RatingT-MeterTitle | YearReviewC 45% A Walk In The Woods (2015)"A Walk in the Woods is a trifle compared to 2014's Wild... But darned if Redford's easy charm and Nolte's gravelly lack of it aren't enticing throughout. Even when drastically lowering their standards they're stars. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Sep 16, 2015
C 81% Black Mass (2015)"Early on, Cooper's movie finds an episodic rhythm and follows it to dramatic cul-de-sacs. Just turn around and head somewhere else, from jai alai frontons in Miami to shipping weapons to the Irish Republican Army. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Sep 16, 2015
B- 76% Everest (2015)"Everest is... dramatized so authentically that a little embellishment would help. Freezing to death isn't very cinematic... essentially a faux documentary with big stars and better lighting. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Sep 16, 2015
D 42% We Are Your Friends (2015)"We Are Your Friends is to electronic dance music DJs what Punchline is to standup comedians, a laughable repre-Zen-tation of what it's like to be them. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Sep 1, 2015
A- 82% Mistress America (2015)"This movie is a pleasure to hear, co-written by director Noah Baumbach and Gerwig, whose modern feminine voice is a wry counterpoint to the blunter feminism of Amy Schumer and Lena Dunham. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Sep 1, 2015
C 46% American Ultra (2015)"... a clumsy mix of courtship and gunpowder, passion and horror leading to a romantically sick-humored conclusion. The end nearly justifies director Nima Nourizadeh's means of getting there. But not quite. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 20, 2015
B- 68% The Man From U.N.C.L.E. (2015)"This is not your father's U.N.C.L.E. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 12, 2015
D 9% Fantastic Four (2015)"... undoubtably the dullest Marvel superhero movie in the post-Iron Man era, both in adventure and creative design. Nothing much happens, and it's ugly when it does. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 6, 2015
B 99% Shaun the Sheep (2015)"Aardman's work is immediately recognizable and enjoyable, even in a minor key effort like Shaun the Sheep Movie. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 6, 2015
B- 42% Irrational Man (2015)"Not at the level of Crimes and Misdemeanors or Match Point but interesting for Allen completists for the style tweaking late in his career. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 6, 2015
C 65% Ricki And The Flash (2015)"As an actor, Meryl Streep is incapable of making false moves. That doesn't mean she's incapable of making false movies. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 6, 2015
B+ 93% The Gift (2015)"...a nastily subtle piece of work leading viewers through a gantlet of insinuations, a mystery spreading in unexpected directions like a blood pool. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 6, 2015
B+ 89% The Simpsons Movie (2007)"For the faithful, The Simpsons Movie delivers plenty of "woo-hoos," interrupted by only a handful of "d'ohs." " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 2, 2015
C 54% Minions (2015)"Minions is despicable, or maybe it's just me. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 30, 2015
D+ 18% Pixels (2015)"The final hemorrhaging of arcade icons, smeared by light-dulling 3-D glasses, prompted me to jot "jellybean vomit" in my notebook. Let's see Columbia Pictures use that blurb in a Pixels ad. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 30, 2015
B 85% Trainwreck (2015)"Trainwreck is Schumer's funny movie star debut that could've been hilarious, if director Judd Apatow would just say "cut" a bit sooner once in a while. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 30, 2015
C+ 27% Vacation (2015)"a Gen X comedy franchise rebooted exactly how audiences can expect in 2015, bawdier and less likable than whatever classic inspires it. The Griswolds may return but I'm not sure I'd follow them to Europe and Vegas, or spend Christmas at their place. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 30, 2015
B+ 92% Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation (2015)"Anyone can be in a movie; only a few like Cruise are the movies. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 30, 2015
A 99% Finding Nemo (2003)"Finding Nemo is a wonderment, certainly not human, yet humorously humane. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 29, 2015
B 59% Southpaw (2015)"Southpaw is a terrific boxing movie, with choreographed violence emphasizing the sport's speed rather than its poetry in slow motion. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 24, 2015
C 44% Daredevil (2003)"The ghostly sonar effects showing how Matt "sees" through sound are interesting, and Farrell's mad dog performance is fun. But overall Daredevil is nothing to marvel about. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 14, 2015
A- 86% X2: X-Men United (2003)"X2 is an interesting fantasy, always aware of its need to remain that way. Considering today's Hollywood, that may be its most amazing power of all. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 14, 2015
B- 80% Ant-Man (2015)"Never thought I'd type this about a comic book movie, but Ant-Man needs to take itself more seriously. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 14, 2015
B 89% Spider-Man (2002)"All of the pieces are in place for a successful franchise. Tobey Maguire is a perfect choice to play Peter in his mild-mannered moments and puppy-love interludes. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 7, 2015
A 97% Amy (2015)"Like Kurt Cobain's doc, the movie's foundation is video of unflattering behaviored by, or with the consent of, the subject, another by-product of video narcissism; what is fun can later be evidence, or for these doomed musicians, an epitaph. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 7, 2015
B- 82% The Overnight (2015)"Brice's screenplay is peppered with hip-speak double entendres that become singles when Schwartzman oozes them. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 2, 2015
B+ 92% Drag Me to Hell (2009)"Drag Me to Hell is a lark fitting snugly between the Saw flicks and silliness like Shaun of the Dead, making the gasps and laughter feel like something earned through ingenuity. Welcome back, Mr. Raimi. We've been lurking for you. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 30, 2015
C 26% Terminator Genisys (2015)"Don't worry about brushing up on Terminator mythology before seeing the latest sequel. There's a helpful prologue in Terminator Genisys explaining everything that happened since 1984, and a movie after that making much of it useless. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 30, 2015
A 97% Chicken Run (2000)"Chickens are inherently funny, like nature's idea of a very practical joke. Park and Lord have just improved the old rubber chicken gag, making it movable, turning it into something closer to who we are and what we know as humans. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 29, 2015
C 65% Magic Mike XXL (2015)"A fun idea gets a little too big for its g-strings with Magic Mike XXL, a movie that really needs to shut up and dance. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 29, 2015
A- 93% Spider-Man 2 (2004)"Spider-Man 2 ranks alongside Superman II and both X-Mens as the best screen adaptations of comic book heroes, a status that, as we've seen through the years, isn't as easy to master as it sounds. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 29, 2015
B 81% Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015)"This is among the funnier entries in the cancer-kid genre, flawed yet affable, with no fault in its dweebly charismatic stars. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 25, 2015
A- 46% Ted 2 (2015)"Ted 2 isn't cinematically special; the plot structure and shot framing is identical to MacFarlane's animated TV shows. But my god, is it funny. Trashy, nasty as it wants to be funny. Wake up the next day still giggling funny. Yes, that funny. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 25, 2015
B- 93% The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)"When camera operators are moving around a set more than the actors, it may be time to scale back a bit. Fortunately, Bourne finds some sort of violent pick-me-up at each stop on his worldwide vengeance tour. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 23, 2015
B 50% Tomorrowland (2015)" Tomorrowland is co-written with Bird by Damon Lindehof, tapping a similar dimension-bending beat as his TV hit Lost. Like that puzzler, Tomorrowland's plot leads viewers down a few too many rabbit holes without carrots to show for it. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
B 97% Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)"Mad Max: Fury Road is a relentless marvel of sense-pummeling stunts and gargoyle horror that needs to take a breather once in a while. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
B- 67% Pitch Perfect 2 (2015)"The first movie was a sweet, simple song. This one is a gaudy production number. Both entertain, only one endears. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
D 19% Aloha (2015)"Suddenly Adam Sandler's working vacations in Hawaii look a bit better. Island natives shouldn't be upset over being excluded from Crowe's movie; they should be mad because they're in it. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
C 32% Entourage (2015)"Something is really wrong when (Haley Joel) Osment turns in the best performance in any movie these days. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
B 50% San Andreas (2015)"If you're caught in a movie between a rock and a hard place, choose the Rock every time. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
B+ 71% Jurassic World (2015)" Flashes of Harrison Ford's rakish charm aside, Pratt often presents himself like a toy action figure with fewer hinged joints and one expression, stiffly posed with heavy artillery. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
B+ 87% Dope (2015)"Whatever definition of "dope" you prefer, it applies to Rick Famuyiwa's movie. Dope is a drug caper involving teenagers doing stupid things for the geeks they are, the kind John Hughes might have written if he allowed black people in his movies. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
A 98% Inside Out (2015)"Inside Out is the animation leaders' most ambitiously original project since Up... ranks among their finest, certainly the most intellectually challenging in the way it makes abstracts relatable to anyone, young and old. It thinks, therefore it is. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
A 90% District 9 (2009)"District 9 grabs viewers from first frame to last, not only with viscera but genuine intelligence that's rare in any genre these days. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 17, 2015
93% Jurassic Park (1993)"We ask for two things from big-budget thrillers like this: Make us believe and make us jump. Jurassic Park delivers on both counts. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 10, 2015
A- 94% Iron Man (2008)"Director Jon Favreau builds a sturdy foundation for a franchise, an origins story that isn't as familiar as Batman's or Spider-Man's and unburdened by the angst of murdered relatives and messianic guilt. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 9, 2015
B 88% Shrek (2001)"The best jokes in Shrek spoof Disney tradition; the villain's lair looks suspiciously like a certain theme park's Main Street USA, and a bluebird of happiness explodes during a sugary crescendo. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 9, 2015
F 3% Battlefield Earth (2000)"The plot is jumbled and poorly edited, the dialogue laughable, and special effects seldom appear so common. A performance by John Travolta in which he abandons everything that ever made him cool is the rotten cherry on top. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 3, 2015
A 89% Love & Mercy (2015)"Dano and Cusack each deliver superb performances in different ways. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 2, 2015
C 54% The Age of Adaline (2015)"Poor Adaline Bowman, sentenced to an eternity of looking like Blake Lively thanks to scientific hoo-hah that won't be discovered until 2035, Adaline never ages. Her movie gets old quickly. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted May 7, 2015
C 81% Black Mass (2015)"Early on, Cooper's movie finds an episodic rhythm and follows it to dramatic cul-de-sacs. Just turn around and head somewhere else, from jai alai frontons in Miami to shipping weapons to the Irish Republican Army. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Sep 16, 2015
B- 76% Everest (2015)"Everest is... dramatized so authentically that a little embellishment would help. Freezing to death isn't very cinematic... essentially a faux documentary with big stars and better lighting. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Sep 16, 2015
D 42% We Are Your Friends (2015)"We Are Your Friends is to electronic dance music DJs what Punchline is to standup comedians, a laughable repre-Zen-tation of what it's like to be them. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Sep 1, 2015
A- 82% Mistress America (2015)"This movie is a pleasure to hear, co-written by director Noah Baumbach and Gerwig, whose modern feminine voice is a wry counterpoint to the blunter feminism of Amy Schumer and Lena Dunham. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Sep 1, 2015
C 46% American Ultra (2015)"... a clumsy mix of courtship and gunpowder, passion and horror leading to a romantically sick-humored conclusion. The end nearly justifies director Nima Nourizadeh's means of getting there. But not quite. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 20, 2015
B- 68% The Man From U.N.C.L.E. (2015)"This is not your father's U.N.C.L.E. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 12, 2015
D 9% Fantastic Four (2015)"... undoubtably the dullest Marvel superhero movie in the post-Iron Man era, both in adventure and creative design. Nothing much happens, and it's ugly when it does. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 6, 2015
B 99% Shaun the Sheep (2015)"Aardman's work is immediately recognizable and enjoyable, even in a minor key effort like Shaun the Sheep Movie. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 6, 2015
B- 42% Irrational Man (2015)"Not at the level of Crimes and Misdemeanors or Match Point but interesting for Allen completists for the style tweaking late in his career. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 6, 2015
C 65% Ricki And The Flash (2015)"As an actor, Meryl Streep is incapable of making false moves. That doesn't mean she's incapable of making false movies. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 6, 2015
B+ 93% The Gift (2015)"...a nastily subtle piece of work leading viewers through a gantlet of insinuations, a mystery spreading in unexpected directions like a blood pool. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 6, 2015
B+ 89% The Simpsons Movie (2007)"For the faithful, The Simpsons Movie delivers plenty of "woo-hoos," interrupted by only a handful of "d'ohs." " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Aug 2, 2015
C 54% Minions (2015)"Minions is despicable, or maybe it's just me. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 30, 2015
D+ 18% Pixels (2015)"The final hemorrhaging of arcade icons, smeared by light-dulling 3-D glasses, prompted me to jot "jellybean vomit" in my notebook. Let's see Columbia Pictures use that blurb in a Pixels ad. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 30, 2015
B 85% Trainwreck (2015)"Trainwreck is Schumer's funny movie star debut that could've been hilarious, if director Judd Apatow would just say "cut" a bit sooner once in a while. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 30, 2015
C+ 27% Vacation (2015)"a Gen X comedy franchise rebooted exactly how audiences can expect in 2015, bawdier and less likable than whatever classic inspires it. The Griswolds may return but I'm not sure I'd follow them to Europe and Vegas, or spend Christmas at their place. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 30, 2015
B+ 92% Mission: Impossible Rogue Nation (2015)"Anyone can be in a movie; only a few like Cruise are the movies. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 30, 2015
A 99% Finding Nemo (2003)"Finding Nemo is a wonderment, certainly not human, yet humorously humane. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 29, 2015
B 59% Southpaw (2015)"Southpaw is a terrific boxing movie, with choreographed violence emphasizing the sport's speed rather than its poetry in slow motion. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 24, 2015
C 44% Daredevil (2003)"The ghostly sonar effects showing how Matt "sees" through sound are interesting, and Farrell's mad dog performance is fun. But overall Daredevil is nothing to marvel about. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 14, 2015
A- 86% X2: X-Men United (2003)"X2 is an interesting fantasy, always aware of its need to remain that way. Considering today's Hollywood, that may be its most amazing power of all. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 14, 2015
B- 80% Ant-Man (2015)"Never thought I'd type this about a comic book movie, but Ant-Man needs to take itself more seriously. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 14, 2015
B 89% Spider-Man (2002)"All of the pieces are in place for a successful franchise. Tobey Maguire is a perfect choice to play Peter in his mild-mannered moments and puppy-love interludes. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 7, 2015
A 97% Amy (2015)"Like Kurt Cobain's doc, the movie's foundation is video of unflattering behaviored by, or with the consent of, the subject, another by-product of video narcissism; what is fun can later be evidence, or for these doomed musicians, an epitaph. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 7, 2015
B- 82% The Overnight (2015)"Brice's screenplay is peppered with hip-speak double entendres that become singles when Schwartzman oozes them. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jul 2, 2015
B+ 92% Drag Me to Hell (2009)"Drag Me to Hell is a lark fitting snugly between the Saw flicks and silliness like Shaun of the Dead, making the gasps and laughter feel like something earned through ingenuity. Welcome back, Mr. Raimi. We've been lurking for you. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 30, 2015
C 26% Terminator Genisys (2015)"Don't worry about brushing up on Terminator mythology before seeing the latest sequel. There's a helpful prologue in Terminator Genisys explaining everything that happened since 1984, and a movie after that making much of it useless. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 30, 2015
A 97% Chicken Run (2000)"Chickens are inherently funny, like nature's idea of a very practical joke. Park and Lord have just improved the old rubber chicken gag, making it movable, turning it into something closer to who we are and what we know as humans. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 29, 2015
C 65% Magic Mike XXL (2015)"A fun idea gets a little too big for its g-strings with Magic Mike XXL, a movie that really needs to shut up and dance. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 29, 2015
A- 93% Spider-Man 2 (2004)"Spider-Man 2 ranks alongside Superman II and both X-Mens as the best screen adaptations of comic book heroes, a status that, as we've seen through the years, isn't as easy to master as it sounds. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 29, 2015
B 81% Me and Earl and the Dying Girl (2015)"This is among the funnier entries in the cancer-kid genre, flawed yet affable, with no fault in its dweebly charismatic stars. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 25, 2015
A- 46% Ted 2 (2015)"Ted 2 isn't cinematically special; the plot structure and shot framing is identical to MacFarlane's animated TV shows. But my god, is it funny. Trashy, nasty as it wants to be funny. Wake up the next day still giggling funny. Yes, that funny. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 25, 2015
B- 93% The Bourne Ultimatum (2007)"When camera operators are moving around a set more than the actors, it may be time to scale back a bit. Fortunately, Bourne finds some sort of violent pick-me-up at each stop on his worldwide vengeance tour. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 23, 2015
B 50% Tomorrowland (2015)" Tomorrowland is co-written with Bird by Damon Lindehof, tapping a similar dimension-bending beat as his TV hit Lost. Like that puzzler, Tomorrowland's plot leads viewers down a few too many rabbit holes without carrots to show for it. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
B 97% Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)"Mad Max: Fury Road is a relentless marvel of sense-pummeling stunts and gargoyle horror that needs to take a breather once in a while. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
B- 67% Pitch Perfect 2 (2015)"The first movie was a sweet, simple song. This one is a gaudy production number. Both entertain, only one endears. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
D 19% Aloha (2015)"Suddenly Adam Sandler's working vacations in Hawaii look a bit better. Island natives shouldn't be upset over being excluded from Crowe's movie; they should be mad because they're in it. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
C 32% Entourage (2015)"Something is really wrong when (Haley Joel) Osment turns in the best performance in any movie these days. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
B 50% San Andreas (2015)"If you're caught in a movie between a rock and a hard place, choose the Rock every time. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
B+ 71% Jurassic World (2015)" Flashes of Harrison Ford's rakish charm aside, Pratt often presents himself like a toy action figure with fewer hinged joints and one expression, stiffly posed with heavy artillery. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
B+ 87% Dope (2015)"Whatever definition of "dope" you prefer, it applies to Rick Famuyiwa's movie. Dope is a drug caper involving teenagers doing stupid things for the geeks they are, the kind John Hughes might have written if he allowed black people in his movies. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
A 98% Inside Out (2015)"Inside Out is the animation leaders' most ambitiously original project since Up... ranks among their finest, certainly the most intellectually challenging in the way it makes abstracts relatable to anyone, young and old. It thinks, therefore it is. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 18, 2015
A 90% District 9 (2009)"District 9 grabs viewers from first frame to last, not only with viscera but genuine intelligence that's rare in any genre these days. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 17, 2015
93% Jurassic Park (1993)"We ask for two things from big-budget thrillers like this: Make us believe and make us jump. Jurassic Park delivers on both counts. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 10, 2015
A- 94% Iron Man (2008)"Director Jon Favreau builds a sturdy foundation for a franchise, an origins story that isn't as familiar as Batman's or Spider-Man's and unburdened by the angst of murdered relatives and messianic guilt. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 9, 2015
B 88% Shrek (2001)"The best jokes in Shrek spoof Disney tradition; the villain's lair looks suspiciously like a certain theme park's Main Street USA, and a bluebird of happiness explodes during a sugary crescendo. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 9, 2015
F 3% Battlefield Earth (2000)"The plot is jumbled and poorly edited, the dialogue laughable, and special effects seldom appear so common. A performance by John Travolta in which he abandons everything that ever made him cool is the rotten cherry on top. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 3, 2015
A 89% Love & Mercy (2015)"Dano and Cusack each deliver superb performances in different ways. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted Jun 2, 2015
C 54% The Age of Adaline (2015)"Poor Adaline Bowman, sentenced to an eternity of looking like Blake Lively thanks to scientific hoo-hah that won't be discovered until 2035, Adaline never ages. Her movie gets old quickly. " ‐ Tampa Bay TimesPosted May 7, 2015
