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| 1. |
|
01/02/09 |
Very Good |
 "...a wicked black comedy from Russia.... bold filmmaking that will turn off many moviegoers. Others, like this critic, will find much of value in this parable about life in Russia, both pre- and post-Putin." |
| 2. |
|
01/07/09 |
Outstanding |
 "...his most mature work yet.... With 'Silent Light,' Carlos Reygadas takes his place among the leading directors working today." |
| 3. |
|
01/09/09 |
Poor |
 "Candice Bergen seems intensely bored as the wedding planner... As for the bland actors stuck playing the hapless grooms, we'll spare them further embarrassment." |
| 4. |
|
01/09/09 |
Moderate |
 "An extremely awkward cross between 'Ocean's Eleven' and 'Rain Man'... a mawkish tale of a crooked gambler who has a 17-year-old son with Down syndrome." |
| 5. |
|
01/09/09 |
Good (Not Great) |
 "I enjoyed the visual effects used to create some hellish creatures and the amusing nods to 'The Exorcist'... But the movie slips in the last act." |
| 6. |
|
01/09/09 |
Weak |
 "Someone says, 'Do not make me go Oprah on you. Because I will,' as if the entire movie isn't up to its chin in Oprah-ism." |
| 7. |
|
01/09/09 |
Very Good |
 "...a creative mix of horror, noir and psychological thriller. At times the story defies logic, but viewers who can accept that will find themselves caught up in the film's intensity." |
| 8. |
|
01/16/09 |
Good (Not Great) |
 "...fun but somewhat exhausting, with several elaborate production numbers, a bullet-proof umbrella that also serves as a parachute, a magical potato... over 2½ hours..." |
| 9. |
|
01/16/09 |
Good (Not Great) |
 "The physical comedy isn't bad, but it's a little ragged, as is the movie's habit of busting out an '80s monster rock ballad whenever it's stuck." |
| 10. |
|
01/16/09 |
Very Good |
 "...gives a heartfelt yet clear-eyed sendoff to the late Brooklyn rapper Christopher Wallace... discovers in Biggie a soul to match his 300-pound body." |
| 11. |
|
01/16/09 |
Moderate |
 "...at more than two hours, 'Cherry Blossoms' could do with some pruning. And do husband and wife have to have rhyming names?" |
| 12. |
|
01/16/09 |
Very Good |
 "...will be of interest mostly to balletomanes, but even folks who don't know their right foot from their left will find inspiration in the lives of these devoted dancers." |
| 13. |
|
01/17/09 |
Very Good |
 "Kids will be as enthralled by this film as you were by the live-action Disney movies of the '70s.... Adults (except dog haters) will be amused, as well." |
| 14. |
|
01/21/09 |
Outstanding |
 "...weaves a mesmerizing tapestry out of archival footage, revisiting Liverpool's postwar poverty, crumbling homes and the massively ugly housing projects that replaced them." |
| 15. |
|
01/23/09 |
Weak |
 "Flying monkeys, a minotaur and the gravestone of Ebenezer Scrooge drop in and out like union workers who punch their time cards and then quit for the day." |
| 16. |
|
01/23/09 |
Moderate |
 "You could call 'Donkey Punch' a female revenge movie. But you could just as easily characterize it as fairly well-executed exploitation." |
| 17. |
|
01/23/09 |
Poor |
 "...wasting their time in this preposterous bore are Hope Davis as a possibly delusional landlady, Simon Baker in the title role, and Rachael Leigh Cook as Molina's daughter." |
| 18. |
|
01/23/09 |
Excellent |
 "We will never know how the film would have turned out had Nemescu lived to finish it. As it is, the movie goes on longer than the story warrants... But, for now at least, we have to be content with this pleasing comedy in search of an editor." |
| 19. |
|
01/30/09 |
Moderate |
 "Essentially 'Poltergeist' with lovely Macedonian locations and abundant female nudity... visually striking but gets bogged down in supernatural clichés.... a deceased hottie (Vesna Stanojevska) literally beckons our hero to some postmortem sex." |
| 20. |
|
01/30/09 |
Moderate |
 "The behind-the-scenes look at the world's largest film industry is gently humorous but almost totally lacking in the cynicism, self-hatred and ennui that characterizes inside-Hollywood flicks." |
