Variety's Scores

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For 17,825 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 52% higher than the average critic
  • 4% same as the average critic
  • 44% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 2.3 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Movie review score: 63
Highest review score: 100 IMAX: Hubble 3D
Lowest review score: 0 Divorce: The Musical
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9,159 out of 17825
  2. Mixed: 7,029 out of 17825
  3. Negative: 1,637 out of 17825
17825 movie reviews
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    • 45 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Boomerang
    The film might have worked if the thoroughly selfish characters were striving after something.
  2. The Invasion
    A slick but forgettable, characterless thriller.
  3. Where in the World Is Osama Bin Laden?
    Morgan Spurlock, of the "Super Size Me" phenom, serves up a rehash of others' 9/11 reportage, bin Laden biography, Islamic theology and suicide-bomber psychology, in a tone so aghast you'd assume he knew nothing about the War on Terror -- which should make pic very appealing for those who know nothing about the War on Terror.
  4. Peace, Love, & Misunderstanding
    May not be great cinema, but its broad, crowdpleasing qualities should make it a welcome night out for femmes.
  5. Mini's First Time
    The performances lift "Mini" out of the gutter of utter cynicism and into the realm of the complex.
  6. DogMan
    Maybe Dogman would be salvageable if Besson didn’t feel the need to thuddingly explain every single aspect of Doug’s quirk-laden personality, as though every last thing that a person is can be traced in a straight line back to a cause, because psychology is a long division sum that never leaves a remainder.
  7. Hank and Asha
    Kakkar and Pastides generate a rooting interest in their characters, with compellingly persuasive performances.
  8. Colombiana
    The Olivier Megaton-directed Colombiana may not be the brainiest of actioners, but one of the merits of producer Luc Besson's latest brainchild is that fanboys worldwide will come away with a scrap of horticultural knowledge as well as a pretty good time.
  9. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer
    At a time when tortured superheroes like Spider-Man, Superman and Batman would benefit from some serious psychotherapy, it's almost refreshing to see a comicbook caper as blithe, weightless and cheerfully dumb as Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer.
  10. Justice League
    The movie is no cheat. It’s a tasty franchise delivery system that kicks a certain series back into gear.
  11. Great White
    Though boasting a few adequate action sequences, and foregoing the more gonzo schlockiness of peer projects like The Meg and Shark Night, the film’s human characters make for drab company, leaving one with little to do but admire the scenery, waiting for dinnertime.
  12. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1
    All the more disappointing, then, that a story so pregnant with dramatic possibilities should wind up feeling like such an unconsummated opportunity. Drawn from Stephenie Meyer's polarizing, weirdly compelling fourth novel, the film is rich in surface pleasures but lacks any palpable sense of darkness or danger.
  13. Voodoo Macbeth
    Yes, the film overall is more diverting than stirring. Still, there is a good deal more than novelty value going for this group effort.
  14. Get Rich or Die Tryin'
    Mildly engaging but very far from being for 50 Cent what "8 Mile" was for Eminem, this lurchingly structured story of survival against the odds looks to get off to a strong start thanks to the singer's large following.
  15. Firewall
    Firewall begins slowly, exhibits hints of promise in the middle and then descends into silliness.
  16. Finding Joe
    Campbell's career and influence encompass much wider fields of interest than are considered here, despite the picture's colorful surface. Narrowing its focus to the simplest inspirational gist, with zero insight into the man behind it, Finding Joe winds up seeming like an infomercial for a personal-growth program.
  17. Five Nights in Maine
    Attempting to naturalistically capture the hugely internal process of mourning, but rarely managing to offer much of an opening into that process, Curran’s tasteful, challenging yet ultimately inscrutable debut feature never quite lives up to the caliber of her fine cast.
  18. Mr. Brooks
    Mr. Brooks is most effective when it's dealing with Earl and his conscience. Hurt and Costner are terrific together as two sides of the same personality and, again, the casting is what it's all about.
  19. Madea's Big Happy Family
    Another lumpy mix of broadly played ethnic comedy, deadly serious soap operatics, and aggressively rousing religious uplift. Picture may help him reconnect with faithful fans.
  20. Kill Your Friends
    The film has its razor-sharp grace notes and a seductive stylishness, neither of which can override its relentlessly adolescent worldview.
  21. The Deep End of the Ocean
    Michelle Pfeiffer and Treat Williams give such magnetic performances that they elevate the film way above its middlebrow sensibility and proclivity for neat resolutions.
  22. Brave New Jersey
    [An] uneven but ultimately winning comedy.
  23. Don't Go
    All this adds up to a big “whatever.” Don’t Go isn’t sure whether it wants to be a frightening fantasy or a poignantly warm-and-fuzzy one.
  24. The Little Vampire
    A mildly entertaining but dramatically messy kidpic.
  25. Whiteboyz
    Too many scenes play like actors acting rather than life being lived as pic lurches around with ragged variations in tone.
  26. Maid in Manhattan
    Gets into trouble when it reaches for laughs.
  27. Life as a House
    A family melodrama that becomes less authentic as it progressively takes itself more seriously.
  28. Latter Days
    Falls back on the broad characterizations and stereotypical situations that typified the earliest gay-themed movies, while preaching a familiar (though not entirely ingenuous) message of tolerance.
  29. Love Me If You Dare
    Valiant attempt to create a modern fairytale ends up being frustratingly creepy instead of haunting and memorable.
  30. Evergreen
    Land gives the drama some poignancy, revealing the pain, anger, envy and longing of a girl burdened by life's imbalances. But her character exists in a vacuum, surrounded by stock figures and unconvincing actors.
  31. Happy Life
    Set in cramped apartments and hole-in-the-wall storefronts in the East Village, Michael M. Bilandic's nanobudget comedy Happy Life plays like a poor schlub's "High Fidelity."
  32. Sound of Violence
    The spectacularly gruesome and grotesquely elaborate murder scenes do ample justice to even the most revered of its slasher forebears, but the procedural elements feel stilted, and despite a lead performance that oozes empathy as much as her hapless victims ooze blood, the emotional impact is barely discernible: an ebbing heartbeat.
  33. Valiant
    Fails to get off the ground due to a by-numbers script and dodo-ugly character design.
  34. American Dreamz
    Combining a gallery of targets including President Bush, "American Idol," the Iraq War and the overarching theme of a nation of citizens held in the thrall of phony dreams, pic and its ambitions are undermined by insistent cartoonishness and comic ineptitude.
  35. Come What May
    Director Christian Carion’s first feature since 2009’s “Farewell” is bolstered by a sweeping Ennio Morricone score, yet his narrative is too episodic, and his characters too one-dimensional, to carry the weight of grand historical tragedy, resulting in a picturesque, middle-of-the-road effort.
  36. The Possession
    A ho-hum exorcism chiller that tries to spice up a formulaic screenplay by converting a predominantly Catholic-fixated horror subgenre to Judaism.
  37. Miral
    Schnabel's signature blend of splintered storytelling and sobering humanism feels misapplied to this sweeping multigenerational saga.
  38. The Laws of Thermodynamics
    The final result is a curiosity, sure, but a cute, quick-witted one, with much (maybe too much) on its mind.
  39. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
    Serves as a welcome corrective, reviving the fun, feather-light frivolity that any film based on a Disneyland ride ought to exhibit.
  40. By the Sea
    By the Sea always offers something to tickle the eye and ear, even as it leaves the heart and mind coolly unstirred.
    • 45 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Damien: Omen II
    Alas, Little Orphan Damien, lucky enough to be taken in by a rich uncle after bumping off his first pair of foster parents, can’t resist killing the second set, too, along with assorted friends of the family. Damien is obviously wearing out his welcome.
  42. A Minecraft Movie
    A Minecraft Movie never stops goofing on itself, and that’s appealing.
  43. 23 Blast
    A fairly predictable yarn that’s lighthearted and well-acted.
  44. The Paperboy
    A risibly overheated, not unenjoyable slab of late-'60s Southern pulp trash, marked by a sticky, sweaty atmosphere of delirium and sexual frustration that only partly excuses the woozy ineptitude of the filmmaking.
  45. Unforgettable
    It’s tawdry “Sleeping With the Enemy”-style fun while it lasts, boasting a better cast and splashier production values than the next closest Lifetime movie, while being so ridiculous at times that audiences can’t help but talk back to the screen.
  46. The Marine
    Junky, jokey and sometimes both at once, pic marks yet another attempt by World Wrestling Entertainment to establish one of its burly superstars as a movie lead.
  47. Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead
    Tartly written and vividly performed by a fine ensemble cast, Gary Fleder's bracingly entertaining first feature covers familiar ground in a fresh, breezy way.
  48. American Autumn: an Occudoc
    This strong, well-crafted documentary preaches eloquently to the choir.
  49. JeruZalem
    The movie’s occasional stabs at political commentary never quite pay off. Nor can the writer-directors, brothers Yoav and Doron Paz, fully sustain the film’s novelty into the second half, when the script reverts to timeless, tired monster-movie tropes.
  50. There's Someone Inside Your House
    While a bit of ironic detachment isn’t necessarily a hindrance, too many latter-day horror flicks’ attempts to show they’re in on the joke make it difficult to get invested in their stories. Despite initially appearing poised to repeat this too-cool-for-school mistake, “Someone” moves past it by emphasizing not vengeance but redemption.
    • 45 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Sniper
    Sniper is an expertly directed, yet ultimately unsatisfying psychological thriller. Luis Llosa’s first-rate action direction is undermined by underdeveloped characters and pedestrian dialogue.
  52. Click
    Adam Sandler's recent low-key phase continues with this cleverly conceived but conspicuously unfunny comedy.
  53. Blindness
    Meirelles' slickly crafted drama rarely achieves the visceral force, tragic scope and human resonance of Saramago's prose.
  54. Here and Now
    This film barely scrapes the surface when it comes to conveying everything someone in Vivienne’s shoes might be feeling.
  55. The Leisure Seeker
    With a script that signals every progression as obviously as the large-lettered signs used in homes for people with dementia, viewers can guess after 10 minutes exactly how this predictable story is going to end.
  56. Elizabeth: The Golden Age
    Without the pleasure of watching Cate Blanchett continue the role that launched her to stardom, there would be little to recommend this latest of many cinematic and television accounts of the celebrated monarch's life.
  57. Pride and Glory
    Feels like a film that should have been made at least 25 years ago. Or made as a period piece. Heavy, doom-laden and, unfortunately, entirely predictable.
  58. Manna from Heaven
    This family affair is a squeaky-clean cable-ready comedy, unabashedly retro fluff.
  59. Sweet Home Alabama
    Revives the format but not the fun of classic Hollywood screwball comedies about rediscovering the virtues of a former mate.
  60. Madame
    With writing that’s nowhere near as sharp as the tailoring, and which adorns a trite Cinderella story that stuffs the fabulously unconventional De Palma into a stiflingly conventional corset, Madame is less a baroque masterpiece than a subpar reproduction in a gaudy frame.
  61. Ride
    All three actors labor to make it work, demonstrating their professional skill sets (Thorne sings, Usher recites Shakespeare) to somewhat admirable effect — even if overall credibility and tension remain elusive.
  62. Jefferson in Paris
    This decorous look at the great man's five years as ambassador to France in the period leading up to the French Revolution touches upon much significant history, incident and emotion but, ironically, lacks the intrigue and drama of great fiction.
  63. Zombie Strippers!
    The kind of entertainment perhaps better suited to drinking games than full viewer attention.
  64. Blood Ties
    The tension rarely rises above a low boil.
  65. Chennai Express
    Shetty’s need to maintain his characters’ romantic heroism constantly grates against his depictions of their ridiculousness.
  66. Upside Down
    A dystopic sci-fi romance about inverted planets that will have audiences wondering which way is up, but not really caring much or for very long.
  67. Our House
    What this still modest yet considerably slicker upgrade gains in surface gloss and FX, it loses in psychological intensity and suspension of disbelief — qualities heightened by the prior film’s handmade origins.
  68. Intruders
    A fitfully creepy, overly protracted chiller that plays more like a noncommittal sampler of horror techniques than the vivid nightmare it's clearly aiming for.
  69. It Takes Two
    Quite simply, It Takes Two is just too cute for words.
  70. Wonder Park
    The notion of a larger-than-life theme-park world as a projection of what June is going through comes directly out of “Inside Out,” but the comparison does Wonder Park no favors, because the earlier film was a masterpiece of bursting ingenuity, leaving this one to play like the scaled-down toddler version. On that score, it must be said that little kids will like Wonder Park just fine. But there’s a difference between a great escape and a winsomely crafted pacifier.
  71. Detention
    What starts as a bracing rush quickly devolves into a deadening assault of stimuli.
  72. The Electric Kiss
    It seemed like an entertainment that might have something for everyone. But The Electric Kiss is so overcalculated, so stuffy and labored, so infatuated with its own conceits that I suspect it will end up satisfying virtually no one.
  73. The Distinguished Gentleman
    Uneven but occasionally quite funny political satire.
  74. Step Up 3-D
    This vapid street-dance soap opera boasts the series' flashiest moves and klutziest script yet, like a brilliant acrobat with a speech impediment; it's also one of the few 3D releases since "Avatar" to make compelling use of the format.
    • 45 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Alien Nation
    Solid performances by leads James Caan and his humanoid buddy-cop partner Mandy Patinkin move this production beyond special effects, clever alien makeup and car chases.
  76. Brimstone
    The film has gruesomely effective moments, and one at times gets caught up in the gears of its big interlocked narrative, but it also has serious longueurs.
  77. The Lie
    The Lie is far from a total success, but it has enough tension and talent to make you hope that Blumhouse keeps aiming a quiet thriller or two at adults.
  78. Hall Pass
    While the stabs at grown-up insight miss their targets, picture still packs more pure comedic punch than the Farrellys' last few offerings.
  79. The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift
    Pumping high-performance gas back into the series after a second lap sputter, third entry stays in high gear most of the way with several exhilarating racing sequences, and benefits greatly from the evocative Japanese setting.
    • 45 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Sydney White
    Result should satisfy Bynes fans looking for a pleasant, innocuous follow-up to her last vehicle.
  81. Big George Foreman: The Miraculous Story of the Once and Future Heavyweight Champion of the World
    It’s prosaic and conventional and a touch stolid, but it stays true to the facts and the spirit of the man (he’s both sinner and saint), and the saga they add up to is singular in the history of sports.
    • 45 Metascore
    • 10 Critic Score
    I Love You to Death
    I Love You to Death is a stillborn attempt at black comedy.
    • 45 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Prom Night
    Director Paul Lynch seems to capture the spirit of the genre here, but spends a little too much time setting up each murder, thus eliminating some suspense.
    • Variety
  84. Flower
    As icky a comedy as you’re likely to see this year, Flower comes from an angry place — one that is clearly more concerned about sounding provocative and clever than having anything meaningful to say.
  85. Driver's Ed
    Not that this is the fault of an appealing young cast gamely doing their best to inject energy and personality into inert, exposition-heavy, joke-light dialogue that could not sound less like the way modern teenagers talk if every second word was “rad.”
  86. Loverboy
    A classic case of "Better if you didn't read the book" cinema, Loverboy emerges an OK character study of an abnormally possessive mother.
  87. Step Up: All In
    With even less plot than in previous installments to get in the way of its inventive 3D dance scenes, this fifth pic delivers on spectacle... but lacks in chemistry.
  88. The Invitation
    The predictability of events during the film’s first hour of gothic-thriller setup is all the more annoying because of the plodding pace. Evie finally stands up for herself during some modestly clever third-act turnabouts, but, really, that’s not quite enough to regenerate a rooting interest in the character.
  89. Elizabethtown
    Although rich in screwball silliness and sharp one-liners, film lacks the narrative drive one finds in the classic comedies of Preston Sturges, Frank Capra and Billy Wilder, whom Crowe always seems to try to emulate.
  90. Strange Fits of Passion
    Technically raw, and amusing only in hit-and-miss fashion, the no-budget independent production recalls too many other entries about erudite young adults wrestling with questions of love and sex.
    • 45 Metascore
    • 30 Critic Score
    Home Fries
    While plot elements don't add up, film's energy level remains high, and oddball ensemble brings to mind a classic of this type, Jonathan Demme's "Citizens Band."
  92. The Statement
    Lackluster pic fails both as suspense and as character study.
  93. Vanilla Sky
    The picture has vitality, a fine cast and excellent craft
  94. Freak Weather
    Fiction writer and debuting helmer Mary Kuryla is clearly after a Big Statement on abuse and strength of character, but falls short by creating a self-destructive monster in lieu of a sympathetic protagonist.
  95. The Situation
    Undeniably topical but the lack of emotional investment in its characters renders it more intelligent than engaging.
  96. The Prodigy
    While it lacks gripping, nail-biting tension, the unnerving horror that underscores the family drama brings it to life.
  97. Pixie
    A decent cast and fast pace make Pixie easy enough to take as disposable entertainment. Yet it also has that annoying edge unique to films that strike an attitude of rakish sophistication while actually serving up lowbrow quips about prison rape, fat people and menstruation.
  98. Craigslist Joe
    He's a nondescript protagonist, his benefactors, and he's never truly in need; as is made clear at the start, he has a comfortable life to return to whenever he chooses. So the picture becomes simply the moderately diverting record of an offbeat vacation.
    • 45 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II: The Secret of the Ooze
    Though Turtles II suffers from a lack of novelty and an aimless screenplay, the bottom line is that the pic won't disappoint its core subteen audience.
  100. The 15:17 to Paris
    The oddity of the movie — and this is baked into the way Eastwood conceived it, sticking to the facts and not over-hyping anything — is that this vision of real-life heroism is so much less charged than the Hollywood version might be that it often feels as if a dramatic spark plug is missing.
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