The Guardian's Scores

Select another publication »
For 6,581 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 41% higher than the average critic
  • 5% same as the average critic
  • 54% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 2.1 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Movie review score: 63
Highest review score: 100 London Road
Lowest review score: 0 Melania
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,495 out of 6581
  2. Mixed: 3,767 out of 6581
  3. Negative: 319 out of 6581
6581 movie reviews
view
per page
  1. And Mrs
    The upside to casting Bea in a comedy is that she’s an absolute hoot. When Hollywood stars play ordinary civilians, there’s often a slumming-it quality to their performances, but Bea is funny and real, sarky and very likable as Gemma, who’s feeling guilty after Nathan dies.
  2. The Silent Hour
    The moral maths seem calculated in advance to ensure a by-numbers outcome, but it’s an absorbing puzzle while it lasts.
  3. Caligula: The Ultimate Cut
    It all makes for something startling, amusing and bizarre.
  4. Freakier Friday
    It’s Curtis who embodies the story’s wacky spirit.
  5. William Tell
    It’s entirely ridiculous, but performed with absolute seriousness and the result is an innocent amusement.
  6. The Dead Thing
    Hunt, though, gives an excellent performance in the lead role, agilely running the gamut from deadened admin serf and hipster-bar dating veteran, to infatuated young lover, to abuse victim. She brings emotional suppleness and complexity to what is – despite some flaws – a bold and stylish take on the endless samsara of digital romance.
  7. Pimpinero: Blood and Oil
    Strangely, this film keeps to the speed limit; it’s like Formula One with enhanced health and safety, slow-paced and a little low on adrenaline.
  8. Unstoppable
    Robles isn’t hard to root for but Unstoppable, a rousing yet overdone biopic, tries too hard to get us there anyway.
  9. By the Stream
    In its engaging and eccentric way, Hong’s film-making is diverting and intriguing and then it capriciously concludes, leaving things up in the air, yet without making you feel shortchanged. Perhaps this one is slighter than his recent work, but it has a comic charm.
  10. My First Film
    You can’t help but admire Anger’s audacity, sly humour and film-making chops.
  11. The Mountain Within Me
    And in terms of docs about people with disabilities, this one is pretty honest about the mental anguish of losing mobility and – in a sideways fashion – addresses how such a change particularly affects men like Ed and Ben, hyper-masculine dudes whose identities are tied to their physical abilities.
  12. Sonic the Hedgehog 3
    Carrey, though, is very good value, getting off a couple of lines that might actually make grownups laugh, and generally putting himself about to decent effect. Without him, this film could have been a lot, lot worse.
  13. Betrayal
    The suspense-building and denouement are adequate enough, but what makes this more interesting is how director Rodger Griffiths weaves in a subtle dissection of how abuse can damage families in different ways.
  14. The Last Showgirl
    It is a strong turn from Anderson, though, whose fans are entitled to wonder if it is she, and not Demi Moore, who deserves this year’s “comeback queen” crown.
  15. Elton John: Never Too Late
    There is, as ever, pleasure and awe in hearing his great songs.
    • 77 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
    Zimny’s film-making style is certainly less adventurous, but his weaving of archive footage is deftly done – it’s fun to see the terrible sleeping arrangements on early E Street Band outings – and you’re left with the sense that this is a unit of people for whom rocking out and blowing minds is an irresistible lifetime pursuit.
  17. The Friend
    It can be borderline maudlin and easily teary, though The Friend is grounded enough, and Watts sufficiently understated, to not become outright eye-rolling.
  18. 40 Acres
    Deadwyler’s performance is the driving force here. Without her, the audience’s attention might drift to the predictability of a plotline that hinges on Manny’s adolescent rebellion against his mum.
  19. All of You
    It’s a calm, crisply made film (one can again see how it matches the Apple aesthetic) but one about heartache and tumult, and I found myself craving something that felt as difficult and stinging as the feelings it was trying to stir up.
  20. Kill the Jockey
    It’s too skimpy and self-conscious, more a series of gestures than an organic whole. But Ortega frames his action with a delicious high style, interspersing tense standoffs with formal dance sequences. He gives the impression that all his characters are locked in a bizarre hothouse romance, even when they are chasing or attempting to kill one another.
  21. The Order
    The fight against fascism is a serious business, now more than ever, and it is right that Kurzel treats it seriously, but this means his movie feels constrained tonally and the finale is weirdly protracted and even anticlimactic. Yet The Order maintains a drumbeat of tension to the last.
  22. Night Courier
    I didn’t feel the movie maintained the dramatic tension enough to work as a lean thriller, but as a portrait of a toxic man who thinks he could be a contender it’s funny and disturbing, with an impressive lead performance by Aldokhei.
  23. 2073
    2073 is certainly a relevant shout of rage against the authoritarian forces despoiling our democracy and our environment – and the bland and complaisant naivety that’s letting it happen.
  24. I'm Still Here
    The subtlety and dignity of Fernanda Torres’s Oscar-nominated performance in Walter Salles’s new film have been rightly praised.
  25. How to Make Millions Before Grandma Dies
    This is a tear-jerker that does not shrink from using plangent piano chords on the soundtrack to tell you when to feel sad, but it also has something interesting to say about intergenerational wealth.
  26. Studio One Forever
    [An] affectionate, nostalgic documentary.
  27. On Swift Horses
    Kass and Minahan combine old and new while rubbing suggestively against the grain: the familiar pleasures of watching charismatic young actors meet the novelty of seeing them plugged into situations our period dramas have historically overlooked.
  28. Relay
    The subdued carefulness of the buildup gives way to rote, poorly staged action and a twist that might fill in a few plot-holes but leaves us otherwise dissatisfied.
  29. Vice Is Broke
    This isn’t meant unkindly, but Vice Is Broke will be essential viewing for anybody who ever worked there, with its details about who had what job title and when.
  30. Family Pack
    This is a perfectly accurate board-game adaptation insofar as it’s well-packaged, undemanding fun.
  31. V/H/S/Beyond
    Usually anything this many generations into its evolution is pretty exhausted – but this is pretty good, or at least in parts.
  32. House of Spoils
    There are tasty moments here, but genre fans looking for a full meal might leave a little hungry.
  33. In Camera
    In Camera is the kind of ambitious intelligent cinema that invites your most mulled-over theories. It will exasperate some; others will be engrossed by an intriguing movie.
  34. Reawakening
    Though a little mannered, the film has intelligence and force.
  35. Better Man
    The film is interestingly candid about the toxic, driving force of envy behind a musical career – something many music biopics omit – but in the end, however initially startling and amusing, Robbie-as-chimp feels like a distraction from his all-too-human unhappiness and talent.
  36. Riff Raff
    The cast’s enthusiasm, especially that of Coolidge and Murray who are willing to play the most loathsome of people, makes up for a lot.
  37. Astrakan 79
    In addition to confronting the past, Mourão’s film also makes possible an intergenerational dialogue between Martim and his son, the young musician seen in the beginning; he also harbours his own secrets. Emerging from their conversation are sparks of understanding and compassion, which constitute the emotional beating heart of the film.
  38. Dog Man
    Dog Man is packed with goofy gags that whizz past, with no let up from the hectic pace.
  39. Don't Move
    The film is at its best when words are secondary to action.
  40. Sinners
    For many, the movie could as well do without the supernatural element, and I admit I’m one of them; I’d prefer to see a real story with real jeopardy work itself out. But there is energy and comic-book brashness
  41. Daddy's Head
    Barfoot taps into liminal terrors more effectively through the visuals, from the gracefully shot fugue states experienced by stepmother and surrogate son, to a sinewy barrelling nightmare-beast that has apparently escaped from a Chris Cunningham video.
  42. Young Werther
    A film that feels short on real passion, but big on banter and sharp suiting.
  43. Ghost Killer
    Sonomura was the action director for three Baby Assassins features, which might explain that this, his third gig as a main director, feels more weighted towards scenes that showcase fisticuffs and fancy fight choreography rather than character development and emotional nuance.
  44. Canary Black
    As visual wallpaper it’s serviceable enough, providing a constant backbeat of blam-blam gunshots and explosions, mostly at night.
  45. Mary and Max
    You have to admire the ambition, even if Elliot doesn't always seem certain if he's laughing with or at his creations.
  46. Little Bites
    What could have been a real contender with a few relatively minor tweaks is still a serviceable morsel for those with the right kind of appetite.
  47. Monster Summer
    There are some decent PG-rated thrills and scares for the preteen audience, but adults are unlikely to find it especially convincing, with clunky dialogue and a generic score letting down a solidly traditional spooky mystery.
  48. Juror #2
    Suspense is kept on a low flame but the film offers cosy pleasures, not least in the jury-room wrangles.
  49. Music by John Williams
    Such is the narrative offered here, with no examination of how and why he so brilliantly understands the relationship between pictures and sound; nor are there insights into his composing methods, or indeed his own musical influences and icons.
  50. Elevation
    Prospective future instalments might want to aim higher than mere competency.
  51. My Hero Academia: You're Next
    There’s nothing revolutionary here, but the hybrid of old-style battle manga with a more modern oneiric sensibility feels a little different from standard superhero loudhailing.
  52. When Fall Is Coming
    It’s an interesting, strange film, with a key moment withheld from the audience – and yet its omission, and the resulting ambiguity and mystery, is something we are almost supposed to forget about.
    • 54 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    The Evil of Frankenstein
    The Evil Of Frankenstein, directed by camera ace Freddie Francis, looks stunning, although much of its budget was clearly spent on the cracking laboratory set. [20 Oct 2007, p.23]
    • The Guardian
  54. Sweet Bobby: My Catfish Nightmare
    The story is, frankly, so crazy, the scheme so intricate and complex – I don’t want to spoil it for those who, like me, hadn’t heard the hit podcast it was based on, but suffice to say I remain astounded – that hearing Kirat tell it plain would be riveting enough.
  55. Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party
    Of course, the music is the main attraction and that’s served well, with long chunks of performance footage that aren’t sliced and diced as much as they would be in a contemporary rock doc.
  56. The Teacher
    Nabulsi hits the dramatic beats with confidence and Bakri has genuine distinction; his sensitivity and intelligence command every scene.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Candy Mountain
    It's the sort of film you either go along with or fall into a stupor watching. [28 Dec 1989]
    • The Guardian
  58. Hot Frosty
    It’s a sincerely stupid idea executed sincerely, with seemingly complete buy-in from all involved that yes, this is a movie about a snowman with abs. I’ll take that type of brain freeze, for now.
  59. Martha
    Martha is, after all, the star – a fascinating narrator of her own life, sometimes direct, sometimes curiously opaque or self-contradictory, always evincing a glowing, undaunted ambition. As the OG influencer, she lived the rule: whatever happens, just keep pushing forward. The people will keep watching.
  60. Adulthood
    The package has a nasty little swagger that makes it a nice counterpoint to all the holiday cheer coming our way.
  61. One Of Them Days
    Alyssa’s self-absorption may be harder to swallow, but Palmer and SZA enjoyably ham up what could otherwise be try-hard, too gimmicky fare.
  62. Pedro Páramo
    Strangely, given Prieto’s visual acumen, the film is also a bit bland visually, bar a flashy prologue kicked off by the camera sinking into the bowels of the earth. But the story has enough residual power to deliver a dark night of the Mexican soul nonetheless.
  63. The Lost Children
    The film, with its clanging score, felt to me slightly tactless in its approach, like a Hollywood-ised version of a human interest story.
  64. Day of the Fight
    Not a knockout, by any means, but a win on points.
  65. The Night Before Christmas in Wonderland
    There are some lovely playful moments: his favourite elf eats a magic shroom and grows to monstrous proportions. But there is a lot of padding and the decision to stick with the book’s rhyming scheme becomes annoying.
  66. Bonhoeffer: Pastor. Spy. Assassin.
    As a thriller, this is not really thrilling enough. And as a biopic, it’s not necessarily representative of the spirit of the man. But it’s solid enough film-making in a traditional no-frills mode that will always find an audience – even if it’s not particularly trendy.
  67. The Bad Guys 2
    There’s more wit and energy this time around, and a genuinely sweet message about friendship. Even the fart joke (every kids’ movie must have at least one) was a cut above and had the adults giggling.
  68. The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes
    Billy Wilder's distinctive, irreverent slant on the world's greatest "consulting detective" holds up reasonably well 32 years on; you wouldn't expect anything directed by Wilder and scripted by his long-time associate IAL Diamond to be anything less than funny and watchable, and this is both.
  69. 28 Years Later
    Now we have 28 Years Later, an interesting, tonally uncertain development which takes a generational, even evolutionary leap into the future from the initial catastrophe, creating something that mixes folk horror, little-England satire and even a grieving process for all that has happened. And there are some colossal cameo appearances.
  70. So This Is Christmas
    This is a non-fiction film, but one drawing on a tradition of informing fiction such as A Christmas Carol and It’s a Wonderful Life, in which the viewer’s empathy for the poor and/or deserving and their struggles is given an additional prod by the festive backdrop.
  71. Scrap
    Kerr’s script doesn’t always match the quality of her interesting, layered lead performance.
  72. Warfare
    The movie is its own show of force in some ways, surely accurate in showing what the soldiers did, moment by moment, though blandly unaware of a point or a meaning beyond the horror.
  73. The Prosecutor
    Developed by China’s Supreme People’s Procuratorate and directed by butt-kicking luminary Donnie Yen, The Prosecutor is a bizarre mashup of courtroom procedural and action flick; it is just as keen on lionising due process and the “shining light” of Chinese justice as it is on reducing civic infrastructure to smithereens in several standout bouts.
  74. G20
    The action is serviceable enough, enjoyment based less on deftly staged choreography and more on the catharsis offered to Davis, as president and actor (she has spoken in recent press about the pleasure and freedom the role has provided).
  75. Bank of Dave 2 : The Loan Ranger
    It would be grating were it not for Kinnear, and some nicely performed supporting roles.
  76. Sex
    Sex is earnest, but cerebral and challenging.
  77. Detective Chinatown 1900
    Tightly paced and snappily directed, this is decent-quality Chinese screwball, if a touch overlong.
  78. Architecton
    I found something a little unfocused and even slightly indulgent or redundant in the way the images are put together (accompanied by a clamorous musical score by Evgueni Galperine) without making it clear to the viewer what we are looking at and where. Yet the film is so striking, especially on the big screen, almost itself a kind of land art.
  79. The Accountant 2
    That’s mostly for the better. The Accountant 2 is a more fun affair than The Accountant, if you’re a fan of very loud shoot ’em ups, nonsensical crime webs and rogue good guys fighting obviously very bad guys, though this outing is sadly missing Anna Kendrick.
  80. Until Dawn
    It’s held together by Sandberg, a director who has mastered the art of totally competent studio horror with slick, equally forgettable films like Lights Out and Annabelle: Creation and he again shows himself to be a crisply efficient commercial film-maker again let down by a far less effective script. For a film all about repetition, one viewing will suffice.
  81. Kiss of the Spider Woman
    We’re in safest hands with Lopez and Condon when he’s playing in that sandbox as the cell-based scenes can be a little stagey and rushed in comparison.
  82. Rabbit Trap
    Rabbit Trap loses focus, but not before it has shown us a scary performance from Croot.
  83. Peter Hujar's Day
    Perhaps it is inevitably going to be of limited interest, and as intelligent as the two performances are, neither Whishaw nor Hall is tested very much. But it is an intriguing experiment in recovering the moment-by-moment reality of a lost time and place.
  84. Train Dreams
    At its best, writer/director Clint Bentley and co-writer Greg Kwedar have crafted a gorgeous and poignant film of quiet, bruised life in a fragile place, anchored by a magnificently sensitive and restrained performance from the still-underrated Edgerton.
  85. If I Had Legs I'd Kick You
    In just under two hours with a plate filled a little too high, not everything here quite works as well as Byrne, but Bronstein clearly hasn’t made something to be liked, she’s made something to be experienced. I can’t say I’ll forget that experience easily.
  86. Brides
    Perhaps some of the narrative tension flags between their arrival in Turkey and then the all-important border, but this is a well-acted, spirited piece.
  87. Omaha
    It’s an altogether promising debut for Webley and should-be breakout for the young Wright, who makes you believe that though this film may ultimately fail to distinguish itself from the many tight, slight dramas at Sundance, Ella will always be remembered.
  88. Rebuilding
    It is another highly sympathetic performance from O’Connor, who converts the British reticence of his earlier roles into Dusty’s strength and quiet vulnerability.
  89. The Ugly Stepsister
    Blichfeldt has made an elegant debut.
  90. Zodiac Killer Project
    It is a deconstruction of genre and a meta story of failure from which the director salvages a teaspoonful of success.
  91. Folktales
    What seems to be most therapeutic is their contact with the dogs. As one teacher puts it: “You are more than good enough for that dog just the way you are.”
  92. Together
    There’s something refreshingly blunt about what Together is trying to say about the dangers of codependency, a film too busy having fun to waste time writing a self-satisfied dissertation.
  93. DJ Ahmet
    The script steadily goes about its mission of freeing its characters from all forms of oppression – but it’s generous and unpatronising too.
  94. Midas Man
    It’s all a bit too sanctified and safe – lacking in rock’n’roll edge perhaps – but Fortune-Lloyd’s core performance is deeply empathic and buoys the film up as it races through the stations of Epstein’s short, sharp shock of a life.
  95. Dead Lover
    It is perhaps too much the acquired taste (and smell) to appeal to everyone, but it’s distinctive, never dull and – much like its most noxious niffs – difficult to shake.
  96. Mercy
    It’s ingenious and watchable stuff, with cheeky twists, although the final escalation to full-on action mayhem is maybe a step too far towards pure absurdity. The film is also a bit lenient on AI: “Human or AI – we all make mistakes.” Uh … yeah. But I wouldn’t be surprised if Raven and Judge Maddox revive their human-digital chemistry for a sequel.
  97. Final Destination: Bloodlines
    Where Bloodlines excels is in the clever and often diabolical storytelling craft and visuals. There’s a decadence in the film-making that isn’t at odds with the campy nature of Final Destination but instead realizing its full potential.
  98. Last Breath
    This is a workmanlike iteration somewhat ploddingly true to its genre, from the style of lighting used for the interviews, to the sweeping, keening strings-led soundtrack, to the almost shocking moments of humour and honesty.
  99. Another Simple Favor
    It is neither suspenseful nor thrilling, but something else: a movie so confidently ridiculous, so stylishly absurd and so self-aware of its mandate for fun that you can’t help but enjoy it, reasonable wariness – and all reason, really – be damned.
  100. Mom
    If the film is frustratingly nebulous as its layers of reality intermingle, it is a neonatal nightmare that undoubtedly envelops you in its feelbad embrace.
Page:

Top Trailers

See all »
See all trailers »