Reviews
The Lorax Review | 5.3/10
Review by Village Voice A computer-animated 3-D tracing of Dr. Seuss’s 1971 fable, The Lorax concerns a young resident of synthetic, plastic-coated suburb Thneed-Ville, Ted (voiced by Zac Efron), who goes searching for a legendary living tree outside the city walls. There he encounters a reclusive Once-ler (Ed Helms), who narrates his own life story:
John Carter Review | 6.8/10
Review by Film.com There comes a point in your movie-watching life where prediction comes easy. The guy will end up with the girl, the heroine will live to fight another day, and the gruff man from nowhere will turn out to have been cleverly hiding a soft spot underneath all that bravado this whole time.
Rampart: Film Review [7.4/10]
Review by Salon There are all kinds of reasons, good and bad, why Woody Harrelson doesn’t usually play leading roles: He’s not handsome in exactly the right way (although I’m confident lots of people find him sexy), he’s associated with comedies and action flicks rather than romance or drama, he’s losing his hair, he doesn’t
The Turin Horse: Film Review [8.5/10]
Review by New York Post Bela Tarr, the Hungarian master of minimalist cinema, is only 56, but he’s announced that “The Turin Horse’’ is his final film. He could change his mind, but for now we have to take him at his word. In any event, “The Turin Horse’’ is a sumptuous masterpiece by one
Chico & Rita: Film Review [9.6/10]
Review by NY Daily News Animated romance about two Cuban musicians (1:34). Not rated: Nudity, violence, drugs. In English and Spanish with subtitles. At the Angelika. Even cinephiles were surprised when “Chico & Rita” earned a Best Animated Film nomination instead of “Cars 2.” But while the former does have undeniable style, the slight may
In Darkness: Film Review [8.9/10]
Review by Variety Considering the harrowing true-story origins of her latest WWII extreme survival story, Polish director Agnieszka Holland no doubt intended for “In Darkness” to be arduous. At nearly 2 1/2 hours, the taxing drama spends most of its time in the dank, rat-infested sewers beneath Nazi-occupied Lvov, where a group of Jews rely
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island – Review [4.5/10]
Review by News Day “Journey to the Center of the Earth,” a 2008 kiddie version of the Jules Verne novel, had its slender charms, thanks to some playful visuals and the always-game Brendan Fraser as an avuncular adventurer. Neither is around in the sequel, “Journey 2: The Mysterious Island,” which instead offers giant rocks clearly
Safe House: Film Review [6.1/10]
Review by News Day A bantamweight spy thriller, “Safe House” has just enough bone density to emit some satisfying cracks and pops whenever the action gets going. If you need more than that — like nuanced characters or sharp dialogue — then you’re in the wrong theater. If not, then you’re good to go. Ryan
The Vow: Film Review [3.2/10]
Review by The Village Voice The Vow, a full-bodied lunge for the heartstrings, has a humdinger of a premise, forcing its characters to face a question that most of us ask ourselves: If you could do the past five years over again, would you live them the same or take a mulligan? A young married
Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (3D) Review [5.8/10]
Review by News Day The kind of film that will have kids fidgeting in their seats, “Star Wars: Episode 1 — The Phantom Menace” got dismissive reviews in 1999, and it deserves the same today. But you probably know that. As that wizened space avocado Yoda might have put it — long ago, and in
One for the Money Film Review [3.2/10]
Review by Los Angeles Times A mercenary pall hangs over the criminally uninspired “One for the Money.” Tough economic times force Stephanie Plum, the main character, to take a potentially lucrative assignment as a bounty hunter. Fair enough. Except that the filmmakers have left the creative spark out of the equation. The Katherine Heigl vehicle
Big Miracle Movie Review [7.4/10]
Review by The Passionate Moviegoer It’s not exactly surprising that “Big Miracle,” saddled with an arch, generic title and directed by a filmmaker who gets no respect from the critics, was virtually invisible the day it opened. No one seemed to care. But wait! This is a solid little movie – defiantly old-fashioned in a
Chronicle: Film Review [8.6/10]
Review by Reel Views In recent years, I have become jaded about superhero movies, a genre I once enjoyed. A sameness and lack of energy permeates them, especially the origin stories. There’s something perfunctory and unsatisfying about many of the big titles, leaving it to smaller, less ambitious features to fill the breach. Chronicle is
Red Tails – Movie Review [3.2/10]
Review by Chicago Reader George Lucas served as executive producer for this effects-heavy action film about the Tuskegee Airmen, and it feels as synthetic and dull as The Phantom Menace. The film’s depiction of Italy in World War II feels like a second- or third-hand memory (and sometimes looks like a computer-game backdrop), and the
