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Francesca Steele
Francesca Steele's reviews only count toward the Tomatometer® when published at the following Tomatometer-approved publication(s):
Sky Cinema
Independent (UK)
The Spectator
Movies reviews only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
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End of Watch (2012) |
This is the thinking man's action movie, a cop flick that takes us off the beaten track. Above all, though, it is a bromance. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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Compliance (2012) |
The most disturbing aspect of Compliance is its implied complicity. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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Antiviral (2012) |
It's a work that feels technically precise but trying just a little too hard - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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The Hunt (2012) |
[The Hunt] is a splendid return to form for director Thomas Vinterberg. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) |
Beasts of the Southern Wild, a deliciously dreamy tale about a fictional Bayou community in the backwaters of Louisiana, does not so much jump off the screen as float effortlessly off it. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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Quartet (2012) |
Dustin Hoffman's directorial debut is the latest example of a recent Hollywood effort to cater more to an older audience. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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The Sapphires (2012) |
This feelgood flick will almost certainly be an international hit and it is undeniably uplifting, the joyousness of soul music smoothing out the odd shifts in tone that arise as a result of the strange genre conflict. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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Grassroots (2012) |
[Jason Biggs] is great here as the reluctant idealist torn between sense and optimism. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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Don Jon (2013) |
As a simple and sweet coming-of-age story for the Jersey Shore generation, it's perfectly entertaining stuff. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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About Time (2013) |
[About Time] is less a rom com than a family drama and though it loses its way in the middle, it is when Curtis allows these familial ties to shine that the film comes into its own. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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The Past (2013) |
The Past never forgets its domestic focus, and [Asghar] Farhadi's keen eye for subtle emotional shifts keeps the story afloat. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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Drinking Buddies (2013) |
Drinking Buddies could suffer a little from its marketing, which may suggest to some audiences that it is just a regular rom com. But luckily, it is nothing like that. It is something much, much better. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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A Separation (2011) |
Although its surface impartiality helped the film get past officious censors, underneath is a more complex picture. - The Spectator
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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Wadjda (2012) |
It is rare for a film with an agenda to have such modest charm. - The Spectator
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| Posted Aug 11, 2017
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Movie 43 (2013) |
This is a film so utterly devoid of laughs that it makes one wonder whether Hollywood stars really are feeling the pinch too. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Aug 10, 2017
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Manchester by the Sea (2016) |
This is not a story that ties things up neatly with a bow; it depends so much on the unsaid that Affleck's understated and incredibly moving performance carries the film. - The Spectator
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| Posted Aug 10, 2017
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Café Society (2016) |
Is it enjoyable? Absolutely. Is it any good? Now, that's a far more complicated question. - The Spectator
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| Posted Sep 01, 2016
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Eddie the Eagle (2016) |
Eddie the Eagle will make some British audiences feel patriotism and pride for our oddball heritage. - The Spectator
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| Posted Mar 31, 2016
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Zoolander No. 2 (2016) |
In its sequel, the jokes, if you can call them that, are trying way too hard. - The Spectator
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| Posted Feb 11, 2016
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The Assassin (2015) |
When you spend most of your time either admiring the look of the film or trying to work out what the bloody hell is going on, there's precious little time left for enjoying it. - The Spectator
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| Posted Jan 25, 2016
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Everest (2015) |
Despite a stellar cast and rock-solid performances throughout, the characterisation here is at best crude and at worst troublingly lazy... But the majesty of the mountain and the burning desire to brave its ascent become gripping. - The Spectator
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| Posted Sep 16, 2015
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Leviathan (2014) |
Leviathan is a hoot, a tragedy and a masterpiece. - The Spectator
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| Posted Jul 17, 2015
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Entourage (2015) |
Entourage has always offered an insight into the inner workings of Hollywood in a way that's both vacuous and absurd, sometimes missing the mark but also often uproariously funny, however inappropriate the jokes. The film is just the same. - The Spectator
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| Posted Jul 17, 2015
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Magic Mike XXL (2015) |
It's a road-trip movie that takes us on a tour of the best stripping venues the southern states apparently have to offer, without ever really arriving anywhere. - The Spectator
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| Posted Jul 16, 2015
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The Falling (2014) |
The beauty of the film is that it is at once personal and universal, with an ability to make you feel nostalgic for friendships and teenage journeys that were probably, at the time, not actually very nice at all. - The Spectator
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| Posted Jul 10, 2015
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Altman (2014) |
We never learn anything personal or troublesome about our subject, nor do we come across anyone with a bad word to say about him, which sadly leaves the film feeling uneven and distinctly unAltmanesque. - The Spectator
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| Posted Apr 09, 2015
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While We're Young (2014) |
Heartbreaking and cautiously funny, - The Spectator
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| Posted Apr 02, 2015
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Hinterland (2014) |
Hinterland feels sparse and beautifully uncluttered. - The Spectator
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| Posted Feb 27, 2015
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The Boy Next Door (2015) |
This is popcorn cinema at its absolute worst -- and I thoroughly enjoyed a disturbingly large amount of it. Though not for the reasons the director probably intended. - The Spectator
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| Posted Feb 26, 2015
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The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014) |
[The Grand Budapest Hotel] might just be the most Wes Anderson-y film yet made by Wes Anderson. - Independent (UK)
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| Posted Feb 13, 2014
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The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (2013) |
This is film-making at its most cynical. But none of it actually makes much sense. - Guardian
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| Posted Aug 22, 2013
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The Queen of Versailles (2012) |
In the end, these are human beings, not emblems - and it is this that makes this documentary one of the most watchable, for rich and poor alike. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Sep 05, 2012
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Anna Karenina (2012) |
This is an extraordinary film, a visual treat and an emotional rollercoaster that will keep you gripped all the way through even if you are familiar with the ending. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Sep 05, 2012
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The Three Stooges (2012) |
Surprisingly, sensibly restrained and rather touching. In relative terms, of course. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Aug 22, 2012
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Step Up Revolution (2012) |
All the dancing is mesmerising, with highly original set pieces, contemporary routines and a sort of revolutionary organised chaos that will definitely appeal to the teen demographic most likely to go and watch these films. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Aug 08, 2012
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Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days (2012) |
As was the case with this film's two predecessors, the characters are unusually charming for a simple kid's film. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Aug 01, 2012
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Magic Mike (2012) |
A magnificent hybrid of clever and comical that very few directors could pull off. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Jul 11, 2012
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Your Sister's Sister (2011) |
It's rare to find a film so heavy on the naturalistic realism that feels so effortless and unpretentious. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Jun 27, 2012
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Fast Girls (2012) |
A fun and energetic film that, while no Chariots of Fire, will leave you eager for the Olympics and, possibly, your running shoes. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Jun 13, 2012
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Cosmopolis (2012) |
The film certainly makes its point - that a risk-averse life of unending luxury is no life at all - but it makes it so listlessly that you really won't care. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Jun 13, 2012
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Rock of Ages (2012) |
Largely fluff - fluff that, when the music stops playing, lacks the likeable camp of director Adam Shankman's previous effort Hairspray. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Jun 13, 2012
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Snow White and the Huntsman (2012) |
The narrative lacks drive and there's something just a bit, well, dull about the whole thing, with too many characters in a plot that, ultimately, it's difficult to relate to or care about. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted May 30, 2012
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Battleship (2012) |
It's not going to win any awards - but Battleship is about as dependable a vehicle as its namesake suggests. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Apr 11, 2012
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Mirror Mirror (2012) |
Mirror Mirror treads a difficult line between childish innocence and more seasoned humour but it just about pulls it off, chugging along at a decent pace throughout with an admirable sense of its own silliness. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Apr 04, 2012
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The Hunger Games (2012) |
It's a theme which feels old - think Battle Royale, The Running Man - but Ross delivers it with such commitment and imagination that it feels fresh. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Mar 21, 2012
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In Darkness (2011) |
This is a significant film and a clever one - but not one you will want to watch twice. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Mar 14, 2012
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John Carter (2012) |
An adventure that feels real and fantastical at the same time. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Mar 07, 2012
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This Means War (2012) |
This Means War is much like its protagnists, a strange mixture of soulessness and trying way too hard - and, frankly, no one likes a date who is quite so keen to impress. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Feb 29, 2012
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The Woman in the Fifth (2011) |
There is no doubt that Pawilowkski can produce flms of great beauty. But this latest effort feels like a practice round on his way back to regular movie-making. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Feb 15, 2012
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Shame (2011) |
The key is Fassbender, who is terrifyingly good. - Sky Cinema
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| Posted Jan 11, 2012
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