|
75%
|
The Way Back (2011)
|
"a solid, resonant meditation on survival, on hope, on the value of life in the face of implacable hostility, portrayed memorably by an excellent cast and [Director] Weir's vast, brutal, awe-inspiring landscapes"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
93%
|
Zero Dark Thirty (2013)
|
"Purely as cinematic exercise, Zero Dark Thirty is an exhilarating piece of work. But, beyond its for-the-times subject matter, the work does not linger whatsoever."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
65%
|
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
|
"a drag-down, mildly diverting entertainment"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
92%
|
Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
|
"delivers the kind of sharply timed laughs that Sturges and Wilder would've appreciated"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
89%
|
Lincoln (2012)
|
"There is directorial mastery here, and, even for those like me for whom the power of Lincoln is a percolating realization, one thing is certain: The performance by Daniel Day-Lewis is astonishing."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
78%
|
Flight (2012)
|
"As A-list substance-abuse melodramas go, this one lands safely enough."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
92%
|
Skyfall (2012)
|
"Who pays the price for Skyfall? Bond fans do, of course. But so does Daniel Craig. He's not going to be around forever - not in this shape, anyway."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
90%
|
Moon (2009)
|
"Intriguing, imaginative, and thematically ambitious, Moon gives ample proof that Jones is a serious talent, pushing his concepts into intellectually and spiritually challenging territory."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
93%
|
Looper (2012)
|
"Looper is among the cleverest, most skillfully crafted and entertaining sci-fi thrillers of the past 20 years. "
|
Jay Antani
|
|
96%
|
Argo (2012)
|
"Argo is among the worthiest spy thrillers to come out of Hollywood in years, and it puts to rest (at least for this reviewer) any doubts over Affleck's chops as a smart, shrewd director of consistently topnotch fare. "
|
Jay Antani
|
|
81%
|
Mr. Arkadin (Confidential Report) (1962)
|
"a mesmerizing experience, a schizoid crime caper that's half-potboiler and half-reverie"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
94%
|
Hugo (2011)
|
"the most soulful, most personal fiction film in [Scorsese's] career"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
85%
|
Chronicle (2012)
|
"an enjoyable spin through the tropes of the superhero origin story"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
79%
|
The Grey (2012)
|
"Aside from Neeson's top-caliber performance...the movie's got several excellent set pieces..."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
87%
|
The Ground Truth (2006)
|
"perhaps the most important protest statement yet committed to film since the outbreak of [the Iraq War]"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
87%
|
Jesus Camp (2006)
|
"Jesus Camp doesn't just preach to the converted, it bores and frightens them."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
23%
|
Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010)
|
"The occasional flashes of imagination aside, "Afterlife" epitomizes what movies written largely by software and marketing committees look like"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
86%
|
Le refuge (Hideaway (Le refuge)) (2010)
|
"Ozon masks his lack of sensitivity to the material with his characteristic cerebral detachment and pretense to subtlety."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
50%
|
Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (2010)
|
"the story's inherent sense of fantasy and genuinely felt moments of exhilaration...and danger...keeps us engaged - for a time, at least"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
43%
|
Barry Munday (2010)
|
"D'Arienzo's screenplay and direction goes for a cross between naturalism and absurdity, but it's largely a queasy, oil-and-water blend. "
|
Jay Antani
|
|
98%
|
Inside Job (2010)
|
"As a documentary, this is a clear-eyed, steadily building prosecution against Wall Street. But, in the end, Ferguson's film is just a moot trial in which the defendants have already escaped scot-free."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
72%
|
Red (2010)
|
"The cast's efforts go about halfway to compensating for Red's lack of inspiration elsewhere. "
|
Jay Antani
|
|
50%
|
Cool It (2010)
|
"That this documentary is solution-oriented rather than fear-oriented as so many recent ones...have been is itself a reason for touting it."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
32%
|
How Do You Know (2010)
|
"What happened to James L. Brooks? "
|
Jay Antani
|
|
70%
|
Mumbai Diaries (2011)
|
"a refreshing, well-meaning entry in India's new brand of globally savvy cinema, [which] augurs exciting things from [director] Rao and her peers"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
87%
|
The Last Lions (2011)
|
"an extraordinary achievement"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
68%
|
Black Death (2011)
|
"Bean owns this movie."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
37%
|
I Am (2011)
|
"a well-meaning metaphysical inquiry that hits all the right sentiments but manages precious little substance"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
83%
|
Potiche (2011)
|
"Catherine Deneuve continues her run as world cinema's most gracefully aging actress."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
17%
|
Miral (2011)
|
"Miral overrides its screenwriting flaws with Schnabel's uncanny sense of film art."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
82%
|
Wretches & Jabberers (2011)
|
"It's by engaging with all these extraordinary people that the film's beauty reveals itself."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
83%
|
The Double Hour (2011)
|
"most of The Double Hour doesn't really need to exist in order for the viewer to process the impact of the finale"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
48%
|
Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen (2011)
|
"Adroit editing, camerawork and staging keep in step with Yen's formidable martial arts mastery, showcasing a talent on par with Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and Jet Li."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
59%
|
The First Grader (2011)
|
"achieves a poignant, humanist sincerity"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
63%
|
True Legend (2011)
|
"suffers from an erratic narrative pace, shoddy characters and an overuse of digital gimmickry, all of which create the impression of an ersatz epic spectacle"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
80%
|
The Last Mountain (2011)
|
"trenchant, impassioned"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
57%
|
Film socialisme (2011)
|
"likely to be an unbearable experience for anyone other than for Godard himself and his most hardcore adherents"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
92%
|
Senna (2011)
|
"Senna stands as a triumph of [its makers'] knack for story craft and their ability to sort through a staggering volume of material and piece it together into a unified, powerful narrative."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
84%
|
A Better Life (2011)
|
"The silver lining is an excellent lead performance from Bichir. "
|
Jay Antani
|
|
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"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
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."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
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."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
96%
|
Born Into Brothels: Calcutta's Red Light Kids (2004)
|
"an absorbing journey over gritty social terrain, driven by a fierce sense of purpose"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
90%
|
DiG! (2004)
|
"fulfills the function and promise of all great documentaries"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
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."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
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."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
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."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
100%
|
The Treasure of the Sierra Madre (1948)
|
"an all-time masterpiece of characterization, structure, pacing and storytelling in general"
|
Jay Antani
|
|
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."
|
Jay Antani
|
|
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"
|
Jay Antani
|
76%
44%
100%
85%
45%
40%
