Jamie S. Rich
Jamie S. Rich's reviews only count toward the Tomatometer® when published at the following Tomatometer-approved publication(s):
Oregonian
Jamie S. Rich is a novelist and comic book writer, whose work has been published by Oni Press, Dark Horse Comics, and Image Comics. He has contributed movie and music reviews to various alternative weeklies in Portland, OR, and currently writes about film for The Oregonian and DVDTalk.com. He is also a member of the Online Film Critics Society.
Movies reviews only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
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Trailer Park Boys: Don't Legalize It (2014) |
It's pretty outrageous, though not my cup of tea. If you've liked the Trailer Park Boys in the past, though, Don't Legalize It doesn't really mess with the formula. - Oregonian
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| Posted Oct 08, 2018
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Lost Soul: The Doomed Journey of Richard Stanley's Island of Dr. Moreau (2014) |
Whether you remember the actual movie or not, "Lost Soul" is an excellent dissection of a multi-million-dollar movie gone off the rails. - Oregonian
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| Posted Mar 06, 2015
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21 Years: Richard Linklater (2014) |
The resulting tribute may be a puff piece, but it's also informative and often entertaining. - Oregonian
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| Posted Feb 20, 2015
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Secrets of War (2014) |
A strong young cast and a clean presentation should make "Secrets of War" intriguing for junior cinephiles who may not yet have the same film vocabulary as their parents. - Oregonian
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| Posted Feb 14, 2015
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August Winds (2014) |
"August Winds" is a contemplative, nearly formless depiction of rural life. Mascaro regularly hangs back, adopting an unobtrusive vantage point, letting the moments form so that his characters can live out their lives. - Oregonian
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| Posted Feb 13, 2015
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Kauboji (2013) |
Entertaining, if not entirely memorable. - Oregonian
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| Posted Feb 13, 2015
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Life in a Fishbowl (2014) |
It's slick, to be sure, but all the hand-wringing shakes out very little insight into the characters or their sadness, much less what lies beyond. - Oregonian
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| Posted Feb 11, 2015
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The Tribe (2014) |
There are few films that compel me to cover my eyes. That "The Tribe" did so more than once says something about how deeply disturbing it is. - Oregonian
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| Posted Feb 06, 2015
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Jupiter Ascending (2015) |
Jupiter Ascending is them making a big-screen, live-action bouillabaisse of all the Japanese cartoons they adore and having a grand old time. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Feb 05, 2015
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Corn Island (2014) |
"Corn Island" may be small in scope, but its impact is large. - Oregonian
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| Posted Feb 04, 2015
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Leviathan (2014) |
Zvyagintsev is more concerned with letting his audience settle into the lives of his characters than he is the more conventional happenings of the script outline. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Jan 29, 2015
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Still Alice (2014) |
Visually, Still Alice is indistinct and bland; as writing, it's predictable and shallow...essentially a Lifetime Channel disease-of-the-week movie with a better vocabulary. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Jan 29, 2015
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It's Gonna Blow!: San Diego's Music Underground 1986-1996 (2014) |
Bill Perrine's oral history of the San Diego punk scene captures a particular time and place...and lays bare the whole subculture. - Oregonian
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| Posted Jan 23, 2015
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Sit Stay Ride: The Story of America's Sidecar Dogs (2014) |
What emerges is not just an uplifting film praising the bond between mammals; "Sit Stay Ride" is also stealth propaganda for rescue dogs. - Oregonian
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| Posted Jan 22, 2015
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Blackhat (2015) |
You have to pity poor Chris Hemsworth. He looks like he's trying really hard and taking all of this talk of intrigue and data very seriously, but so serious that he appears silly. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Jan 15, 2015
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American Sniper (2014) |
Eastwood handles human emotion in American Sniper with all the subtlety of a bear trap, and you'll end up wishing he'd just stop stepping in it. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Jan 15, 2015
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Exit Marrakech (2013) |
Link's lopsided structure makes the aftermath with Ben's old man a bit of a drag. Still, there's plenty to see on this journey to adulthood - Oregonian
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| Posted Jan 09, 2015
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Inherent Vice (2014) |
Anderson's strength is in managing to be both hyper-real and surreal at the same time...Which you could say is the real satirical genius of Inherent Vice. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Jan 07, 2015
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Burroughs: The Movie (1984) |
"Burroughs" goes deep, giving audiences an honest and real look at a genuine cult figure. - Oregonian
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| Posted Jan 01, 2015
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A Most Violent Year (2014) |
J.C. Chandor is his own worst enemy here, seemingly confounded by the film's message--or perhaps too beholden to it--and unable to play dirty when it's required. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Dec 30, 2014
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Stray Dogs (2013) |
Ming-liang's patient filmmaking avoids expositional narrative. In "Stray Dogs," the silent scenes say more than the sparse dialogue. - Oregonian
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| Posted Dec 23, 2014
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Into the Woods (2014) |
It's light and airy to watch, but still somehow too much. Soulless and frenzied, and yet still kind of effortlessly entertaining. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Dec 23, 2014
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The Imitation Game (2014) |
What I liked most about is how clearly it presented Turing's work and achievements, and how the soap opera of his personal life is given second billing. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Dec 23, 2014
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Level Five (1997) |
"Level Five" plays like a lost CD-ROM rediscovered in some thrift-store bargain bin. - Oregonian
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| Posted Dec 19, 2014
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Why Don't You Play in Hell? (2013) |
"Why Don't You Play in Hell" is violent and irreverent, packed full with crazy ideas, and about as much bloody fun as you can have in a theater right now. - Oregonian
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| Posted Dec 19, 2014
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Foxcatcher (2014) |
Miller prefers languid takes, letting the scenes roll out slowly, while keeping his hands out of the muck. It makes Foxcatcher come off as rather self-serious... - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Dec 18, 2014
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The Barefoot Bandit (2014) |
...a fascinating dossier, even if the protagonist remains somewhat an enigma. Or perhaps because of it, "The Barefoot Bandit" makes a case for a modern-day folk hero. - Oregonian
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| Posted Dec 12, 2014
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Wild (2014) |
Witherspoon is excellent in the lead, delivering a contemplative performance and appearing comfortable with just being by herself. - Oregonian
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| Posted Dec 10, 2014
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Food Chains (2014) |
"Food Chains" points its finger directly at big box stores and price fixing as the source of most problems, while also offering practical solutions. - Oregonian
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| Posted Nov 28, 2014
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Bitter Honey (2014) |
You'll end up feeling for the women in "Bitter Honey" and despising the predators who victimize them. Steel yourself upon entry. - Oregonian
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| Posted Nov 28, 2014
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Goodbye to Language (2014) |
Goodbye to Language is not enough of an incoherent stinker to make me bid adieu to Jean-Luc Godard, even if it does give me serious pause - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Nov 24, 2014
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Keep on Keepin' On (2014) |
In Clark Terry's syllabus, feeling is far more important than sheet music...lock in step with Keep On Keepin' On, because it's legit in an age when so much else is not. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Nov 20, 2014
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We Gotta Get Out of This Place (2013) |
Sparse and fraught with tension, "Bad Turn Worse" is a smart character piece with a deadly edge. - Oregonian
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| Posted Nov 14, 2014
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Pulp (2014) |
If only they'd cut the tedious fan interviews and add more tracks, this Pulp nonfiction would be a lot more satisfying. - Oregonian
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| Posted Nov 14, 2014
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Advanced Style (2014) |
"Advanced Style" is as vivacious as the personalities it spotlights. Cohen's mission to show a different side of old age is certainly accomplished. - Oregonian
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| Posted Nov 07, 2014
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Harmontown (2014) |
I felt I had a better sense of the man, but the podcast element still eluded me. The live performances didn't seem that entertaining; luckily, the rest of the story was. - Oregonian
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| Posted Nov 07, 2014
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Big Hero 6 (2014) |
Takes just about every comic book cliché and throws them into a Pixar cuisinart and tries to make something new and family-friendly via melding the various Disney brands... - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Nov 06, 2014
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Interstellar (2014) |
...the sheer force of Nolan's filmmaking and his dedication to his vision makes it worth grappling with all the philosophy and cosmic kookiness. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Nov 04, 2014
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Eternity: The Movie (2014) |
Thorpe means well, and the song parodies have a bizarre earnestness, but the comedy lacks variety and genuine wit. - Oregonian
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| Posted Oct 31, 2014
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Nightcrawler (2014) |
One might forgive the obvious implausibility of much of the ending...by then the whole shebang has gotten so exaggerated, we fail to see either ourselves or our world on the screen. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Oct 30, 2014
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Citizenfour (2014) |
...an historical document of confounding significance. It's a glimpse behind the closed doors of a moment in time that has otherwise only been revealed in the abstract. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Oct 29, 2014
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Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) (2014) |
There seems to be no end game here, no great epiphany, just a hollow truth at the end of an ever-narrowing tunnel. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Oct 29, 2014
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Whiplash (2014) |
After ushering us into the private space of the band room, Chazelle doesn't really know how to open that back up and return his characters to the real world. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Oct 23, 2014
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Laggies (2014) |
...resembles any number of mainstream fish-out-of-water stories, but an easygoing presentation and sharp eye for where the humor goes manages to make Laggies feel fresh. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Oct 23, 2014
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John Wick (2014) |
...fresh and shiny, favoring clear action and impressive stunts, simultaneously not at all skittish about blood but never reveling in it either. It's tastefully brutal. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Oct 23, 2014
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Evolution of a Criminal (2014) |
...as honest and raw a self-portrait as you're likely to get. Monroe doesn't seek pity, but instead presents himself as a cautionary tale. - Oregonian
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| Posted Oct 17, 2014
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Young Ones (2014) |
Despite beautiful cinematography and quality performances, "Young Ones" never finds a way to sew its good ideas together. The predictable plot is as dry as the desert it portrays. - Oregonian
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| Posted Oct 16, 2014
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St. Vincent (2014) |
Outside of having seen this all before, there isn't much to gripe about...the ribald humor is toothless, but the relationships between all the characters come off as genuine. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Oct 16, 2014
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20,000 Days on Earth (2014) |
An astonishing dissection of why Cave does what he does...his songs have been full of confessions, both clear-eyed and abstract, yet he's never delved so deep nor shared so much. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Oct 16, 2014
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Men, Women & Children (2014) |
The problem Reitman has isn't that he can't see the forest, it's that he thinks he does, and he ignores the good trees within it by trying to have it all. - DVDTalk.com
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| Posted Oct 16, 2014
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