Nell Minow
Tomatometer-approved critic
Nell Minow writes about movies, television, the Internet, and parenting as The Movie Mom for Beliefnet and other publications. Her articles have appeared in the Chicago Tribune, USA Today, Family Fun, Child, Daughters, Parents, Slate, and three editions of The Practical Guide to Practically Everything. Her book, The Movie Mom's Guide to Family Movies was published by Avon in 1999, with a second edition in 2004. She reviews movies every week on radio stations across the US and in Canada. Her reviews appear on Beliefnet at http://blog.beliefnet.com/moviemom and you can see her Movie Mom page on Facebook or follow her on twitter. Nell is a member of the Online Film Critics Society, the Broadcast Film Critics Association and the Washington Area Film Critics Association.
500 of my favorite movies are reviewed in my book, but as of this writing my top 10 would have to include
Just outside of Washington DC
Movies reviews only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
T.S. Eliot's Four Quartets (2022) |
A meditation on time, loss, and connection, and almost a century later, those themes are just as vital as they were when Eliot wrote them. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted May 26, 2023
|
|
|
|
Being Mary Tyler Moore (2023) |
Mary Tyler Moore knew how to play confident, happy, honest women early in her career, and it is good to see how she finally learned how to be one. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted May 26, 2023
|
|
|
|
BlackBerry (2023) |
Howerton is on fire as Balsille. We can see in his posture and in every gesture the fury that fuels him. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted May 12, 2023
|
|
|
|
Book Club: The Next Chapter (2023) |
It’s a dumbed-down, glammed-up “Golden Girls.” - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted May 10, 2023
|
|
|
|
What's Love Got to Do with It? (2022) |
What's Love Got to Do with it? earns a happily-ever-after ending. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted May 05, 2023
|
|
|
|
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023) |
Like its characters, a mess but a lovable and entertaining mess. By now it feels like it’s our mess. So, even though I couldn’t help imagining what Honest Trailers and Pitch Meeting are going to have so say about it, I enjoyed it - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted May 04, 2023
|
|
|
|
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret. (2023) |
It is a very rare film that is honest, in a very low-key way, about the stirrings of female desire. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Apr 28, 2023
|
|
|
|
Polite Society (2023) |
“Polite Society” is a delicious breath of fresh air, smart, funny, exciting, and utterly delectable, expertly blended by Nida Manzoor of the equally adorable “We Are Lady Parts.” - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Apr 28, 2023
|
|
|
|
Carmen (2022) |
A fever dream love story of heartbreaking beauty. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Apr 21, 2023
|
|
|
|
Hilma (2022) |
The affection ... for af Klint and for creating art shines through. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Apr 17, 2023
|
|
|
|
Mafia Mamma (2023) |
“Mafia Mamma” is a high concept elevator pitch that might have sustained a seven-minute comedy sketch but does not work as a feature-length movie. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Apr 14, 2023
|
|
|
|
Air (2023) |
Affleck is a fine actor and a better-than-fine director. As an actor since childhood, his skill at selecting the right actors and allowing them to do their best is to be expected. He also has an exceptional sense of narrative structure. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Apr 14, 2023
|
|
|
|
Renfield (2023) |
Nicolas Cage (can't help it, forgive me) sinks his teeth into a a very gory but amusingly slanted take on a classic, filled with goofy contemporary references. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Apr 14, 2023
|
|
|
|
Róise & Frank (2022) |
It is delicately told, sweet but never sugary. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Mar 31, 2023
|
|
|
|
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves (2023) |
“Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” is an ebullient mix of fantasy, action, and comedy with a terrific cast, thrilling stunts and genuinely fantastic special effects." - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Mar 31, 2023
|
|
|
|
Chantilly Bridge (2023) |
[The cast is] better at evoking the kinds of in-jokes and easy laughter of old friends than conveying the intimacy of genuine connection. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Mar 24, 2023
|
|
|
|
A Good Person (2023) |
Writer/director Zach Braff anchors the film with tender-hearted, touching performances by Morgan Freeman and Florence Pugh. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Mar 24, 2023
|
|
|
|
John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023) |
Like its three predecessors, non-stop action with just enough story and character to establish the stakes. And endless style. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Mar 19, 2023
|
|
|
|
The Magician's Elephant (2023) |
The human characters are fairly standard, but the title pachyderm is designed with enough realism to bring emotional and believable physical weight to the story. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Mar 17, 2023
|
|
|
|
Moving On (2022) |
Despite the unevenness of tone and some sags in the narrative, Fonda and Tomlin are a delight and their way with a line is irresistible. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Mar 17, 2023
|
|
|
|
Shazam! Fury of the Gods (2023) |
It is fun to watch but a lot of clutter and especially a lot of CGI overwhelms the plot and all-but obliterates the tenderness of the first story. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Mar 17, 2023
|
|
|
|
The Magic Flute (2022) |
The movie does not live up to the eternally enchanting music, but it serves as an enjoyable delivery system for experiencing it again, which is magic enough. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Mar 10, 2023
|
|
|
|
Champions (2023) |
Olson's warmth and strong presence, and her excellent chemistry with Iannucci are the heart of the film. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Mar 10, 2023
|
|
|
|
Blueback (2022) |
“Blueback” is beautiful to look at and touchingly sincere about the urgency of protecting the oceans, but it is also thinly scripted. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Mar 03, 2023
|
|
|
|
Creed III (2023) |
There are punches so visceral you’ll feel like you’re in the ring. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Mar 03, 2023
|
|
|
|
Jesus Revolution (2023) |
A gently told story preaching to the converts, assuming that evangelical Christianity is unassailably the answer without considering this particular form of worship may not be the answer for all. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Feb 24, 2023
|
|
|
|
A Radiant Girl (2021) |
"A Radiant Girl" rewards careful attention. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Feb 18, 2023
|
|
|
|
Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania (2023) |
The title says it all because the story is more about the place than about what happens there. There is just so much detail here, with the endless settings and characters so overwhelming that they make it hard to keep track of what is going on. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Feb 17, 2023
|
|
|
|
Somebody I Used To Know (2023) |
Brie is, as always, enormously appealing. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Feb 14, 2023
|
|
|
|
Seriously Red (2021) |
Boylan has the creamy skin and bright blue eyes to shine in the Dolly moments. The musical numbers, presented with sweetness and sincerity, are a lot of fun. The real life scenes are not as lively or effectively staged. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Feb 11, 2023
|
|
|
|
Magic Mike's Last Dance (2023) |
More a "Step Up" than a "Magic Mike" -- none of it makes any sense, but there’s a 15-minute dance number at the end, and guys with their shirts off making a lot of ladies very happy, and there’s nothing wrong with that. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Feb 10, 2023
|
|
|
|
80 for Brady (2023) |
It's pure joy to see these women we have loved and grown with over the decades. They still give their considerable best to make us laugh, dream of our own adventures, and wish they could be around for another two centuries. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Feb 03, 2023
|
|
|
|
Life Upside Down (2023) |
The characters are shallow and tiresomely needy, not to make any point or learn any lessons just due to a lack of imagination. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Jan 28, 2023
|
|
|
|
Shotgun Wedding (2023) |
The balance of humor and action is uneven, and it does not even try to make sense. But the overall tone is lighthearted, andnLopez is, as always, hard to resist. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Jan 27, 2023
|
|
|
|
You People (2023) |
Murphy playing it straight is one of his funniest performances, and the movie is not afraid to include some sharp commentary along with the sillier moments. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Jan 27, 2023
|
|
|
|
After Love (2020) |
Writer/director Aleem Khan has a gift for telling visual details. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Jan 25, 2023
|
|
|
|
When You Finish Saving the World (2022) |
Eisenberg’s screenplay is thoughtful, with an actor’s sensitivity to tone and character and impeccable casting choices. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Jan 20, 2023
|
|
|
|
Missing (2023) |
It builds lightly on the original but is very much its own treat of a twisty thriller. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Jan 20, 2023
|
|
|
|
Dog Gone (2023) |
As aww-inspiring as the human and dog moments in the movie are, it is the human encounters along the search that are the heart of the film. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Jan 13, 2023
|
|
|
|
Plane (2023) |
Butler knows what we’re looking for in an action movie, not just the punches and explosions, but the satisfaction of seeing how and by whom the bad guys get dispatched. It shows us that what isn’t new can still be reliably entertaining. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Jan 11, 2023
|
|
|
|
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022) |
A deliciously twisty remix of the classic British-style murder mystery, with a fabulous location and a group of suspects who all have motive and opportunity. Also like its predecessor, it has an all-star cast clearly enjoying themselves enormously. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Dec 30, 2022
|
|
|
|
Corsage (2022) |
The sumptuous settings, elegiac tone, and Krieps' layered performance bring us into the world of this woman caught between the expectations of her culture and her own desires. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Dec 23, 2022
|
|
|
|
Puss in Boots: The Last Wish (2022) |
This new chapter keeps the best of the series’ humor and heart and adds new touches to keep the story and characters vibrant. If they can keep this up, Puss should have many more lives. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Dec 21, 2022
|
|
|
|
Living (2022) |
An extraordinarily wise and touching exploration of the most profound of existential questions, literally the meaning of life. It is superb in every detail, with a heartbreakingly beautiful performance from Bill Nighy. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Dec 20, 2022
|
|
|
|
Bardo, False Chronicle of a Handful of Truths (2022) |
Each moment is presented to us with vibrance and wit. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Dec 16, 2022
|
|
|
|
Avatar: The Way of Water (2022) |
The story is just a scaffolding for the world-building. That may make it more of an experience than a movie, but the experience is a fun place to visit. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Dec 15, 2022
|
|
|
|
Spoiler Alert (2022) |
A tender, inspiring story. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Dec 09, 2022
|
|
|
|
Empire of Light (2022) |
“Empire of Light” has such enticing visuals and such thoughtful performances it can almost lull audiences into forgetting that the storyline and characters are like pieces from different jigsaw puzzles. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Dec 09, 2022
|
|
|
|
Scrooge: A Christmas Carol (2022) |
Close to unwatchable. - RogerEbert.com
Read More
| Posted Dec 02, 2022
|
|
|
|
White Noise (2022) |
Driver and Gerwig both give excellent performances but they are too sincere and accessible for this brittle material. - Movie Mom
Read More
| Posted Dec 02, 2022
|