The Kings of Summer review
Mashes a heightened sense of the absurd rather awkwardly up against arty pastoral, and the mock-seriousness of the endeavor comes across as unpleasantly snide.
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The Call review: the call is coming from inside the movie!
The familiar serial-killer flick gets a welcome shakeup, smashing to smithereens the tired trope of woman-as-victim and offering a bracing new perspective on an oft-told tale.
The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones review
Way to give overwrought fan fiction a bad name. No amount of fairy dust can make this bewitching.
The Lifeguard review
Apparently it’s hard to be a grownup in today’s crazy world without committing consequence-free statutory rape. Ugh.
The Way, Way Back review: how to escape from your family
One of the more achingly poignant stories of awkward (male) adolescence I’ve seen. Sam Rockwell steals this movie more than he has ever stolen a movie before.
Kick-Ass 2 review: the mask is empty
Like a Comic-Con cosplay event gone horribly wrong, this poor excuse for an action comedy has nothing to say beyond a few expletives and nothing to offer but a shocking lack of appreciation for its own awful irony.
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters review: clash-of-the-titan babies
Spectacularly mediocre fantasy junk food, perfectly inoffensive for youngsters but too featherweight for adult genre fans.
From Up on Poppy Hill review: gentle as a seaside breeze
Joyously warm and gentle… though perhaps too gentle to be entirely satisfying.
Breathe In review: every man’s fantasy — blech
Dear Penthouse Forum: I am an ordinary high school teacher, happily married. I never thought anything like this would happen when we hosted a beautiful, brilliant British foreign exchange student…
In the House (Dans la maison) review: humour noir
As a black comedy, this never quite catches fire, though there is some mild amusement to be found in its social satire.
