Movie Reviews7.6/10
Kevin Spacey’s limp was real, and it became the twist everyone remembers
The Usual Suspects (1995): Bryan Singer's crime thriller, the Keyser Söze twist, Oscar wins for Kevin Spacey and writer Christopher McQuarrie.
CLAY TRIBUNE / THE ARCHIVE
Category: Movie Reviews
Every film we have scored, from 1980s horror to what is in cinemas now.
Movie Reviews9.3/10
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest: Forman’s Machine and the Men Inside It
A review of Miloš Forman's One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest: Jack Nicholson vs. Louise Fletcher, Chief Bromden's witness, and why it still earns 9.3/10.
Movie Reviews4.6/10
The Four Horsemen Swap One Magician and Lose the Plot
Now You See Me 2 review: the Four Horsemen land in Macau, Lizzy Caplan joins the cast, and a 4.6 score shows a sequel that adds pieces but loses the plot.
Movie Reviews7.5/10
Back to the Future Part III: A Review
Back to the Future Part III review: Zemeckis trades hoverboards for spurs as Marty rescues Doc in 1885. Mary Steenburgen's Clara makes the third trip work.
Movie Reviews5.5/10
Tom Cruise’s post-apocalyptic sci-fi looks stunning but can’t sustain its mysteries
Oblivion review: Tom Cruise and Morgan Freeman in a gorgeous sci-fi puzzle box that explains too much and trusts its audience too little.
Movie Reviews7.7/10
The mechanical shark barely worked. Steven Spielberg shot the thing anyway, and the failure became the most important decision in the movie.
Jaws at 7.7: how a broken mechanical shark, John Williams' two notes and Spielberg's forced restraint made the 1975 summer blockbuster still work.
Movie Reviews5.7/10
Madagascar Review: A Well-Cast, Well-Animated Comedy That Peaks by Accident
Madagascar (2005): DreamWorks' zoo-breakout comedy, its voice cast, King Julien's accidental rise, the penguins, and why $558M didn't buy a better script.
Movie Reviews8/10
Casino Royale at 20: Daniel Craig’s Debut Is a Reboot That Earns the Word
Daniel Craig's first Bond film rebooted 007 with practical stunts, a poker-table plot, and Vesper Lynd as the real engine. A review of Casino Royale (2006).
Movie Reviews7.7/10
Nightcrawler: Dan Gilroy’s Sharp, Mean Debut
Dan Gilroy's Nightcrawler (2014) stars Jake Gyllenhaal as Lou Bloom, a freelance crime photographer chasing violent footage across Los Angeles at night.
Movie Reviews7.6/10
Besson wrote The Fifth Element as a teenager, then spent years getting the money to film it
Luc Besson's The Fifth Element (1997): Bruce Willis, Milla Jovovich, Gary Oldman, a $90M budget, and a first hour that still holds up.
Movie Reviews9.6/10
12 Years a Slave: A Great Film That Refuses to Comfort You
Steve McQueen's 12 Years a Slave earns its Oscars — a review of Chiwetel Ejiofor, Lupita Nyong'o, and a film that refuses every shortcut.
Movie Reviews7.7/10
Robin Williams’s Genie Carries Aladdin, and the Movie Knows It
Aladdin (1992) review: Robin Williams' Genie, Alan Menken's songs, and a promise that outshines the wish-fulfillment. Score: 7.7 of 10.