New York Daily News' Scores

Select another publication »
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
view
per page
  1. Rid of Me
    Westby's nervy story is like "Desperately Seeking Susan" played straight. Let's hope O'Grady's next film meets this one's potential.
  2. Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
    Like the bloated channels it parodies, the movie stretches to find something to say, then settles for stupid.
  3. Felon
    There are times when a Kilmer performance is like watching a clock move: well-timed and oddly compelling, even though it's totally predictable. That's the case with Felon, which doesn't belong to Kilmer but which he steals anyhow.
  4. Ultrasuede: In Search of Halston
    Fashionistas who flock to Whitney Sudler-Smith's documentary should pay heed to the entire title: this isn't simply the biography of an American icon, but the chronicle of a misguided filmmaker.
  5. Better Living Through Chemistry
    The unexpected chemistry between Sam Rockwell and Olivia Wilde helps balance this sour noir comedy.
  6. The Hangover Part II
    Phillips sticks so close to the formula of his original that even the characters are given to saying things like, "I can't believe this is happening again."
  7. Louder Than Words
    Duchovny tamps down his sardonic style to play a quiet guy, but the result is blandness. Timothy Hutton gives a solid turn as a standup businessman. In all, director Anthony Fabian isn’t sure how to build a nontreacly movie out of an inspiring true-life story.
  8. Miss Meadows
    When writer and director are one and the same, there’s always a risk that the project will suffer from a lack of perspective. Indeed, in helming her blackly comic indie Miss Meadows, Karen Leigh Hopkins fails to fulfill the potential of her own script.
  9. A Fantastic Fear of Everything
    There’s also little point and a garish quality that goes from pulp to junk fairly quickly, despite Pegg’s presence.
  10. Helena from the Wedding
    Every generation gets a "Big Chill," and this tired but well-meaning indie contains many clichés of the "pals-pondering-life" movies that came before.
  11. Who Do You Love
    The music will keep you in your seat, but there's so much more to this story. If only they'd gotten it right the second time around.
  12. Film Socialisme
    Designed as their own entity, the brief subtitles convey so little that to get the full experience you won't only need to understand Godard's language. You'll also have to speak French.
  13. The Cold Lands
    The Cold Lands is aimless and dull, but has a rich tone and upstate authenticity.
  14. For No Good Reason
    When this film focuses on the work, it’s engaging.
  15. Push
    Fanning's watcher is watchable, yet the kid-actress extraordinaire is so polished it kind of makes your head explode.
  16. Hector and the Search for Happiness
    Hector wants to connect to our inner child, but it feels more like a long story from a good-hearted but dull grandparent.
  17. In the Heart of the Sea
    This movie has Chris Hemsworth, in between "Avengers" movies, and a lot of computer-generated sea life. It uses a lot of fancy lures, but it never hooks you.
  18. Eichmann
    The final fate of Adolf ­Eichmann is certainly a compelling subject. But its dramatic impact is severely diminished here by stilted filmmaking and wooden performances.
    • 39 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Growing Up and Other Lies
    Only Adam Brody is compelling here.
    • 24 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Unfreedom
    Director Raj Amit Kumar's bold but ultimately muddled attempt to address extremism and intolerance.
  21. Dragon
    Yen, who also choreographed the fights, is a natural hero, and the large canvas and pseudo-superhero tactics work for a bit, but then the action gets sidetracked in place of myth-building.
  22. Post Grad
    Bledel brings a sweet, steady presence, but this sort of minor project is a step backwards. It's high time she graduated on to bigger and better things.
    • 59 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Elvis & Nixon
    Johnson’s film is filled with tedium instead of delirium.
  24. Videocracy
    Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi is an ideal documentary subject, but Erik Gandini's jumbled take on Berlusconi's corrupting influence quickly shifts from good idea to wasted opportunity.
  25. You Don't Mess with the Zohan
    His humor works best when it's throw-away, but "Zohan" throws everything up to get a yuck. It's a shock to see how many "yuck!" moments Sandler settles for.
  26. Calvary
    Calvary is like a philosophical Agatha Christie mystery. That’s certainly not the worst thing to be. But it’s also the film’s undoing, because the reliance on specific genre cliches undermines the movie’s more serious intentions.
  27. Cooties
    Despite the funny premise, Cooties doesn’t live up to its potential.
  28. Fat Kid Rules the World
    This is an odd little directorial debut from Matthew Lillard - the onetime Shaggy from "Scooby-Doo," now a solid character actor thanks to "The Descendants" and "Trouble with the Curve" - but it has its rewards.
  29. Punisher: War Zone
    No worse than the second. Still, it pales in comparison to the first, which starred Dolph Lundgren. And that, right there, should tell you everything you need to know.
  30. White House Down
    Perhaps afraid that watching a symbol of liberty repeatedly go boom isn’t enough, Emmerich and screenwriter James Vanderbilt add family drama, an attack on Congress, a plane crash and the possible nuking of the Middle East. What isn’t tonally jarring ends up shatteringly inept.
  31. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
    There’s far too many moments of sabre-rattling, and too much confusion about who is aligned with whom, and why. Those who know and love Tolkien’s texts will have a vested interest. Everyone else may grow restless.
  32. Heartbeats
    The emotions veer from bawdy to sweet and then to obvious, though the film is stylish, and Dolan's artfulness helps when the movie loses focus.
  33. Disco and Atomic War
    Director Jaak Kilmi's remembrance of growing up under Soviet rule never tries to be anything more than a curiosity.
  34. The Broken Tower
    Franco’s rather flat narration doesn’t do justice to Crane’s verse, but he is a charismatic onscreen presence.
  35. Sleeping with Other People
    You have this movie’s number right from the start: Despite some some name-checks of Malcolm Gladwell and Aaron Sorkin, it’s the same old romantic comedy squeezed into a sexy new outfit.
  36. The Oranges
    Even the actors seem disconnected, with only Leighton Meester - who has the most to prove - working to create a distinguishable character.
  37. Beverly Hills Chihuahua
    Coasting on lazy stereotypes, the script basically ends where it started, teaching young viewers that it's really not so bad to be a spoiled bitchy puppy.
  38. Let It Rain
    It's all a little insular and very conversational, but the setting is cozy and the performances all pleasantly low-key.
  39. Zipper
    On all counts, Zipper comes up short.
  40. Rise of the Guardians
    Dour animated adventure that aspires to holiday joy, but is as enjoyable as a sock full of coal.
    • 60 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Rolling Papers
    No, watching Rolling Papers won’t give you the munchies — but you will be hungry for a better documentary.
  42. Brideshead Revisited
    May feel especially like a statue covered in drapery. Unfortunately, the movie's attempts to steam things up feel about as exciting as an after-dinner mint.
  43. Righteous Kill
    Of the supporting performances, Gugino, Leguizamo and Wahlberg offer solid turns, but are let down by dialogue.
  44. Jolene
    The tone veers wildly, from wacky indie to melodramatic soap opera. Like the other men in her life, Ireland adores Jolene without entirely understanding her.
  45. Last Days in the Desert
    Moviegoers don’t get much to chew on either, besides a decent performance by Ewan McGregor as both Jesus and a demon, plus some OMG-worthy landscapes.
  46. When Animals Dream
    An eerie, imported horror tale that’s rich with tone but otherwise lacking bite.
  47. Henry Poole Is Here
    It's easy to see how a film so unafraid of religious touchstones could become a phenomenon among the faithful. Nonbelievers, however, need not apply.
  48. Planet 51
    Movie references abound, but there's not enough humor to fuel even 90 minutes.
  49. Extraordinary Measures
    Most of the movie unfolds in such a dull manner.
  50. The Over the Hill Band
    Calculated Belgian crowd-pleaser.
  51. Kick-Ass 2
    The meta-satire hits you over the head until not just your Spidey sense is tingling.
  52. Dark Summer
    As an exercise in atmosphere, this claustrophobic creeper does a lot with a little, even if the movie winds up providing just superficial shivers.
  53. Being Charlie
    To be fair, Being Charlie has some action and a few good jokes. It's not completely unwatchable. It's certainly better than Reiner's last few awful movies.
  54. The Odd Life of Timothy Green
    Although little Timothy does arrive in unusual circumstances, his story will feel familiar to anyone who's encountered Hollywood's particular brand of calculated sentimentality.
  55. Inch'Allah
    Though Inch’Allah — which translates to “God Willing” — has good performances and fine location photography, its irresponsible attitude towards terrorism goes too far.
  56. Australia
    With Australia, Luhrmann obviously intends to stage a grand romance against the epic backdrop of World War II. But what we get instead is an unwieldy mess that needed another six months in the editing room.
    • 62 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Black Sea
    That’s the problem with Law’s submarine skipper, Robinson, in the action thriller Black Sea. He’s driven and dynamic enough, but he can’t keep the sensitivity from his eyes.
  58. The Education of Charlie Banks
    Another nicely understated performance from Jesse Eisenberg anchors this shambling drama.
  59. The Liberator
    Even Ramírez cannot liberate this movie from a clichéd script.
    • 36 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Father of Invention
    Kevin Spacey works heroically to overcome the flaws in Father of Invention, but Trent Cooper's flaky indie does depressingly little to earn its star's commitment.
  61. William S. Burroughs: A Man Within
    The author of "Naked Lunch" and his words were funny, freaky and sometimes just Out There. Yet as "there" became "here," Leyser shows, Burroughs seemed to be everywhere.
  62. Generation Um...
    “Um” winds up as empty as its mean streets are phony.
  63. Drive Hard
    Cusack and Jane look like they’re improvising much of the time, and while that doesn’t lead to a better movie, the off-the-cuff approach is the best thing in the film.
  64. Five Dances
    Though the film’s untested cast struggles with the drama, and the sketched-out story is often banal (there are several amateurish calls-to-mom scenes), the presentation of a specific city subculture is etched from the heart.
  65. Shanghai Calling
    The movie wants to say something significant about the excitement and alienation of life in a strange — which is to say, new — place. The film never gets there, but its aims are honorable, and the lovingly shot Shanghai scenery does enhance the trip.
  66. Chelsea on the Rocks
    Ferrera's shaggy tone, which fits the iconic building, gets irritating. Still, if you come for the stories, you'll stay for the company.
  67. Beastly
    There's less to Beastly than meets the eye - and what meets the eye is no great shakes, either.
  68. The Bling Ring
    Narratively static and morally banal. That may be par for the course, however, when half the movie is spent watching shallow kids try on other people’s clothes.
  69. How I Live Now
    A frosty-eyed, imperturbable actress in “Atonement,” “Hanna” and “The Host,” Ronan is at least able to sell Daisy’s new focus while the movie loses its own.
  70. War, Inc.
    Has TOO much happening, which befits a comedy with a lot of targets but ultimately makes the whole operation scattershot.
    • 26 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Tyler Perry's Temptation
    The mixed tones don't quite meld; While Smollet-Bell is fine, the broad comedy is so sporadic it feels out of place.
  72. Perrier's Bounty
    There's no one to root for but the loan shark, who makes an excellent point: It's no fun when somebody takes your cash and gives you nothing in return.
  73. Once Upon a Time in Brooklyn
    Cathy Moriarty and other Scorsese alums pop up, but these mean streets feel too derivative to thrill.
  74. Mechanic: Resurrection
    It's fun for a while, on a simple, single-shooter, video-game level. And for a change, the movie's stunts plug into Statham's pre-Hollywood career as a champion diver; this may be the most watery thriller since "Thunderball."
  75. The Whistleblower
    Director Larysa Kondracki's fictionalized account of a true story is underserved by a melodramatic script; the result is like a film of a "60 Minutes" segment. Still, Weisz is strong and smart. And David Strathairn shows up in is-he-good-or-evil? mode.
  76. About Alex
    On the bright side, the actors are experienced enough to anchor their free-floating characters. But if you’d like to see this sort of thing done well, watch 2011’s infinitely superior Channing Tatum dramedy “10 Years” on Netflix instead.
  77. The Greatest
    Dignity dies a million deaths despite the best intentions.
  78. The Hero of Color City
    For parents looking to get their preschoolers out of the house, The Hero of Color City will be good enough.
  79. Angels in Stardust
    Bill Carey’s uneven first film, centered on an isolated Texas teen named Vallie Sue (AJ Michalka), has some offbeat charms. They are not, however, strong enough to carry such a heavy load of cliches.
  80. Fed Up
    Despite the film’s worthy goals, there are some empty calories. Katie Couric’s narration and Soechtig’s uninspired style make it feel more like a TV special than a feature documentary.
  81. Spoken Word
    The self-conscious poetry and Cruz's diagnosis of bipolar disorder threaten to add too many notes to this quiet drama.
  82. Big Sur
    But with Kerouac declaring that “the only thing that matters is the conceptions in my own mind,” we’re still left waiting for the filmmaker who can take us there.
  83. Rust and Bone
    Though Rust and Bone aims for a blasé attitude toward disabled drama - in a far more artificial way than another French film, "The Intouchables," did earlier this year - it's underwritten characters and hoary approach plunk it into mediocrity. As wheelchair-bound Stephanie practices her whale-training motions to Katy Perry's "Firework," it's eye-rollingly obvious.
  84. The Berlin File
    The story feels fairly perfunctory — not to mention unnecessarily knotty — but the well-connected leads do their best to ground it. And while this one falls far short of the “Bourne” films that serve as an influence, the intense action scenes consistently deliver some solid genre jolts.
  85. The Standbys
    Stephanie Riggs never manages to develop her debut documentary about Broadway performers into a satisfying feature. But the stories alone ought to be appreciated by theater fans and, especially, aspiring actors.
  86. The Other Man
    A movie needs to announce if it's playing games. Pulling the rug out from under a viewer is fine for whodunnits and psychological thrillers and the usual suspects. But a supposedly grown-up drama like The Other Man ought to have scruples about where it plans to take you.
  87. New York, I Love You
    Anyone who actually adores New York is unlikely to appreciate this disappointingly bland collection of shorts, which might as well have been called "Madrid, Te Amo" or "Cincinnati, You're the Best."
  88. Happythankyoumoreplease
    That other actors - especially Akerman and Tony Hale, wonderful as a tentative couple - fare better suggests Radnor should give directing another shot.
  89. Kahlil Gibran's The Prophet
    A work of words as lovely as “The Prophet” deserves a better artistic interpretation than this animated venture, which consists mostly of pedestrian, ’70s-quality visuals.
  90. American Made Movie
    You’ll never buy an inexpensive T-shirt without feeling guilty again. At least not after seeing Nathaniel Thomas McGill and Vincent Vittorio’s thorough documentary, which explains something you already know — American manufacturing is dying.
  91. Morning
    The movie gets too claustrophobic, while its noble attempt to take on suffering remains laudable.
  92. Rudderless
    William H. Macy has pitch-perfect instincts as an actor. As a movie director, he’s bound to do better than his first feature, this big-hearted, nicely paced but ho-hum character study.
  93. Severed Ways: The Norse Discovery of America
    If a black-metal band ever made a 107-minute music video, this visually striking but otherwise ludicrous epic is probably what it would look like.
  94. The Jeffrey Dahmer Files
    All of that ends up making this movie — originally titled “Jeff,” in a telling bit of overpersonalization — feel like a late-night cable-news hack job.
  95. Ninja Assassin
    Just not feeling the holiday spirit? Maybe a brainless, extra-bloody B-movie will provide the boost you're looking for.
    • 40 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    A View to a Kill
    As for Bond’s glib wit, which has been running down lately, the screenwriters haven’t solved that problem. Some of his double entendres are older than Moore and one of them had to be used twice.
  97. The Perfect Age of Rock 'n' Roll
    Those who go looking for tragic relevance in Scott Rosenbaum's debut indie won't find much to grasp onto.
  98. We're the Millers
    The “Millers” script — it took four writers to cobble together something that seems so slight — hits too many obvious notes between the moments when Aniston can strut her stuff.
  99. Getaway
    What Getaway needed most is enough juice to get to the finish line, narratively speaking. Because while jumping into the car is great, the fun dies fast if there’s nowhere to go.
  100. Devil's Knot
    This stilted crime drama from Atom Egoyan feels misguided from the start. He’s attempting to fictionalize a true story that has already been told better, several times over.
Page:

Top Trailers

See all »
See all trailers »