San Jose Mercury News

Rating Title | Year Quote Author
22%

The Hangover Part III (2013)

"Phillips has lost all of the sharp humor, keen sense of debauchery and still plain fun that marked the original."

Charlie McCollum

87%

Star Trek Into Darkness (2013)

"Abrams gets considerable help from a cast who go after their roles with great zest."

Charlie McCollum

50%

The Great Gatsby (2013)

"It is DiCaprio who really burrows into the soul and the marrow of a classic. Luhrmann just grazes it."

Randy Myers

78%

Iron Man 3 (2013)

"It's decent popcorn entertainment -- just fine for the summertime, but nothing more than that."

Charlie McCollum

55%

Oblivion (2013)

"The mix of gee-whiz gadgetry and the day-to-day routineness of Jack and Victoria's lives is interesting enough, but the film is too glacially paced for it to work."

Randy Myers

77%

42 (2013)

"If you want a sense of a true all-American hero, this film is a fine place to start."

Charlie McCollum

93%

The Sapphires (2013)

""The Sapphires" is a bit like a puppy you're trying to house break. It may have its bad cinematic moments but it's just so darn appealing that you have to love it."

Charlie McCollum

47%

Olympus Has Fallen (2013)

"There's no reason to overthink this. Just leave your brain at the lobby and enjoy 2013's most entertaining thriller yet."

Randy Myers

37%

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (2013)

"There's no question that you will laugh at times throughout "Burt Wonderstone." But if you are looking for something truly magical, you will come away disappointed."

Charlie McCollum

59%

Oz the Great and Powerful (2013)

"Oz the Great and Powerful is entirely serviceable family entertainment. Problem is, serviceable doesn't quite cut it when you're talking about the magical land of Oz."

Randy Myers

52%

Jack the Giant Slayer (2013)

"This grotesque world is imaginatively, magically rendered with heavy stone architecture and a dreary lack of adornment. It's such an intriguing place that you wouldn't mind staying a bit longer."

Randy Myers

85%

Side Effects (2013)

"A doozy of a Hitchcockian thriller with Jude Law, Rooney Mara and Catherine Zeta-Jones, Effects is a go-for-broke valentine to '80s cinematic psychological potboilers."

Randy Myers

32%

Gangster Squad (2013)

"As they'd say back in the day: Sweetheart, give me rewrite."

Randy Myers

93%

Amour (2012)

"A wrenching film that is sure to bring tears -- a lot of tears -- to your eyes and manages, in many ways, to affirm that love is worth sharing and life is worth living even in the most final of days."

Charlie McCollum

69%

Les Misérables (2012)

"It's hard to resist the movie's wrenching sense of intimacy."

Karen D'Souza

65%

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)

"In a bit of irony, Bilbo Baggins says at the end of the movie: "I do believe the worst is behind us." We can only hope so."

Charlie McCollum

75%

Killing Them Softly (2012)

"The scenes between Pitt and Gandolfini are the highlights of "Killing," with the two actors pivoting off each other with the ease and precision of gymnasts."

Randy Myers

63%

Hitchcock (2012)

"Hitchcock once famously said that a good filmmaker should always "always make the audience suffer as much as possible." I don't think he meant the kind of suffering "Hitchcock" inflicts on its audience."

Charlie McCollum

13%

Red Dawn (2012)

"Remaking an old film is rarely a good idea, but sometimes the idea is so spectacularly bad that the reasoning behind it defies all comprehension."

Charlie McCollum

88%

Life of Pi (2012)

"With "Life of Pi," Lee outdoes himself visually, without a doubt setting a new standard for 3-D, a technology Hollywood has mostly abused with crass recklessness."

Randy Myers

48%

The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 (2012)

"Rather than repeat past mistakes by handling author Stephenie Meyer's supernatural love story with kid gloves, this "Twilight" cuts loose and is as playful as a puppy."

Randy Myers

92%

Silver Linings Playbook (2012)

""Playbook" walks a tightrope in how it portrays mental illness -- deriving humor out of its characters' actions while demonstrating just how deep-rooted their problems are."

Randy Myers

89%

Lincoln (2012)

"One of the finest historical dramas ever committed to film. It's a triumph for Spielberg, Kushner and, most of all, Day-Lewis."

Charlie McCollum

92%

Skyfall (2012)

"This is a brilliant reboot of the canon, mixing a sense of melancholy, the shock of changing times and the darkness of loss with thrillingly staged chase and fight scenes and clever references to all that has come before."

Charlie McCollum

86%

Wreck-it Ralph (2012)

"It's a fine piece of moviemaking that has a little something for kids who don't remember when games were played in arcades and adults who will delight in the tweaking of a bygone era."

Charlie McCollum

33%

Chasing Mavericks (2012)

""Chasing Mavericks" ... trained its glossy, big-budget Hollywood lens on the surfing culture and did something unheard of: It got it right."

Mark Conley

67%

Cloud Atlas (2012)

""Cloud Atlas" is a film where the creators' admirable reach exceeds their grasp. You may be getting six films for the cost of one, but it may not really be worth the price."

Charlie McCollum

100%

The Waiting Room (2012)

""The Waiting Room" doesn't have [the] answers, but it does tap into the heart and soul of what's so critically at stake."

Randy Myers

96%

Argo (2012)

"Affleck captures not just the way we looked and acted during this era, but vividly brings history to life."

Randy Myers

87%

Frankenweenie (2012)

"If dark and twisted is how you like your Burton movies, you're in luck."

Randy Myers

93%

Looper (2012)

""Looper" is a superior genre film, an engrossing thriller that engages not only the senses, but our minds as well, just as good sci-fi should do."

Randy Myers

51%

Trouble with the Curve (2012)

""Trouble with the Curve" may not be the Game 6 of the 1975 World Series, but it's a fine afternoon or evening at the ballpark."

Charlie McCollum

86%

The Master (2012)

"The first time watching is like breezing past a piece of beautiful art, being stunned, uncertain and intrigued by it. The second time can only encourage more interpretation, reflection and understanding."

Randy Myers

90%

Keep the Lights On (2012)

"Sachs makes us feel the struggle as he exposes raw, complex emotions while avoiding clichés."

Randy Myers

22%

The Words (2012)

"It becomes preoccupied with exploring its fiction vs. reality theme and connecting the dots of its many plot strands at the expense of character development."

Randy Myers

85%

Sleepwalk With Me (2012)

"It is a likable, warm film that brings a welcome reassurance: Even if you fail spectacularly as a comedian or as a human being, it really can turn out OK in the end."

Charlie McCollum

76%

Premium Rush (2012)

"A snappy, fast-paced thriller that provides a genuine rush to close out the summer. Even if you prefer four wheels over two, you're in for a pulse-pounding time."

Randy Myers

87%

ParaNorman (2012)

"It delivers a potent, multipronged fable that touches on meaty themes, from bullying to dealing with death. It also delivers an especially resonant message about not succumbing to a cult of fear."

Randy Myers

65%

The Campaign (2012)

"It revels in showing the absurdity of politics as usual, touching on gaffes and scandals we all know too well."

Randy Myers

74%

Hope Springs (2012)

"It's going for the truth in people's lives and, for the most part, it finds it."

Charlie McCollum

31%

Total Recall (2012)

"After a rousing setup, this visually striking remake falls back much too heavily on its action roots, with one chase scene after another and another. After a while, it's tedious."

Randy Myers

16%

The Watch (2012)

"Fortunately, everyone in the cast steps up to the plate and tags the bases convincingly."

Randy Myers

87%

The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

"As a cop tells a younger partner when Batman first reappears, "Boy, you're in for a show tonight, son." And, indeed, it's been quite a show."

Charlie McCollum

51%

Savages (2012)

"With "Savages," Stone gets his mojo back and pulp-fiction fans are all the better for it."

Randy Myers

86%

Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012)

"In filmmaking, as in Hushpuppy's world, everything must fit together just right. And in "Beasts of the Southern Wild," everything does."

Charlie McCollum

73%

The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)

"Even though the story is familiar it's hand to not get drawn into its own unique web."

Randy Myers

80%

Magic Mike (2012)

"For those who want to surrender to a good time, let these well-drawn fellas and Soderbergh's attention to detail entertain you."

Randy Myers

43%

To Rome with Love (2012)

"If you're expecting another "Midnight in Paris" -- and you may well in the first moments of the new film -- you will be disappointed."

Charlie McCollum

35%

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2012)

""Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter," which boasts one of the best film titles ever, just grazes its target."

Randy Myers

78%

Brave (2012)

"A good, often entertaining work that kids will love."

Charlie McCollum

Help | About | Jobs | Critics Submission | API | Licensing | Mobile