Karen Krizanovich

Karen Krizanovich
Tomatometer-approved critic
Publications: Empire Magazine, Little White Lies, Filmstar Magazine, Radio Times, The List, The Arts Desk

Movie Reviews Only

T-Meter Title | Year
4/5 No Score Yet Balloon (2018) German writer/director Michael "Bully" Herbig has not completely abandoned his comedy roots, though, and creates a cosy-looking period story that is both funny and thrilling. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 16, 2019
4/5 76% Halston (2019) The movie leaves us wanting more - and one of his dresses too. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 10, 2019
3/5 23% Dark Phoenix (2019) Under the able debut direction of writer/producer Simon Kinberg, this pacey instalment brings a close to 20 years of X-Men films and the birth of a fresh, new franchise once 20th Century Fox has completed its merger with Disney. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 10, 2019
4/5 90% John Wick: Chapter 3 - Parabellum (2019) Wick 3 is jaw-droppingly violent, hilarious and surprising. It's also a hell-of-a lesson in cool. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted May 15, 2019
4/5 66% Pokémon Detective Pikachu (2019) Quirky and lovingly crafted, even if you don't care for Pokémon, you'll love Detective Pikachu. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted May 7, 2019
4/5 67% The White Crow (2019) Even if ballet is not to your taste, Fiennes's eye for period detail and David Hare's pacey script forge a sprung platform from which Ivenko leaps almost as magnificently as the diva-like world-shaker himself. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Mar 22, 2019
4/5 67% The White Crow (2019) Fiennes' light touch textures this biopic into something exciting, genuine and naturally sexy; it's a film that stays en pointe for its entirety. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Mar 18, 2019
2/5 68% Isn't It Romantic (2019) Despite a pacy script, Wilson's disbelief in a world where everyone finds her attractive soon becomes tiresome. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Mar 2, 2019
3/5 83% Jellyfish (2018) Glum yet impressive, Jellyfish is worth watching for the raw and remarkable work of rising star Liv Hill. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Feb 11, 2019
4/5 96% Roma (2018) Set in the comfortable upper middle-class neighbourhood of Roma in Mexico City, this compelling story centres on a marriage slowly splintering apart and the native Latina live-in maid who stands at the swirling heart of the family for whom she works. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Jan 8, 2019
5/5 93% It's a Wonderful Life (1946) There's sex and death here, elation and depression, hope and despair. - Little White Lies EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 14, 2018
4/5 88% Ant-Man and the Wasp (2018) Want a tightly packed bundle of fast dialogue, heady danger and speculation as to which stars are coming back for a third film? Ant-Man and the Wasp is that ticket. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Jul 30, 2018
3/5 24% Overboard (2018) If Faris and Derbez have negligible chemistry, they are such comedy pros that it somehow works. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 18, 2018
3/5 35% I Feel Pretty (2018) When the film fails it is because it often perpetuates what it is trying to destroy: the idea that judging by appearances is a legitimate mode of assessment. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Apr 30, 2018
4/5 35% American Assassin (2017) What some will find a surprisingly unpredictable, action-packed bit of entertainment, others may find a politically dubious gun-and-bomb party, but this is one of the freshest political thrillers in years. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Sep 13, 2017
4/5 92% Logan Lucky (2017) Logan Lucky is like those inline tube slides at a water park: you don't worry about where you're going, because getting there is so much darned fun. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Aug 21, 2017
3/5 96% Jawbone (2017) An honest look at a well-worn subject, this home-grown drama about a boxer's fight back to sobriety packs some punch. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted May 11, 2017
3/5 96% Jawbone (2017) Winstone ... enlivens even the simplest dialogue; the reason he's a star is his ability to conjure meaning that may be absent or ambiguous in the script itself. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted May 8, 2017
4/5 89% Lady Macbeth (2017) Lady Macbeth is daring cinema that will chill you to the bone and leave you rooting for its understandably immoral heroine. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Apr 27, 2017
3/5 31% Monster Trucks (2017) Despite a perky pace and a serious eco message, Monster Trucks is far from fresh. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Jan 4, 2017
4/5 39% Why Him? (2016) A breezy, likeable comedy with the potential to make both slackers and old schoolers smile. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 20, 2016
3/5 41% Office Christmas Party (2016) Sentimental and just plain mental, this is the comedy we need this holiday season. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 7, 2016
3/5 82% Chi-Raq (2015) Studded with smart couplets, dance numbers and scenes of grief verging on the Shakespearean, this vibrant, controversial film from director Spike Lee is deft and timely in its message. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 1, 2016
3/5 25% Ben-Hur (2016) It's Ben-Hur for sure, but no real improvement on what's gone before; save Morgan Freeman's amazing dreadlocks. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Sep 6, 2016
3/5 78% Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping (2016) Spinal Tap and Zoolander come together in a comedy take on the pop industry that's hot for the first half before it cools into submission. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Aug 28, 2016
3/5 78% The Shallows (2016) It's a stellar role for Lively, who ... is amassing a respectable body of work across genres. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Aug 10, 2016
4/5 55% Jason Bourne (2016) Absolutely stonking action like you haven't seen in years. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Jul 26, 2016
4/5 80% The Conjuring 2 (2016) If you like to be scared, The Conjuring 2 is your upside-down crucifix. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 16, 2016
4/5 80% The Conjuring 2 (2016) Even hardened horror fans will find themselves covered in gooseflesh, as this spooky sequel ratchets up the tension like thumbscrews. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Jun 13, 2016
3/5 94% Love Is Strange (2014) Pivoting on a loving couple growing older, not having finances in place, needing to rely on others to get by, Love Is Strange has universal poignancy. - The Arts Desk EDIT
Read More | Posted May 23, 2016
4/5 87% Everybody Wants Some!! (2016) Pacey and completely entertaining, this comedy rocks. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted May 12, 2016
42% Jane Got a Gun (2016) If Jane Got a Gun is not the rousing feminist western we've been waiting for, it is a pony trek in the right direction. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Apr 18, 2016
3/5 40% The Sweeney - Paris (Antigang) (2015) A solid if lacklustre police caper with some sparkling moments. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Apr 14, 2016
2/5 28% My Big Fat Greek Wedding 2 (2016) A sequel that ticks off all the right topics but only superficially. It simply doesn't have time to do more. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Mar 22, 2016
3/5 62% Truth (2015) The movie is wordy, worthy and often bombastic in dialogue, with Blanchett the backbone of the story while Redford's careful, nuanced portrayal of the nation's most trusted news anchor is a study in understatement. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Mar 3, 2016
3/5 95% Rams (Hrútar) (2016) Credible, hilarious and poignant by turns, Rams is a keenly detailed, well-paced and entertaining tale of family dynamics ... - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Feb 4, 2016
4/5 95% Creed (2015) A fresh-faced crowd-pleaser as smart and informed in the story's lore as it is rousing for Rocky fans and the uninitiated alike. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Jan 15, 2016
3/5 43% In the Heart of the Sea (2015) In the Heart of the Sea is watchable enough. It just doesn't harpoon us the way its maker intended. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 21, 2015
4/5 91% Grandma (2015) A story about intergenerational bonding in a non-icky way, it's not for the whole family, but it is one hell of a ride for anyone with a lot of miles on the biological clock. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 13, 2015
3/5 93% Peggy Guggenheim: Art Addict (2015) Director Lisa Immordino Vreeland rams this otherwise fairly conventional documentary with glamour and sadness meaning, content-wise, there is never a dull moment. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Dec 7, 2015
4/5 56% The Dressmaker (2016) Despite its levity and wild shifts in tone, The Dressmaker is a heartbreaking tragicomedy. It's also imaginative, funny, colourful, poignant and unforgettable. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Nov 20, 2015
3/5 92% The Black Panthers: Vanguard Of The Revolution (2015) Both educational and entertaining, the rise and fall of the most alluring and controversial black organisation of America's late 60s comes to life via facts, vivid images and unique statements. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Oct 23, 2015
3/5 80% McFarland USA (2015) Although it doesn't strictly adhere to the facts, McFarland is a treasure trove of sporting goodness, while also being a warm, human tale about love, family and learning that a high pain threshold is part of the ticket to success. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Sep 21, 2015
4/5 46% A Walk In The Woods (2015) Despite plodding interchanges and lack of cinematic bravura for some of America's most spectacular scenery, Redford and Nolte are genuinely hilarious together. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Sep 17, 2015
3/5 64% Ricki And The Flash (2015) Kline and ex-rock star Rick Springfield fit in well while Streep convinces as the failed rock star with a heart of gold-plate - tight leather, dumb hair and all. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Sep 3, 2015
3/5 81% Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015) If Wes Anderson met John Hughes and they made a weepy, this would be it. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Aug 31, 2015
3/5 66% The Man From U.N.C.L.E. (2015) A pristine Cold War lookbook of 1960s spy fashion. - The List EDIT
Read More | Posted Aug 11, 2015
3/5 82% Eden (2015) A soundtrack of 40 chosen tunes and sideline looks at Daft Punk's genesis makes Hansen-Lve's assured fourth feature a heady trip for all ex-ravers. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Jul 23, 2015
4/5 91% Dear White People (2014) Stylish, sleek, sharp and almost glib, this terrific debut by writer/director Justin Simien is a streamlined satire that swaps subtlety for jaw-dropping honesty. - Radio Times EDIT
Read More | Posted Jul 9, 2015
2/5 32% Kick-Ass 2 (2013) Prediction: more tweets, Snapchats and texts will be sent during this film than during the original. - The Arts Desk EDIT
Read More | Posted Jul 7, 2015