David Gritten
David Gritten's reviews only count toward the Tomatometer when
published at the following Tomatometer-approved publication(s):
Independent (UK),
Daily Telegraph (UK)
| Publications: | Independent (UK), Daily Telegraph (UK) |
Movie Reviews Only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
|---|---|---|---|
| 82% | The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976) |
One has to say this for The Man Who Fell to Earth: such a bold, imaginative work would never get made in today's fettered, cautious film industry, either here or in America. Roeg's work may have its faults - but its ambition is beyond reproach.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Jan 13, 2016
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| 4/5 | 95% | The King's Speech (2010) |
It's an uplifting audience pleaser that also showcases film-making arts and crafts at an exalted level.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Feb 20, 2015
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| 86% | Hellboy II: The Golden Army (Hellboy 2) (2008) |
Clearly, such material appeals primarily to teenage fanboys, but del Toro's dark humour broadens its scope.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Dec 8, 2014
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| 49% | Saw (2004) |
[A] contrived, unlovable gore-fest with a high-concept premise.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Oct 27, 2014
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| 5/5 | 92% | The Lives of Others (2006) |
Reopens our eyes to the cruelties and soul assassinations that were carried out daily in the name of state socialism.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 26, 2014
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| 3/5 | 53% | Fading Gigolo (2014) |
It's one of Allen's best film roles in years; acting in someone else's movie, he looks liberated, with a spring in his step: at one point, he almost skips his way through a scene.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted May 22, 2014
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| 4/5 | 96% | Particle Fever (2014) |
Where it excels is in depicting the various personalities involved.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Mar 3, 2014
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| 4/5 | 80% | Mr. Peabody & Sherman (2014) |
It's sweet-natured and amusing, with a story to captivate kids; yet the script has enough witty touches to keep adults laughing too.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Feb 5, 2014
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| 3/5 | 94% | Her (2013) |
Her is a strikingly inventive work, and Jonze (who also wrote its script) once again shows his flair for approaching big ideas from oblique angles.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Jan 10, 2014
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| 4/5 | 90% | Guys and Dolls (1955) |
Brando wasn't producer Sam Goldwyn's first choice as Sky (that was Gene Kelly) but he acquits himself outstandingly.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Dec 24, 2013
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| 4/5 | 78% | Saving Mr. Banks (2013) |
Smart, witty entertainment. Job done. Spit spot.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Oct 21, 2013
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| 4/5 | No Score Yet | Very Extremely Dangerous (2012) |
Can such a lost soul ever be redeemed? Duane skilfully leaves it to the end to suggest an answer. This is eerily watchable ...‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Oct 17, 2013
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| 1/5 | 31% | Not Another Happy Ending (2013) |
The film's ending was indeed a happy moment, but not in the intended manner.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Oct 11, 2013
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| 4/5 | 100% | Which Way Is the Front Line from Here? The Life and Times of Tim Hetherington (2013) |
One imagines the charismatic Hetherington, once met, would be unforgettable: Junger's film is a decent, heartfelt tribute.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Oct 10, 2013
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| 4/5 | 100% | Camp 14: Total Control Zone (2012) |
Director Wiese, proceeding at a cautious pace, gleans one horrific fact of life in Camp 14 after another.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Oct 3, 2013
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| 2/5 | 92% | The Pervert's Guide To Ideology (2013) |
There are those who find iek a delight; but well before the two-hour mark, one feels he has delighted us long enough.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Oct 3, 2013
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| 2/5 | 79% | Metallica Through the Never (2013) |
This is a lame shaggy-dog narrative, and there's no one to blame but Metallica, who authorised Through the Never and take producing and writing credits.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Oct 3, 2013
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| 4/5 | 93% | Captain Phillips (2013) |
Paul Greengrass has the rare gift of working with action-thriller material and making something cohesive, layered and complex from it.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 29, 2013
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| 4/5 | 61% | Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom (2013) |
With the magnificent Elba to anchor it, the film gradually achieves a sort of grandeur, in the manner of the hero it depicts.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 20, 2013
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| 3/5 | 85% | Hawking (2013) |
It marshals its facts thoughtfully, and makes a decent stab at presenting a whole man - flawed yet unique. On its own terms, as a modest Brief History, it's fascinating.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 19, 2013
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| 1/5 | 14% | R.I.P.D. (2013) |
It's billed as a supernatural action-adventure comedy, but its laughs are almost non-existent, its action depends on seen-it-all-before CGI trickery and much of its plot defies comprehension.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 19, 2013
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| 100% | The Big Risk (Classe tous risques) (1960) |
Never wastes a minute of your time, right up to its abrupt ending: this is condensed, intense story-telling that never once loosens its grip. ‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 12, 2013
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| 3/5 | 79% | 42 (2013) |
Boseman gives Robinson personal self-assurance to match his physical confidence; and it's enjoyable to watch Ford stretching into a character role as the stubborn, shrewd but good-hearted Rickey.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 12, 2013
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| 4/5 | 92% | In a World... (2013) |
It's tempting to call In A World... one of the best romantic comedies of the year, but that would short-change it - a romcom counts for about 20 per cent of all it is.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 12, 2013
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| 4/5 | 69% | El artista y la modelo (The Artist and the Model) (2013) |
This is a slim story but a tranquil, beautiful piece of work.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 12, 2013
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| 1/5 | 73% | Borrowed Time (2012) |
It's a mess through and through.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 12, 2013
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| 3/5 | 100% | The Stuart Hall Project (2013) |
It's a rare and welcome film that devotes itself to the life of a British public intellectual, especially a man as intriguing as Hall.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 6, 2013
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| 2/5 | 8% | Diana (2013) |
It's hardly fascinating. It doesn't offer new facts about the Princess's life. And it certainly doesn't explain her complexity or contradictions.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 5, 2013
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| 4/5 | 86% | The Great Hip Hop Hoax (2013) |
A smart morality tale about the illusory nature of celebrity, and the pressures it exerts once attained.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 5, 2013
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| 4/5 | 79% | Ain't Them Bodies Saints (2013) |
Lowery's film has a solid, grounded storyline, rooted in crime thrillers and film noir tradition.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 5, 2013
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| 2/5 | 50% | Jadoo (2013) |
The story may not engage the mind, but your saliva glands will be working overtime.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 5, 2013
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| 3/5 | 100% | More Than Honey (2013) |
Elegant, handsomely shot and often instructive, and its remarkable extended close-up sequences of bees' social structure are fascinating.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 5, 2013
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| 4/5 | 88% | Rush (2013) |
Rush breaks the mould; its racing scenes are thrilling, and the personal dynamics in the pits and away from the track genuinely intriguing.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Sep 3, 2013
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| 4/5 | 85% | The Way Way Back (2013) |
Warm, funny - and even fresh.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Aug 29, 2013
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| 4/5 | 87% | What Maisie Knew (2013) |
Handsomely shot and stopping just short of cloying sentiment, this is an accomplished, engaging work.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Aug 22, 2013
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| 3/5 | 53% | Lovelace (2013) |
Lovelace tells a difficult story creditably, yet its period detail has the effect of distancing the story, and its heroine remains an enigma ...‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Aug 22, 2013
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| 4/5 | 91% | Jurassic Park (1993) |
A thrill ride worthy of a real-life amusement park.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Aug 22, 2013
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| 3/5 | 60% | Google and the World Brain (2013) |
In a brisk 89 minutes, the argument gets a thorough, workmanlike airing.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Jun 14, 2013
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| 3/5 | 82% | Pussy Riot- - A Punk Prayer (2013) |
With its fast pace and its enviable access to the key players, it has a light on-its-feet quality reminiscent of news journalism.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Jun 13, 2013
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| 4/5 | 85% | Much Ado About Nothing (2013) |
Whedon's Much Ado About Nothing is a delight - agreeable, amusing and played with knowing charm.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Jun 13, 2013
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| 3/5 | 49% | Thérèse (2013) |
While Tautou's delicate restraint as Thérèse is admirable, the vagueness of her character's disquiet becomes an irritation.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Jun 6, 2013
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| 4/5 | 75% | The Stone Roses: Made of Stone (2013) |
Meadows sustains a ragged feel, allowing the rhythms of shooting and editing to parallel the band's visceral appeal.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Jun 6, 2013
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| 3/5 | 97% | Mud (2013) |
It's a lovely, coherent piece of storytelling, with a unique sense of place. Nichols has carved out a niche as a distinctive film-maker.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Apr 28, 2013
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| 4/5 | 96% | Muscle Shoals (2013) |
Overall, it's joyous, uplifting - and as funky as the music at its heart.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Apr 25, 2013
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| 4/5 | 86% | Upstream Color (2013) |
My immediate desire when it ended was to stay in my seat and watch it all the way through again.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Apr 25, 2013
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| 3/5 | 87% | Robot & Frank (2012) |
Here's a film with a premise that could have played horrendously in the wrong hands.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Mar 7, 2013
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| 2/5 | 62% | Broken (2013) |
It feels relentlessly miserable and shocking - as if all the most lurid events in two decades of Brookside had been squeezed into 90 minutes.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Mar 7, 2013
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| 3/5 | 76% | The Bay (2012) |
Gruesome but oddly riveting.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Mar 1, 2013
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| 3/5 | 94% | Sleep Tight (2012) |
Wildly malevolent, but shrewdly executed and creepily watchable.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Mar 1, 2013
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| 1/5 | 12% | Safe Haven (2013) |
Almost nothing happens for long stretches before a plot "twist" so obvious that only the dull-witted could fail to see it coming.‐ Daily Telegraph (UK)
Read More | Posted Feb 28, 2013
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