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4.5/5
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Olympus Has Fallen
(2013)
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Christopher Lloyd
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In reinventing an old tale in a smart and engaging way, it's a thoroughly entertaining and often riveting way to spend two hours.
Posted May 02, 2013
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4.5/5
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The Gatekeepers
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
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A powerful cautionary tale about the concept of security, and how illusory it really is.
Posted May 02, 2013
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4/5
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On the Road
(2012)
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Christopher Lloyd
|
A booze-soaked, drug-riddled, sex-filled escapade with no real point about young people casting off whatever yokes chain them and seeing what's out there. It captures the pure exhilaration of freedom for its own sake.
Posted May 02, 2013
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1.5/5
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6 Souls
(2010)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
A wretchedly unwatchable train wreck of a film that sorely misuses its talented cast.
Posted May 02, 2013
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4/5
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The Enchanted Cottage
(1945)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Might have been just another run-of-the-mill midcentury romance, except for the bold way it depicts the debilitating effects of World War II on the very face and body of its male star.
Posted May 02, 2013
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1/5
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Beyond the Time Barrier
(1960)
|
Christopher Lloyd
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A prime example of low-budget mid-century cheese, more valuable now as an artifact of that era than for any supposed entertainment value it might have possessed in 1960. It can only be enjoyed ironically.
Posted May 02, 2013
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4.5/5
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Slap Shot
(1977)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Often raucously funny and subversive, Slap Shot is one of the few sports movies that is openly contemptuous of its sport, or at least the modern state of it.
Posted May 02, 2013
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1.5/5
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The Wraith
(1986)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
A big glop of low-budget Hollywood cheese, sliced from half a dozen other movies. Still, as a piece of '80s zeitgeist, it offers something of a glimpse into the national psyche of the time - not to mention the feather hairdos and jean jackets.
Posted May 02, 2013
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4.5/5
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The Man With the Golden Arm
(1955)
|
Christopher Lloyd
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The film's reputation hasn't endured like some other mid-century depictions of addiction, like The Lost Weekend. But it's a terrific look at descent and despair, the sort of movie that can end on a sour note but still seem hopeful.
Posted May 02, 2013
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4/5
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Sink the Bismarck!
(1960)
|
Christopher Lloyd
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This well-done World War II film takes an almost documentary-like look at the battle to destroy the mighty German warship.
Posted May 02, 2013
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5/5
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The Misfits
(1961)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
A glorious, brave, imperfect portrait of flawed people yearning for freedom and respect, but pulled by the primal urges of love, lust and pride to trap themselves in cages of their own crafting.
Posted May 02, 2013
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3/5
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The Angels' Share
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
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Director Ken Loach's latest glimpse of the U.K. underclass is really two rather different movies, either of which I would've enjoyed on their own. But they don't really fit together in any satisfying or even logical way.
Posted May 02, 2013
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3/5
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Iron Man 3
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
With superhero movies, over time the mythology gets junked up with tertiary characters and leftover storylines. Tony Stark & Co. have taken the Iron Man franchise as far as it can go.
Posted May 02, 2013
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4/5
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A Town Like Alice
(1956)
|
Christopher Lloyd
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An engaging historic romance in which the romantic relationship is the least successful thing about the movie.
Posted Apr 29, 2013
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1/4
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Pain & Gain
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Overlong, dull and dimwitted, Pain & Gain ends up fetishizing the warped muscle culture it set out to lampoon.
Posted Apr 26, 2013
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4.5/5
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Oblivion
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
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While it freely borrows themes and story elements from similar films, "Oblivion" creatively synthesizes them into an original picture that is intellectually and emotionally captivating.
Posted Apr 18, 2013
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3.5/5
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Evil Dead
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
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Lacks the puckish cleverness of the original films, and if it stood on its own I doubt it'd spawn the same following. But it's not bad as run-of-the-mill horror goes.
Posted Apr 04, 2013
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4/5
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The Croods
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
The storytelling isn't as sharp as some of the better recent animated flicks, but the wondrous critters and sproingy slapstick should please families with small children.
Posted Mar 20, 2013
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2/4
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The Call
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Posted Mar 15, 2013
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|
2/4
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Oz the Great and Powerful
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
This film never quite decides if it wants to be parody, comedy or fantasy. The result is a smug, overly ornamented amalgam of all three.
Posted Mar 07, 2013
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3/4
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Snitch
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
This surprisingly gritty drama stars Dwayne Johnson, not wrestling star The Rock, which may disappoint those looking for a meat-headed action flick.
Posted Mar 07, 2013
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3/4
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Jack the Giant Slayer
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Posted Mar 01, 2013
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|
2/4
|
21 and Over
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Posted Mar 01, 2013
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|
2/4
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Safe Haven
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
There's the bones of a good story here; it just needed a different cast and crew to find it.
Posted Feb 14, 2013
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|
4/5
|
Identity Thief
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
For a movie that's essentially a gender-scrambled version of Midnight Run, Identity Thief is an amiable rip-off.
Posted Feb 08, 2013
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4/5
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Mama
(2013)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
The filmmakers manage that rare trick of weaving a pervasive blanket of dark mood, an almost suffocating sense of dread that sets up the boo-gotcha moments.
Posted Jan 18, 2013
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4.5/5
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Zero Dark Thirty
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
An effective and expertly made film, but a more character-driven story would've added some flesh to the bones of a great, true story.
Posted Jan 15, 2013
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|
2.5/4
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Bernie
(2011)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Posted Jan 14, 2013
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|
4/5
|
Hyde Park on Hudson
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
I enjoyed the movie for what it is, though I wish it had a better sense of itself.
Posted Jan 05, 2013
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|
4.5/5
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The Impossible
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
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A riveting portrayal of the tidal wave and immediate aftermath. Terrific computer-generated effects bring the colossal onslaught of the tsunami right into our faces.
Posted Jan 05, 2013
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4/5
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Parental Guidance
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Warm and schmaltzy, Parental Guidance is the movie equivalent of comfort food. It's funny and warmhearted, not terribly ambitious, but it does the things it sets out to do well.
Posted Dec 27, 2012
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4.5/5
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Les Misérables
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Epic yet intimate, Les Misérables is a standing-ovation triumph.
Posted Dec 27, 2012
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4.5/5
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Django Unchained
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
A daffy, loopy revenge story/Western comedy, this may be Quentin Tarantino's most purely entertaining film since ... ever.
Posted Dec 27, 2012
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3/5
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This Is 40
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Gradually you come to realize you're trapped watching a bunch of people you don't like who stopped being funny a while ago.
Posted Dec 20, 2012
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|
4.5/5
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Hitchcock
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
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Beyond Anthony Hopkins' droll impersonation of Hitch, the film rises from amusing bauble to full-throated and satisfying depiction of a great man and the unheralded woman who helped make him so.
Posted Dec 09, 2012
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4.5/5
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The Sessions
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
A movie about sex that shows a whole lot of sex, but isn't sex-obsessed. The Sessions grabs you in the heart rather than the loins.
Posted Nov 30, 2012
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4.5/5
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Rise of the Guardians
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
In a down year for animated features, this is a terrific blend of PG-rated battles and soulful character dynamics.
Posted Nov 22, 2012
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4.5/5
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Lincoln
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
A bold film that sidesteps the standard sort of hagiography, peering at Lincoln sideways and slantways, trying to get at the man behind the mythology.
Posted Nov 15, 2012
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4.5/5
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Skyfall
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
As much as Casino Royale felt like a game-changer six years ago, Skyfall moves the ball further down the field. It is both grander and grimmer.
Posted Nov 08, 2012
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4/5
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Flight
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
It's an engaging picture, and not for a moment was I ever bored. But I never quite got viscerally hooked into Whip's dilemma, or felt like we ever get to really know him.
Posted Nov 01, 2012
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4/5
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Wreck-It Ralph
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
A bouncy, boingy ball of candy-colored fun, Wreck-It Ralph is intended as pure entertainment for wee boys and girls. And I bet most adults will find it a hoot to boot.
Posted Nov 01, 2012
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|
4.5/5
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Argo
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Not a deep movie, but an extraordinarily well-crafted one. It's a political thriller in which we go in knowing the outcome, but the film continually surprises us and keeps us dancing on a razor's edge of suspense.
Posted Oct 11, 2012
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4/5
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Frankenweenie
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Frankenweenie is an amalgam of previous stories and themes Tim Burton has been churning out for nearly three decades now. Even if, like Sparky, it's not exactly fresh anymore, there's still some juice in there.
Posted Oct 04, 2012
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4.5/5
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Trouble With the Curve
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Trouble with the Curve exceeds the sum of its parts. An imperfect movie, it has modest flaws and inconsistencies one can point to. But in the theater with the light flickering, it all just works.
Posted Sep 27, 2012
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4/5
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Won't Back Down
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Powerful but predictable, this drama about two women out to reform a failing school acts as a narrative counterpart to the documentary Waiting for Superman.
Posted Sep 27, 2012
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3/5
|
Hotel Transylvania
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
The boingy action and gastrointestinal humor may district wee ones for awhile, but parents will find themselves wondering how soon they can check out.
Posted Sep 27, 2012
|
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4/5
|
Looper
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
A bold, ambitious sci-fi drama that is destined to be more admired than adored.
Posted Sep 27, 2012
|
|
2.5/5
|
For a Good Time, Call ...
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
There's a difference between comedy and behavior. For a Good Time, Call... aims for the former but mostly contains the latter.
Posted Sep 13, 2012
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4/5
|
Premium Rush
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
Premium Rush looks and feels like a lightweight movie, because it is. But it's an unusually well-made one.
Posted Aug 24, 2012
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|
2/5
|
The Odd Life of Timothy Green
(2012)
|
Christopher Lloyd
|
I'm all up for a good mushy movie, but this one is softer in the head than the heart. The screenplay skims over important events or exchanges as if it's describing what happens rather than actually showing it. This film doesn't earn its moments.
Posted Aug 18, 2012
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