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3/4
|
Acidman
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Agron and Church are both strong but the performances work best together, which is the sign of a successful two-hander film.
Posted Jun 20, 2022
|
|
2/4
|
Hustle
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Familiarity is okay, it just depends what you do with it - but "Hustle" chooses to follow the rulebook a bit too much.
Posted Jun 14, 2022
|
|
2.5/4
|
Top Gun: Maverick
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
The effects - second to Cruise - are the star of the show, but "Top Gun: Maverick" surprises in its quieter moments.
Posted Jun 14, 2022
|
|
2.5/4
|
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
As hollow as "Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness" can ring, it offers enough grandiose spectacle to get lost in. Being able to get lost in its story as well might have made for a more compelling film.
Posted Jun 14, 2022
|
|
2/4
|
Memory
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
When it comes to his thriller outings, autopilot is the only speed he [Neeson] has.
Posted Jun 14, 2022
|
|
1/4
|
The Bubble
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
It certainly strains for its pandemic-era laughs, mostly missing the mark by always feeling out of date.
Posted Jun 14, 2022
|
|
3/4
|
The Lost City
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Flaws be damned: Aaron Nee and Adam Nee's "The Lost City" is the perfect blend of silly-stupid with wide appeal that a weary movie-going audience needs right now.
Posted Mar 31, 2022
|
|
3/4
|
The Outfit
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Rylance's even-handed performance guides the whole film, and the actor delivers his best performance since winning the Oscar for 2015's "Bridge of Spies."
Posted Mar 31, 2022
|
|
2/4
|
Deep Water
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
"Deep Water" is a tepid version of what Lyne was once a master of doing.
Posted Mar 31, 2022
|
|
2.5/4
|
The Adam Project
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
There's fun to be had with "The Adam Project" and its spectacle is entertaining (minus some terribly distracting de-aging technology), but the story trips over itself in the final act to a distracting degree.
Posted Mar 31, 2022
|
|
2.5/4
|
The Batman
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
"The Batman" offers several great action pieces, but the movie does begin to crumble under its own weight, both in terms of the near-three-hour runtime and its own self-importance.
Posted Mar 31, 2022
|
|
2.5/4
|
Dog
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Most of "Dog" feels surface-level but Tatum and Lulu find ways to spark an odd couple rapport, which keeps this lighthearted movie engaging.
Posted Mar 31, 2022
|
|
2/4
|
Marry Me
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
It's weird to be living in a time where a movie like "Marry Me" doesn't warrant a recommendation but you desperately want it to succeed.
Posted Mar 31, 2022
|
|
2/4
|
Blacklight
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Neeson once pledged to put down his gun, and four movies after that declaration, he still hasn't. It's time.
Posted Mar 31, 2022
|
|
3.5/4
|
Cha Cha Real Smooth
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
...but after two films he Raiff has shown that no matter what he continues to do, it will be filled with warmth and a natural urge to connect to a character on a human level. What more could an audience ask for?
Posted Feb 02, 2022
|
|
3/4
|
Good Luck to You, Leo Grande
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Thompson and McCormack have such a lovely, fine-tuned chemistry as two people who are in such different places in their lives but have more common ground than you would expect.
Posted Feb 02, 2022
|
|
3/4
|
Watcher
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
The movie draws you into its 1970s-style slow burn thriller intensity with such ease and precision, you won't feel it sneaking up on you right away.
Posted Feb 02, 2022
|
|
3/4
|
Fresh
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
The screenplay (which was written by Lauryn Kahn) successfully navigates genre changes, making "Fresh" a thrilling, exciting, and completely twisted ride to go on.
Posted Jan 22, 2022
|
|
1.5/4
|
When You Finish Saving the World
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Individual moments or lines in "When You Finish Saving the World" pop with a glimmer of Eisenberg's wry humor, but the movie feels like a skeleton.
Posted Jan 22, 2022
|
|
2/4
|
The 355
(2022)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
"The 355" requires a filmmaker with an eye for choreography and urgency, which is lacking in almost every frame in his latest.
Posted Jan 21, 2022
|
|
3.5/4
|
Spider-Man: No Way Home
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
"Spider-Man: No Way From Home" is the best example of what superhero movies can be.
Posted Jan 21, 2022
|
|
3/4
|
West Side Story
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
"West Side Story" is the most alive one of his [Spielberg] films has felt on screen in a long time.
Posted Dec 15, 2021
|
|
2/4
|
House of Gucci
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
"House of Gucci" is one of the big letdowns of the year.
Posted Dec 15, 2021
|
|
3/4
|
Don't Look Up
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
A movie about an apocalyptic event that spurs a culture war might sound exasperating right now, and that's completely understandable. We live in maddening times.
Posted Dec 15, 2021
|
|
3.5/4
|
Spencer
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
To call "Spencer" a biopic would be to misunderstand the term because the movie is more of an interpretation of Diana, not her life story.
Posted Dec 15, 2021
|
|
3/4
|
The Beta Test
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
"The Beta Test" is about unpleasant people and their unpleasant truths, but it's told with a ferocity that's hard to turn away from.
Posted Dec 15, 2021
|
|
2.5/4
|
Belfast
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Branagh's screenplay has a lot going on, while also feeling a bit aimless at times.
Posted Dec 15, 2021
|
|
3/4
|
Tick, Tick... Boom!
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Regardless of any quibbles, "Tick, Tick...Boom!" is entertaining to watch, largely due to Garfield's sensational performance as Larson.
Posted Dec 15, 2021
|
|
2/4
|
Dune
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Some who love this story will be invested in the characters and their journey, but "Dune" will start and stop at the technical scale for most.
Posted Oct 31, 2021
|
|
1/4
|
Antlers
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
"Antlers" is one of those horror movies that carries itself with a certain level of faux-prestige.
Posted Oct 31, 2021
|
|
2.5/4
|
Last Night in Soho
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Wright's screenplay has a third act problem, where the revealing of the whats-and-hows aren't as interesting being lost in the whys.
Posted Oct 31, 2021
|
|
2/4
|
Lamb
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
There's a cult audience waiting in the wings to discover Valdimar Jóhannsson's "Lamb," and a mainstream horror audience that will leave the theater demanding their money back.
Posted Oct 10, 2021
|
|
3/4
|
Venom: Let There Be Carnage
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
It's refreshing to have a movie as self-aware as this one.
Posted Oct 04, 2021
|
|
1.5/4
|
Dear Evan Hansen
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
At the end of the day, if the story of Evan Hansen has helped in any way, no negative review can or should take that away. The movie tries to sway us in favor of Evan, but it's hard to be on his side when he leads a grieving family down a deceptive path.
Posted Oct 04, 2021
|
|
2.5/4
|
The Voyeurs
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Many have bemoaned modern day filmmaking for not embracing how ridiculous movies once were, but there are moments where "The Voyeurs" succeeds in capturing that sensation.
Posted Sep 17, 2021
|
|
2.5/4
|
The Eyes of Tammy Faye
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
The Oscars certainly love transformative performances and actors playing real life people, but Chastain takes Tammy Faye beyond caricature.
Posted Sep 17, 2021
|
|
2.5/4
|
Blue Bayou
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
But when "Blue Bayou" flirts with becoming manipulative, Chon's performance does its best to bring the focus back to what matters.
Posted Sep 17, 2021
|
|
3/4
|
Candyman
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
To be completely effective horror movies can't waste any time, and while the Candyman mythos might feel repetitive, DaCosta's camerawork and eye for the unsettling create an entertaining new product.
Posted Sep 06, 2021
|
|
3/4
|
Dating & New York
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
"Dating & New York" is a loving nod to the city's many jagged edges.
Posted Sep 06, 2021
|
|
2/4
|
The Protégé
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Maggie Q commands every action scene, but despite that "The Protégé" just feels like a bland, warmed-over version of many movies that proceeded it.
Posted Sep 06, 2021
|
|
3/4
|
The Night House
(2020)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
"The Night House" doesn't feel like it's solely relying on a familiar blueprint, and a lot of that is thanks to Hall's performance.
Posted Sep 06, 2021
|
|
2/4
|
The Suicide Squad
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Through all the mayhem, "The Suicide Squad" feels like it's trying too hard to prove that it's better than the previous film, which grows tiresome after a while.
Posted Aug 07, 2021
|
|
3/4
|
Annette
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Here's what can definitively be said about "Annette": it will not be everyone's cup of tea.
Posted Aug 07, 2021
|
|
2.5/4
|
Stillwater
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Damon and Breslin carry the movie with their characters' shared history, which offers some depth and earned emotion even when things get bumpy along the way.
Posted Aug 03, 2021
|
|
3.5/4
|
Pig
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
"Pig" is a reminder that there's an effective actor inside the person turning out forgettable junk multiple times a year. His performance as Rob is the best work he has done since 2003's wonderful "Matchstick Men."
Posted Aug 03, 2021
|
|
1.5/4
|
Joe Bell
(2020)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
If the message in "Joe Bell" helps anyone, that should be all that matters; but the movie is too sloppy in its delivery to coast by on proper intentions.
Posted Aug 03, 2021
|
|
2.5/4
|
Old
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Shyamalan doesn't always seem to have as firm a grasp on his recent screenplays as he did early in his career, but "Old" offers some summer thrills at the movies.
Posted Aug 03, 2021
|
|
3/4
|
Black Widow
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
Shortland isn't afraid to set the camera in the middle of a fight and make the audience feel the punches being thrown, rather than keeping them as spectators on the sidelines.
Posted Jul 15, 2021
|
|
2/4
|
F9 The Fast Saga
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
The problem with "F9" is that the franchise has become an easily meme'd shell of its former self.
Posted Jun 27, 2021
|
|
2/4
|
Fatherhood
(2021)
|
Matthew Passantino
|
The film, as a whole, lifelessly plods along, hitting each predictable step in its path, and by the end one can only muster a shrug.
Posted Jun 27, 2021
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