Rotten
| Rotten 29%
| Women in Trouble (2009) | "
In the “whatever were they thinking of” genre, a new entry: Women in Trouble." — New York Observer Posted Dec 10, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 91%
| The Messenger (2009) | "
At its center lie three accomplished performances, by Ben Foster, Woody Harrelson and Samantha Morton, that are not to be missed." — New York Observer Posted Dec 10, 2009 |
Fresh
| Rotten 25%
| Looking for Palladin (2009) | "
A small movie with a big, big actor." — New York Observer Posted Dec 10, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 88%
| Skin (2009) | "
Every emotion is underscored with sugary music, every narrative plot progression telegraphed with the mechanical structural stiffness of a made-for-TV movie." — New York Observer Posted Dec 10, 2009 |
Fresh
| Rotten 21%
| Amelia (2009) | "
It has beautiful cinematography, a star performance that is shocking in its authenticity, a careful eye for nuance and detail and an irresistible blend of action and romance that should spell automatic success." — New York Observer Posted Dec 10, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 90%
| Up in the Air (2009) | "
A delightful new romantic comedy that never suffers from attention deficit disorder." — New York Observer Posted Dec 8, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 57%
| Brothers (2009) | "
A soap opera ensues with more clichés than one movie can survive." — New York Observer Posted Dec 8, 2009 |
Rotten
| Fresh 81%
| A Single Man (2009) | "
As a movie, it has all the life of a boxed pink taffeta sample at Bergdorf that never leaves the stockroom." — New York Observer Posted Dec 8, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 71%
| The Last Station (2009) | "
The arrival of a movie with as much intelligence and artistry as The Last Station should also be accompanied by the sound of trumpets." — New York Observer Posted Dec 8, 2009 |
Fresh
| Rotten 41%
| The Lovely Bones (2009) | "
The New Zealand director’s trademark recipe of fantasy, realism and computerized visual effects turns The Lovely Bones into a thrilling adventure." — New York Observer Posted Dec 8, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 77%
| Invictus (2009) | "
The film is flawed, rambling and much too long, but in the end it leaves the audience cheering." — New York Observer Posted Dec 8, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 45%
| Everybody's Fine (2009) | "
Everyone works well under the perfunctory direction of Kirk Jones, but even with an easily resolved fade-out replete with turkey and cranberry sauce, Everybody’s Fine has the look and taste of leftovers." — New York Observer Posted Dec 2, 2009 |
Fresh
| Rotten 25%
| Motherhood (2009) | "
Many films have been made about the perils of parenthood, but none with a more attractive and entertaining mom on the verge of a nervous breakdown than Uma Thurman in Motherhood." — New York Observer Posted Oct 22, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 41%
| New York, I Love You (2009) | "
Each director had a deadline of two days to complete his segment. The result is every bit as truncated and zigzaggy as you might imagine. The whole thing looks like it was edited with pinking shears." — New York Observer Posted Oct 14, 2009 |
Rotten
| Fresh 61%
| Peter and Vandy (2009) | "
It’s a short, 95-minute ride on its way to home video. This is a shame, because the two actors in the title roles are real comers on their way to bigger things." — New York Observer Posted Oct 7, 2009 |
Fresh
| Rotten 56%
| Trucker (2009) | "
Thanks to sensitive direction and a natural, exemplary script, both of which by the talented and never syrupy James Mottern, Trucker holds its emotions firmly in check throughout." — New York Observer Posted Oct 7, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 94%
| An Education (2009) | "
Captivatingly written, directed and acted with sensitivity and nuance, this is one of the best films of the year. It lives up to its title in more ways than one." — New York Observer Posted Oct 7, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 87%
| A Serious Man (2009) | "
Not one of their best films, but because of its sincerity and the parsing away of sentiment and pretension, it is, in many ways, one of their most likable." — New York Observer Posted Sep 30, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 72%
| The Boys Are Back (2009) | "
Mr. Owen plays all the colors and emotions of the parenting dilemma with a probing wit and a sense of humanity that are thrilling to watch. Roguish yet vulnerable, he gives a performance that is both rough-hewn and gently nuanced." — New York Observer Posted Sep 23, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 35%
| Blind Date (2009) | "
Since neither character is ever explained or examined with any real insight, the viewer ceases to care early on. The overriding effect is paralyzing tedium." — New York Observer Posted Sep 23, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 18%
| The Other Man (2009) | "
Despite the gimlet eye of Richard Eyre, former director of England’s Royal National Theatre, and the top-echelon talents of an impressive cast, a dreary, disabled disaster called The Other Man drops dead at the starting gate." — New York Observer Posted Sep 23, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 91%
| Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire (2009) | "
It’s a once-in-a-blue-moon experience that tests the boundaries of film, with an electrifying, positively Oscar-worthy performance by salty stand-up comic Mo’Nique, as the most monstrous mother on the planet." — New York Observer Posted Sep 16, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 53%
| The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009) | "
Intended as a farcical antidote to big-screen bores about Afghanistan and Iraq, it’s twice as pompous and endlessly tedious." — New York Observer Posted Sep 16, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 90%
| Up in the Air (2009) | "
Up in the Air often looks like an American Airlines commercial, and I wouldn’t call it a feel-good movie per se, but there’s a certain satisfaction watching two snappy, beautiful people at the top of their form." — New York Observer Posted Sep 16, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 71%
| The Road (2009) | "
Viggo Mortensen gives the performance of his career in the faithfully rendered film adaptation of Cormac McCarthy’s heartbreaking apocalyptic novel The Road." — New York Observer Posted Sep 16, 2009 |
Rotten
| Fresh 74%
| Five Minutes of Heaven (2009) | "
Could benefit from a little less of the balanced historical context and a little more of the movie madness of Quentin Tarantino." — New York Observer Posted Aug 19, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 88%
| Inglourious Basterds (2009) | "
World War II was more serious, complex and horrifying than all this comic embellishment, but if I sound critical, I apologize in advance. I had a helluva time watching Inglourious Basterds." — New York Observer Posted Aug 19, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 70%
| My One and Only (2009) | "
A colorfully written, expertly directed and beautifully acted romp about the early life of actor George Hamilton that is guaranteed to make you feel warm all over." — New York Observer Posted Aug 12, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 38%
| The Time Traveler's Wife (2009) | "
Maybe the novel by Audrey Niffenegger, which a number of people seem to have read and enjoyed, was more convincing, but the unsatisfactory, yo-yo script by Bruce Joel Rubin, makes no real effort to explore the inner emotions of the characters." — New York Observer Posted Aug 12, 2009 |
Fresh
| Rotten 58%
| A Perfect Getaway (2009) | "
Half of the movie seems fresh and hair-raising. The rest is just disappointing and predictable. At least it provides the underrated Steve Zahn, a likable and inventive actor with natural talent, with a starring role. He makes every minute count." — New York Observer Posted Aug 5, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 75%
| Julie & Julia (2009) | "
This movie is an emerald of enchantment in the current sewer of cinematic trap rock." — New York Observer Posted Aug 5, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 43%
| Fragments (2009) | "
The pace is too languid to sustain much viewer concentration, and whatever the characters go through seems only peripherally connected to the shooting in the diner. Close, but no cigar." — New York Observer Posted Jul 29, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 65%
| Adam (2009) | "
A touching and engaging film about a likable and attractive young man who suffers from Asperger’s syndrome." — New York Observer Posted Jul 29, 2009 |
Rotten
| Fresh 68%
| Funny People (2009) | "
If you object to public offenses of decency, smut that reduces the oxygen in the brain or just plain lousy, amateurish filmmaking, it's easy enough to avoid Funny People like the swine flu." — New York Observer Posted Jul 29, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 31%
| The Answer Man (2009) | "
The improbable romance between the two stars is a stretch, but their chemistry is undeniable. Unfortunately, much of the film is too implausible to forgive." — New York Observer Posted Jul 22, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 31%
| Deadgirl (2008) | "
Written by a weirdo named Trent Haaga for no other purpose than to outrage, Deadgirl is part S&M porno, part supernatural chiller, and worthy only if you’re interested in how far movies can go before the police arrive." — New York Observer Posted Jul 22, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 26%
| Shrink (2009) | "
Not since The Informers, based catatonically on the idiotic Bret Easton Ellis book, has the screen unleashed a Hollywood abortion as dismal and dead-on-arrival as Shrink." — New York Observer Posted Jul 22, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 50%
| Death In Love (2009) | "
What makes pretentious, low-budget-indie filmmakers think the world is waiting breathlessly to absorb their personal memoirs like groundbreaking new recipes for meatballs?" — New York Observer Posted Jul 15, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 86%
| 500 Days of Summer (2009) | "
Thanks to two wonderful, offbeat performances by Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel, this movie has charm to spare. It looks you right in the eye and tells the truth." — New York Observer Posted Jul 15, 2009 |
Rotten
| Fresh 83%
| Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2009) | "
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, the sixth and worst installment yet, is two and a half hours of paralyzing tedium, featuring another colossal waste of British talent and a plot a real witch couldn’t find with a crystal ball." — New York Observer Posted Jul 15, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 67%
| Public Enemies (2009) | "
Thrilling, glamorous, richly textured and breathlessly action-packed, it is one of the best movies of the year." — New York Observer Posted Jun 24, 2009 |
Fresh
| Rotten 47%
| My Sister's Keeper (2009) | "
The writing team of Jeremy Leven and director Cassavetes have joined forces with a great cast to bring the best-selling book by Jodi Picoult to life with a purity that can only be called inspirational." — New York Observer Posted Jun 24, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 47%
| Whatever Works (2009) | "
Whatever Works is a dubious idea at best, but when nothing works, it’s time to throw out the script and move on to omething that does." — New York Observer Posted Jun 17, 2009 |
Fresh
| Fresh 66%
| Dead Snow (2009) | "
The result piles on relentless thrills and unimaginable horrors, with a shock ending guaranteed to make you scream out loud." — New York Observer Posted Jun 17, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 18%
| Downloading Nancy (2008) | "
Not only does it waste the audience’s time with 102 minutes of misery and despair, but it also trashes the talents of four fine actors who should have stayed in bed reading better screenplays that deserve attention and enhance careers." — New York Observer Posted Jun 3, 2009 |
Rotten
| Fresh 84%
| Pontypool (2009) | "
If it wasn’t so boring, the dialogue would be a laugh a minute. The acting is so abominable that the cast is better off unmentioned." — New York Observer Posted May 27, 2009 |
Rotten
| Rotten 11%
| What Goes Up (2009) | "
Without a trace of tempo or one shred of narrative pacing, What Goes Up is not really a movie; it’s the cheapest kind of amateurishness that looks like it was shot with a cell phone." — New York Observer Posted May 27, 2009 |
Rotten
| Fresh 92%
| Drag Me To Hell (2009) | "
The true test of any successful horror flick is how wretched it makes you feel. At the very least, it should inspire a banquet of dread or offer a canapé of anxiety. After Drag Me to Hell you won’t mind walking home alone." — New York Observer Posted May 27, 2009 |
Rotten
| Fresh 64%
| The Brothers Bloom (2009) | "
Annoyingly hammy and trite." — New York Observer Posted May 20, 2009 |
Fresh
| Rotten 51%
| Easy Virtue (2009) | "
All told, a sparkling, classy and ultimately satisfying experience." — New York Observer Posted May 20, 2009 |
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