Splat 2/4
|
Universal Remote (2008)
|
"One can make like the channel-surfing framing device and just skip around and fish for a good skit."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2.5/4
|
Dead Man Running (2009)
|
"Hardly an unpleasant ride to take, but this is ultimately the epitome of disposable entertainment."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
The Book of Eli (2010)
|
"Its unusual ambition and thoughtfulness make it resonate a bit more than most slick studio action fare."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2.5/4
|
Edge of Darkness (2010)
|
"The whole fails to really satisfy as either an action or mystery thriller."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2/4
|
The Tooth Fairy (2010)
|
"Any signs of possible inspiration are ultimately flattened out by forgettable formula."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 1.5/4
|
When in Rome (2010)
|
"This appealing, fun pairing gives the film some promise--that is just as immediately shot to hell once the big plot hook/gimmick kicks in."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2.5/4
|
Daybreakers (2010)
|
"Once the world is set up, the follow-through comes up short."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
Youth in Revolt (2010)
|
"Deviates from the teen comedy norm and becomes something darker, edgier, and more unexpectedly funny."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2/4
|
The Spy Next Door (2010)
|
"This is the broad, silly kiddie exercise it appears to be."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2/4
|
Extraordinary Measures (2010)
|
"A garden variety disease-of-the-week TV movie dressed up with cinema marquee names."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2/4
|
Nine (2009)
|
"While film allows limitless opportunities to 'open up' a work that originated on the legit stage, Marshall seems intent on making the material feel even more stagebound on the big screen."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2/4
|
Crazy Heart (2009)
|
"Formidable acting talent aside, this is routine self-destruction-and-recovery TV movie material."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 0/4
|
Did You Hear About the Morgans? (2009)
|
"To end my assessment on the level of the film's writing, you'll wish you never heard about the Morgans. (Ha ha ha)"
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
It's Complicated (2009)
|
"A charming cast of veteran pros are at the top of their comic game."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
Sherlock Holmes (2009)
|
"Like Ritchie's best films, this gets the job done as both an intriguing plot puzzle and a bouncy, entertaining romp."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
Brothers (2009)
|
"Serves as a reminder that Maguire and Portman are more than up to the task of handling much weightier and demanding material."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
Everybody's Fine (2009)
|
"What makes the unabashedly sentimental package work a lot better than it should is Robert De Niro."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
Invictus (2009)
|
"At its very essence a classically Hollywood, ultra-populist, inspirational underdog sports movie--and a well executed one at that."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
The Lovely Bones (2009)
|
"The whole plays better than that would suggest, largely due to Jackson's imagination and commanding skill."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3.5/4
|
Up in the Air (2009)
|
"Reitman further perfects his sharp, funny, and affecting seriocomic style in crafting films that wildly entertain in the moment and then linger long in the mind and heart."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3.5/4
|
Avatar (2009)
|
"Demonstrates just how much the world of mainstream Hollywood action filmmaking has suffered without James Cameron active the last decade-plus."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
Dear John (2010)
|
"Achieves its modest, unpretentious goals in an agreeable, likable fashion."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
From Paris with Love (2010)
|
"Action fans are likely to be as giddy as the perma-grinning Travolta."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2.5/4
|
Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief (2010)
|
"Of all the would-be Potter projects that have hit the screen over the years, this is one of more polished and enjoyable ones."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2/4
|
Valentine's Day (2010)
|
"The overstuffed, uninspiring results would definitely be enough to put an end to this curious sub-genre."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
The Wolfman (2010)
|
"Like most of director Joe Johnston's work, solidly gets the job done as a brisk, bloody entertainment."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
My Name Is Khan (2010)
|
"While Johar's film does offer some extra food for thought within the conventional confines of an Indian commercial entertainment, it is, above all else, a love story--and a rather moving one at that."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 0/4
|
The Last Song (2010)
|
"An obvious bid for the teen queen to extend beyond her comfort zone only to then clearly show her limits and need for further development."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 0/4
|
Remember Me (2010)
|
"Arrogant in forcing a large-scale weight to a story and characters much too flimsy to deserve, much less support, it."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2/4
|
Withnail and I (1987)
|
"Has a particularly rabid following. Maybe one has to be English to really understand why."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 0/4
|
Superman IV - The Quest for Peace (1987)
|
"With the passing of the production torch to infamous budget tightwads Golan and Globus, it was clear that the worst was yet to come."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
Time and Tide (Shun liu Ni liu) (2001)
|
"Spectacular and exhilarating, plot be damned."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 1/4
|
Driven (2001)
|
"Less a look at Formula One than a pilot for a flat sub-Aaron Spelling sudser that just happens to be set in the world of auto racing."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2.5/4
|
Beautiful Creatures (2001)
|
"The well of surprise is all but parched in the post-Tarantino seriocomic crime caper genre."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2/4
|
A Knight's Tale (2001)
|
"It's as if Helgeland didn't have enough confidence in his own material's basic appeal that he resorted to desperate pandering."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 1.5/4
|
The Mummy Returns (2001)
|
"More or less a wholesale recycling of the 1999 original."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3.5/4
|
Startup.com (2001)
|
"A compelling and important document of the 'Net's boom and (still-continuing) bust period."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
Angel Eyes (2001)
|
"Lopez is now such a multimedia icon that it's easy to forget that her acting skills are what earned her first major notice."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2/4
|
Dracula 2000 (2000)
|
"Without a single scare to its credit nor a particularly inspired storyline, this film fails to justify its existence."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
Spring Forward (2000)
|
"Beatty and Schreiber generate a convincing camaraderie that is warm and touching yet with a refreshing lack of sticky sentiment."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 0/4
|
Dude, Where's My Car? (2000)
|
"A jaw-dropping intergalactic caper 'comedy' where no less than the fate of the entire universe is at stake."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh 3/4
|
Fa Yeung Nin Wa (In the Mood for Love) (2001)
|
"The emotional richness of the piece undeniably pierces the heart."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2.5/4
|
The Pledge (2001)
|
"Its grip is on the mind but not the heart--a problem for a film that clearly aims for some emotional impact."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2/4
|
The Wedding Planner (2001)
|
"Not so much a movie than just another tool in the entertainment-world-domination plot concocted by the burgeoning, big-butt-blessed multimedia phenomenon nicknamed J. Lo."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2/4
|
Sugar & Spice (2001)
|
"An interesting idea that when played out elicits only a slightly amused shrug at best."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Fresh
|
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer (1964)
|
"Still retains its charm and all-ages appeal decades after its original broadcasts."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat
|
Frosty Returns (1993)
|
"Sacrifices the original's warmth and innocence for a smartalecky tone."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2.5/4
|
State and Main (2000)
|
"One giant testimony to unmet potential."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 1/4
|
South of Heaven, West of Hell (2000)
|
"Sharon Stone once likened dating Yoakam to 'eating a dirt sandwich.' Viewing his directorial debut, it's apparent that she was being too kind--after all, just watching his film is like eating a sh*t sandwich."
|
Michael Dequina
|
Splat 2.5/4
|
O Brother, Where Art Thou? (2000)
|
"This lightly engaging trifle could have been more fun with a greater helping of the Coens' antic spirit."
|
Michael Dequina
|