Christian Science Monitor's Scores

  • Movies
  • TV
For 4,492 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 55% higher than the average critic
  • 2% same as the average critic
  • 43% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 2.1 points higher than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Movie review score: 67
Highest review score: 100 'Round Midnight
Lowest review score: 0 Couples Retreat
Score distribution:
4492 movie reviews
  1. The acting is amiable and the story is crisply told.
  2. Stay far, far away unless you can handle the copious amounts of blood--and agonizing psychological problems-- that its participants face on what seems like a daily basis.
  3. Sensitive, imaginative.
  4. The picture is equally long on eye-dazzling camera work and New Age sentimentality.
  5. Polanski's directing is marvelously assured and Depp is always fun to watch.
  6. The setting is cramped and the story is illogical, but it's suspenseful as long as you don't think about it very hard.
  7. A lively portrait of contemporary painter George Condo.
  8. Goodman's comic delivery gets maximum mileage from a few amusing situations, though.
  9. Whitaker's acting is highly creative and Jarmusch's filmmaking is as elegant and original as ever.
  10. The movie has a well-meaning message about love and loyalty being the bedrock of real family values, but its good intentions sag as the story trades its air of mischievous comedy for trite sentimentality, arbitrary plot twists, and enough maudlin melodramatics to sustain a tabloid TV series.
  11. (Kerrigan) remains an insightful stylist with impressively high artistic standards.
  12. Makes up in solid acting what it lacks in Hollywood-type frills.
  13. While the story takes some clever turns, its psychology is far from convincing and its momentum flags long before the finale.
  14. A director of Frankenheimer's stature deserves less sensationalistic material, and so does his audience.
  15. Strikingly original movie.
  16. Keaton doesn't have quite enough filmmaking savvy to balance the story's heart-wrenching and smile-coaxing aspects.
  17. Runs out of good ideas long before it's over, falling below "Prizzi's Honor" and "The Freshman" in the dubious genre of contract-killer comedies.
  18. Use of a loosely written screenplay and a nonprofessional cast in this picture weakens its dramatic appeal even as it lends authenticity and local color.
  19. Manages to seem fresh, funny, and original from start to finish.
  20. Merchant brings keen insight and rich humanity to this culturally revealing tale of psychological unease in a tense postcolonial world.
  21. The story is less original than its setting - it knocks off everything from "Lord of the Flies" to "The Blair Witch Project" -and its unromantic moods may make DiCaprio's countless "Titanic" fans want to swim in the opposite direction.
  22. The story isn't nearly as funny or suspenseful as it would like to be, although the solid cast gives it occasional dashes of pizazz.
  23. While the story and acting are the opposite of subtle, young moviegoers may enjoy the action and suspense.
  24. The first feature-length movie from Bhutan tells its lighthearted story through smart performances, appealing images, and unfailing good humor.
  25. Unexpectedly entertaining, if you're willing to put up with the picture's stagy look, over-the-top moods, and heavy doses of vulgarity.
  26. Although it's less novel and feisty than the original "Fantasia" of 1940, this collection of music-filled animations is highly entertaining at times.
  27. The story is so important and compelling that you wish Jewison had treated it more as an urgent wake-up call than a by-the-numbers morality play.
  28. Harris and Heche make an interesting team--- and the picture reaps the benefit of their creative performances
  29. Morris's unique blend of realism and surrealism gives the film great resonance as a portrait of one eccentric individual and, more important, a study of the morbid proclivities that run beneath the surface of our supposedly civilized society.
  30. As dopey as its heroes, and the cast's admirable energy isn't enough to keep the story punching through the final round.

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