|
| 1. |
|
01/05/09 |
Outstanding |
 "...a bittersweet journey to the days when the Cristal was overflowing, the bling was blinding and the performers burned brightly -- but briefly." |
| 2. |
|
02/05/09 |
Poor |
 "All this might have been forgivable, perhaps, if the movie was able to somehow keep the argument of the book intact. Instead, it opts for the happy ending..." |
| 3. |
|
03/02/09 |
Weak |
 "...meticulous, even slavish, in its re-creation of Gibbons's imagery, from colors to costumes to composition... takes loyalty to new limits. And that's exactly what's wrong with it." |
| 4. |
|
05/18/09 |
Outstanding |
 "Hilarious, satirical and melancholy... may not go as deep as 'Y Tu Mamá También,' but it has a similar vivacity.... one of the year's most memorable offerings." |
| 5. |
|
06/08/09 |
Good |
 "...likable but paper-thin... an urban fairy tale with a happy ending that's anything but hard-won." |
| 6. |
|
07/13/09 |
Moderate |
 "In short doses, 'Brüno' was a triumph. At feature length, 'Brüno' threatens to wear out his one-note welcome." |
| 7. |
|
07/20/09 |
Moderate |
 "Life, Apatow's movies suggest, is filled with angst, frustration, and tedium. The best you can do is laugh about it all, then pass it on." |
| 8. |
|
08/10/09 |
Good |
 "...sweet, anecdotal... a gentle reminder that it was once possible to overcome the cynicism of the times and believe that 'the flow' leads in a benign direction." |
| 9. |
|
09/07/09 |
Good |
 "R.J. Cutler may not ask hard questions, but he keeps his eyes open and lets his unfolding story tell itself." |
| 10. |
|
09/23/09 |
Good |
 "...both scathing and scattershot, smart and simplistic, moving and manipulative, sympathetic and self-aggrandizing, very funny and annoyingly facile." |
| 11. |
|
10/05/09 |
Very Good |
 "...the film makes us question the roots of all violence -- a far more complicated task than feeling sorry for a beaten horse." |
| 12. |
|
10/12/09 |
Very Good |
 "...preserves the essence of Sendak's classic picture book while still managing to strike out in new directions." |
| 13. |
|
11/09/09 |
Excellent |
 "In a year stuffed with kid-lit movie adaptations, it's the only one to successfully reach out to children and adults." |
| 14. |
|
11/20/09 |
Fair |
 "...could have been as brave a movie as the first... If only director Chris Weitz had managed to tease out the real drama -- Bella's fear of aging -- instead of a tired one." |
| 15. |
|
11/23/09 |
Very Good |
 "Natalie Portman has some of the most difficult scenes, and this is her most accomplished work since 'Closer.' But 'Brothers' is Tobey Maguire's movie." |
| 16. |
|
11/30/09 |
Fair |
 "Our two protagonists are tired, gaunt, and nameless who spend the movie navigating through various hazards on their long journey to... where?" |
| 17. |
|
11/30/09 |
Excellent |
 "Bridges is phenomenal.... 'Crazy Heart' gets to you like a good country song -- not because it tells you something new, but because it tells it well." |
| 18. |
|
11/30/09 |
Weak |
 "...a hybrid of unmatching parts -- shuffling between thriller, police procedural, family melodrama, and mystical fantasy... its momentousness turns into silliness." |
| 19. |
|
11/30/09 |
Excellent |
 "James McAvoy, Helen Mirren, and Christopher Plummer offer a grand display of acting fireworks... the film slides gracefully between comedy and pathos..." |
| 20. |
|
11/30/09 |
Good |
 "...can be a bit on the nose (and the message songs Eastwood adds are overkill). Yet the lapses fade in the face of such a soul-stirring story..." |
