|
97%
|
Gravity (2013)
|
"visually beautiful and the science for the most part seems on the money right down to how the spacesuits move in a weightless environment."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
Red Reign (2013)
|
"This is a powerful film and one of the best documentaries of the year."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
Life Tracker (2013)
|
"What the film lacks in logic and scientific plausibility it makes up for in the philosophical questions it raises."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
Lucky Express (2013)
|
"[Fischer] declares her respect for India in the closing credits, but it seems clear the Indian government should be helping these children more than they are."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
Barbarian Days ()
|
"BARBARIAN DAYS is a roughly hewn film--Damian Horan's first feature. But the subject sells itself."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
81%
|
Prisoners (2013)
|
"The plot is like a whirlpool. The more it twists the deeper it goes and the darker it gets until it has the same sense of dread as had ZODIAC and SE7EN."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
73%
|
Lee Daniels' The Butler (2013)
|
"This film is a little melodramatic, seemingly contrived and predictable, but nonetheless can deliver a strong emotional impact."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
68%
|
Elysium (2013)
|
"[Blomkamp] really needs to learn that too much action blunts his more interesting statements."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
6%
|
Evidence (2013)
|
"may lose [the] viewer before the surprises late in the film "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
82%
|
Jug Face (2013)
|
" dark and poetic horror territory"
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
Robert Williams Mr. Bitchin' (2013)
|
"a joyous introduction and a wild ride through the life and art of Robert Williams. "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
22%
|
Rushlights (2013)
|
"With more engaging leads this film might be one that people would want to see a second time--just to get straight all that happened."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
57%
|
When Comedy Went to School (2013)
|
" a delightful entertainment that packs a lot of information in entirely painlessly. This is a fun piece of history and thank goodness it is preserved in this film. "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
72%
|
Pacific Rim (2013)
|
"In many ways this is the best giant monster film ever made. And in many ways it should have been better."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
Coin Toss ()
|
"a few rough edges including some flat performances, but is also has charm and promises more from the new filmmaker"
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
67%
|
World War Z (2013)
|
"An intelligent Zombie Apocalypse film, starring Brad Pitt no less. Boy, I sure did not see that one coming."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
84%
|
Carnival of Souls (1962)
|
"What is amazing about the film CARNIVAL OF SOULS is that the cheap budget works so much in its favor. There is little unreal to get between the actors and the viewer. "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
70%
|
The Happy Poet (2013)
|
"THE HAPPY POET tells a story that could use a little more meat."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
65%
|
Nicky's Family (2013)
|
"Not as dismal as other stories from Holocaust documentaries. There are many positive notes."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
8%
|
The Stroller Strategy (2013)
|
"A script like this has dozens of possibilities, but most have been mined out by other films"
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
98%
|
Mud (2013)
|
"This is a film with a great naturalistic style and captivating performances and which does just about everything right."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
93%
|
Frances Ha (2013)
|
"This is very minimalist storytelling much of which feels improvised in front of the camera. The film is more of a character situation than a character story."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
Somewhere Tonight ()
|
"Because the overwhelming majority of the film is just phone conversation, this material almost could have been better served by being a radio drama."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
Save The Farm (2011)
|
"SAVE THE FARM is the story of an American tragedy. "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
87%
|
Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)
|
"a complex plot that manages to balance character writing with slam-bang action sequences"
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
Notre Dame de Paris (2005)
|
"a confusing hodgepodge of anachronism, revision of plot, and frustrating missed opportunities "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
89%
|
Deceptive Practice: The Mysteries and Mentors of Ricky Jay (2013)
|
"DECEPTIVE PRACTICE is a fascinating study of one man's mania to attain perfection... Ricky Jay right now has the compulsive desire to be better than his fiercest competitor, Ricky Jay of ten minutes ago."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
54%
|
Oblivion (2013)
|
"OBLIVION is a film with the look being a lot more satisfying than the thought."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
67%
|
Desperate Acts Of Magic (2013)
|
"What makes this film impressive is an unending parade of magic tricks performed by experts and filmed without editing tricks or special effects."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
36%
|
Family Weekend (2013)
|
"What Emily wants is basically a return to "Leave it to Beaver" sort of values. That may be a hard sell in the 21st Century. "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
May I Be Frank (2013)
|
"The film is unpleasant at times and also surprisingly honest where Frank is less than totally successful. But Frank's positive personality shines through."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
89%
|
Hava Nagila: The Movie (2013)
|
"As one interviewee says the song "is a melody that evokes new life, hope, and joy." The song does that and so does HAVA NAGILA (THE MOVIE)."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
83%
|
From Up On Poppy Hill (2013)
|
"The film has charm but overall is a little slight. "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
80%
|
Quartet (2013)
|
"Dustin Hoffman, directing a film for the first time, gives us a film as comfortable as an old stuffed chair."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
14%
|
A Good Day To Die Hard (2013)
|
"has charm and promises more from the new filmmaker"
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
84%
|
Side Effects (2013)
|
"surprisingly complex medical thriller "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
92%
|
Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
|
"There is some charm to the story, but the final act is very neat, predictable, contrived, and not up to originality of the first two. "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
Superpower (2008)
|
"Sometimes the most stringent argument is not the most effective one."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
——
|
Dirty Energy (2013)
|
"While missing fair representation of British Petroleum, the unrepaired ravages of the disaster are shocking and underscore the need for effective regulation of the petroleum industry."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
89%
|
Koch (2013)
|
"While the structure and style of the film are not particularly inventive, the film is a good background on the issues."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
88%
|
Django Unchained (2012)
|
"While a little overblown and overly long, a wide range of people will find at least something to like here."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
83%
|
Uprising (2013)
|
"The story is uplifting but overshadowed by more recent events in Egypt."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
70%
|
Les Misérables (2012)
|
"Spectacular, sweeping, and poignant. It covers nearly the entire emotional spectrum possible."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
81%
|
The Impossible (2012)
|
"disaster film done as well as one can be done"
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
65%
|
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
|
"Visually it is sometimes amazing, but it is a large troll step down from the last trilogy."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
63%
|
Hitchcock (2012)
|
"Like an episode of Hitchcock's TV show, HITCHCOCK is entertaining but not great art. "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
64%
|
Anna Karenina (2012)
|
"Stoppard's touches serve only to pull the viewer away from the story and act as a distraction. "
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
87%
|
Life of Pi (2012)
|
"a visual feast, well acted and with very fine use of 3D, but the story itself does not reach profundity and instead seems flat and a little pretentious."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
89%
|
Lincoln (2012)
|
"Spielberg respects his audience's intelligence enough to tell the complex story and maintain a great deal of historical accuracy."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
|
92%
|
Skyfall (2012)
|
"This is a strong, fast, and sexy action story that gives us something different from the Bond films we have seen before."
|
Mark R. Leeper
|
