Creative Loafing - Rotten Tomatoes

Creative Loafing

Creative Loafing is not a Tomatometer-approved publication. Reviews from this publication only count toward the Tomatometer when written by the following Tomatometer-approved critic(s): Matt Brunson
Rating
Title/Year
Author
1
3.5/4
Won't You Be My Neighbor? (2018)

Matt Brunson

The strength of this film is that it never allows the myth to eclipse the man.
Posted Sep 17, 2018
2
3/4
The Virgin Soldiers (1969)

Matt Brunson

The story proves affecting in its look at boys in wartime.
Posted Sep 17, 2018
3
2/4
The Seventh Sign (1988)

Matt Brunson

Not to be confused with Ingmar Bergman's masterpiece The Seventh Seal (as if!), The Seventh Sign is an ofttimes admirable yet mostly silly supernatural thriller.
Posted Sep 17, 2018
4
2.5/4
Gloria (1980)

Matt Brunson

Cassavetes was always at his best when he was making raw and uncompromising indies (e.g. Faces, Shadows), and he was invariably always less interesting when he tried to guess what general audiences wanted to see (like here).
Posted Sep 17, 2018
5
3.5/4
Deep Red (Profondo rosso) (1975)

Matt Brunson

This exemplary giallo is clever enough to use its utterly compelling mystery to examine issues of gender identity and fluidity.
Posted Sep 17, 2018
6
3/4
A Simple Favor (2018)

Matt Brunson

A robust way for viewers to welcome the fall film season.
Posted Sep 17, 2018
7
2/4
The Predator (2018)

Matt Brunson

The script might be the worst in the entire franchise, but a talented cast and some exciting interludes during the first half slightly compensate for the rampant idiocy.
Posted Sep 17, 2018
8
2/4
Rapid Fire (1992)

Matt Brunson

A disposable action yarn.
Posted Sep 10, 2018
9
3/4
Last Hunt (1956)

Matt Brunson

Ripe for rediscovery.
Posted Sep 10, 2018
10
3/4
Upgrade (2018)

Matt Brunson

With its emphasis on technology, slightly futuristic setting, and fondness for disturbing developments, Upgrade feels like an episode of Black Mirror that somehow managed to break free from its Netflix surroundings and emerge unscathed on the big screen.
Posted Sep 10, 2018
11
3.5/4
The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Matt Brunson

On a visual level, the movie qualifies as poetry in stop-motion.
Posted Sep 10, 2018
12
3/4
The Naked and the Dead (1958)

Matt Brunson

A flawed yet fascinating motion picture, one that traffics in gritty intensity yet also makes room for the expected concessions to convention and cliche.
Posted Sep 10, 2018
13
3/4
The Hot Rock (1972)

Matt Brunson

Those seeking something a little more off the beaten path than The Natural or Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid should check out this entertaining caper yarn.
Posted Sep 10, 2018
14
1/4
The Horror of Party Beach (1964)

Matt Brunson

Like Robot Monster, Eegah! and other grade-Z atrocities, it's the sort of mindboggling film that triggers amusement rather than anger at its absolute ineptitude.
Posted Sep 10, 2018
15
3.5/4
The Changeling (1980)

Matt Brunson

Director Peter Medak opts for exposition and atmosphere over jump-scares and other cheap dramatic devices.
Posted Sep 10, 2018
16
1.5/4
The Unborn (1991)

Matt Brunson

Swiping from both the classy Rosemary's Baby and the cheesy It's Alive, this often risible flick is merely stillborn.
Posted Aug 28, 2018
17
3/4
The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez (1982)

Matt Brunson

Director and co-scripter Robert M. Young packs his picture with seasoned character actors who add grit rather than glamour.
Posted Aug 28, 2018
18
2.5/4
Strait-Jacket (1964)

Matt Brunson

The twist ending is one of the most obvious ever put on film, but Crawford's campy histrionics and some neat stylistic flourishes make this worthy entertainment.
Posted Aug 28, 2018
19
3/4
The Tingler (1959)

Matt Brunson

Perhaps William Castle's most outrageous film, The Tingler also stands as one of his best.
Posted Aug 28, 2018
20
3.5/4
Home from the Hill (1960)

Matt Brunson

A rich family drama anchored by Robert Mitchum's fine performance and further distinguished by superlative support, by George (two of them, actually).
Posted Aug 28, 2018
21
2.5/4
Never So Few (1960)

Matt Brunson

The love story is commonplace and hampered by a noticeable lack of chemistry between Sinatra and Lollobrigida -- the war material is similarly humdrum until a late-inning development.
Posted Aug 28, 2018
22
3.5/4
Heaven Can Wait (1943)

Matt Brunson

What begins as a sprightly comedy eventually turns into an affecting look at loneliness, ageism and mortality.
Posted Aug 28, 2018
23
2/4
Deep Rising (1998)

Matt Brunson

Ya gotta give a sliver of credit to any movie that would include the term "Half-Digested Billy" in its closing credits.
Posted Aug 28, 2018
24
2.5/4
The Happytime Murders (2018)

Matt Brunson

A restaging of the Sharon Stone no-panties scene from Basic Instinct allows audiences a peek at puppet pudenda -- if that strikes you as the height of hilarity, then knock yourself out.
Posted Aug 28, 2018
25
3.5/4
Village of the Damned (1960)

Matt Brunson

An atmospheric and intelligent watch.
Posted Aug 21, 2018
26
1.5/4
Supergirl (1984)

Matt Brunson

While 1978's Superman remains the best superhero movie ever made, this desultory spinoff wouldn't even crack the genre's top 50 (or 60, or 70...).
Posted Aug 21, 2018
27
1.5/4
Return of the Living Dead Part II (1988)

Matt Brunson

This derivative sequel lacks the potency of its predecessor, which clearly possessed "More Brains!"
Posted Aug 21, 2018
28
2/4
How to Talk to Girls at Parties (2018)

Matt Brunson

All three of John Cameron Mitchell's previous pictures -- Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Shortbus, and Rabbit Hole -- landed on my year-end 10 Best lists, so imagine my disappointment to find that his fourth feature comes nowhere near their heady heights.
Posted Aug 21, 2018
29
3.5/4
The Day After (1983)

Matt Brunson

A major event by any measure, this ABC production resonated far beyond the boob tube, with controversy swirling around its creation, content and broadcast.
Posted Aug 21, 2018
30
3/4
Crazy Rich Asians (2018)

Matt Brunson

Fifty Shades of Cray.
Posted Aug 20, 2018
31
3/4
The Vault of Horror (Tales from the Crypt, Part II) (1973)

Matt Brunson

Its tales are of comparable quality to those found in its predecessor, Tales from the Crypt.
Posted Aug 12, 2018
32
3/4
Tales From the Crypt (1972)

Matt Brunson

The best vignette finds Peter Cushing delivering one of the best performances of his long career.
Posted Aug 12, 2018
33
2.5/4
On Chesil Beach (2018)

Matt Brunson

It's a movie that stumbles out of the gate. But after a fumbling first act, the story deepens alongside the narrative conflicts.
Posted Aug 12, 2018
34
1/4
MAC and Me (1988)

Matt Brunson

A movie that continues to live in infamy.
Posted Aug 12, 2018
35
3.5/4
Cradle Will Rock (1999)

Matt Brunson

While writer-director Tim Robbins uses this entertaining film to touch upon capitalism and class warfare, he's mainly interested in championing artistic expression.
Posted Aug 12, 2018
36
2.5/4
The Meg (2018)

Matt Brunson

The movie is surprisingly subdued in its pacing, its characterizations, and its go-for-broke sensibilities. Luckily, the scrappy Statham is on hand to provide it with some bite.
Posted Aug 12, 2018
37
3.5/4
BlacKkKlansman (2018)

Matt Brunson

Here's hoping this powerful picture receives the following it deserves.
Posted Aug 12, 2018
38
3/4
Tully (2018)

Matt Brunson

Some will see the plot pirouette that opens the third act as a brilliant narrative shift while others will feel it's a cheap dramatic device -- neither party will be entirely right or wrong.
Posted Aug 7, 2018
39
2/4
In the Mouth of Madness (1995)

Matt Brunson

While it's more ambitious than most Carpenter works from this period, it's not any more satisfying.
Posted Aug 7, 2018
40
2/4
Memoirs of an Invisible Man (1992)

Matt Brunson

Boasts excellent visual effects but otherwise relates a mediocre story.
Posted Aug 7, 2018
41
3/4
Someone Is Watching Me (1978)

Matt Brunson

Like Michael Mann with The Jericho Mile, it ably demonstrated that Carpenter was someone too skilled to only be confined to boob-tube fodder.
Posted Aug 7, 2018
42
2.5/4
The Revolt of Mamie Stover (1956)

Matt Brunson

This adaptation of William Bradford Huie's novel offers brunette Jane Russell with atypically red hair and brunette Agnes Moorehead with atypically blonde hair. And that's about it for novelty value.
Posted Aug 7, 2018
43
1.5/4
Piranha Part Two: The Spawning (1981)

Matt Brunson

The fish in this flick can not only bite but can also fly -- a twist that isn't terrifying as much as it's laughable.
Posted Aug 7, 2018
44
2/4
Overboard (2018)

Matt Brunson

A toothless comedy, although the stars certainly do their best to lift the material.
Posted Aug 7, 2018
45
3.5/4
Stairway to Heaven (A Matter of Life and Death) (1947)

Matt Brunson

The decision to shoot all of the Earth-bound scenes in Technicolor and all of the Heavenly interludes in black-and-white is just one of the many unexpected touches in this pleasing fantasy yarn.
Posted Aug 7, 2018
46
2/4
Christopher Robin (2018)

Matt Brunson

Like honey, Christopher Robin is very sweet. Unlike honey, it doesn't really stick.
Posted Aug 7, 2018
47
2.5/4
The Devil Is a Woman (1935)

Matt Brunson

The runt of the von Sternberg-Dietrich litter.
Posted Jul 29, 2018
48
3.5/4
The Scarlet Empress (1934)

Matt Brunson

How best to describe The Scarlet Empress? Delirious? Demented? Diabolical? This historical epic is perhaps the best of the Dietrich-von Sternberg collaborations, so naturally it was a commercial disaster.
Posted Jul 29, 2018
49
3/4
Blonde Venus (1932)

Matt Brunson

Sudsy, but where else will you see Dietrich singing "Hot Voodoo" while initially wearing a gorilla costume and then a white afro?
Posted Jul 29, 2018
50
3.5/4
Shanghai Express (1932)

Matt Brunson

Reportedly the top-grossing film of its year, this finds the actress cast as a promiscuous woman who utters the immortal line, "It took more than one man to change my name to Shanghai Lily."
Posted Jul 29, 2018