The Machine review: brain underpower
The bleak chic of this SF drama is intriguing, but the script that starts out smart and elegant soon slips into the shoddy and familiar.
reviews by year
A Long Way Down review: you kill me
It shouldn’t work, but it does, as wonderfully sardonic British humor and as a reminder that you’re not alone in being messed up in this insane world.
Nymphomaniac Vol 1 & 2 movie review: behold the alien Woman
A salacious yet also tedious portrayal of a woman who would appear to confirm all the nastiest stereotypes about women.
Muppets Most Wanted review: that’ll do, frog
Kermit the Frog takes on his biggest challenge yet: dual roles. And truly puts the villain in vaudevillian.
The Muppets review: are we not men? we are weirdoes
What is a Muppet? Is it something one is born? Is it something one chooses? Is it a state of mind? Is it a lifestyle?
Need for Speed review: might as well be based on a breakfast cereal
Thinks it’s poetical and epic, and the more dramatic it thinks it’s being, the more hilariously histrionic it all is.
The Patience Stone review: a woman’s place
A beautiful and haunting Afghan film about love, devotion, and a woman’s “duty”; a remarkable feminist story from the unlikeliest place on the planet.
The Broken Circle Breakdown review: a mournful tune
Electric sexiness and very modern motifs overlie a wonderfully old-fashioned melodrama… a highly gratifying one, if you enjoy a good ol’ weep.
Out of the Furnace review: brothers in yawns
A pungent reek of testosterone stinks up this high-toned apologetic for vigilantism and revenge. Still: great performances! (new DVD/VOD US/Can)
Lee Daniels’ The Butler (aka The Butler) review: civil-rights servant
A deeply moving melodrama about a subtly subversive black butler at the heart of the White House. You will need Kleenex.
