Phil de Semlyen
Select another critic »For 490 reviews, this critic has graded:
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51% higher than the average critic
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5% same as the average critic
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44% lower than the average critic
On average, this critic grades 5.2 points higher than other critics.
(0-100 point scale)
Phil de Semlyen's Scores
- Movies
- TV
| Average review score: | 71 | |
|---|---|---|
| Highest review score: | The Lost Daughter | |
| Lowest review score: | Stuber | |
Score distribution:
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Positive: 284 out of 490
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Mixed: 201 out of 490
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Negative: 5 out of 490
490
movie
reviews
- By Date
- By Critic Score
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- Phil de Semlyen
In the mood for two hours of relentless fights, gory kills, clichéd McGuffins and unmemorable characters, all served up in a weightless CG environment? Mortal Kombat II punches a hole in all those boxes.- Time Out
- Posted May 7, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Apart from the confetti-cannon finale, this isn’t the hackneyed stereoscopic where things burst through the screen, but an immersive front row and on-stage spot at Billie Eilish’s 2025 world tour.- Time Out
- Posted May 7, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
The Devil Wears Prada 2 is one of those nice surprises, a so-called legacy sequel made with love and executed with flair. Think Top Gun: Maverick with better hats.- Time Out
- Posted Apr 29, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
The photography is spectacular. Petit and his crew have abseiled, crawled and waded through the darkness to chart the earth’s shadowy recesses.- Time Out
- Posted Apr 28, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
A woolly family caper with a nostalgic flavour, The Sheep Detectives conjures flattering comparisons with Babe.- Time Out
- Posted Apr 27, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Finding positive manifestations for mass groups of men marching through cities in identical clothing is no mean feat, but you’ll walk away from Ultras with a new understanding of a misunderstood phenomenon.- Time Out
- Posted Apr 27, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Generic, sure, but gripping enough, Apex has located a corner of God’s own country where the devil reigns.- Time Out
- Posted Apr 24, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
No one expected this long-delayed piece of Michael Jackson pop-aganda to lay bare the man behind the myths and myriad controversies in forensic style. And yet… this soft-ball character study of the King of Pop only doubles down on the former, while completely ignoring the latter, hitting all the usual dreary biopic beats along the way.- Time Out
- Posted Apr 21, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Newcomer Abraham Wapler as video artist Seb and Zinedine Soualem’s high-school teacher Abdel are standouts in the likeable ensemble, but the Adèle timeline, a sepia-tinged coming-of-age tale with a backdrop of characters to put Madame Tussauds to shame, is the film’s heartbeat. It’s a great excuse to revisit this gilded age in French history.- Time Out
- Posted Apr 17, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
An early twist means that the bloodletting develops a repetitive feel, and there are unfortunate parallels with the recent Ready or Not 2, but the wincing and guilty laughs never quite dry up. Cult status may await.- Time Out
- Posted Mar 25, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
The Magic Faraway Tree isn’t on Wonka’s level, let alone Paddington 2’s – two other Farnaby joint – and the aesthetic is occasionally a bit CBBC, despite the bucolic settings and intricate sets. But with the cracking cast, thoughtful message and the odd rollicking adventure, it’s a fun family movie that’ll finally give you permission to switch off the wifi.- Time Out
- Posted Mar 24, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Sorrentino explores these heavyweight themes with his usual wit and high style – as well as a standout soundtrack of haunting classic cues and Eurodance bangers. Surreal, comedic touches also prick the pomposity of La Grazia’s cloistered world.- Time Out
- Posted Mar 23, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
A slow cinema treat, Two Prosecutors rewards patience, with endless waiting rooms and antechambers both a limbo state and a last-chance saloon for Kornyev. It’s a haunting, mesmerising, pessimistic piece of work.- Time Out
- Posted Mar 18, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Director Bienvenu, who also voices helpful robot Mikki in the French version, has crafted a family film that’s offbeat and full of heart.- Time Out
- Posted Mar 18, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Weaponising the cinema’s Dolby Atmos into a delivery mechanism for frights is a clever ploy that Undertone never maximises.- Time Out
- Posted Mar 17, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Newton is a fun addition as the bubbly Faith, but the game Weaving is MVP again: a sharp finger in the eye of the one percent. This is a broader sequel, though, that only has more of the same for her to do. It’ll pass an evening but it won’t blow your mind.- Time Out
- Posted Mar 17, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
The symbolism is lightly worn here in a gently observational film that’s underpinned with humanism and compassion.- Time Out
- Posted Mar 13, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
With Gosling and Hüller to the fore, Lord and Miller have delivered a cosmic adventure with hope in its heart and a twinkle in its eye.- Time Out
- Posted Mar 10, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
It’s often enthralling – especially with Murphy at its heart – though rarely explosive.- Time Out
- Posted Mar 9, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Smart storytelling and snappy editing elevate the jokes and enrich the emotions.- Time Out
- Posted Mar 2, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
And that’s the major problem here. When the first Scream hit, it had a ball deconstructing ’80s and ’90s horror movie tropes. Six movies and three decades on, it’s become the very thing it was built to deconstruct, trapped in its own lore and fumbling about for its old smarts. The genre has moved on. Scream needs to get with the times.- Time Out
- Posted Feb 26, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
If, like Alan Partridge, you believe that Wings were ‘the band The Beatles could have been’, Morgan Neville’s propulsively upbeat music doc is a total treat.- Time Out
- Posted Feb 20, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
The class satire, the strongest suit of its Ealing ancestor, is blunter than a burglar’s cosh. The murders should be the juice in this devilish cocktail, especially with Zach Woods, Topher Grace and Ed Harris as the marks. But the deaths are throwaway affairs.- Time Out
- Posted Feb 20, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
It’s refreshing to see a grown-up big-screen thriller this well crafted – and one that cares for its grounded characters and their predicaments. If it comes off the road once or twice, it’s still well worth the ride.- Time Out
- Posted Feb 13, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Rather than a bruising marital wipeout drama, Is This Thing On? is a film about how new purpose and a new tribe can help you re-evaluate what was there all along (the title, of course, refers to the marriage as well as the mic). It might make you think about relationships differently; it probably won’t make you want to take up stand-up.- Time Out
- Posted Jan 29, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Kangaroo has a love for the people, landscape and wildlife that leaves a warm glow. It’s not doing anything wildly different or unexpected, but it’ll put a smile on your face.- Time Out
- Posted Jan 28, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Happily, Send Help is both a return to the world of horror and a major return to form for the Evil Dead man, who’s been waylaid with bland franchise fare in recent years.- Time Out
- Posted Jan 27, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Finally, someone has returned to The Damned United’s cunning formula for a good football movie: don’t show any football.- Time Out
- Posted Jan 22, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
Empathetic, funny and myth-busting – there are 300,000 children and adults living with TS in the UK alone whose condition will be better understood for this film – it gives you permission to laugh at the situation while feeling only compassion for the man.- Time Out
- Posted Jan 15, 2026
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- Phil de Semlyen
This is simultaneously the nastiest and most soulful of the franchise to date – and the most probing.- Time Out
- Posted Jan 13, 2026
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