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1/5
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The Campaign
(2012)
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Matt Kelemen
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The problem with situation comedy movies in general - and Will Ferrell vehicles such as The Campaign in particular - is that they usually fizzle out after the first 30 minutes.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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1/5
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Savages
(2012)
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Matt Kelemen
|
compelling action scenes with momentum-killing dialogue digressions
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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4/5
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Monsieur Lazhar
(2011)
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Matt Kelemen
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Falardeau had the good fortune to work with a powerfully effective ensemble cast, and Martin Léon's minimalist ambient score helps set the mood for a satisfying story about the healing effect brief encounters can have on emotional scars.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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2/5
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To Rome With Love
(2012)
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Matt Kelemen
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Inconsistencies in time and space elements, and a plot that echoes an episode of The Flintstones, join generally underdeveloped attempts at suspending disbelief to mar Allen's attempt to represent the city of Fellini.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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1/5
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For a Good Time, Call ...
(2012)
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Matt Kelemen
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the concept was rife with possibilities that could synergize with Graynor's fresh appeal as well as her rising-star status. Neither the possibilities nor the synergy happens, mainly due to an underdeveloped story.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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2.5/5
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Diana Vreeland: The Eye Has to Travel
(2011)
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Matt Kelemen
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Although some of the dates and causal events in her life are passed over, the rhythm and style carry the narrative forward until the last 20 minutes, when the film mostly meanders to the finish.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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2/5
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Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter
(2012)
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Matt Kelemen
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Rather than create an innovative style to complement the horror-history hybrid, he employs superhero clichs and hackneyed action scenes that only help distract from the ineffectiveness of the film's scant 3-D effects.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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3/5
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The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
(2011)
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Matt Kelemen
|
its difficult to sit through the final scenes without thinking of what Madden could have cut to earn Marigold Hotel a five-star rating.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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5/5
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Jiro Dreams of Sushi
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
|
Gelb also provides an education on the different kinds of sushi, the purveyors of premium fish and rice, and overfishing. But it's his lyrical, lovingly photographed scenes of preparation that elevates the documentary to a work of art.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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2/5
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Dark Shadows
(2012)
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Matt Kelemen
|
Burton really needed to lean his horror-comedy more toward horror. Instead, it's reminiscent at times of Love at First Bite and the feature film remakes of The Addams Family and The Brady Bunch.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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2/5
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The Lady
(2011)
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Matt Kelemen
|
The dramatic moments are few and far between, and the film seems like it walks in the footsteps of Richard Attenborough's Gandhi at times. Besson definitely tries to present Suu Kyi in a similarly reverent light.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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5/5
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Chicken With Plums
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
|
unfurls in a dazzling set of sequences and montages that demonstrates everything shown to us - like marriage and society itself - may not be as it seems, or what it should have been.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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2/5
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Neil Young Journeys
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
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Demme plants a camera on the mic stand so at one point he can present Young's unshaven scowl in extreme close-up, blocking out the gorgeously lighted stage. It's not a pleasant image
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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5/5
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Amour
(2012)
|
Matt Kelemen
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Haneke has created a gift for both audiences and the two legendary actors cast in the lead roles.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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4/5
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Brother
(2010)
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Matt Kelemen
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Hermano is part sports film, part neorealist drama and a fully successful debut feature from Venezuelan director Marcel Rasqun.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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4/5
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The Imposter
(2012)
|
Matt Kelemen
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Credit director Bart Layton for taking a subject that appears barely capable of propping up hour-long, true-crime cable programming and turning it into compelling, full-length documentary.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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2/5
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Cosmopolis
(2012)
|
Matt Kelemen
|
Cronenberg is not a director to be daunted by a scenario in which the antihero spends most of his time in a stretch limo. Turning it into a film that interests anyone ... is another matter
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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5/5
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Robot & Frank
(2012)
|
Matt Kelemen
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Christopher D. Ford's seamless screenplay provides a light-comedy vehicle that Langella rides to a satisfyingly original, epiphanic finale.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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1/5
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Damsels in Distress
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
|
Why he would once again focus his imagination on another ensemble of shallow, self-absorbed characters that are all directed to speak like they were born in the same upper-class Connecticut suburb indicates a one-track mind, at the least.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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4/5
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Delicacy
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
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Foenkinos brothers' balance of light comedy and moody desperation is conveyed with a breezy cinematic style
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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5/5
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Coriolanus
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
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Fiennes' blend of action and homage is top-notch, as is direction.... Fiennes created his own modern world for which it's easy to suspend disbelief.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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2/5
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Footnote
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
|
Cedar remains in stylistic second gear for the rest of the film, and interest fizzles out long before the finish line.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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2/5
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The Deep Blue Sea
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
|
By the time she learns love is less about ideal romance than "wiping someone's ass" when they grow old, it's difficult to care about a problem she created for herself.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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4/5
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The Raid: Redemption
(2011)
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Matt Kelemen
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Gareth Huw Evans doesn't swipe plot points as much as organically build a taut, expertly choreographed heir to urban mayhem fantasies
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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3/5
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In Darkness
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
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The Academy Award-nominated film does not disappoint in terms of performances or presentation, except for its length. A good percentage of its 145 minutes is spent in subterranean near-darkness.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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2/5
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Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
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Oskar expounds to excess, a problem that becomes worse as time drags on and is particularly excruciating during the one-way verbal dialogues with Von Sydow
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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3/5
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Jeff, Who Lives at Home
(2011)
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Matt Kelemen
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Jeff, Who Lives at Home offers escapism of a different kind, an entertaining reminder that good people sometimes prevail, and that living by your own Yoda logic in your own universe may not be such a bad thing.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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4/5
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A Separation
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
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Ambiguous endings can work for some films, but it doesn't here. Still, the powerful performances and near seamless screenplay leave little else to be desired. A Separation deserves its Oscar.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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3/5
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Albert Nobbs
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
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There's no contrived moralizing bridge to modern relevance, no overt nod to contemporary gender politics and no real reason why Close shouldn't get some respect this awards season.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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4/5
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Shame
(2011)
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Matt Kelemen
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Shame has the problems that accompany most films in which the director sticks his neck out. It's not incoherent, but will seem underdeveloped for viewers who want plots and characters spelled out for them.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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2/5
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The Iron Lady
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
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The narrative is not well structured, and Streep's performance suffers as a result.... The scenes with Broadbent are the best. They just aren't worth sitting through a history lesson that isn't taught well.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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4/5
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Prometheus
(2012)
|
Matt Kelemen
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WPrometheus offers hypotheses about the origin of life on our planet that are so well constructed, they make real-life theories about extraterrestrials seem highly feasible.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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3/5
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Salmon Fishing in the Yemen
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
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... just because something seems absurd doesn't mean it can't happen. And just because a film seems to lack surprises doesn't mean it won't take an entirely satisfying turn at the end.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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4
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Bully
(2011)
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Matt Kelemen
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There's no arguing with Hirsch's message, but in order for his film to make the necessary impact, it must be mandatory viewing in every school -- for faculty and administration as well as for students.
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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3/5
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Carnage
(2011)
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Matt Kelemen
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This is an actors' movie, although it's not always pleasant. Waltz has the most fun, and is the most enjoyable to watch. He also exchanges dialogue with Winslet that best sums up the story's absurdist nature: "Why are we still in this house?"
Posted Apr 21, 2013
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Seven Psychopaths
(2012)
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Matt Kelemen
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Seven Psychopaths is refreshingly unorthodox on the level of The Big Lebowski, mixing clever film-about-film elements with dialogue that McDonagh crafted with care.
Posted Oct 11, 2012
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Kill the Irishman
(2011)
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Matt Kelemen
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A minor mob-cinema classic.
Posted Apr 11, 2011
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Red Riding Hood
(2011)
|
Matt Kelemen
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Grandma's house exudes the fairy-tale atmosphere Hardwicke strived for, but it's too little too late. By then it's clear that Seyfried's leading men are bland, the pacing plods, and the story needed more development.
Posted Mar 11, 2011
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Cedar Rapids
(2011)
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Matt Kelemen
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The Hangover cast member can't quite carry a feature on his own. This one is not all that funny anyway, and its comic elements eventually become redundant
Posted Mar 11, 2011
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Brüno
(2009)
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Matt Kelemen
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if mixed martial arts fans who view the film are forever after afraid of fighters getting aroused during a ground-and-pound session on the mat, then Baron Cohen did the job right.
Posted Feb 01, 2011
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Public Enemies
(2009)
|
Matt Kelemen
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... meanders and never delivers the pay-off it promises.
Posted Feb 01, 2011
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Funny People
(2009)
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Matt Kelemen
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Apatow draws on his own experience to explore behavioral nuances of people that make us laugh, and it's no secret that being funny is not the same as being happy.
Posted Feb 01, 2011
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Valentino: The Last Emperor
(2008)
|
Matt Kelemen
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It's interesting to a degree, but without a strong knowledge of the fashion industry, a novice will be left out in the cold.
Posted Feb 01, 2011
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Taking Woodstock
(2009)
|
Matt Kelemen
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A ham-handed attempt to indicate the oncoming tragedy of Altamont ends the film with a touch of contrivance, but it's the only sour note in an otherwise flawless film.
Posted Feb 01, 2011
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Humpday
(2009)
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Matt Kelemen
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While the dare itself seems almost contrived to make the movie happen, what transpires afterward is a very universal experience for people who take stock of their lives for the first time after college.
Posted Feb 01, 2011
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It Might Get Loud
(2008)
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Matt Kelemen
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Guggenheim's depictions of his subjects' artistic development will strike universal chords in anyone who finds meaning in creativity.
Posted Feb 01, 2011
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The Burning Plain
(2008)
|
Matt Kelemen
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Knowing ... that it's a 20-year old story, one can only conclude the idea behind the film would have been best left unfilmed, an unfinished step toward greater things.
Posted Jan 31, 2011
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Where the Wild Things Are
(2009)
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Matt Kelemen
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It's almost as if they were afraid to redefine the book, and left things as free-floating and ambiguous as possible. ... it's all meandering, abstract non-story that isn't helped by the muddy color palette
Posted Jan 31, 2011
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The Men Who Stare at Goats
(2009)
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Matt Kelemen
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although Clooney's charm factor helps Cassady rise above the caricatures created by the rest of the cast. ... it won't necessarily elevate a mediocre film into one worth watching.
Posted Jan 31, 2011
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The Damned United
(2009)
|
Matt Kelemen
|
as foreign for American audiences as a story about one of Billy Martin's stints with the Yankees would be in the U.K.
Posted Jan 31, 2011
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