Empire's Scores

  • Movies
  • TV
For 6,818 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 0.9 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:
6818 movie reviews
    • 16 Metascore
    • 20 Critic Score
    Self-serving, storyless tripe.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Jim Jarmusch's first colour film is less understated and more inviting than those he made before, which may have as much to do with the constant presence of Elvis (in one form or another) as the rich seam of oddball humour and stylish cinematography.
  1. The rebirth of Disney in the modern era and due to superb songs, enduring humour and a touching plot it remains an animation classic.
  2. A rounded portrayal that leaves an overwhelming sense of the miraculousness of life.
    • 83 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Branagh's Henry V must, however, be counted a success - it might never be as famous as Olivier's, but it should carry considerable clout for years to come.
    • 50 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Certainly worth seeing for its care, authenticity and the central performances, but the suggestions of collective guilt and responsibility, and the pushing of humanity towards the brink are just too coy to ever be really effective.
    • 51 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Despite the amiable charms of the central couple of Cheers' Kirstie Alley and a back-from-the-dead John Travolta, it is director Heckerling's goofy willingness to let her imagination run riot that prevents her film from sinking into soap.
  3. The luxurious feel of the film is a perfect counterpoint to the painful truths drawn on each brother's face, whilst Pfieffer is much more than eye candy.
  4. Don't bother.
  5. Outdated and predictable revenge saga.
  6. The film falls into the gap between the manifestly unique qualities of the musician in performance and the near complete mystery of an intensely withdrawn private life.
  7. New Orleans looks as photogenic as ever but ultimately Johnny Handsome never quite leapfrogs over its fundamental cracks.
  8. No matter how well dressed, the movie can’t escape the gravitational pull of formula. Without a convincing subtext, Black Rain is pretty dull fare indeed.
    • 68 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    A thumpingly didactic script, but Palcy has crafted a watchable - if not particularly important, given its competition - one.
  9. Never revealing too much, Becker keeps us intrigued to the end, whilst Pacino and Barkin unexpectedly sizzle.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Sweetie is a deeply uncomfortable, distressing yet wholly rewarding experience.
    • 52 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Middle-aged scouse housewives and Willy Russell is a bread and butter combination: no frills, a tad repetitive, but plenty of substance nonetheless.
  10. Reasonably gripping.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Five stars for cute and courageous Milo and the intrepid and loving Otis, but any adult who isn’t a devoted animal lover is warned to stay away.
  11. Michael J. Fox is a revelation as the mouse that roared, whilst the score, the direction, and the rest of the cast turn a risky film into a solid addition to the Nam canon.
    • 54 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Despite an impressive bag of special effects tricks, old Fred is starting to resemble one of those dead horses that studio execs insist on flogging.
  12. Weirdly, the film’s problem is that it revs up the tension so much that, like one character’s submersible sinking into the high pressure of the titular Abyss, it finally bursts. The climax – as Bud descends to defuse the nuke and meet the aliens – just doesn’t work.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 100 Critic Score
    Startling is the fact that a film so light on action and heavy on chat can be so achingly funny without having being crafted by a young Woody Allen.
    • 52 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    A hard-boiled version of Rocky, with enough anti-Balboa brutality to keep our interest.
  13. A funny and touching look at the joys of family life.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    A terrific alternative to the diabetic's nightmare that is most of Disney's output, Kiki's Delivery Service takes pride of place in Miyazaki's exceptional body of work.
    • 36 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Hanks, it seems, is good enough to survive any film. The dog, too, works wonders with a standard script.
  14. A devastating heart-stab of a movie, this certainly isn't a family film. It is, however, a beautifully constructed, animated drama.
  15. There's some likable energy to the performances and a strong soundtrack, but the lack of sustained dancing make this more of a nostalgic fantasy than a proper musical, whereas 'Shagging' itself seems far too complicated to catch on.
    • 58 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    He may look the part, but Timothy Dalton fails the boots, the scuba gear, or the automobiles left him by Moore and Connery.

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