| 1. |
|
07/28/11 |
Weak |
"By the end, you're exhausted following who's gaming whom, and the only joy is in watching them bleed." |
| 2. |
|
06/15/11 |
Good (Not Great) |
"...doesn't twist itself into the self-important, exploitative think piece on youth ambition that 'Spellbound' was, but it does convincingly suggest that its subjects are in it for more than sport." |
| 3. |
|
05/29/11 |
Good (Not Great) |
"...breaches the normal expectations of a respectable family tragedy.... complex emotional texture no doubt owes a lot to Bello's stunning performance, which works by screwing with the familiar conventions of reaction shots..." |
| 4. |
|
05/27/11 |
Weak |
"...what might happen if 'Juno's' twee misfit had been born with two sexual organs instead of one and lived in a trailer park with a deadbeat dad.... The movie may not have Todd Solondz's bite, but at least it has hope." |
| 5. |
|
04/14/11 |
Moderate |
"...an über-genre movie, a hybrid of two classic Hollywood modes -- the historical reenactment and the courtroom drama -- that tries to satisfy the demands of both.... very old-fashioned..." |
| 6. |
|
03/31/11 |
Poor |
"...plays less as a drama than a dramatization, an A-B-C guide to what happens when you give a 14-year-old daughter with sexual insecurities a MacBook Pro.... feels obvious, clunky, and utilitarian..." |
| 7. |
|
02/17/11 |
Very Good |
"...accumulates a kind of power that Matthew Porterfield's first film 'Hamilton' didn't have -- and a message.... it is about the more mundane ways that people deal with being hurt." |
| 8. |
|
02/03/11 |
Weak |
"...isn't very fabulous. But then again, director David John Swajeski isn't trying to make a typical fashion movie..." |
| 9. |
|
01/13/11 |
Poor |
"No director better embodies American mediocrity than Ron Howard. His movies aren't exactly bad... They're so unremarkable they're actually frustrating." |
| 10. |
|
12/22/10 |
Weak |
"...feels more like a Christmastime TV special projected in 3D..." |
| 11. |
|
10/08/10 |
Moderate |
"...full of those isn't-this-charming moments: Josh Duhamel attempting to change a diaper, Katharine Heigl carving a Thanksgiving turkey for a group of thankless neighbors." |
| 12. |
|
09/23/10 |
Poor |
"...for all its attention to detail and claim to environmental concern, lacks: a sense of imagination." |
| 13. |
|
09/15/10 |
Weak |
"It might've worked as a lazy magazine think piece, but as it is, it's pretty cheap entertainment." |
| 14. |
|
08/26/10 |
Poor |
"...feels vaguely like a recreation of another action movie recast with out-of-work celebrities.... The plot is more or less 'Heat' crossed with the corporate-fratboy hijinks of 'Entourage.' " |
| 15. |
|
08/19/10 |
Weak |
"...never rises above formula, but there are some occasionally funny quips... make no mistake: Ice Cube has long since sold out." |
| 16. |
|
07/29/10 |
Good (Not Great) |
"...the photographer talks about his former 'subjects' so obsessively that it's almost charming, if it wasn't so fucking creepy..." |