Variety's Scores

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For 17,782 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 2.4 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: 9,136 out of 17782
  2. Mixed: 7,010 out of 17782
  3. Negative: 1,636 out of 17782
17782 movie reviews
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  1. Stuck on You
    A one-joke affair about conjoined twins that feels like it bypassed the scripting stage and was filmed directly from the pitch, the comedy remains resoundingly unfunny.
  2. Clifford's Really Big Movie
    Harmless tale of the giant pooch helping out some itinerant performing animals while longing for home will go down smoothly with the preschool faithful, but anyone over 5 will feel antsy even given the brief running time.
  3. Paycheck
    Uninspired star turns from Ben Affleck and Uma Thurman suggest something less than full belief in this quickly forgettable thriller.
  4. Town & Country
    A lot of talent on both sides of the camera operating in low gear.
  5. Serendipity
    Will serve as an excellent gauge of any viewer's tolerance level for schmaltzy contrivance and manipulation.
  6. The Final Cut
    Striking visuals help, but pic won't make the final cut with either genre fans, who've seen it all and better before, or the arthouse crowd, who will sneer at pic's cliches.
  7. A Slipping-Down Life
    A curiously bland drama that fails to fulfill the promise of its early scenes.
  8. Testosterone
    This obsessive love story about a guy seeking closure after being dumped by his Latino boyfriend awkwardly juggles screwball and noir elements with macabre black comedy in a mix that calls for a far lighter, more stylish touch than the obvious one at work here.
  9. Blue Gate Crossing
    High on charm but extremely low on content, Blue Gate Crossing is a half-hour short stretched to feature length.
  10. Suspect Zero
    A plodding and familiar "cop sees what the killer sees" riff that plays like a poorly inflated "The X-Files" episode.
  11. Facing Windows
    Only partially succeeds in interweaving questions of family loyalty with historical memory and the fate of Italian Jews in WW2.
    • 45 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Bangkok Dangerous
    Enjoyable in an undemanding way, and with a few interesting flourishes.
  13. Dogma
    A very vulgar pro-faith comedy rather than a sacrilegious goof, Dogma is an extraordinarily uneven film.
  14. Final Destination 2
    Suffers from the same rancid dialogue and acting problems as the original but with a much funnier pulse. The real progenitor here is less the previous pic than the sick-funny horror cinema of George Romero.
  15. Gods and Generals
    Gods and Generals is American history transformed into a museum movie, consistently making the flawed human characters at the heart of the Civil War into flawless figures Olympian in their statuesque remoteness.
  16. Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
    This represents at least as much of an artistic setback for Smith as "Chasing Amy" and "Dogma" were advances.
  17. The Whole Ten Yards
    The strain needed to extend The Whole Ten Yards a yard -- and to feature length -- is so painfully evident it breaks new pic's comedy spirit, making it a particularly dubious member of the Sequel Hall of Shame.
  18. The Punisher
    Fires blanks. Thoroughly routine, pic plays like a paint-by-numbers pilot for bygone basic-cable teleseries.
  19. Songs from the Second Floor
    One of the most highly crafted pics in recent memory, and certainly the most original in vision of the 23 features competing at Cannes this year, Songs From the Second Floor rapidly wears out its welcome after the first few reels to finish up as a perplexing objet d'art.
    • 84 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    2001: A Space Odyssey
    A major achievement in cinematography and special effects, 2001 lacks dramatic appeal and only conveys suspense after the halfway mark; Kubrick must receive all the praise - and take all the blame.
  21. Proof of Life
    A disappointingly routine thriller that prefers to lean on tired Hollywood conventions rather than to explore fresh dramatic and stylistic territory.
    • 12 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    The Avengers
    What's missing is chemistry: the right blend of seriousness and whimsy, and charmingly compelling interplay between leads Ralph Fiennes and Uma Thurman.
  23. Godsend
    Solid performances, handsome production values and a few genuinely creepy scenes are not enough to save Godsend.
  24. The Hidden Half
    The confused script makes this a tough film for audiences to dig into.
  25. The Family Man
    A slickly produced slice of sentimental hokum that borrows freely from a half-dozen or so other, better feel-good fantasies.
  26. What's the Worst That Could Happen?
    The star in this case is Martin Lawrence, who is not only thoroughly upstaged by nemesis Danny DeVito but is completely boxed out of his comfort zone for broad physical comedy.
  27. Sphere
    An empty shell.
  28. Envy
    Can't decide whether to be an eccentric black comedy or a middle-of-the-road diversion.
  29. Bright Future
    Occupies wavelengths too remote to be tuned in by audiences other than diehard Asian esoterica enthusiasts.
  30. Elephant
    Achieves some glancing poetic effects during its first hour, but becomes gross and exploitative during the shooting rampage of the final act.
  31. The Sweetest Thing
    A comedy that starts the date in a frisky mood but sours before it's time to kiss goodnight.
  32. How High
    A genially haphazard but frequently amusing neo-stoner comedy that plays like "Cheech and Chong Go to Animal House."
    • Variety
  33. Me, Myself & Irene
    Funny as much of the action is, however, the approach feels rather less fresh, and the gross-outs seem more gratuitous.
  34. I'll Sleep When I'm Dead
    Contains interesting ideas, but often those ideas are not fully realized.
  35. Exorcist: The Beginning
    Earns points simply for not being bad enough to leave a stain on the screen. Unfortunately, this annoyingly disjointed shocker stumbles badly after promising early scenes, and quickly devolves into a chaotic blur of underdeveloped characters, illogical transitions and standard-issue scary-movie tropes.
  36. Grind
    A textbook example of the charm-free ephemera dumped by studios during the waning days of summer.
  37. Intoxicating
    After a long, glum slide, pic becomes an unconvincing story of redemption.
  38. Gypsy 83
    Couldn't be less involving and more sentimentalized.
  39. Sleepover
    A frenetic, featherweight trifle aimed at tweener femmes.
  40. Mr. and Mrs. Iyer
    A drama of impeccable intentions flawed by arch dialogue and only OK direction.
  41. Seed of Chucky
    Simply isn't funny or frightening enough to expand its appeal beyond core fan base.
    • 61 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Ferris Bueller's Day Off
    Paucity of invention here lays bare the total absence of plot or involving situations.
  43. Gothika
    Hampered by thinly developed characters and pedestrian plotting.
  44. The Prince and Me
    Totally cliched and nearly two hours long, pic takes forever to get to hopelessly obvious places.
  45. America's Sweethearts
    Begins as a smartly promising, gently farcical comedy of manners and ends as sourly and haphazardly as the lives it is poking fun at.
  46. Honey
    With less than five minutes of screen time but with more humor and sassy attitude than the remaining cast combined, Missy Elliott separates hip-hop royalty from riff raff in the otherwise lackluster Honey.
  47. Vegas Vacation
    Series regulars Chevy Chase, Beverly D'Angelo and Randy Quaid (who joined for "Christmas Vacation") are all back for more, and thank God for Quaid, who injects a few bracing shots of mangy humor into what is otherwise a lukewarm brew.
  48. Happy Times
    Small but delightful tale about a dyed-in-the-wool spieler who develops a soft spot for a blind girl dumped in his care.
  49. FeardotCom
    Never quite realizes its potential to evoke the real horror of the Internet -- Yet, Malone has given the film a distinctive atmosphere and occasional flashes of his perverse sense of humor.
  50. Jackpot
    A candidate for quiet cult status.
  51. Connie and Carla
    It takes chutzpah to borrow from comedy maestros Billy Wilder and Blake Edwards, and Nia Vardalos would seem an unlikely candidate to get away with it unpunished.
  52. A Day Without a Mexican
    Darkly amusing idea delivers an early salvo that fades as the film swings across a range of styles and tones director Sergio Arau gamely tries to corral. Even at its half-realized level, pic will anger some as it amuses others.
  53. Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me
    Engagingly intriguing throughout most of its slightly overlong running time, and perhaps the strangely mesmerizing mood Lynch has orchestrated for the entire "Twin Peaks" undertaking should not be underestimated at this juncture. But the feeling persists that, to a considerable degree, Lynch is marking time with this project, creating new riffs and variations on themes he had already largely worked out.
  54. Beijing Bicycle
    Overplays its slim hand by a good two reels.
  55. EuroTrip
    Promising young cast flounders amid comic material that's staler than week-old bread.
  56. Luther
    Proceeds like a stultifying history pageant rather than a movie with a pulse of its own.
  57. Party Monster
    A colorful, lurid and ultimately so-what look at obnoxious personalities careening down their own road to ruin.
  58. The American Astronaut
    Unfortunately that blast-off heralds an orbit to nowhere, with initial delight fading as pic runs out of ideas all too soon, never building a sense of momentum or narrative thrust.
  59. Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd
    Fitfully amusing prequel.
  60. Just Married
    The filmmakers themselves betray a lack of knowledge about the Old World, while unfailingly repeating physical hijinks one time too many.
  61. Easy
    Increasingly complicated comic maneuvers turn what should have been a hip look at sexuality into an antsy pic too busy to settle down.
  62. Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen
    Minimally funny comedy feels like a Disney Channel pic that got boosted to theatrical after Lohan scored a hit opposite Jamie Lee Curtis in the "Freaky Friday" remake.
  63. Blade
    Though slick and diverting in some aspects, increasingly silly pic has trouble meshing disparate elements --- horror, superhero fantasy, straight-up action --- into a workable whole.
  64. Michael Jordan to the Max
    Arguably the finest athlete in living memory deserves better than Michael Jordan to the Max, an honorific but unmoving portrait of the Chicago Bulls' No. 23.
  65. Open My Heart
    Has a perverse fascination, despite some technical clumsiness and stiff thesping.
    • 33 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Chasing Papi
    For the most part, the fast-moving pace, thankfully slight running time, attractive leads and infectious soundtrack distract from its many inconsistencies
  67. Dude, Where's My Car?
    Aimed squarely at adolescents who might find "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure" too intellectually taxing.
  68. The Aryan Couple
    Picture's dubious brand of heroism, half-baked historical sense, simplistic dialogue, flat staging and barely formed characters make for sluggish sledding.
  69. Fahrenheit 9/11
    Pic fails to provide any hard facts or make any incriminating connections that a reasonably informed person doesn't already know about, so intellectually Moore is largely preaching to the converted in this blatant cinematic 2004 campaign pamphlet.
  70. Così ridevano
    Problematically structured, overly protracted and lacking in narrative fluidity.
  71. Dogville
    An artistically experimental, ideologically apocalyptic blast at American values that is as obvious in intent as it is murky in aesthetic achievement.
  72. You Got Served
    A serviceable youth pic that's marginally less dumb than November's urban quasi-musical "Honey."
  73. New York Minute
    After a string of direct-to-video excursions, this latest film remains an off-putting assault of too-screwball comedy with glints of pathos.
  74. The United States of Leland
    Hoge shows no particular directorial style, bringing a bland, anonymous look to the generic Southern California suburban locations.
  75. Welcome to Mooseport
    Lacks the antic energy and inspired imagination that might have put this over as a sharp-witted community comedy in the Preston Sturges vein.
  76. Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence
    Talky, repetitive and largely covering the same ground with no new thoughts, Ghost in the Shell 2: Innocence is a major let-down.
  77. Little Black Book
    Lacks so much as a single fresh idea; it lacks an entertaining way of presenting its stale ideas, too.
  78. Paparazzi
    Visually uninspired and dramatically overheated, Paparazzi has overall look and feel of generic direct-to-video production.
  79. Silver City
    As both political satire and noirish murder mystery, this Newmarket pickup may be too meandering and unemphatic for wide consumption.
  80. Bubble Boy
    Seems bent on creating equal-opportunity offense to many groups, but more often than not is appalling simply for its silliness and lack of comedic control.
  81. Cheaper by the Dozen
    Unfortunately knows no tone between schmaltzy/gooey and slapstick/gross-out. Pic is as far from the original pic and its autobiographical memoir source as it can be while retaining the same title.
  82. Fat Albert
    fFat-footed and ham-handed in its attempt to reconstitute a popular '70s TV cartoon show as a full-length, family-skewing feature.
  83. House on Haunted Hill
    Still nothing but a gussied-up B movie.
  84. Spanglish
    Short on real drama and incident and long on tedium.
  85. The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
    Too blandly insubstantial to expand its appeal beyond its target demographic.
  86. Swept Away
    A simple misfire rather than a world-class fiasco. This misguided attempt to remake Lina Wertmuller's corrosive 1974 satire as a wistful romance is only unintentionally funny in the last reel.
    • 24 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Kazaam
    With its uneven mix of comedy, melodrama and action, pic will need all the help Shaq's name and a rap soundtrack can provide.
  88. Feeling Minnesota
    Meant to be an offbeat, darkly comic tale of a triangle of losers desperately clinging to their versions of the American dream, pic comes across as a charmless high-concept indie.
  89. Billy Madison
    There are a few bursts of sheer, irresistible idiocy -- along the lines of "Wayne's World" or even "Pee-wee's Big Adventure"-- but not enough to sustain the more arid stretches.
  90. Mimic
    Del Toro clearly knows his way around the camera, but the shadowy eeriness that saturates the early going slowly becomes monotonous and winds up being just dull, and even partially obscures the action in the long underground finale.
    • 50 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure
    Reeves, with his beguilingly blank face and loose-limbed, happy-go-lucky physical vocabulary, and Winter, with his golden curls, gleefully good vibes and 'bodacious' vocabulary, propel this adventure as long as they can.
  92. Phenomenon
    Instead, director Jon Turteltaub has taken the easiest road, emerging with a soppy, soft-headed disease-of-the-week-style piece that sentimentalizes or opts out of every interesting issue the script raises.
  93. Home for the Holidays
    But Foster is unable to give the episodic, fragmented film a coherent feel; her prosaic, sometimes irritating picture proceeds scene by scene, with the requisite climaxes and anticlimaxes along the bumpy road.
  94. The Crossing Guard
    Much of the film plays awkwardly, its tone veering undecidedly between volatile drama and contemplative psychological study.
  95. Congo
    Whatever John Patrick Shanley's script may have tried to do in adapting Crichton's book, it clearly feels as if the picture were edited to leave the action sequences in while removing any connecting material that might have helped them make sense.
    • 37 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
    Seemingly clueless as to how best to utilize Carrey, or make humorous hay out of its pet-loving shamus' central character, Ventura fails to place either Carrey or Ace in the winner's circle of memorable screen crazies.
  97. True Lies
    Yet even with its ribald laughs and spectacular action sequences (clearly seeking to up the ante on the latter front), the movie gets mired in a comedic midsection that wears the audience down, sapping their energy before the film shifts to a chaotic third act that just doesn't know when to quit.
  98. Spanking the Monkey
    The story is undoubtedly weird, but perhaps more so on paper than on the screen, since Russell and his actors have played it mostly straight in attempting to confer psychological validity on all the untoward developments.
  99. Return to Paradise
    None of the characters is given much depth or meaningful backgrounding, leaving the capable thesps with plenty of anguish and emotion to play but not much else.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Fire
    The third feature from this Indian-born writer-director... is an underwhelming effort that adds little new to the debate over arranged marriages and fails to ignite much interest in the problems faced by two frustrated New Delhi wives.
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