Observer's Scores

  • Movies
For 1,801 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 49% higher than the average critic
  • 1% same as the average critic
  • 50% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 4.8 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Movie review score: 60
Highest review score: 100 Denial
Lowest review score: 0 From Paris with Love
Score distribution:
1801 movie reviews
  1. Our Brand Is Crisis adds up to a toothless exercise in missed opportunities that is half cautionary tale, half political satire and oddly insignificant as both.
  2. The physical abuse and emotional anguish sometimes borders on overkill, but the final outcome is overwhelming.
  3. The violence is intense, and at two hours and 12 minutes the movie is too long and the pace too leisurely to sustain it, but I wasn’t bored. When in doubt, bring on the Troglodytes.
  4. Too grim and heartbreaking for some viewers, Room is nevertheless an extraordinary film so powerful and unforgettable that it must be seen.
  5. Mr. Redford doesn’t look like Dan Rather, but displays the same dedication to — and respect for — journalism that he brought to the role of Bob Woodward in "All the President’s Men."
  6. It’s a riveting film and I understood every word.
  7. Because it’s written and directed by slick slasher king Eli Roth (Cabin Fever, Hostel), expect some genuine, well-executed thrills that keep the adrenaline going. This is a good thing, because Keanu Reeves has the adrenaline rush of road kill.
  8. Pan
    It’s not about Peter Pan, but about what happened before Peter Pan. The noise you hear is J. M. Barrie turning over in his grave.
  9. There’s no humanity in this grave disappointment that justifies the passion his fans feel for the father of the iMac. Steve Jobs and all of the characters around him fail to come to life in any absorbing fashion. They’re not real people; they’re all hashtags.
  10. At least Gong is ravishing, which occasionally takes your mind off the gibberish that is going full tilt around her.
  11. It’s a poignant, relevant and beautifully made film that must not be missed by anyone with a heart and a social conscience.
  12. It’s one of the most important and revelatory films of the year.
  13. A lot of the information in The Martian will be incomprehensible to the lay audience and the climax is…well, not exactly original. But it makes for one hell of an entertaining ride.
  14. Elegant and wrenching, Coming Home is a quiet, haunting masterpiece.
  15. Richard Gere gives his most uncompromising three-dimensional performance in 20 years.
  16. A dismal hack job pretending to be a take on modern relationships.
    • 39 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Ultimately, though, Dirty Weekend is a vague, languid affair.
    • 51 Metascore
    • 75 Critic Score
    The real pleasures are not to be found in the sweeping shots of the Great Smoky Mountains but in seeing how Mr. Redford and Mr. Nolte’s characters learn to get along.
  17. Pierce Brosnan’s charm and finesse haven’t been put to good use since "The Matador." That was years ago. Some Kind of Beautiful doesn’t improve his luck at all.
  18. The keenly observed patterns of behavior and the witty, intimate dialogue pay off.
  19. It’s a movie that knocks itself cross-eyed trying to be hip, clever and today about acerbic seniors, but instead it only makes you long for old ladies in aprons exclaiming “Land sakes alive, I smell something burning in the oven!”
  20. After Words is part adventure, part love story, part travelogue, and all as synthetic as rayon.
    • 39 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    The problem is the movie never gives us a reason to care about Colin in the first place, or even to dislike him that much, if that’s how we’re supposed to feel. Colin is neutral, a kind of empty vessel, and Mr. Cage is his typical aloof self with a "Con Air" accent.
    • 61 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    The movie achieves the kind of rhythm of an opera, alternating between arias of animated poetry and the recitative of normal speech.
  21. Admirable and respectable, it engages you while you’re watching it, then leaves you empty and wanting more.
  22. Overwhelmed by bad country-western ballads, Two Step is flawed but it makes you laugh and cringe at the same time, and passes 90 minutes painlessly.
  23. Don’t miss Tom at the Farm, the latest controversy in the oeuvre of acclaimed French-Canadian actor-writer-director Xavier Dolan, who has been labeled the “enfant terrible of queer cinema.”
  24. A creepy descent into madness called Dark Was the Night is better than most.
  25. What makes this one different is the dedication, commitment and sincerity the star brings to every aspect of the role. This is a pugilist with a heart.
  26. A sweet, honest, well-acted and carefully constructed little film that truly lives up to its title.

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