Empire's Scores

  • Movies
  • TV
For 6,820 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 54% higher than the average critic
  • 3% same as the average critic
  • 43% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 0.8 points higher than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Movie review score: 66
Highest review score: 100 Oppenheimer
Lowest review score: 20 Superman IV: The Quest for Peace
Score distribution:
6820 movie reviews
  1. Almost a guilty pleasure. But not quite.
    • 36 Metascore
    • 20 Critic Score
    Gibson's future-world may be a cold one, but it should never be seen as a dull one; this is a missed opporunity.
    • 36 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Tarot is a personality-less horror that doesn’t overly concern itself with either character or plot. It’s here to deliver one thing and one thing only: cool kills.
    • 36 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Nice performances, a useful script and a dignified ending all boost this film's appeal, but it is the workable simplicity of the premise that really does it.
  2. Whilst this fly is not as tightly scripted or keenly directed as its parent, it does have pace, breathless tension and the sort of gross-out effects that rules out kebabs for some time after the credits have rolled.
    • 35 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Despite an intriguing premise, an impossible-to-buy plot contrivance and a deeply unsatisfying ending put paid to this sci-fi psycho-thriller.
  3. Predictable and flat, the sort of cop-out horror movie which relies on sending up long-outdated female stereotypes of the matron vs the siren. Nothing particularly refreshing or even frightening resides within.
  4. The truth is, it’s not very good – and entirely without scares. But we dare you to watch it without unleashing a few unintended laughs along the way.
  5. One’s a cop who can’t shoot straight! One’s a kid with a nose for trouble! Together… they lack the wit, thrills and rapport to deliver fun genre times.
  6. Visual inventiveness and spectacular casting can’t quite salvage a muddled fantasy epic that, if it were a magic mirror, would be held together with gaffer tape.
  7. An idea that must have sounded good on paper looks a lot less smart on the screen.
  8. Not as smart or as satirical as you might hope, but an enjoyable and often funny look at a mad, mad, mad, mad world.
  9. As action-packed as a holiday nap on a hot afternoon, this is a must-see only for Portakalos die-hards. Still, Vardalos’ sheer affection for the characters means it has a warmth that sustains it through weak jokes.
  10. Fans of Moon and Source Code be warned: Mute is sadly, almost tragically, not worth the wait.
  11. The first film to be based on a line of toys, this might not be the last, but it'd take something awful to replace it as the worst.
  12. Critiquing the very thing it also sets out to do, Genie is the movie equivalent of a dog chasing its own tail, but is (barely) saved from the wrapping-paper pile by the amiable chemistry of its stars.
    • 35 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    It's plus points are few and far between - fantastic music, well worth buying the soundtrack for, and the occasional Moranis and Martin magic we would expect throughout - but such rare glimpses merely underline the sheer sogginess of the rest of the movie.
  13. On one level, Stealth is technically breathtaking, viscerally thrilling action cinema of the highest order. On another, it is slavering, state-of-the-art war porn.
  14. An enjoyable escapade and a great introduction to the forthcoming series - just not the seventh Star Wars film fans were hoping for.
  15. Venom is neither triumph nor train-wreck. It’s a mediocre origin story, a superhero host that sadly fails to bond with its comedy parasite. Which is a shame, as there is enough here to to suggest it could have been a blast.
  16. A defanged variation on the theme that doesn't commit hard enough to be silly fun, beyond a few chuckles.
  17. It’s Liman’s least charismatic action movie and the least developed, but it still packs some cracking action into its brief running time and lays foundations on which a great franchise could be built.
  18. Almost certainly the second worst thing to happen to Bruce Lee, this toothless and tame movie doesn’t even come close to capturing the great man’s dangerous charisma.
  19. Inspired by The Graduate it may be, but despite Aniston’s charm, this confused comedy will not be seducing anybody.
  20. Flashy, fun and light on its feet, Argylle papers over its cracks with twist upon twist — and charming performances from its central duo.
  21. The Hustle buckles under the overbearing weight of its own vulgarity. Avoid the dirty rubble by all means. An embarrassment to the heist genre, an insult to all existing comedies, a disgrace to feminism.
  22. A super-sized second helping, but the novelty factor and some of the charm’s gone. Hey, at least there's more Megatron / Starscream squabbling this time round.
  23. Less pompous than Pet Sematary, this has moments of trashy vigour but is scuppered by a consistently wretched script, Mary Lambert's knee-jerk direction and the usual redundant sequel air of utter pointlessness.
  24. Aside from some effectively understated acting from the leads, there's not much to remember or recommend.
  25. It's all a little too coincidental for comfort, and surprisingly short on laughs for a comedy, but nonetheless this is a light, well-meaning flick, improved considerably by Lake's scatty heroine.

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