Chicago Reader's Scores

  • Movies
For 6,312 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 42% higher than the average critic
  • 2% same as the average critic
  • 56% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 4.9 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Movie review score: 60
Highest review score: 100 I Stand Alone
Lowest review score: 0 Old Dogs
Score distribution:
6312 movie reviews
  1. Registers as frighteningly typical and indicates how successful the Bush administration has been at convincing Americans that Saddam Hussein was behind 9/11 and armed with weapons of mass destruction.
  2. Stiller and Wilson are still hilarious as the supercool detectives -- there hasn't been a comedy duo this good since John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd.
  3. This big-budget western bears a striking resemblance to the recent Tom Cruise vehicle "The Last Samurai," though it's more fun and less pretentious.
  4. Wonderful first feature.
  5. Intelligent thriller.
  6. Robin Shou frequently cuts to scenes from one of his recent movies, adding to the impression that this is a vanity reel.
  7. As bad-taste comedies go, this is more clever than gross.
  8. The movie's mix of erotic Latin dance and vaguely liberal politics should have young girls swooning in the aisles.
  9. Director Philip Kaufman's usual flair for erotic detail largely deserts him here, and this thriller seems most interested in lingering over battered and bloodied male faces.
  10. When the movie got serious again at the end I wasn't buying, though the whole endeavor is helped along by an appealing cast.
  11. It's more like a feature-length music video, with grainy images illustrating songs from (Youngs) recent album of the same title and actors lip-synching to his reedy vocals.
  12. If I were a Christian, I'd be appalled to have this primitive and pornographic bloodbath presume to speak for me.
  13. The humor is a bit dry for my taste, but director Bent Hamer and his actors know what they're doing every step of the way.
  14. I'm far from being a fan of the sport, but the boxing sequences held me and the overall atmosphere appears reasonably authentic.
  15. A smart script by Gail Parent (Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman) boosts the first half of this comedy.
  16. Seems intentionally slapdash and stupid, but when one of them referred to Europe as a "country," I wasn't sure if it was meant as a joke or not. Even so, I laughed once or twice.
  17. Tierney and Hackman contribute most to keeping this life-size and funny.
  18. Understated but affecting.
  19. Beautifully shot in black and white by Pawel Edelman (The Pianist), this 2000 feature is both funny and unexpectedly touching.
  20. Moving documentary.
  21. As Adam Sandler vehicles go, this isn't quite as dire as "Eight Crazy Nights," but any movie that has to fall back on Rob Schneider rubbing his nipples has some serious script issues.
  22. Sicko horror flick.
  23. A heartfelt, passionate, tragic musical suite made up of these formulas, which the film both celebrates and wryly examines to discover their inner logic: how they actually work, what they do and don't do.
  24. Compelling despite an almost complete lack of subtlety.
  25. This sequel ups the ante, asking whether urban renewal means anything now other than turning neighborhoods into giant malls.
  26. The plot of this PG action thriller, a remake of the 2002 Danish film Klatretosen, is so full of holes that even middle schoolers might give it the raspberry, but a bigger problem is the three leads' lack of on-screen chemistry.
  27. Kurt Russell gives a terse, unsentimental performance as coach Herb Brooks, but director Gavin O'Connor sticks to the "Hoosiers" playbook.
  28. Watchable if far-fetched movie is seriously marred by its three leads; only Garrel manages to suggest a person rather than a fashion model dutifully following instructions.
  29. This didn't make me laugh much, but I liked the music, a patchwork of samples culled from the various atomic-monster epics.
  30. Beautifully structured and emotionally wrenching.

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