Tomato |
2012 (2009) |
"It's over two-and-a-half hours of Roland Emmerich simulating the experience of the "ID4" dog outrunning the fireball. It's slaphappy ludicrousness taken to an epic level." |
Dan Fienberg |
Tomato |
Adventureland (2009) |
""Adventureland" is the sort of film that seems simultaneously slavishly derivative of countless other coming-of-age stories, but also admirably personal and specific." |
Dan Fienberg |
Tomato |
Adventureland (2009) |
"Thanks to the talented ensemble cast and Mottola's deft touch with tone, this isn't just some teen comedy aiming at the easy set piece or the gross-out gag." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
Art & Copy (2009) |
"It's indispensable." |
Dan Fienberg |
- |
Avatar (2009) |
"Avatar Picks Up Golden Globes Buzz" |
|
Tomato |
Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans (2009) |
"Because so much of the film is 'Oh, no, he's not really going to do that OH YES HE IS!' fun, it's impressive when Herzog suddenly starts taking it all seriously." |
Drew McWeeny |
- |
Battlestar Galactica (1978) |
"Bryan Singer Boarding Battlestar Galactica?" |
|
Tomato |
Best Worst Movie (2009) |
"'Best Worst Movie' is as much about our reasons for loving movies as 'Cinema Paradiso' was." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
The Blind Side (2009) |
"The film is played with a focus on low-key charm and quiet drama, and there's a warm, human sense of humor." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
The Box (2009) |
"Steven Poster's chilly photography, the Bernard Hermann-esque score by the Arcade Fire, the quiet malice of Frank Langella... knowing that these things lie within 'The Box,' why wouldn't you take a chance and open it?" |
Drew McWeeny |
- |
Bruno (2009) |
"Is Anyone Really Upset by Bruno?" |
|
Tomato |
Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (2009) |
"I'm curious to see how it pays off. I think I would like a sequel, but I'd like to see it played looser, see more of the world they've created." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs (2009) |
"Lord & Miller have found a way to make smart film about our culture of excess without losing the massive pancakes, swimming pools of nacho cheese and tornados of pasta." |
Dan Fienberg |
- |
Cloverfield (2008) |
"Abrams Plots Cloverfield Sequel-Type Thing" |
|
- |
Comic-Con 2009 |
"Multiple Twilight Events Scheduled for Comic-Con" |
|
Tomato |
Crazy Heart (2009) |
"Crazy Heart is quiet, gentle, heart-bruised more than heart-broken, and it lingers in the memory after you've seen it, like a song you can't get out of your head." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
Disney's A Christmas Carol (2009) |
"If Disney invested in this because they were hoping for an annual re-release and an easy cash cow every time the season rolls around, I think they'll be disappointed." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
District 9 (2009) |
"... the last time I saw a genre film that felt like this much of a stick-the-landing home run was 'Shaun Of The Dead'... a smart, visceral sci-fi parable." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
Duplicity (2009) |
"[Tony] Gilroy may have taken his time honing his voice as a filmmaker, but there's little doubt that he's got it down to a science at this point." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
The Escapist (2009) |
"By keeping the focus on the humanity, Rupert Wyatt makes a strong debut as a writer/director here, and his film's got a great sense of low-budget style." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
Extract (2009) |
"'Extract' isn't the sort of film you'll rant and rave about, but none of Judge's movies inspire that sort of mania. Instead, it's just a well-realized minor-key pleasure." |
Drew McWeeny |
Splat |
Fame (2009) |
"The devotion to the PG rating is damning, because 8 p.m. shows airing on ABC Family can be edgier and more topical than the new "Fame."" |
Dan Fienberg |
Tomato |
Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) |
"With 'Fantastic Mr. Fox,' no matter how real and three-dimensional the emotional underpinnings of the film, it is always, always, always moment-to-moment hilarious." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009) |
"'G.I. Joe: The Rise Of Cobra' is... a summer movie, through and through, pure pulp preposterousness, one of the most successful little-boy adventure movies in a long time." |
Drew McWeeny |
Splat |
Gamer (2009) |
"It should be ridiculously easy to have fun with a concept like this, but the joyless, coarse, bordering-on-hostile way this whole thing is put together just smacks of contempt for not only the audience, but storytelling in general." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard (2009) |
"'The Goods' isn't going to revolutionize comedy, but it does exactly what a good comedy should: it focuses on laughs above all else." |
Drew McWeeny |
- |
The Green Hornet (2010) |
"Rogen's Green Hornet Kaput?" |
|
- |
Hancock (2008) |
"Don't Hold Your Breath for Hancock 2" |
|
Tomato |
The Hangover (2009) |
""The Hangover" pretty much demands you leave your Political Correctness Cap at home and urges you to eschew your Thinking Cap as well." |
Dan Fienberg |
Tomato |
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) |
"This is absolutely the best of the Harry Potter films so far." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
The House of the Devil (2009) |
"Ti West has been building a reputation among horror fans as an expert in the art of the slow burn, and more power to him for exhibiting something that seems to be increasingly rare in filmmakers in any genre: patience." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
I Love You, Beth Cooper (2009) |
"In its best moments, [it] proves to be more knowing about relationships and love than most movies of its ilk, and for those moments, I would say it's worth your time." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
I Love You, Man (2009) |
"It's a smart comedy with plenty of broad, outrageous moments to keep things light." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
Inglourious Basterds (2009) |
"In an age when everyone rushes to remake old movies and old TV shows and comic books and toys and whatever, Quentin [Tarantino] decided to remake World War II. And this time? It ends right." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
The Invention of Lying (2009) |
"The Invention Of Lying is the smartest comedy of the year, and each and every laugh lands like a punch, bruising even as it entertains." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
Invictus (2009) |
"It never hammers at its audience, which would have been incredibly easy to do with material like this. Eastwood's touch is exactly what this subject matter needed." |
Drew McWeeny |
Splat |
Land of the Lost (2009) |
"You sit for long stretches where set pieces fail on every level and then laugh at a PG-13-skirting entendre or an strange reference or a rambling bit of improv from McBride" |
Dan Fienberg |
Splat |
Love Happens (2009) |
"More truthful (equally generic) titles might include: "Death Happens," "Psychobabble Happens" or "Lazy Screenwriters Make Love Happen Even If The Leads Have No Chemistry"" |
Dan Fienberg |
Tomato |
The Lovely Bones (2009) |
"Peter Jackson rounds out a fairly amazing decade as a filmmaker by anyone's standards with this sad, dreamy, hopeful film that defies easy genre classification or even summary." |
Drew McWeeny |
Splat |
Michael Jackson's This Is It (2009) |
"'This Is It' is a film about a missed opportunity, and is also a missed opportunity itself... a curiosity, rushed into theaters, casually stitched together, and utterly forgettable." |
Drew McWeeny |
Splat |
Nine (2009) |
"Nine is the movie that the detractors of Chicago accused it of being." |
Drew McWeeny |
Splat |
Old Dogs (2009) |
"If Old Dogs were a person, I would stab it in the face." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
Paranormal Activity (2009) |
"This is a strong movie that should please both hardcore horror fans and casual viewers equally, something that's very difficult to do." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire (2009) |
"Lee Daniels has made a movie that offers up the absolute worst in an effort to illuminate the need for the absolute best... a film of genuine substance, one you should see for yourself." |
Drew McWeeny |
Tomato |
Public Enemies (2009) |
"Michael Mann is our poet laureate of bank robbery." |
Drew McWeeny |
- |
Richard Pryor - Live in Concert (1979) |
"Marlon Wayans in Talks for Richard Pryor Biopic" |
|
- |
Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World (2009) |
"Kieran Culkin vs. the World" |
|
- |
Spider-Man 4 (2009) |
"Spider-Man 5 and 6 Moving Forward" |
|
- |
Sundance Film Festival 2009 |
"Joseph Gordon-Levitt Counts 500 Days of Summer" |
|
Splat |
The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (2009) |
"Where the movie can't quite deliver is in... some third act choices... that seem to be motivated by the servicing of movie star egos instead of story sense or character reality." |
Drew McWeeny |
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