Alan Zilberman
Alan Zilberman's reviews only count toward the Tomatometer when
published at the following Tomatometer-approved publication(s):
Washington Post,
Washington City Paper
| Publications: | Washington Post, Washington City Paper |
Movie Reviews Only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
|---|---|---|---|
| 86% | It Comes At Night (2017) |
After the success of recent low-budget horror films like Split and Get Out, It Comes at Night is far more demanding, even brazen.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Jun 9, 2017
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| 2.5/4 | 95% | Stefan Zweig: Farewell to Europe (2017) |
As Zweig, Hader never offers a note of regret or terror. Instead, his performance is mannered and steadfast, evoking a man who trusts that humanity will survive fascism.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Jun 8, 2017
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| 92% | Wonder Woman (2017) |
With a story that moves at a steady clip and action that threads the needle between realism and supernatural exaggeration, Wonder Woman is the arrival of a hero for all of us, but young women in particular.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Jun 2, 2017
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| 1.5/4 | 48% | Churchill (2017) |
Biography, at its most useful, disabuses us from myth, but "Churchill" has no such ambitions. As both history and entertainment, it's a drag.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Jun 1, 2017
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| 71% | Alien: Covenant (2017) |
The franchise took a backslide with the undercooked Prometheus, but Alien: Covenant is a welcome return to form for director Ridley Scott and the franchise.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted May 19, 2017
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| 69% | The Wall (2017) |
The Wall is a deliciously nasty film.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted May 12, 2017
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| 2/4 | 30% | 3 Generations (2017) |
"3 Generations" starts with a unique and intimate point of view, only to become yet another indie drama about the difficulties of motherhood.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted May 11, 2017
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| 81% | Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017) |
If the first Guardians of the Galaxy is about bizarre heroes developing chemistry, then the sequel is a showcase for them as individuals.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted May 5, 2017
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| 3/4 | 76% | Buster's Mal Heart (2017) |
"Buster's Mal Heart" achieves resonance through repeated imagery.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted May 4, 2017
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| 88% | The Lost City of Z (2017) |
Gray's film is a grand adventure, the sort that uses classic techniques but is never old-fashioned. By letting the story speak for itself, Gray unearths the crucial difference between curiosity and dominance.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Apr 21, 2017
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| 3/4 | 85% | The Transfiguration (2017) |
This is not a horror film, exactly, but a dark drama in which a self-imposed curse is the only reprieve from a neighborhood where violence is routine.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Apr 20, 2017
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| 80% | Colossal (2017) |
There have been many recent films with giant monsters fighting each other, and Colossal is better than most because it runs in the opposite direction of grand spectacle. The stakes are more intimate, in a way, so they are also more acutely felt.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Apr 14, 2017
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| 1/4 | 16% | Mine (2017) |
"Mine" is a classic example of a high-concept film that painstakingly sets up its unusual premise, only to squander it.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Apr 6, 2017
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| 3.5/4 | 90% | Raw (2017) |
Its command of tone is constant, even in the film's darkly droll final moments, during which you may not know whether to laugh or gag.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Mar 23, 2017
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| 76% | Kong: Skull Island (2017) |
Kong: Skull Island is admirable in its desire to get right into the good stuff. ‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Mar 10, 2017
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| 3/4 | 94% | Neruda (2016) |
"Neruda" is a delightful mishmash of two disparate genres: the biopic and film noir.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Mar 9, 2017
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| 100% | My Life as a Zucchini (Ma vie de courgette) (2017) |
Kids don't always need talking animals for entertainment. The more challenging, rewarding goal is to meet children halfway, seeing them without judgment for who they are.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Mar 2, 2017
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| 98% | Moonlight (2016) |
The most remarkable thing about Moonlight is how three different actors play Kevin/Chiron, and each version adds resonance to the other two.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Feb 26, 2017
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| 83% | A United Kingdom (2017) |
A United Kingdom weaves history and character until they're one in the same, and the victories are all the more satisfying for it.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Feb 17, 2017
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| 6% | Rings (2017) |
Rings is the worst horror film in years. Unintentionally funny, with zero scares and piss poor performances, its best hope is to serve as a cautionary tale for future horror filmmakers.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Feb 3, 2017
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| 43% | Gold (2017) |
Gold suffers from a minor identity crisis. It can't decide whether it wants to be a parable, a crime drama, or an old-fashioned adventure.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Jan 26, 2017
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| 75% | Split (2017) |
It is a measure of Shyamalan's success that he finds room for so many different moods and feelings. The director may never return to his place in the film canon, but here he makes a case for a unique, intriguing new niche.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Jan 20, 2017
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| 83% | Julieta (2016) |
There are hard-learned lessons in Julieta, and they all amount to the need for empathy.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Jan 13, 2017
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| 2.5/4 | 32% | Monster Trucks (2017) |
Long after the novelty of the premise runs out of gas, it's sheer moviemaking craft that fuels this effects-driven action-family hybrid.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Jan 12, 2017
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| 81% | The Revenant (2015) |
While parts of it are thrilling, this is a bloated film by a director who is full of himself, and it shows.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Jan 10, 2017
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| 85% | Silence (2017) |
No matter the depth or absence of one's faith, this is a film that tests our biases and stirs our feelings in uncommon, profound ways.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Jan 5, 2017
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| 95% | Neither Heaven nor Earth (Ni le ciel ni la terre) (2016) |
For patient audiences who do not think in strict genre terms, there is plenty here that'll creep you out.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Jan 2, 2017
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| 71% | Another Evil (2017) |
This film could be the announcement of a major horror filmmaker.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Jan 2, 2017
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| 75% | The Eyes of My Mother (2016) |
In his directing and writing debut, Nicolas Pesce strikes a grim balance between disgust and sympathy and takes his premise to its inexorable conclusion.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Jan 2, 2017
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| 84% | Deadpool (2016) |
A more rebellious Deadpool would comment on how its climax looks just like every other Marvel climax, but instead there's safety to the tone that veers only from amusing to dull.‐ Washington City Paper
Read More | Posted Jan 2, 2017
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| 1/4 | 40% | Why Him? (2016) |
"Why Him?" has little curiosity about the impulses that drive its characters, relying instead on stale generation-gap humor.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Dec 21, 2016
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| 3/4 | 90% | Blood On The Mountain (2016) |
"Blood on the Mountain" is unapologetic about its one-sided viewpoint: the lawyers, academics and miners interviewed are all pro-union. There may be good reason.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Dec 15, 2016
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| 3/4 | 96% | Seasons (Les saisons) (2016) |
Through gorgeous cinematography and understated musical cues, Perrin and Cluzaud find a note of serenity that's notably absent from YouTube cat videos.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Nov 22, 2016
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| 2.5/4 | 94% | Being 17 (Quand on a 17 ans) (2016) |
What elevates the film is not just its beautiful setting in the French Pyrenees but also how the beautiful mountain exteriors serve as a metaphor for characters' inner lives.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Nov 10, 2016
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| 1.5/4 | 19% | Keeping Up With The Joneses (2016) |
It is the sort of inoffensive comedy that fails to evoke any strong reaction - including laughter.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Oct 20, 2016
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| 3/4 | 61% | Desierto (2016) |
Cuarón's larger point - one that he pursues with every frame - is that border crossers deserve our sympathy. They have dreams, flaws and feelings.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Oct 13, 2016
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| 1.5/4 | 84% | Kicks (2016) |
Tipping's admittedly artful style is relatively ambiguous, focusing mostly on cheap visceral thrills, to the point where it's impossible to glean what he thinks about the depths to which Brandon will go.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Sep 15, 2016
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| 3/4 | 92% | Demon (2016) |
Wrona jumbles several genres together, including dark comedy, to illuminate larger, more ambitious themes.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Sep 15, 2016
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| 2.5/4 | 88% | Other People (2016) |
Poignancy is a difficult thing to achieve, since it can come off as inauthentic or dumb. "Other People" gets there because David, Norman and Joanne do not want our pity.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Sep 8, 2016
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| 3.5/4 | 72% | My King (Mon roi) (2016) |
"My King" brims with intimate details, adding to a sense of authenticity that is rarely found in films.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Aug 25, 2016
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| 2.5/4 | 89% | Miss Sharon Jones! (2016) |
What makes "Miss Sharon Jones" most captivating is how its subject, in spite of hardship, remains a magnetic stage presence.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Aug 11, 2016
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| 2/4 | 99% | Don't Think Twice (2016) |
Paradoxically, "Don't Think Twice" feels both dramatically thin and overstuffed.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Aug 4, 2016
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| 0/4 | 4% | Hillary's America: The Secret History of the Democratic Party (2016) |
D'Souza lets scenes drag, jumping through history in ways that quash any sense of discovery and creating an overall sense of boredom.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Jul 21, 2016
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| 1.5/4 | 55% | The Purge: Election Year (2016) |
Even DeMonaco seems bored by the sieges, escapes and gun battles. Silly one-liners are the only saving grace, and that's because such acting veterans as Williamson know how to sell them.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Jun 30, 2016
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| 2.5/4 | 100% | As I AM: The Life and Times of DJ AM (2016) |
Although "As I AM" sometimes gets lost in the weeds of the club scene and Goldstein's personal entanglements, it approaches the central irony of his life with both clarity and sadness, honoring its subject with a frankness he would have appreciated.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Jun 2, 2016
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| 2/4 | 19% | Pelé: Birth of a Legend (2016) |
The story of Brazilian soccer's ascension to the world stage is a remarkable one, and the film would have benefitted if the Zimbalists had found a way to add a bit of depth - or even doubt - to the legend.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted May 19, 2016
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| 0.5/4 | 0% | Sundown (2016) |
The best thing about "Sundown" is that it's too dumb to be offensive.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted May 12, 2016
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| 1.5/4 | 56% | Sold (2016) |
"Sold" is maudlin in a way that makes its audience, paradoxically, feel good, albeit superficially. A story of human trafficking should move us on a deeper, more uncomfortable level.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Apr 21, 2016
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| 3/4 | 90% | Barbershop: The Next Cut (2016) |
Just as the men and women at Calvin's Barbershop are older and have more responsibilities, so too is "Barbershop: The Next Cut" more mature than its cinematic predecessors.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Apr 14, 2016
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| 1/4 | 33% | Ktown Cowboys (2016) |
If it's meant to disabuse us of ethnic stereotypes, it only accomplishes that by substituting one offensive caricature - man-children behaving badly - for another.‐ Washington Post
Read More | Posted Mar 17, 2016
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