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Jeffrey Chen
Tomatometer-approved critic
Jeff's movie-loving father made movies more a part of his life by opening a couple of video stores. His born-again movie-loving son now makes movies a part of his life by writing reviews about them. Jeff writes for ReelTalkReviews.com and his own site, windowtothemovies.com.
Los Angeles, CA
http://www.windowtothemovies.com
Movies reviews only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
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Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011) |
The successful run of a franchise such as this is truly a rare feat in Hollywood. Take a bow, folks. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Aug 03, 2011
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Source Code (2011) |
Duncan Jones's sophomore film, Source Code, is an assured second step into the realm of thoughtful science fiction. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Aug 03, 2011
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The Adjustment Bureau (2011) |
Eventually the whole thing feels a little too silly to be able to take any of its inherent concerns meaningfully. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Jul 26, 2011
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Of Gods and Men (2010) |
Confirms without really challenging our readily held beliefs about the nobility of selflessness and sacrifice. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Jul 20, 2011
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Rango (2011) |
Kudos to the director for making it as oddball as it could get away with. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Jul 20, 2011
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Red Riding Hood (2011) |
Like Twilight, makes the shallow desire to run away with a boy the heroine's main concern. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Jul 15, 2011
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Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (2010) |
One to absorb, to wonder at, and, perhaps most significantly, to give exposure to lines of thinking that one might not be familiar with. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Jul 14, 2011
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Cars 2 (2011) |
No, Cars 2 isn't another pearl from Pixar, but it's entertaining and well-made. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Jun 25, 2011
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The Tree of Life (2011) |
Its assembly alone makes a case for its achieving cinematic heights. It's a work of great confidence, asking its audience to observe, reflect, and feel. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Jun 22, 2011
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Another Year (2010) |
[Observes] the thin lines and acute angles which separate well-adjusted people on a continuing path of contentment from the less fortunate ones who live lives of regret and desperation. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Jun 17, 2011
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Biutiful (2010) |
Even though this movie piles it on, I can see its positive values and the potential it would have to reach the hearts of its audience. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Jun 16, 2011
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The Dilemma (2011) |
Feels like a throwaway effort by everyone involved. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Jun 07, 2011
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The Green Hornet (2011) |
Derivative of several molds and unable to really take command of any of them. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Jun 03, 2011
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Megamind (2010) |
Would be lost in the crowd, perhaps deservedly so, if it didn't pull aces on its execution. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted May 26, 2011
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Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2010) |
We will likely never be able to see this amazing place in person. Thanks to Herzog for giving us the next best thing. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted May 20, 2011
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Blue Valentine (2010) |
From the movie's standpoint, [its story] is a common tragedy that deserves acknowledgment and pity, and it pulls absolutely no punches in sharing its view. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted May 12, 2011
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The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (2010) |
The lead kids here have their charms, and while the film is functional it lacks distinction and a passionate sense of drive. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted May 12, 2011
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Thor (2011) |
A well-balanced mixture of summer movie pop aesthetics -- not too serious, not too light, with a flare for visual pizazz and big personality. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted May 09, 2011
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How Do You Know (2010) |
What makes any of these kinds of movies run involves the appeal of the main actors, and all three, stalwart in their screen likabilities, smooth the proceedings. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted May 03, 2011
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The Tourist (2010) |
Depp and Jolie together create a chemical black hole. They couldn't produce sparks with dry hair and a comb. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted May 03, 2011
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Ip Man 2 (2010) |
The movie is simply an entertaining second chance to see more of this man of character in action. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Apr 23, 2011
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Love & Other Drugs (2010) |
There were several potential avenues to develop here, but the film settles for something conventional and sentimental with its love story. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Apr 08, 2011
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Animal Kingdom (2010) |
Michôd takes familiar material and approaches it with less emphasis on the sensational and more on the surreal atmosphere of accepted dread. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Apr 08, 2011
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Fair Game (2010) |
A drama about the cost of idealism and sticking to your guns in order to bring truth to the light. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Apr 01, 2011
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The Next Three Days (2010) |
Haggis somehow pulls off a delicate balancing act -- a gravity-bound fantasy scenario -- showing us John's desperate, dark, human need while playing out made-for-movie scenes. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Mar 21, 2011
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Unstoppable (2010) |
Scott subdues his more stylized tendencies to deliver the kind of meat-and-potatoes action thriller that might very well be watched and enjoyed by the heroic blue collar characters in this movie. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Mar 21, 2011
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My Soul to Take (2010) |
Is it just possible that Craven fumbled the ball this time and gave us the equivalent of a fairly amateur teen horror flick? - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Mar 21, 2011
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Easy A (2010) |
It does get by on lively energy, a creativity in its writing, and a star turn by Stone. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Mar 21, 2011
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Tales From Earthsea (2006) |
A passable piece from the junior Miyazaki, and one only hopes the reservation in voice felt here will be far more loosened in future projects. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Mar 16, 2011
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The Illusionist (2010) |
To give Tati his posthumous chance to express a very sad story may have been Chomet's only true course, and, to be honest, the film is beautifully, thoughtfully realized. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Mar 16, 2011
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Inside Job (2010) |
We want them to go to jail and realize the horror of what they've done? Is that too much to hope for? The answer may be too hard to face. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Mar 14, 2011
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Four Lions (2009) |
The comedy is as black as can be, both silly and sharp ... It just doesn't quite succeed in its Dr. Strangelove-inspired goal. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Mar 08, 2011
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White Material (2009) |
Vial is presented as a complex character who feels she's been backed against a wall, and on the one hand we can see where she's coming from, but on the other hand we might think she's just nuts. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Mar 04, 2011
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Marwencol (2010) |
Speaks to the addictiveness, the catharsis, the unpredictability, and the eternity of the creative process. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Mar 04, 2011
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Sweetgrass (2009) |
The movie is decidedly no frills, and it both lives and dies by this strict adherence to its protocol. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Mar 02, 2011
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Vincere (2009) |
The events occur not to tell a narrative, but to illustrate an emotional progress. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Mar 02, 2011
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Fish Tank (2009) |
Reveals the incidental arrival of the first trickles of emerging maturity. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Feb 28, 2011
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The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest (2009) |
Lisbeth Salander, played by Noomi Rapace, spends most of the story constrained -- first in the hospital, then in prison. What fun is that? - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Feb 24, 2011
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Wild Grass (2009) |
Resnais is having fun here, possibly at the expense of audiences who demand tradition. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Feb 24, 2011
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You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger (2010) |
Although Allen's field of poorly adjusted people may be interesting to watch run around for a while, they shed little new light on an already well-expressed cynical point of view. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Feb 20, 2011
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Paranormal Activity 2 (2010) |
Not only drags out too long, it fails to pay off at the end. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Feb 20, 2011
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Enter the Void (2009) |
The discipline on display here, to stick with concept and to execute it with consistency, is intense and considerable. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Feb 14, 2011
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Everyone Else (2009) |
Notable for its realism ... striking in its simple relatability. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Feb 14, 2011
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Ong Bak 3 (2010) |
The 'enlightened' defensive fighting of Jaa, whose screen presence is more crucial than ever here in selling this scenario, pulls it off -- but just by a hair. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Feb 10, 2011
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A Woman, a Gun and a Noodle Shop (2009) |
A valentine from one director to a famous team of others. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Feb 09, 2011
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Nowhere Boy (2009) |
A passable drama, and might make a nice double feature with Backbeat. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Feb 09, 2011
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Dogtooth (2009) |
A kind of ingenious horror show you just can't take your eyes off of. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Feb 02, 2011
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Resident Evil: Afterlife (2010) |
The law of diminishing returns rears its ugly, ugly head with Resident Evil: Afterlife, the fourth movie in a series that is going absolutely nowhere. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Feb 02, 2011
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Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010) |
Those who see [Gordon Gekko] as an antihero worthy of redemption might find this kinder, gentler Wall Street worth sitting through. - Window to the Movies
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| Posted Feb 02, 2011
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I Am Love (2009) |
For me the obvious attempts at enhancing lushness, rapture, and emotional swings were not connecting. I couldn't help noticing it was trying too hard. - ReelTalk Movie Reviews
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| Posted Feb 01, 2011
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