Justin Lowe

Justin Lowe
Justin Lowe's reviews only count toward the Tomatometer when published at the following Tomatometer-approved publication(s): Hollywood Reporter
Biography:
Hollywood Reporter film critic.
Publications: Hollywood Reporter
Critics' Group: Los Angeles Film Critics Association

Movie Reviews Only

T-Meter Title | Year
No Score Yet Chance Has No Empathy (2019) Watching a consistently tiresome character feebly struggle with violent impulses for 90-plus minutes holds limited appeal almost any way you look at it. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 20, 2019
67% Head Count (2019) Favoring psychological chills over blood-soaked mayhem, Callahan's impressively crafted debut nods to recent horror classics while displaying an eminently distinctive vision of its own. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 15, 2019
No Score Yet Vault (2019) If Palminteri ever gets another vehicle as suited to his talents as The Usual Suspects it'll be equally memorable, but this isn't it, evidenced by his laidback coasting through most of his scenes. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 14, 2019
No Score Yet Yellow Rose (2019) Affecting on almost every level. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted May 27, 2019
83% Rock Steady Row (2018) Trevor Stevens' stylish first feature should strike a chord with youthful audiences and genre enthusiasts alike. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted May 26, 2019
86% We Have Always Lived in the Castle (2019) Emotionally high-stakes drama. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted May 17, 2019
100% CRSHD (2019) Irrepressibly inventive and often impulsively unrestrained, Emily Cohn's CRSHD guilelessly celebrates digital youth culture and its sometimes messy inconsistency with abundant energy and attitude. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted May 1, 2019
100% Our Time Machine (2019) Intriguingly grounds the creative process in the specificity of individual experience. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Apr 29, 2019
No Score Yet Stray Dolls (2019) An emotionally driven crime drama following two disenfranchised young women determined to seize control of their lives on their own terms. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Apr 28, 2019
66% Body at Brighton Rock (2019) Benjamin doesn't quite succeed in demonstrating her premise that life-or-death situations can empower an unwilling victim to become an unexpected hero. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Apr 25, 2019
80% Metal Heart (2018) With a light touch and a knowing regard, O'Conor manages to avoid the genre's most egregious cliches and simplistic life lessons, instead focusing on the sisters' often amusing rivalry and their ultimately unshakable familial bond. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Feb 23, 2019
No Score Yet Kifaru (2019) Effectively confronts the challenges of the ongoing wildlife conservation crisis. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Feb 20, 2019
43% Lost Holiday (2019) Gives the impression of an in-joke that never quite lands. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Feb 14, 2019
45% What Men Want (2019) Henson evinces a tremendously humorous, and human, capacity for grasping Ali's personal desperation and professional determination as she forges them into a semi-coherent strategy for success. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Feb 7, 2019
44% The Prodigy (2019) Struggling throughout with issues of structure and pacing, Nicholas McCarthy's horror feature threatens to debase standards for the genre to levels that even undiscriminating thrillseekers seem likely to reject. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Feb 6, 2019
100% Pahokee (2019) Pahokee is also a worthwhile reminder for those who haven't faced similar challenges that things rarely come easy for those from modest circumstances. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Feb 1, 2019
No Score Yet Words from a Bear (2019) A rare opportunity to hear directly from the dean of Native American writers about his craft and career. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jan 29, 2019
88% The Vast of Night (2019) Unpacks a generation's worth of Cold War fascination and paranoia. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jan 27, 2019
No Score Yet Abe (2019) An appetizing fusion of diverse influences. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jan 27, 2019
No Score Yet Ski Bum: The Warren Miller Story (2019) A stirring tribute to one of the pioneers of extreme sports filmmaking. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jan 27, 2019
No Score Yet Hamid (2018) A sobering yet hopeful account of compassion emerging in the midst of conflict. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jan 19, 2019
81% Buffalo Boys (2019) Buffalo Boys ends up somewhat awkwardly caught between mainstream glorifications of violence and more restrained cultural norms emphasizing respect and harmony. This inherent creative conflict however remains mostly obscured by the action-oriented plot... - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jan 11, 2019
100% Still Human (2018) Frankly sentimental and sometimes outright implausible, Oliver Siu Kuen Chan's feature debut nonetheless charms with winning performances... - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 30, 2018
No Score Yet Adulthood (Eoreundogam) (2018) Casually observational and gently humorous, Kim's feature represents a winning combination of sentiment and craft that intuitively nudges her characters toward reluctant self-awareness. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 23, 2018
93% Bumblebee (2018) It's an effective reimagining that also bears a knowing resemblance to classic youth-oriented films from Bumblebee executive producer Steven Spielberg. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 9, 2018
No Score Yet The Hungry Lion (Ueta raion) (2017) Ogata exposes not just the victim, but all of those who presume to judge her and attempt to disassociate themselves from their own unseemly actions. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 7, 2018
No Score Yet Grace (2018) Modestly scaled and tightly focused on its lead characters, Adair's feature offers an authentic perspective on nurturing creativity while maintaining a playful tone that's both entertaining and endearing. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 2, 2018
No Score Yet Killing for the Prosecution (Kensatsu gawa no zainin) (2018) Overstuffed and under-motivated. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Nov 20, 2018
No Score Yet SOMM 3 (2018) Wise's filmmaking style remains consistently engaging throughout the series as he demonstrates a characteristic ability to elicit particularly salient comments from interviewees, many of them already well-accustomed to media attention. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Nov 14, 2018
78% The Boat (2018) Azzopardi's physical demeanor effectively conveys the fisherman's confusion and desperation, but the lack of any clear narrative resolution lends scant significance to the role. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Oct 30, 2018
100% Banana Split (2018) Kasulke maintains a strong rapport with his cast and as a result the performances rarely feel forced, even when things get a bit outrageous, although for a cinematographer-turned-director, he favors a fairly subdued visual style. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Oct 19, 2018
44% The Chaperone (2019) Until the last half-hour, it's a rather plodding process of experimentation and assimilation as Norma gains the insight and courage to seize her dreams. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Oct 11, 2018
No Score Yet Funke (2018) Taraboulsy has a well-trained eye for shooting delicious-looking food, but appears way too enamored with the chef to develop much objectivity. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Oct 5, 2018
No Score Yet Nomis (2018) The film's starry cast will be a strong selling point, but a plot that's overly complicated rather than genuinely complex may leave audiences wishing for less incident and more clarity. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Oct 1, 2018
77% The Clovehitch Killer (2018) Offers an intriguing perspective on the darker side of American values, but lacks the conviction to entirely expose the cultural contradictions that often enable compulsive murderers. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Sep 27, 2018
96% Echo In the Canyon (2019) Rich with revealing observations and engaging anecdotes, Slater's documentary skirts the nostalgia trap by engagingly connecting with an impressive lineup of contemporary singer-songwriters... - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Sep 24, 2018
No Score Yet The Sweet Requiem (Kyoyang Ngarmo) (2018) Intensely personal and emphatically universal filmmaking. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Sep 11, 2018
87% Freaks (2019) [Kolker's] semi-improvised performance couldn't be any more authentic and she's well matched with Hirsch, drawing on his own parental experience, as her conflicted and overprotective father. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Sep 9, 2018
64% Sierra Burgess Is a Loser (2018) An exceedingly conventional and mild-mannered rom-com. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Sep 7, 2018
51% Destination Wedding (2018) Whatever the intent, forcing a couple of middle-aged misanthropes to reluctantly attend the nuptials of their rather reviled friends sets a hopelessly high bar for delivering satisfying entertainment. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Sep 1, 2018
100% Restoring Tomorrow (2018) Heartfelt and historic. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Aug 24, 2018
47% The Package (2018) To say that The Package is one continuous dirty joke with an outrageously absurd premise wouldn't be an exaggeration. It's also a funny, sweet, raucous teen comedy that's by turns ridiculous and raunchy, but thankfully never too profound. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Aug 9, 2018
60% Our House (2018) Though it lacks the go-for-the-throat spirit seemingly required to succeed in the broader horror marketplace these days, its sincerity and polish should impress genre die-hards... - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jul 26, 2018
44% Occupation (2018) Occupation gets the job done with a minimum of fuss and an abundance of explosive set pieces that will likely endear it to domestic fans, even if it's mostly forgettable otherwise. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jul 26, 2018
86% Daddy Issues (2019) Manning's straightforward take on relationship dynamics proves both refreshing and empowering, making Jasmine the center of every character's attention and desire. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jul 21, 2018
11% Siberia (2018) A fatalistic romance framed by a pointedly obscure heist plot that struggles to gain momentum before finally sputtering out. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jul 14, 2018
20% Hover (2018) Coleman's rush to condemn corporations' profit motive seems too simplistic and skimps on the details of social disintegration that the global agricultural crisis must necessarily provoke. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 29, 2018
No Score Yet Kapgang (2014) Oplev is perfectly in tune with the script's tender tone, deftly guiding the believable cast through the film's frequent emotional twists and turns. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 13, 2018
88% Zoo (2018) A thrilling adventure for all ages. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 12, 2018
100% Anote's Ark (2018) A sobering reality check. - Hollywood Reporter EDIT
Read More | Posted May 25, 2018