Polygon

Tomatometer-approved publication
Rating Title/Year Author
Thunder Force (2021) Tasha Robinson Thunder Force might help illustrate why there are so few pure superhero comedy movies... It's almost as if being a superhero is hard, but being funny is much harder. EDIT
Posted Apr 12, 2021
Rabbit-Proof Fence (2002) Matt Patches Everlyn Sampi is a discovery as the oldest sister and de facto protector, summoning a tangible bravery during key moments of the heart-racing, unimaginable trek. EDIT
Posted Apr 6, 2021
Kong: Skull Island (2017) Nicole Carpenter It's a ridiculous movie - in a good way - that just hit right. EDIT
Posted Apr 6, 2021
Concrete Cowboy (2020) Quinci LeGardye [Writer-director Ricky] Staub's film is beautiful. It's an invitation into a community that has endured for decades, and cultivated a freedom that defies its lack of resources or support. EDIT
Posted Apr 2, 2021
The Prince of Egypt (1998) Petrana Radulovic A sweeping epic that threads a very human struggle amidst the plagues and miracles. EDIT
Posted Mar 30, 2021
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003) Chris Plante Despite the setting (a Royal Navy ship off the eastern coast of South America during the Napoleonic Wars) and the gore (blunt limb removal, exposed brains) the film is tender and poetic. EDIT
Posted Mar 30, 2021
Godzilla (2014) Austen Goslin What really separates Godzilla from other modern blockbusters is just how good it looks. EDIT
Posted Mar 30, 2021
The Draughtsman's Contract (1982) Russ Frushtick [A] strange, next-to-unwatchable movie. EDIT
Posted Mar 30, 2021
The Crazies (1973) Tasha Robinson Romero does build some intense tension around the scenario, and the questions of who's going to survive it, and whether they'll deserve to. EDIT
Posted Mar 30, 2021
Bad Trip (2021) Matt Patches As much as I was cackling through Bad Trip, I also saw a glimmer of hope: There are good people out there, and they will help their fellow man, even if that man is on acid and burying himself in the freezer section of the grocery store. EDIT
Posted Mar 30, 2021
Enhanced (2019) Joshua Rivera On paper, this is all pretty fun stuff... Watching it, however, isn't much fun at all, even though it's clear that the director is mostly interested in attempting to stage a legibly shot, cleanly choreographed action movie. EDIT
Posted Mar 29, 2021
Godzilla vs. Kong (2021) Joshua Rivera It's a smooth-brained good time... Godzilla vs. Kong is a gorgeous, kinetic spectacle. EDIT
Posted Mar 29, 2021
Doors (2021) Tasha Robinson [Doors] starts with an energetic idea, then dissipates it with a series of aggressive wrong moves. EDIT
Posted Mar 22, 2021
The Bay (2012) Matt Patches Levinson takes it in extreme routes - the boil make-up effects are top-notch, and there are multiple scenes involving vomit that some won't be able to stomach - but finds deeper connections to our predicament, too. EDIT
Posted Mar 22, 2021
Happily (2021) Siddhant Adlakha A rom-com that slowly reveals itself as a work of biting absurdism, with a smidge of tech paranoia thrown in for good measure. EDIT
Posted Mar 17, 2021
Zack Snyder's Justice League (2021) Joshua Rivera Zack Snyder's Justice League is remarkably uninterested in people. Its heroes are gods with no believers, walking nuclear weapons that have deigned to prevent Earth from destruction. EDIT
Posted Mar 15, 2021
Come True (2020) Jesse Hassenger True to form, this is an impressively dreamlike movie: half vivid, half inexplicable. EDIT
Posted Mar 12, 2021
Bombay Rose (2019) Siddhant Adlakha In spite of its narrative failings, which would kneecap most films entirely, Bombay Rose is a stunning visual achievement, and a far cry from the CG-animated fare which tends to garner mainstream attention. EDIT
Posted Mar 11, 2021
The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge on the Run (2020) Siddhant Adlakha The film sidelines the heart and sincerity that defined those early seasons, the 2004 film and the recent Broadway musical. However, the zany concepts and celebrity cameos are bizarre enough to be enjoyable in their own right EDIT
Posted Mar 11, 2021
On-Gaku: Our Sound (2019) Toussaint Egan On-Gaku: Our Sound is hilarious adolescent-rock comedy with an irreverent sense of dry deadpan wit that would feel right at home alongside the likes of Daria or Home Movies. EDIT
Posted Mar 10, 2021
Safe (1995) Matt Patches The surreal, detached nature of Safe puts it firmly in the horror genre, even while tackling urgent issues that haunt us all. Moore, as always, doesn't flinch. It's a movie and performance that will have you questioning everything. EDIT
Posted Mar 9, 2021
A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) Petrana Radulovic It was actually ... kind of fun? EDIT
Posted Mar 9, 2021
Boss Level (2021) Joshua Rivera It's mostly a movie with designs on over-the-top action that are undercut by the actual action. EDIT
Posted Mar 5, 2021
Moxie (2021) Petrana Radulovic Weirdly contrived wokeness bogs Moxie down, even though it's an otherwise sweet, empowering film about one girl gaining the self-confidence to stand up for herself and her peers. EDIT
Posted Mar 5, 2021
Coming 2 America (2021) Robert Daniels A narratively thin and silly nostalgia trip that will appease older fans with a story that's as much about rediscovering existing roots as planting new ones. EDIT
Posted Mar 5, 2021
Chaos Walking (2021) Jesse Hassenger In classic unpredictable [Doug] Liman fashion, this jumbled and seemingly truncated adaptation of the first book in a YA trilogy is nonetheless likable, entertaining science fiction. EDIT
Posted Mar 3, 2021
Biggie: I Got a Story to Tell (2021) Joshua Rivera A paper-thin account of one of hip-hop's most mythologized figures, tracing the broad strokes of his tragically short biography. EDIT
Posted Mar 2, 2021
In the Mood for Love (2000) Joshua Rivera It's an achingly beautiful movie, full of deep reds and tight, lonely spaces, one of those stories where nothing and everything happens all at once. EDIT
Posted Mar 1, 2021
This Man (2010) Toussaint Egan The Man From Nowhere is a tremendously gratifying action flick for anyone hungering for a more emotionally driven thrill ride. EDIT
Posted Mar 1, 2021
The Boat (1981) Russ Frushtick Massively compelling. EDIT
Posted Mar 1, 2021
The Dark and the Wicked (2020) Austen Goslin This is a movie operating on a scares-per-minute quota that it always meets. EDIT
Posted Mar 1, 2021
Blow Out (1981) Matt Patches One of the essential thrillers of the 1980s. EDIT
Posted Mar 1, 2021
Cars 2 (2011) Petrana Radulovic It's all the delight of a spy movie, but with the added fact of Oh right, they're all cars! EDIT
Posted Mar 1, 2021
Zodiac (2007) Toussaint Egan Carve out three hours for this thinking-person's thriller. EDIT
Posted Feb 25, 2021
The Handmaiden (2016) Toussaint Egan Whether you've seen it before or not, now's as perfect time as any to see what all the fuss is about while [director director Park Chan-Wook] begins filming his upcoming his romantic murder mystery Decision to Leave this year. EDIT
Posted Feb 25, 2021
Coherence (2013) Toussaint Egan A taut puzzle box of multidimensional weirdness and fraught existential terror. EDIT
Posted Feb 25, 2021
Coming to America (1988) Toussaint Egan An unexpectedly sweet, level-headed rom-com. EDIT
Posted Feb 25, 2021
Redline (2009) Toussaint Egan One of the most visually distinct and invigorating works of Japanese animation of its era. EDIT
Posted Feb 25, 2021
Embrace of the Serpent (2015) Toussaint Egan A powerful and poetic portrait of the effects of European colonialism and environmental despoilment. EDIT
Posted Feb 25, 2021
Sound of Metal (2019) Toussaint Egan An affecting story of hope, desperation, and the amorphous nature of addiction, Sound of Metal is without question one of the most beautiful films to release in the past year. EDIT
Posted Feb 25, 2021
Cherry (2021) Matt Patches The severity of the United States' opioid epidemic cannot be overstated, and neither can its crippling impact on active-duty military personnel and veterans. But even well-meaning artists can exploit the trauma with polished, vacant re-creation. EDIT
Posted Feb 25, 2021
The Swordsman (2020) Toussaint Egan If you're looking for period-piece martial arts drama with engrossing performances and pulse-pounding swordplay, it's definitely worth a watch. EDIT
Posted Feb 23, 2021
Some Like It Hot (1959) Matt Patches The madcap energy is right up there with Bridesmaids or 30 Rock, and it's a shame to imagine that it's black-and-white veneer would keep people away. EDIT
Posted Feb 23, 2021
I Care a Lot (2020) Joshua Rivera Pike works wonders to make a thin story feel full and satisfying to watch in the moment, but once it's over, the thinness starts to become bothersome, especially given the arresting subject matter at its core. EDIT
Posted Feb 22, 2021
The Half of It (2020) Karen Han The idea of a teenage version of Cyrano de Bergerac seems to lend itself to pure romantic fluff, but Wu imbues it with incredible depth and consideration. EDIT
Posted Feb 20, 2021
Flora and Ulysses (2020) Petrana Radulovic With Lawler commanding her scenes - her dynamic with Hannigan and Schwartz sparkles - Flora & Ulysses sometimes transcends its bland hijinks into cute and heartwarming family dynamics. EDIT
Posted Feb 19, 2021
Judas and the Black Messiah (2021) Roxana Hadadi Uneven methodology robs Judas and the Black Messiah of the propulsive energy it could have... by viewing [Fred Hampton] primarily through the lens of his detractors rather than his champions, he's guaranteed an uneven execution. EDIT
Posted Feb 16, 2021
Saint Maud (2019) Jesse Hassenger By most reasonable standards, Saint Maud is a good horror movie. EDIT
Posted Feb 14, 2021
Barb & Star Go to Vista Del Mar (2021) Matt Patches A cult-movie-on-arrival just waiting to be discovered... Whether it's improvisation or the result of years inside each other's heads, the material beams off the screen. EDIT
Posted Feb 12, 2021
To All the Boys: Always and Forever (2021) Petrana Radulovic While the movie contains some genuine heartfelt moments, the thread connecting them all is flimsy, and the core conflict is overdone. EDIT
Posted Feb 12, 2021