Dr. Mabuse (1933) |
"
[Lang's] ambitious command of the medium...keeps us rooted to our seats from start to finish."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 5, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
100%
|
Tampopo (1985) |
"
a pleasant enough time-passer"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 5, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
32%
|
A Woman, A Gun and a Noodle Shop (San qiang pai an jing qi) (A Simple Noodle Story) (The First Gun) (2010) |
"
The stars of the show, ultimately, are Zhao Xiaoding's gorgeous cinematography, Tao Jing's evocative sound design and Yimou's choice of otherworldly locations."
—
Moving Pictures Magazine
Posted Sep 5, 2010
|
|
1.5/4
|
72%
|
Machete (2010) |
"
hack-and-slash nonsense"
—
Moving Pictures Magazine
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
94%
|
Stray Dog (Nora inu) (1963) |
"
Mifune is magnetic"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
96%
|
Baisers Volés (Stolen Kisses) (1968) |
"
Typically light fare from the master of French Lite"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
95%
|
The Station Agent (2003) |
"
a charmingly simple character study"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
80%
|
Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith 3D (2013) |
"
The bar has been set so low in mainstream Hollywood movies that it's not even worth seriously analyzing this stuff"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
88%
|
Sonatine (1993) |
"
bold and ballsy"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
73%
|
Sky High (2005) |
"
surprisingly clever, spirited and joyful"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
72%
|
Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow (2004) |
"
he visuals are phenomenal, rendered with so much love and passion that each frame is a marvel just to behold."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
1.5/4
|
78%
|
Sin City (2005) |
"
My own trajectory while watching Sin City--excited, bored, offended...back to bored...roll credits"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
96%
|
Sideways (2004) |
"
Giamatti handily raises what could've been a pedestrian road trip romance into the stratosphere of a world-class character study"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
91%
|
Shaun of the Dead (2004) |
"
Pedestrian direction and script sap what anarchic fun this movie could've been"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
59%
|
Schizopolis (1996) |
"
a filmmaking exercise from someone eager to stretch his legs, do something goofy, and experiment, all of which Soderbergh does without losing his audience"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Sep 3, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
75%
|
Satansbraten (Satan's Brew) (1977) |
"
If you're new to Fassbinder, this one may catch you off-guard, but if you love the guy, here's another to scratch your head over and chuckle mischievously along with."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 26, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
86%
|
The River (1959) |
"
a delicate tapestry of images that evoke a different way of life, of thinking, and of relating to the world"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 25, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
81%
|
Ray (2004) |
"
Jamie Foxx is excellent, and sturdily supported by [James L.] White's script all the way."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 25, 2010
|
|
1.5/4
|
73%
|
Primer (2004) |
"
ridiculous, confusing, vaguely noir-ish nonsense"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 24, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
81%
|
A Prairie Home Companion (2006) |
"
It looks and feels like an Altman film, but one made completely on a pointless lark."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 24, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
97%
|
Pather Panchali (Song of the Little Road) (1955) |
"
There is a faith in the art form here, a pure, loving, embracing faith that really restores my own faith in movies."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 24, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
49%
|
The Passion of the Christ (2004) |
"
Gibson's passion is all over this film...but his resorting to mawkish, superficial tactics blows the tone off-course from time to time."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 24, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
96%
|
Osama (2004) |
"
A wonderful and riveting movie experience"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 24, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
55%
|
Ocean's Twelve (2004) |
"
A self-indulgent lark if ever there was one. Lucky for us Steven Soderbergh is at the helm."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 24, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
92%
|
Nine Queens (Nueve reinas) (2002) |
"
A delightful, charming, confidently made confidence flick."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 22, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
71%
|
Napoleon Dynamite (2004) |
"
too odd to dismiss and often truly funny"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 22, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
Nanook of the North (1922) |
"
absolutely brilliant "
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 22, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
84%
|
Mysterious Skin (2005) |
"
a bizarre, beguiling coming-of-age drama"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 21, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
93%
|
My Life to Live (It's My Life) (Vivre sa vie: Film en douze tableaux) (1962) |
"
truly exhilarating"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 21, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
90%
|
Le Souffle au Coeur (Murmur of the Heart) (1971) |
"
the whiff of droll, lighthearted humor partially redeems what is otherwise a gorgeously filmed exercise in smug depravity"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 21, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
98%
|
Murderball (2005) |
"
a triumph of filmmaking: of structure, character development, and pacing"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 21, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
78%
|
Munich (2005) |
"
Spielberg described Munich as his 'prayer for peace,' yet his movie strangely lacks the eloquence and yearning of a prayer."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 20, 2010
|
|
.5/4
|
87%
|
Millions (2005) |
"
if you're a sucker for adorable, freckle-faced kids, you may not be able to resist the infantile wiles of this movie"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 20, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
88%
|
Metallica - Some Kind of Monster (2004) |
"
An entertaining and penetrating look at the creative process"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 20, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
94%
|
Medium Cool (1969) |
"
a quintessential late-60s time capsule piece"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 20, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
98%
|
Mean Streets (1973) |
"
showcases Scorsese's artistic strengths and weaknesses as they stood at the outset of his career"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 20, 2010
|
|
1.5/4
|
51%
|
The Switch (2010) |
"
so unimaginative and formula-driven...that it seems entirely to have been hashed out by executives over a long lunch. "
—
Moving Pictures Magazine
Posted Aug 19, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
76%
|
The Matador (2006) |
"
Brosnan's sleazy, broken-spirited hitman Julian Noble nabs the spotlight in Richard Shepard's generally pleasing comic thriller."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 19, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
77%
|
Match Point (2005) |
"
There's no ground here that Allen hasn't gone over before, but as a treatment of upper crust mores and, eventually, as a thriller, it's compulsively watchable and generally well acted."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 19, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
94%
|
March of the Penguins (2005) |
"
plays like a high-end Discovery Channel special, but it's compelling and beautiful just the same, exuding a love for its subject matter that's infectious"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 19, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
92%
|
L' Homme du Train (The Man on the Train) (2003) |
"
Laconte's direction is calculative all the way, but his telling fails to register very much."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 19, 2010
|
|
1.5/4
|
81%
|
The Manchurian Candidate (2004) |
"
This humorless and nonsensical update of The Manchurian Candidate - a total misread of Frankenheimer's classic original - never quite engages, devolving the original's camp and satire into self-serious melodrama. "
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 19, 2010
|
|
1.5/4
|
72%
|
Soul Kitchen (2010) |
"
hasn't a clue how to take its characters through the requisite beats of what is allegedly a story about a man's search for self - just as Soul Kitchen is allegedly an attempt at bright, witty comedy"
—
Moving Pictures Magazine
Posted Aug 18, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
74%
|
War of the Worlds (2005) |
"
so impressive in so many ways that it makes the frustration over its miserable final moments that much harder to bear"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
91%
|
The Weather Underground (2002) |
"
a history lesson that takes us on a lacerating journey from the '60s anti-war movements to their emotional ripple effects in the modern-day"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
1/4
|
75%
|
Wedding Crashers (2005) |
"
What should've been an absolutely raucous and no-holds-barred lusty farce is nothing but lame-ass, safe, predictable, lowest common denominator, no-laffs garbage"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
95%
|
Weekend (Week End) (1967) |
"
This is Lord of the Flies as played by adults, and for Left Bank intellectuals, heady with righteous protest and wired on too many coffees and cigarettes"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
95%
|
Wordplay (2006) |
"
As pleasant and good-natured as Wordplay is, it's not exactly potent stuff""
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
85%
|
The Yes Men (2004) |
"
As activists, the Yes Men are about as effective as an article in the satirical weekly, The Onion, or any episode of Phil Hendry's radio show"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
85%
|
Europa (Zentropa) (2001) |
"
Beautiful, brilliant, hallucinatory filmmaking"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
96%
|
Pan's Labyrinth (2006) |
"
a captivating, albeit unstable, blend of anti-Fascist social commentary and a visually sumptuous childhood fable"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
70%
|
28 Weeks Later... (2007) |
"
deft and stylish"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
93%
|
Riding Giants (2004) |
"
Just short of dropping you into the ocean with a surfboard, Riding Giants serves as the definitive (and immersive) guide to the essence of all that is surfing.""
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
90%
|
The Simpsons Movie (2007) |
"
though Homer himself chastises us, near the start of the movie, for paying for something we can watch on TV for free, I consider the money I put down my contribution to Groening's good cause."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
77%
|
Happy Together (Chun gwong cha sit) (1997) |
"
all-around fabulous work"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
1.5/4
|
90%
|
Hotel Rwanda (2004) |
"
potentially fantastic material...unfortunately, [Terry] George's attempt is too mired in movie-of-the-week sensibilities...to do any justice to its subject matter"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
100%
|
Hiroshima Mon Amour (Hiroshima, My Love) (1959) |
"
Though made in the late 50s, Hiroshima's imagery and music give it a feel at once modern and timeless, this is a beautiful piece of work."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
1.5/4
|
52%
|
The Family Stone (2005) |
"
a gob of yuletide Play-Doh"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
70%
|
In the Realms of the Unreal - The Mystery of Henry Darger (2005) |
"
could've been riveting stuff if only its subject was half as interesting as its approach"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
86%
|
Junebug (2005) |
"
The humor here is expectedly quirky but it feels earned thanks to writer MacLachlan and director Morrison's honestly rendered observations of family and small-town life"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
84%
|
King Kong (2005) |
"
The movie is a good cautionary example of what happens when its maker is too close to the material, who can't see the forest for the trees, the story for the ape."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
69%
|
The King of Marvin Gardens (1972) |
"
A worthwhile Rafelson outing with striking photography by Laszlo Kovacs"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
2/4
|
88%
|
Rois et Reine (Kings and Queen) (2005) |
"
A highly unstable compound of melodrama and offbeat comedy that elicits more shrugs of confusion than sighs of satisfaction"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
86%
|
Kiss of Death (1947) |
"
What really sets this noir apart...is a combination of Hathaway's deliberate craftsmanship and the small crackerjack ensemble led by Mature and Widmark"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
Nóz w Wodzie (Knife in the Water) (1962) |
"
The acting, music and camerawork all weave together to create an unexpectedly magical, brilliantly crafted, intensely sensuous experience."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
Lacombe Lucien (1974) |
"
Malle's absolute faith in his skills as a storyteller and in the inherent power of this true story puts Lacombe, Lucien in the company of the best humanist portraits ever filmed."
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
71%
|
La Notte (1961) |
"
Stylistically, La Notte intrigues but, in the realm of ideas, I think the movie begins to plod and drag halfway through"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
97%
|
La Strada (The Road) (1954) |
"
The two lead performers...are marvelous and the imagery is gorgeous, with Fellini's precision cutting and dramatic lighting pointing the way to 8 1/2"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
100%
|
The Leopard (1963) |
"
Vividly shot, beautifully acted, and paced slowly, deliberately, gathering a kind of power that only a true master can conjure""
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
100%
|
Le Samouraï (The Godson) (2005) |
"
an enjoyably stylish entry in the French crime film tradition, but a decidedly minor one"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3/4
|
87%
|
Lilya 4-Ever (Lilja 4-ever) (2003) |
"
Lilya 4-Ever gives us a glorious, heart-wrenching debut performance in the lead, as auspicious as any in the history of cinema.""
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
94%
|
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) |
"
If this wasn't quite the best movie of 2003, it was definitely the most fun to be had at the movies all year"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
3.5/4
|
77%
|
L'Auberge Espagnole (Pot Luck)(Euro Pudding)(The Spanish Apartment) (2003) |
"
fun, irresistibly charming and very genuinely felt"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
4/4
|
98%
|
The Manchurian Candidate (1962) |
"
With spry editing and camerawork, [Frankenheimer] fuses together a documentary-like realism and more expressive stylizations to create a hybrid thriller-satire"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
|
2.5/4
|
81%
|
Live Free or Die Hard (2007) |
"
Fred Flinstone in the land of the Jetsons"
—
Cinema Writer
Posted Aug 17, 2010
|
72%
21%
63%
85%
46%
40%
