|
75%
|
Norwegian Wood (2012)
|
"... suffused in melancholia, with imagery as delicate as the lives it presents and atmospheres so fragile they look like they'd shatter under too much emotional pressure. "
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
26%
|
Underworld Awakening (2012)
|
"... a blur of generic exposition, random plot twists, vaguely maternal instincts, sloppy CGI animation, and Stephen Rea looking like a waxwork ..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
64%
|
The Front Line (2012)
|
"The themes and characters are right out of any number of classic war movies, but... the frontline culture, so at odds with military discipline and command, is fascinating."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
80%
|
Haywire (2012)
|
"... we just wait for her to click back into fight mode. Her body language tells us more about her character than any dialogue exchange."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
75%
|
Walking Tall (1973)
|
"... the film was a sensation, becoming a big hit and spawning a whole industry of southern-fried vigilante lawman action pictures."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
68%
|
Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)
|
"... is one of the funniest comedies of its time, a veritable live-action cartoon from Joe Dante at his most unrestrained. "
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
61%
|
Mimic (1997)
|
"It comes off smarter and creepier than I recall the original, less about scares than a sustained atmosphere of eerie unease and skittery threats."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Cinema Verite (2012)
|
"... an engaging and accomplished production and its coda offers yet another perspective on the show, the controversy, and the complexity of the characters ..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
50%
|
Camelot (1967)
|
"... considered a classic by many and a disaster by others. I'm in that other camp."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
The Last of the Mohicans (1936)
|
"... an exciting and involving screen version, with Scott as a strong-willed but civilized Hawkeye ..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
100%
|
Le Voyage dans la lune (A Trip to the Moon) (1999)
|
"... a work of pure, playful imagination, a picture-book fantasy brought to life with intricate, hand-painted sets and a whimsical portrait of science as wizardry by way of the industrial revolution ..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
91%
|
Into The Abyss (2011)
|
"It is also a devastating portrait of the culture of crime, drug and alcohol abuse, and broken families ..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
98%
|
A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
|
"... a Hollywood landmark, both for pushing the envelope of subject matter allowed on screen by the censors and for showcasing the more naturalistic "method" approach to performance ..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
The Corsican Brothers (1941)
|
"Fairbanks' athletic energy and flamboyant performance enlivens the film and excellent photographic effects create a seamless look to the scenes where the brothers interact..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
71%
|
Soylent Green (1973)
|
"Where so many science fiction visions of the era have dated, this gritty creation of a depressed (and depressing) future... looks all the more real."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
85%
|
King of Kings (1961)
|
"... whereas detractors dismissed the films as I Was a Teenage Jesus, it's more accurate to describe it as Rebel With a Cause. "
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Il Profumo della Signora in Nero (The Perfume of the Lady in Black) (1974)
|
"... the hall of mirrors reflecting reality and fantasy back on one another is part of the fun and the Satanic reverberations of the conspiratorial climax only adds to the mystery."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
67%
|
BMX Bandits (1983)
|
"... Trenchard-Smith directs the BMX action with high energy and gets a lot of personality and camaraderie from the teen actors."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
20%
|
The Tourist (2010)
|
"... somehow this lavish light thriller stumbles through the set pieces and bobbles the star chemistry."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
40%
|
Sharktopus (2010)
|
"Absurdly-titled, cheaply produced and executed with tongue firmly in cheek ..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
The Two Mrs. Carrolls (1947)
|
"... a handsomely mounted and nicely acted piece, especially when the two Hollywood greats share the screen."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Finishing School (1934)
|
"The film feels like it was developed as a saucy comedy for the pre-code era worked over to meet the new requirements of the Production Code."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
100%
|
Two Weeks in Another Town (1962)
|
"Both intimate and outsized, it's a strange product of the era, a Hollywood white elephant of a movie straddling self-awareness and self-parody ..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
43%
|
Ong Bak 3 (2011)
|
"... a mix of action spectacle, period detail, hero's odyssey cliché and narrative incoherence, directed with a soberly serious, mannered grandiosity..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
96%
|
The Social Network (2010)
|
"Directed with typical technical fastidiousness and textural richness by David Fincher from a verbally dexterous script by Aaron Sorkin..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
80%
|
Cyrus (2010)
|
"... has the dubious distinction of being the first mumblecore comedy to come out of a major studio, complete with an A-list cast."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
76%
|
Let it Rain (Parlez-moi de la pluie) (2010)
|
"For all the affairs, the jealousy, the self-involvement and the obliviousness of some characters, these are lives in lower case..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
55%
|
Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010)
|
"[Oliver] Stone uses a lot of visual effects to give some energy to a very conventional story..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Scooby-Doo ()
|
"If you grew up with Scooby and the gang, these original episodes are like a nostalgia train to Saturday morning yesteryear..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Fire & Ice: The Dragon Chronicles (2008)
|
"It's basically a 21st century Godzilla movie in medieval fashions, but without the fun of suitmation effects and physical puppets. "
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
41%
|
The Expendables (2010)
|
"... a perfectly enjoyable mercenaries-on-a-mission-of-redemption adventure with a mix of testosterone-fueled camaraderie and this-time-it's-personal seriousness."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
71%
|
Valhalla Rising (2010)
|
"Directed in moody and portentous strokes by Nicolas Winding Refn, this is the most abstract Viking movie you'll ever see..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
55%
|
La Siciliana Ribelle (The Sicilian Girl) (2010)
|
"... manages to combine mob opera with true crime to tell the story of Sicilian mob culture from the inside."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
52%
|
Knight & Day (2010)
|
"It's the Hitchcockian "wrong man" theme played as a Hollywood action lark, all momentum and spectacle and no mortal risk or moral confusion..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Superman/Shazam! The Return of Black Adam (2010)
|
"... a fine film, if a little stunted in scope for such a significant story, with the same high level of production values seen in earlier animated shorts release by Warner..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale (2009)
|
"Richard Shepard profiles this actor's actor, a New York stage veteran who worked with and earned the respect of some of the greatest actors of his generation..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
80%
|
The Battle of the River Plate (Pursuit of the Graf Spee) (1956)
|
"The miniature work is excellent and physical production impressive even as the filmmakers constantly deny the spectacle of battle to focus on the people..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Metropia (2010)
|
"Corporate conspiracy, urban alienation and mind control through shampoo are stirred up in Tarik Saleh's animated science fiction dystopia..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
95%
|
Best Worst Movie (2010)
|
"Whether or not you believe Troll 2 is the single worst film ever made... any fan of so-bad-it's-good cinema will appreciate this loving tribute"
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
91%
|
Who is Harry Nilsson (And Why is Everybody Talkin' About Him)? (2010)
|
"John Sheinfeld's portrait revisits the man, the artist and the reputation, with a wealth of TV performance clips and interviews with friends, family and colleagues..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
90%
|
Winnebago Man (2010)
|
"What makes the film so enjoyable is how it keeps defying expectations in its survey of the rough edges, sharp mind and iconoclastic personality..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Searchers 2.0 (2007)
|
"... a shaggy little thing, sloppy at times and pitted with awkward political statements, but at its best filled with Cox's askew humor and unexpected digressions..."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Score (1973)
|
"Shot in location in Europe at a gorgeous little seaside village, Radley Metzger's stylish 1972 soft core erotica combines a playful cinematic style with a cool European sensibility."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Psychomania (1971)
|
"Hammer films veteran Don Sharp is saddled with a silly script and an odd fit... and can't decide whether to play the goofy script straight or for gallows humor."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
66%
|
Wild Grass (Les Herbes Folles) (2010)
|
"... a delightful reminder of the romantic streak and cinematic whimsy still in this 88-year-old cinema elder."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
91%
|
The Secret in Their Eyes (El Secreto de Sus Ojos) (2010)
|
"It's a handsome production with a story rooted in the nasty past of political fascism, which may explain why it won, because it sure isn't subtle or dramatically challenging."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Prime Suspect: The Complete Collection (2010)
|
"... Mirren commands the role of Tennison with authority, intelligence, and a touch of over-achieving desperation, while revealing a private life unraveling under the pressure."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
——
|
Apache Rifles (1964)
|
"This cut-rate 1964 western,... shows off [William] Witney's talent for creating dynamic dramas with highly-charged conflicts on a budget. "
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
26%
|
The Loss of a Teardrop Diamond (2009)
|
"The words drip with affectation (as do the actors) and Jodie Mankell's direction is dipped in southern gothic honey and glazed over with period sprinkles."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
|
82%
|
Solitary Man (2010)
|
"... [Michael] Douglas never drops the charm or the confidence, his greed or lust or simple arrogance pumping up beyond caring when confronted with his own sleaze."
|
Sean Axmaker
|
73%
21%
63%
85%
46%
40%
