Movie Reviews4.9/10
The Minions Franchise Runs Out of Ideas in Its Third Go-Round
Despicable Me 3 review: Gru's twin Dru, Trey Parker's Balthazar Bratt, and a billion-dollar gross that hides a shapeless sequel. Score: 4.9/10.
CLAY TRIBUNE / THE ARCHIVE
Category: Movie Reviews
Every film we have scored, from 1980s horror to what is in cinemas now.
Movie Reviews7.1/10
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (2011): Fincher’s Methodical, Unblinking Adaptation
David Fincher's 2011 adaptation of Stieg Larsson's novel, with Daniel Craig and Rooney Mara, grossed $233 million and won an editing Oscar.
Movie Reviews6.1/10
Mission: Impossible II at 26: John Woo, Chimera, and a 6.1 Audience Score
Mission: Impossible II (2000): John Woo directs Tom Cruise as Ethan Hunt racing Australia and Spain to stop a rogue IMF agent and the Chimera virus.
Movie Reviews8.1/10
Juno at 19: Elliot Page, Diablo Cody’s Script, and the $6.5 Million Bet That Paid Off in 20 Days
Juno (2007): Elliot Page's star-making role, Diablo Cody's Oscar-winning script, and a $6.5M budget that returned $232.3M worldwide.
Movie Reviews8.3/10
Hugo: Scorsese’s 3D Love Letter to Cinema, and the Box-Office Bomb That Wasn’t Misunderstood
Hugo review: Scorsese's 2011 3D children's film about a boy in a Paris train station, its 11 Oscar nominations, 5 wins, and box-office failure.
Movie Reviews6.5/10
Grease survives on its songs and its stars, not its screenplay
Grease (1978) review: John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John carry a thin plot with a great soundtrack. Where the musical soars and where it stalls.
Movie Reviews3.9/10
Green Lantern: A $200 Million Lesson in Willpower Without a Will
Green Lantern (2011) review: Ryan Reynolds, a $200M budget, and a franchise that never found its ending.
Movie Reviews5.5/10
Holocaust Drama That Lets Viewers Off the Hook
A review of Mark Herman's 2008 Holocaust film The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas, starring Asa Butterfield and Vera Farmiga, and why its central fable fails.
Movie Reviews6.6/10
Mission: Impossible III at 20: Hoffman’s Chilling Villain Steadies a Franchise Without Defining It
Mission: Impossible III (2006): J.J. Abrams' feature debut, two directors gone before him, and Philip Seymour Hoffman's Owen Davian holding it all together.
Movie Reviews6.6/10
Animated Food Fights Back, but the Satire Stops at the R-Rating
Sausage Party review: the R-rated animated grocery comedy made $141M on a $19M budget, but its sharpest idea about belief gets buried under shock gags.
Movie Reviews4.5/10
The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift: A 104-Minute Audition Reel
Tokyo Drift, the third Fast & Furious film, is a 104-minute audition reel with great drifting and a weak script. Score: 4.5/10.
Movie Reviews5.8/10
The Fast Saga Reaches Space, and Finds Nothing Left to Race
F9 review: the Fast & Furious franchise brings back Han Lue but runs out of road, wasting a deep cast on a retcon in search of a reason.