New York Daily News' Scores

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For 6,911 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 42% higher than the average critic
  • 3% same as the average critic
  • 55% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 8.2 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Movie review score: 57
Highest review score: 100 Fruitvale Station
Lowest review score: 0 The Fourth Kind
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,885 out of 6911
  2. Mixed: 2,801 out of 6911
  3. Negative: 1,225 out of 6911
6911 movie reviews
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  1. My Date with Drew
    There are times, to be sure, when Herzlinger's antics threaten to swing from cute to cloying. But the few missteps are gently redeemed by an unexpectedly charming finish.
  2. Saint Ralph
    The real miracle here is that the hard-working cast manages to turn McGowan's script into an intermittently touching tale.
  3. Secuestro express
    Jakubowicz successfully portrays a country corrupted beyond repair by financial inequality. But the sadism that drives the story is so gleefully nasty, it overshadows any rational arguments he's trying to make.
  4. Duma
    The same audience that loves "March of the Penguins" will eat up this beautifully told, gorgeously shot story of a grieving boy trying to return his pet cheetah to the wilds of South Africa.
  5. Junebug
    Happily, Morrison's actors grasp his intentions perfectly, shading their roles so well that we never quite get a handle on anyone. Each player is outstanding, but the highest praise must go to Weston.
  6. Darwin's Nightmare
    Sauper captures a world in which life and death are treated with equal practicality - and disregard. His camera is unflinching; your gaze may not be quite so steady.
  7. Must Love Dogs
    Did Lane and John Cusack really have to put themselves through this? Here are two first-rate actors in the embarrassing situation of playing blithering misfits in a lame comedy of errors.
  8. Sky High
    Hasn't a single original idea in its bird brain. But it clowns around just enough while sitting in the dunce chair that after a while it's mildly amusing.
  9. Stealth
    Flimsy and forgettable, but it does have a few worthy action and special-effects sequences.
  10. The Aristocrats
    What keeps the film from becoming obnoxiously redundant is the conviviality of the comedians. These are funny people even when they're not telling the joke.
  11. Oyster Farmer
    The realistic scenes of oyster farming and the beauty of the Hawkesbury River lend this movie a degree of fascination that its taciturn, beer-swilling characters can't provide.
  12. Tony Takitani
    The result is a quietly simple fable that hits you hardest after it's over.
  13. Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress
    It's a fanciful tale, but the message is sweet - that the higher arts speak a universal language that transcends politics and ignorance.
  14. Melancholian 3 huonetta
    Consistently moving but never quite coalesces into a strongly coherent whole.
  15. Hustle & Flow
    The feel-good movie of the summer. And the song this pimp works up, about how hard it is to manage a stable of ho's, is catchy and moving.
  16. The Island
    It's got a hot premise, some cool sets, attractive stars and action that lets up only when it thinks you're about to surrender.
  17. Bad News Bears
    The strong script (with updated flourishes by "Bad Santa" writers Glenn Ficarra and John Requa) and some of the vibrant child characters pull it through, with the comically reptilian Thornton egging them on with one inappropriate shocker after another.
  18. The Devil's Rejects
    Surely, this bloodthirsty comic farce about a sadistic backwoods family being hunted by a sadistic backwoods sheriff is the "Citizen Kane" of hix-ploitation horror.
  19. 9 Songs
    Michael Winterbottom nakedly goes where no "respectable" director has gone before - to sex and beyond! His provocative 9 Songs is the first movie by a director of Winterbottom's standing to depict real, uncensored sex between its lead actors.
  20. The Edukators
    The dialogue between the captive and the captors gets a little didactic, and the ending is as contrived as it is cynical. Weingartner obviously has more in common with the rich man than the kids.
  21. Last Days
    It's like a walking tour inside the head of a deeply troubled, deeply talented young man, where most of the systems have already shut down.
  22. Monumental: David Brower's Fight for Wild America
    Clearly intended as a reminder that one person can move - or, at least, save - mountains.
  23. November
    Convoluted and unsatisfying psychological drama.
  24. Rittenhouse Square
    At its best moments, the film offers a tender portrait of the park's youngest regulars, charmingly earnest performers from a nearby music school. But then, inevitably, their stories fade into a backdrop, as his camera turns to catch yet more women sunning in the square.
  25. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
    The eccentric chocolatier Willy Wonka (Johnny Depp) can't feel pleasure, even though he's surrounded by it, so it's weirdly appropriate that the movie isn't "fun," even if it's amazing to look at.
  26. Wedding Crashers
    Good, indecent fun starring two of the most amiable comedy actors around.
  27. Happy Endings
    The themes are about the power and consequences of sex, but the stories are too glib and episodic to leave any impression.
  28. The Reception
    Well-acted but otherwise lackluster drama.
  29. The Warrior
    The title-character's redemption comes very slowly. But if you have patience, this is a stately, beautifully composed story.
  30. On the Outs
    What makes the film feel genuine, however, are the performances.
  31. Searching for the Wrong-Eyed Jesus
    A movie about identity that can't quite pinpoint its own, Andrew Douglas' road-trip documentary about the Deep South does eventually meander toward audience enlightenment.
  32. Dark Water
    This is a quieter, more psychologically dense movie, where the payoff is sometimes no payoff at all - for instance, Tim Roth plays a cut-rate divorce lawyer whose own weirdness (he seems to live out of his car) is never explained.
  33. Fantastic Four
    It needed a star like Clooney at its center, and a character actor like Alan Rickman as Dr. Doom. You don't expect realism from a comic-book movie, but you do want the characters to seem larger than life.
  34. The Beautiful Country
    Bai Ling plays a resourceful prostitute from a Malaysian refugee camp who grows harder and more alienated by the day. Nick Nolte, Tim Roth and Temuera Morrison offer strong supporting performances.
  35. Murderball
    When it comes to sports movies, there's nothing like the real thing, and there's never been anything quite as real as the documentary Murderball.
  36. Saraband
    This is as bitter and despairing an exploration of the human spirit as any of Bergman's films, and it is just as vibrantly written and directed.
  37. Chronicles
    The movie suffers from tipping its hand too easily and hating its subject so much.
  38. Doing Time, Doing Vipassana
    The inspector general is an interesting figure, and the images of criminals sobbing over their newfound inner peace are certainly memorable.
  39. Steve + Sky
    For everyone who has been waiting on a movie in the Ghent dialect, your patience has paid off. Happily, Felix Van Groeningen's low-budget romance is also sly - if utterly superficial - fun.
  40. Rebound
    A dreary comedy in the same mold (as "The Bad News Bears," only moldier.
  41. The Beat That My Heart Skipped
    The Beat That My Heart Skipped has nonetheless brought attention to a nearly lost classic. For more than two decades, "Fingers" was not available on video or DVD and was rarely screened. But it's available now, and if you've never seen it, put it on your must-rent list immediately.
  42. Undead
    Gore fans will dig the makeup effects and some of the tongue-in-cheek slice-&-dice.
  43. The World
    The World has a pokey pace, but it presents a uniquely powerful look at the new big kid in the global economy.
  44. War of the Worlds
    Go for the extraordinary special effects, by all means, but not if you want to feel good about yourself or humanity. And heed the PG-13 rating, because this movie takes no prisoners.
  45. Tropical Malady
    This challenging, inventive movie from Thailand is not for everyone.
  46. A Decent Factory
    Though it lacks a focus or greater artistic vision, Thomas Balmès' no-frills documentary offers Westerners a valuable glimpse into the sweatshops of the new China.
  47. Bewitched
    The result, at best, is a sweet failure.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 75 Critic Score
    Land of the Dead
    Land is pure entertainment and superbly well done. It is not as scary as it is gross, and its grossness is so outrageously graphic (hint: don't seat yourself next to a zombie at your next barbecue) that it is laugh-out-loud funny.
  49. Rize
    Exhilarating.
  50. Yes
    The actors are emotional, but the presentation is theoretical to the point of absurdity.
  51. Dallas 362
    Clearly, Caan's major influence is Quentin Tarantino, though he manages only a weak imitation. But give him credit for casting Kelly Lynch and Jeff Goldblum and letting them go.
  52. March of the Penguins
    When it comes to cute, this baby is off the charts.
  53. The War on the War on Drugs
    Seemingly made while writer-director-star Cevin Soling was heavily under the influence, this generally witless ode to illegal substances is apparently meant to be viewed that way, as well.
  54. Lila Says
    Had director Ziad Doueiri focused on the resentful Arab youths who clatter provocatively around the edges of his Marseilles-set drama, he might have discovered something interesting.
  55. Herbie Fully Loaded
    Just like the can-do VW Beetle of the title, Herbie: Fully Loaded succeeds adorably despite the obstacles in its path.
  56. The Deal
    The story's unnecessary and unconvincing Russian spies are out of "Rocky & Bullwinkle," but Blair is quite enjoyable as a sassy, capable idealist.
  57. The Perfect Man
    The story has a definite ick factor that detracts from even the small pleasures the movie might offer its teen audience.
  58. The Great Water
    Ultimately about the indomitability of faith, and the Christian symbolism is laid on thick. But the story, adapted from a famous behind-the-Iron-Curtain novel, sheds light on a subject few people have known about.
  59. Heights
    Heights is stage-bound throughout, and the secrets it would like to keep are very predictable. But its heart is in the right place, and the performances are first-rate.
  60. Me and You and Everyone We Know
    A vanity project by a moderately talented artist that has moments of real brilliance in it.
  61. My Summer of Love
    Travels so deeply into the confusions of female adolescence that you'd never know this deceptively languid British film was directed by a Polish-born man.
  62. The Talent Given Us
    It's weird and wonderful.
  63. King of the Corner
    But look up the word "slight" in the dictionary and you could find a still from this film.
  64. Batman Begins
    What you get out of Batman Begins depends on what you bring to it. It is the most faithful to the origins of the comic strip and it sets up a series very different from the four made by Tim Burton and Joel Schumacher between 1989 and 1997.
  65. Mr. & Mrs. Smith
    The screen smokes with sexual heat. But what's really erotic is how much fun the actors seem to be having.
  66. The Honeymooners
    Cedric is certainly the bright spot in this movie - personable, silly and lovable, with just enough of Gleason's girth, timing and humanity to make you wish he'd driven Ralph Kramden's bus onto the lot of a different movie.
  67. High Tension
    One of the ugliest movies I've ever seen. Even though it occurs mostly in the dark, the open flesh wounds are both graphic and implausible.
  68. The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl 3-D
    The low-tech film looks like a kid's crude drawing, plays like entry-level Game Boy, and is about as nourishing as a Tootsie Pop.
  69. Howl's Moving Castle
    A richly inventive, slightly eerie animated movie from Japan.
  70. The Bridge of San Luis Rey
    Rates an inquisition of its own. It may not be heresy to fill out an ensemble cast of Peruvian and Spanish characters almost exclusively with non-Hispanic actors, but it certainly destroys any sense of authenticity.
  71. The Keeper: The Legend of Omar Khayyam
    The time-traveling is a little awkward, and a mawkish turn of events feels forced and unnecessary.
  72. Cinderella Man
    Without Crowe and Paul Giamatti, this movie would have little in its corner.
  73. Lords of Dogtown
    A tormented dramatization of the exact same events, and it's as bad as the earlier film ("Dogtown and Z-Boys") was good.
  74. Rock School
    Rock School celebrates music, family, hard work and, yes, Paul Green. Best of all, it shows the flexibility of children to learn and adapt -- even when their teacher is nuts.
  75. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
    Even while trying to access my inner giggly, dreamy adolescent, I found the movie as irritating as a chigger under the skin. The cast is pretty and inoffensive, with America Ferrera, using charisma and fierce emotions to stand out from the pack.
  76. The Longest Yard
    It's a misguided, miscast remake of the 1974 Robert Aldrich classic.
  77. Madagascar
    Looks stunning, but it's an ill-conceived mess that plays like two movies awkwardly spliced together. In one movie, parents are asked to stand by while the kids are entertained with cute animal tricks and slapstick pratfalls. In the other, the kids will be hushed while the parents are treated to inside jokes.
  78. Bomb the System
    The first feature from Adam Bhala Lough is brashly passionate in its desire to express the power and validity of graffiti art. But it's also preachy and single-minded, populated by a world of sympathetic heroes and hissable villains.
  79. The Ninth Day
    Earnest but ambling drama.
  80. A League of Ordinary Gentlemen
    If ever a movie could convince the masses to don communal shoes, this is the one.
  81. Saving Face
    A worthy addition to what must take up a whole section of the video store - the heartwarming comedy that reaffirms the power of personal choice, while also promising to love and to cherish even the most hidebound cultures.
  82. A Common Thread
    A lovely, almost painfully intimate story of female bonding that never panders to its characters or its audience.
  83. Sex, Politics & Cocktails
    Enthusiastic performances help, but without a logical script or confident direction, the fizz very quickly goes flat.
  84. Dominion: Prequel to the Exorcist
    Not bad. It actually might have been considered pretty good had it been made 30 years ago, when people might have cared about the backstory of Father Merrin.
  85. Second Best
    A guy flick, but I can't imagine many male viewers actually identifying with Elliot or his friends. The depression would be unbearable.
  86. Stolen Childhoods
    Meryl Streep narrates this global update on child-labor abuses with all the enthusiasm and alarm of someone reading "The Pet Goat" to a classroom of second-graders.
  87. Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
    And still the dialogue is astonishingly feeble, the acting unforgivably wooden. To paraphrase Yoda, the only creature with ­truly human dimensions ever since Harrison Ford's cowboy-mechanic Han Solo departed the galaxy: Bored I am.
  88. Mojados: Through the Night
    Modest but memorable.
  89. Shake Hands with the Devil: The Journey of Roméo Dallaire
    Other than a tortured apology from Bill Clinton for having misunderstood the gravity of the situation, there isn't a peep of remorse heard from the normally sanctimonious West. And Dellaire's final bit of self-abuse is to blame himself for his failure to shame the world to action.
  90. Mindhunters
    In 1939, when "Ten Little Indians" was published, Agatha Christie mysteries were the crème de la pop literature. Her fans depended on logic in her stories, and they got it. Mindhunters would have insulted their intelligence, and it should insult yours.
  91. Kicking & Screaming
    Even a soccer-savvy audience has better things to do - like instilling unsportsmanlike behavior in their kids or sabotaging rival teams.
  92. Monster-in-Law
    Fonda's performance is a perfect storm of histrionics, and she leaves nothing and no one standing.
  93. Unleashed
    Unleashed serves two masters, each one disappointingly: It's a brutal series of over-amped fights, and it's a touching story of human nature at war with itself.
  94. Mad Hot Ballroom
    This winning documentary about fifth-graders who learn ballroom dancing is one of those movies that make the world a brighter place.
  95. My Mother
    This tale of disaffected sexual depravity is practically a parody of the worst of French filmmaking.
  96. Layer Cake
    Laced with flashbacks and stylistic tics, but it never loses its forward momentum, and to the last shot, it avoids predictability.
  97. Kings & Queen
    Arnaud Desplechin's sprawling drama exudes a go-for-broke determination that is frustrating and exhilarating.
  98. Modigliani
    It's hard to take this oddball movie seriously.
  99. Tell Them Who You Are
    In the new, personal documentaries in which you pick up a camera to help get a grip on your own life, there is a queasy line between inspiration and therapy. Mark Wexler crosses back and forth over that line.
  100. House of Wax
    It's a good thing Jaume Serra's House of Wax wasn't shot in 3-D like the original 1953 horror classic - Paris Hilton is in it and she doesn't have a third dimension.
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