David Lewis

Select another critic »
San Francisco Chronicle
For 174 reviews, this critic has graded:
  • 44% higher than the average critic
  • 3% same as the average critic
  • 53% lower than the average critic
On average, this critic grades 0.8 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)

David Lewis' Scores

  • Movies
  • TV
Average review score: 65
Highest review score: 100 Mutt
Lowest review score: 25 Monster Trucks
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 95 out of 174
  2. Mixed: 66 out of 174
  3. Negative: 13 out of 174
174 movie reviews
view
per page
    • 65 Metascore
    • 75 David Lewis
    Rodents of Unusual Size
    A bit icky yet full of charm, the engaging documentary Rodents of Unusual Size introduces us to the nutria, a furry antihero that’s a cross between a huge rat and a beaver — and that has been damaging Louisiana’s delicate wetlands for decades. The film serves as both an environmental cautionary tale for other states (including California) and an interesting slice of Cajun life.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 75 David Lewis
    The Sisters Brothers
    A character study hiding in cowboys’ clothing — and even if its pacing could use a little more giddy-up, it delivers an inspired ending that makes the brothers’ longish journey worthwhile.
    • 57 Metascore
    • 63 David Lewis
    Viper Club
    In a film that should be dripping with drama, there is surprisingly little tension.
    • 52 Metascore
    • 63 David Lewis
    Submission
    Submission is not a bad film — it just feels like an early draft.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 63 David Lewis
    Mia Madre
    It has plenty of emotionally satisfying scenes and its share of humorous moments, but the drama and comedy mix like oil and water.
    • 59 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Together
    Both McAvoy and Horgan handle the rapid-fire dialogue with gusto, and for a while, their devastating banter is amusing. But eventually the effect begins to wear thin: These vocal diatribes need a more developed story to hang on.
    • 50 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    My Salinger Year
    My Salinger Year, which is basically The Devil Wears Prada set in the literary world, is a film that feels like it’s ready to take off at any moment, but stalls every time it tries to do anything.
    • 40 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    The Boss
    Though Michelle’s transformation into a family-loving gal is hardly convincing, the film still moves along quickly, and McCarthy has some memorable moments in which her comic chops are on full display.
    • 41 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Silk Road
    Still, Silk Road remains watchable because both Robinson and Clarke are interesting screen presences. And there’s some humor, which consistently lands better than the thrills.
    • 49 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    The Catcher Was a Spy
    Director Ben Lewin has crafted a biopic spy thriller, kind of, but the script has neither the character shadings to be a biopic nor the pacing and twist and turns to be a spy thriller.
    • 44 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Miracles from Heaven
    As one might expect from a Christian film, Miracles From Heaven centers on faith — and a major miracle — but it’s also a decent family drama about a mother’s tribulations in caring for her sick child.
    • 55 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    J.T. Leroy
    JT Leroy is on safer ground when Albert and Knoop are matching wits, mainly because it’s a pleasure to watch the perfectly cast Dern and Stewart on the screen. It’s easy to understand what attracted these fine actors to these roles, but the script allows them to only scratch the surface of this maze-of-mirrors story, where the truth remains deliciously elusive.
    • 44 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Mortal Engines
    The film is a reasonably entertaining trifle, though it’s overstuffed with battle sequences and peripheral characters that often consume the main story line.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Beast
    Even if it has B-movie trappings and the tension wanes in the second half, it’s a stylish psychodrama.
    • 24 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Dark Crimes
    Regardless of how one might feel about its inherently icky subject matter, Dark Crimes needs more narrative momentum. The cast is game, the production design is impressive and a few surprises await — but even as things heat up, the film somehow remains cold.
    • 59 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Outlaw King
    Though the ambitious Outlaw King doesn’t always fire on all cylinders, moviegoers deserve this chance to see it on the big screen, before it starts showing on a laptop near you.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Monsoon
    Monsoon, an offbeat story about a man’s cultural dislocation in Vietnam, is more of a slow drip than a torrential downpour. It’s a lovely film that suddenly and magically can wash over you, then lose you in its opacities.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Good Time
    In the end, the whole enterprise comes off as too clever for its own good, a social satire without a clear target. It’s a movie that you admire more than you like.
    • 61 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Triple Frontier
    A movie that moves slower than it should and that keeps us detached for long periods of time. Most of the problems can be traced to the script, which does a poor job of establishing the characters and giving us a sense of how they relate to each other.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Anna and the Apocalypse
    Apocalypse also doesn’t excel in the teen angst department, because the characters are not fleshed out enough. The love triangle is not convincing, and except for Anna and her father, we don’t care a whole lot about what happens to the characters, perhaps because we didn’t get enough time to know them in the beginning.
    • 55 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Almost Christmas
    Almost Christmas would have been less clunky if it had focused more on the family’s loss of its matriarch, and allowed the comic elements to naturally arise as the characters struggle with the new family dynamic. Instead, we get too many slapstick set pieces and extraneous subplots that bog down the proceedings.
    • 49 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Despicable Me 3
    In the end, though, the movie’s superior craftsmanship can’t overcome its aura of joylessness.
    • 39 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    The Intruder
    A B-movie with a few thrills and plenty of inane dialogue.
    • 44 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Voyagers
    The technically elegant Voyagers, about a space colonization trip run amok, is easy enough to sit through, but it’s a story in need of more rocket fuel. There isn’t a bad scene in the movie, yet there isn’t a really good scene, either. It’s a quiet psychological thriller, even when it’s trying to stir mayhem.
    • 48 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    The Take
    Eventually, the plot feels more perfunctory than palpable, but Watkins is careful not to drag things out. All in all, we don’t mind being taken along for the ride, yet in the end, we’re ready to disembark.
    • 57 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    The Dinner
    As we watch these four pros in action, we find ourselves wanting fewer flashbacks and more time with all of the folks in one spot. That would have been a satisfying meal in itself.
    • 53 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Britt-Marie Was Here
    The most refreshing thing about the movie is having a more mature woman at the center of the action, and August knows not to overreach here. She is dryly funny, but also subtly affecting, and it’s a pleasure to watch her heart and mind slowly but surely open up to life’s possibilities.
    • 67 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    The Vessel
    Quintana brings a stunning visual flair to his film, and Sheen has a fine moment when he ponders the thin line between miracles and tragedies. But we keep waiting for the film to wash over us, and it never quite does.
    • 46 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Now You See Me 2
    Your enjoyment of the movie will depend on whether you can suspend your disbelief — and confusion — and let the magic of misdirection wash over you.
    • 25 Metascore
    • 50 David Lewis
    Honeyglue
    Jessica Tuck gives an emotionally raw performance as Morgan’s mother, and Amanda Plummer’s turn as a trailer park resident sheds more light on Jordan than all the other scenes combined.
Page:

Top Trailers

See all »
See all trailers »