Fresh 3.5/4
| Fresh 82%
| Atonement (2007) | "
It is mindful art doubling as unapologetic entertainment, an ode to eros and errors assembled with vision and meticulous care." — Houston Chronicle Posted Dec 7, 2007 |
Fresh
| Fresh 96%
| When the Levees Broke (2006) | "
Even more than Do the Right Thing, until now Lee's major achievement, When the Levees Broke is simultaneously his most searing and topical movie and the one most assured of enduring." — Houston Chronicle Posted Aug 22, 2006 |
Fresh A
| Fresh 80%
| The Man Who Wasn't There (2001) | "
Despite the movie's humor and sense of irony, it takes on a sense of somberness as it progresses." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jul 21, 2005 |
Fresh
| Fresh 98%
| Apocalypse Now (1979) | "
Apocalypse Now did help provide me, and many of my generation, with a vision of what film art could achieve, a vision so magnificent it doomed us to spend much of our subsequent moviegoing lives in a funk." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jul 21, 2005 |
Fresh B+
| Fresh 84%
| Kissing Jessica Stein (2002) | "
Westfeldt and Juergensen are both appealing actresses." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jul 21, 2005 |
Fresh A-
| Fresh 81%
| George Washington (2000) | "
It's possible to keep one's feet on the ground and still appreciate the film's quiet verbal and visual poetry." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jul 21, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 43%
| The Keeper: The Legend of Omar Khayyam (2005) | "
An accomplished first film that manages to comment on the current situation in the Middle East while dealing movingly -- and in very human terms -- with the importance of heritage and history in contemporary life." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jun 24, 2005 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 85%
| Batman Begins (2005) | "
Batman Begins is a remarkable movie. In making it, Nolan swept aside not only the other Batman films but the whole over-burdened shelf of previous super-hero flicks." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jun 15, 2005 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 61%
| Nina's Tragedies (2005) | "
A gently quirky, touching comedy from Israel about a young boy's infatuation with his aunt." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jun 10, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 41%
| High Tension (2005) | "
I can't say much, except that we've seen it too many times in the past, and each time half the audience feels cheated." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jun 10, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 58%
| Mr. and Mrs. Smith (2005) | "
A cute little romantic comedy buried under enough overblown action, gaudy firepower and special effects to fill a Jerry Bruckheimer picture." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jun 10, 2005 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 80%
| Layer Cake (2005) | "
A gangster film, despite what its title suggests, that ranks with the best of the genre." — Houston Chronicle Posted May 27, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 80%
| Chrystal (2004) | "
It's meandering and uneven, but much of it is powerfully effective and affecting." — Houston Chronicle Posted May 27, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 70%
| A Tout de Suite (2005) | "
[Isild Le Besco] has an unusual look and the ability to appear unformed, hard, vulnerable and sexy all at once." — Houston Chronicle Posted May 20, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 47%
| Don't Move (2005) | "
It has grand flourishes, bold strokes and a soundtrack that swells with emotional Italian and American rock, but it doesn't go over the edge of sentimentality. It's too hard-edged and its acting is too restrained and fine for that." — Houston Chronicle Posted May 20, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 26%
| Mindhunters (2005) | "
You'd think these agents' training would kick in, that they'd analyze the situation, deduce who is behind the killings and put a plan in place to stop it. You'd be wrong. They panic like ants after their hill has been stepped on." — Houston Chronicle Posted May 13, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 87%
| 3-Iron (2005) | "
Here is where things get murky, intriguingly so." — Houston Chronicle Posted May 13, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 75%
| Crash (2005) | "
An ambitious and often wonderful movie, an expansive look at urban life -- the fractious, noisy whole of it -- filled with witty, biting and insightful writing." — Houston Chronicle Posted May 6, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 39%
| Kingdom of Heaven (2005) | "
A $130 million epic with much to marvel at and great battle scenes, but it dazzles the senses while barely touching the heart." — Houston Chronicle Posted May 6, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 58%
| The Interpreter (2005) | "
An uncommonly well-crafted political thriller." — Houston Chronicle Posted Apr 22, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 97%
| Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (2005) | "
Alex Gibney's documentary based on the book is pretty much straight-ahead journalism" — Houston Chronicle Posted Apr 22, 2005 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 69%
| Off the Map (2005) | "
[A] lovely film, which hardly ever makes a move that feels wrong." — Houston Chronicle Posted Apr 21, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 40%
| Intoxicating (2003) | "
At first, these uncomfortably long shots create an air of ominousness, until we realize they don't signify anything." — Houston Chronicle Posted Apr 15, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 72%
| In the Realms of the Unreal (2004) | "
It is an engrossing introduction to the artist and his work." — Houston Chronicle Posted Apr 15, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 53%
| Melinda and Melinda (2005) | "
The Shawn character says, 'Moments of humor do exist (in life). I exploit them, but in a tragic context.' Allen couldn't have said it better himself." — Houston Chronicle Posted Apr 8, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 63%
| Fever Pitch (2005) | "
At the movie's core is a question that all couples face: How much of one's identity must a person give up in order to make a relationship work? The filmmakers show good marketing sense in balancing the romantic elements with sports." — Houston Chronicle Posted Apr 8, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 23%
| In My Country (2005) | "
Watching it is like drinking a glass of Alka-Seltzer before the tablet is dissolved. Afterward, you're glad you drank it -- it wasn't that hard to swallow -- but you would've preferred a nice chardonnay." — Houston Chronicle Posted Apr 1, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 46%
| The Ballad of Jack and Rose (2005) | "
Even with such a powerhouse actor as Day-Lewis, this movie belongs to Rose, who is sensitively played by Camilla Belle, an accomplished young actress who should have a bright future." — Houston Chronicle Posted Apr 1, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 77%
| Sin City (2005) | "
Except for the striking images, it starts to fade even as you're watching it. It is such a bold and striking movie, however, that for the first time we can appreciate the full potential of what Rodriguez has wrought." — Houston Chronicle Posted Apr 1, 2005 |
Rotten 1/4
| Rotten 43%
| Guess Who (2005) | "
There's never a question how things will turn out. (If you don't know: Recent Hollywood movies about interracial romance usually turn out well if the guy is white and almost always end tragically if he's black.)" — Houston Chronicle Posted Mar 25, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 14%
| Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous (2005) | "
It's absurd and predictable, but fans of the first movie should like this at least as much." — Houston Chronicle Posted Mar 24, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Fresh 85%
| Gunner Palace (2005) | "
We don't get to know the soldiers as individuals well enough." — Houston Chronicle Posted Mar 11, 2005 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 90%
| Head-On (2005) | "
Akin calls this his most personal movie. Every frame bristles with authenticity and honest emotion. He's the real thing. His movie is stunning." — Houston Chronicle Posted Mar 11, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 82%
| Inside Deep Throat (2005) | "
Above all, the film is a lively, music-filled social history." — Houston Chronicle Posted Mar 4, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 44%
| The Jacket (2005) | "
At times it seems like a daring mindbender. At other times, it just seems unintentionally absurd." — Houston Chronicle Posted Mar 4, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 29%
| Be Cool (2005) | "
There's really no need to pay much attention to the plot." — Houston Chronicle Posted Mar 4, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Fresh 76%
| Brother to Brother (2004) | "
An uneven but provocative drama." — Houston Chronicle Posted Feb 18, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 45%
| Constantine (2005) | "
Occasionally, Reeves forgets what movie he's in and strikes a Neo-like pose." — Houston Chronicle Posted Feb 18, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 33%
| You I Love (2005) | "
The film starts as an entertaining postmodern take on bedroom farce but quickly becomes the kind of sprawling, unpredictable and sexually charged tale associated with Pedro Almodóvar, but without the storytelling discipline." — Houston Chronicle Posted Feb 11, 2005 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 71%
| William Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice (2004) | "
Ranks as one of the most powerful recent adaptations of the bard's work." — Houston Chronicle Posted Feb 4, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 43%
| A Love Song for Bobby Long (2004) | "
First-time director Shainee Gabel generally does a good job of moving things along, though the story feels disjointed at times." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jan 28, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 41%
| Callas Forever (2004) | "
The film's portrait of the singer is indelible. The story as a whole, however, doesn't hold together, primarily because the imaginary characters and situations that surround her are so inadequately sketched." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jan 28, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Rotten 13%
| Hide and Seek (2005) | "
For the first hour or so it builds inexorably to an excruciating level of dread. It does this so well, we're willing to forgive the small lapses of logic it takes to get us there." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jan 28, 2005 |
— | Fresh 68%
| The Assassination of Richard Nixon (2004) | "
Features a bravura performance by Penn as a frustrated and deluded loser, but there isn't much else to recommend. The story is a one-note drag." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jan 21, 2005 |
Fresh 3/4
| Fresh 89%
| Bad Education (2004) | "
Like all of Almodóvar's films, Bad Education takes the audience down unexpected roads and switchbacks." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jan 14, 2005 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 87%
| The Woodsman (2004) | "
A compelling drama that pulls back the curtain on a problem of epidemic proportions." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jan 14, 2005 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 83%
| In Good Company (2004) | "
It's more fun than Sideways and just as adult, but because it hews closer to genre formula (and therefore is somewhat more obvious), you'll find it on few if any Top 10 lists." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jan 14, 2005 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 92%
| Hotel Rwanda (2004) | "
Because of the subject matter, this feels like one of those films you see because it's good for you. But it also is an extraordinarily moving drama." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jan 7, 2005 |
Fresh 4/4
| Fresh 91%
| Million Dollar Baby (2004) | "
When you think you know its moves, it throws in fancy footwork. Then it sucker-punches you when you're not looking." — Houston Chronicle Posted Jan 7, 2005 |
Rotten 2/4
| Rotten 43%
| Beyond the Sea (2004) | "
Offers little psychological insight into the man beyond his mantra -- 'I want it all. ... I want to surpass Sinatra in everything he does.'" — Houston Chronicle Posted Dec 30, 2004 |
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