Movie Reviews8.2/10
Magnolia at 27: Paul Thomas Anderson’s Epic Mosaic of Broken Lives Still Stands
Paul Thomas Anderson's Magnolia at 25: Tom Cruise's infomercial stunt, Aimee Mann's songs, and a 189-minute epic about people failed early.
CLAY TRIBUNE / THE ARCHIVE
Tag: Movie Retrospective
Movie Reviews5.6/10
Waterworld’s reputation as a disaster doesn’t survive a rewatch
Waterworld at 30: not the flop the headlines promised, not a buried classic — a mid-tier blockbuster with a great premise and a script that never earns it.
Movie Reviews8.7/10
The Fugitive at 33: A Procedural Wearing an Action Movie’s Coat
A wrong-man thriller that never cheats: how The Fugitive turned procedure into personality, won Tommy Lee Jones an Oscar, and grossed $368 million.
Movie Reviews6.1/10
Ben Stiller’s male-model spoof still lands its jokes about an industry that takes itself seriously
Zoolander at 25: Ben Stiller's 89-minute fashion satire, its Bowie walk-off, Mugatu's conspiracy, and the cameos that made it a cult comedy.
Movie Reviews7/10
Liar Liar: Jim Carrey’s Truth-Cursed Comedy Still Holds Up
Liar Liar at 28: why Jim Carrey's 1997 comedy still works, from the 24-hour honesty curse to the courtroom scenes and Samantha Cole's prenup.
Movie Reviews6.9/10
Dumb and Dumber at 6.9 of 10: Carrey, Daniels and the Gags That Land
Dumb and Dumber: how Jim Carrey's $7M salary, Jeff Daniels' $50,000 gamble and a chipped tooth turned a $17M road comedy into a $247.3M hit.
Movie Reviews6.1/10
First Blood: The Knife, the Manhunt, and the Franchise That Followed
First Blood (1982) made Rambo a legend, but Ted Kotcheff's original film is a lean manhunt about one knife, one Green Beret, and a town called Hope.
Movie Reviews5.9/10
Jim Carrey Became a Movie Star Playing a Cartoon Id Unleashed by a Magic Mask
Jim Carrey's 1994 breakout in The Mask: how Chuck Russell kept him over studio picks, Cameron Diaz's debut, and a $351.8M hit built on one face.
Movie Reviews6.2/10
The Devil Wears Prada at 20: Streep, Blunt and the Material That Got the Credit
Streep got it made, Blunt became a star, Hathaway got her first adult lead — but the film itself never earned its reputation.
Movie Reviews7.6/10
RoboCop at 39: Paul Verhoeven’s Corporate Satire Still Has Teeth
A deep dive into Paul Verhoeven's 1987 RoboCop: the boardroom satire, Peter Weller's casting, Rob Bottin's suit, and why the film still holds up.