Variety's Scores

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For 17,777 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: 9,133 out of 17777
  2. Mixed: 7,008 out of 17777
  3. Negative: 1,636 out of 17777
17777 movie reviews
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  1. Little Nicky
    Sandler turns the joke around on his detractors and manages to lead a devilishly energetic vehicle that contains about as many laughs as his previous features combined.
  2. Last Life in the Universe
    It recovers from an opening that's a little oblique to grow progressively more seductive as the two lost central characters become entwined.
  3. Bright Leaves
    Witty, thoughtful and illuminating.
  4. The Wedding Singer
    Director Frank Coraci and scripter Tim Herlihy work in concert to maintain a quality of farce rooted in human comedy.
  5. Goyangileul butaghae
    Engaging, highly accessible movie that marks a slick feature debut by helmer Jeong Jae-eun.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    A Song for Martin
    A moving love story with two exquisite central performances.
  7. Irreversible
    A demanding but rewarding emotional odyssey in a challenging visual package.
  8. Jesus' Son
    An intermittently compelling and occasionally hilarious road movie.
  9. The Magdalene Sisters
    Mullan's increased maturity as a director is evident in his skill at manipulating light and dark dramatic tones, and shifting between moods of anger and plaintive melancholy.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Terminator 2: Judgment Day
    As with "Aliens," director James Cameron has again taken a first rate science fiction film and crafted a sequel that's in some ways more impressive - expanding on the original rather than merely remaking it.
  11. Bootmen
    Feel-good quality fare.
    • 91 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Sweet Hereafter
    Canadian writer-director Atom Egoyan's most ambitious work to date, The Sweet Hereafter is a rich, complex meditation on the impact of a terrible tragedy on a small town.
  13. Prisoner of Paradise
    An important and smoothly mounted meditation on moral choices within the entertainment biz.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    A Fish Called Wanda
    Curtis steals the show with her keen sense of comic timing and sneaky little grins and asides.
  15. The Human Stain
    Powered by two eye-catching performances.
  16. Blue Car
    This melancholy, insightfully scripted coming-of-age drama is moving without being manipulative and makes an assured calling card for writer-director Karen Moncrieff.
  17. The Good Thief
    Sure, it's all been done before, but seldom with this degree of vigor and panache.
  18. The Mask of Zorro
    The return of the legendary swordsman is well served by a grandly mounted production in the classical style.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Boyz n the Hood
    Ultra socially responsible, sometimes to the point of playing like a laundry list of difficulties faced specifically by the urban black community.
  20. Moulin Rouge!
    A tour de force of artifice, a dazzling pastiche of musical and visual elements at the service of a blatantly artificial story.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The English Patient
    A respectable, intelligent but less than stirring adaptation of an imposingly dense and layered novel.
  22. Taking Lives
    A somber, absorbing thriller that treads familiar psycho serial killer terrain with style. Elegantly made and comparatively restrained in cramming sick and grisly stuff down the audience's throat.
  23. Zelary
    Managing to be at once epic and intimate, Zelary matches a resilient urban woman against a compassionate rural man in the spectacular Moravian countryside during World War II. Results rep a triumph of regional filmmaking, but in the David Lean tradition.
  24. Better Than Sex
    Cheekily diverting, decidedly feel-good, tremendously sexy entertainment.
  25. Catch Me If You Can
    Like a trot around the track for the thoroughbreds involved, and one of the results is that it takes them far too long to get to the finish line.
  26. The Fast and the Furious
    A gritty and gratifying cheap thrill, Rob Cohen's high-octane hot-car meller is a true rarity these days, a really good exploitationer, the sort of thing that would rule at drive-ins if they still existed.
  27. Central Station
    Montenegro carries the film su-perbly with her portrait of gritty strength being worn down to a state of tattered vulnerability, while newcomer de Oliveira, a shoeshine boy who won the role over 1,500 other aspirants, is engagingly natural and happily doesn't beg for viewer sympathy.
  28. Never Again
    A hugely enjoyable romantic comedy that dares to suggest that love can bloom -- and, more important, hormones can rage -- after 50. Smart, sassy and slickly packaged.
    • 47 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The General's Daughter
    The cinematic equivalent of a disposable airplane read, a hokey, kinky military thriller that's twisty and compelling enough to hook viewers in the mood for a trashy good time.
  30. Mysterious Object at Noon
    Result is a weird hodgepodge that has the audience doing mental somersaults in an attempt to keep up with this highly original festival head-scratcher.
  31. The Five Obstructions
    Though billed as a documentary, The Five Obstructions doesn't easily fall into any category. Perhaps it's best described as a game, in which a pair of Danish film directors from different generations spar with one another in a highly civilized, and surprisingly entertaining, fashion.
  32. The Exorcist
    Just as some of the footage deepens what is already there, additions in final reel, though closer to Blatty’s wishes, restate the obvious or add a feel-good patina which pushes the film closer to our own audience-pleasing period than the more daring early ’70s. [2000 re-release]
  33. Aberdeen
    A humanistic, warts-and-all battle of wills between a dissolute father and an emotionally ravaged daughter.
  34. Mean Creek
    Estes' debut feature's strength lies in its crackling intensity, ultra-sharp character insights and an affinity for teenage protagonists who look and sound like real teens.
  35. Read My Lips
    Engaging chemistry between leads Emmanuelle Devos and Vincent Cassel.
  36. The Good Girl
    This one comes up short in terms of visual flair. But it delivers amusingly observed characters, consistent laughs underscored by the poignancy of unfulfilled existences and winning performances from a terrific cast captained by Jennifer Aniston.
  37. Gattaca
    Gattaca, New Zealander helmer Andrew Niccol's impressive feature debut, is an intelligent and timely sci-fi thriller that, with the exception of some illogical plot contrivances, is emotionally engaging almost up to the end.
  38. Criminal
    More a tribute than a remake, Steven Soderbergh-approved take on Argentine hit "Nine Queens" isn't quite as sharp or surprising as the original, one of the best scam pics of the past decade.
  39. Tuck Everlasting
    Disney's tradition of intelligent, live-action family period cinema is magnificently revived in Tuck Everlasting.
  40. The Ice Storm
    A well-observed and deftly performed examination of upper-middle-class emotional deep freeze, The Ice Storm is an intelligent, adult American film.
  41. Private Parts
    A funny and unexpectedly beguiling account of the outrageous humorist's unlikely rise to the pinnacle of radio celebrity.
  42. eXistenZ
    This is unquestionably Cronenberg Lite, but there is plenty of fun to be had from the absurdities and convoluted plotting, and a solid cast lends stature to the far-fetched fantasies.
  43. No Man's Land
    As a tyro auteur, Tanovich has a heavy-handed way of delineating characters and situations that makes this well-meaning film awfully familiar at times.
  44. Tigerland
    A tautly focused, well-executed drama. Demonstrates that it's still possible to make small, intimate and personal movies within the Hollywood studio system.
  45. Vodka Lemon
    A little gem that takes a potentially grim subject and mines it for maximum humor and insight.
  46. Deadline
    Potent docudocu by Katy Chevigny and Kirsten Johnson makes a strong case against capital punishment by pointing up the fallibility of the justice system, while offering an inspiring portrait of one politico who actually seems guided foremost by conscience.
  47. Arlington Road
    An intelligent, insidiously plotted Hitchcockian thriller directed in souped-up, modern expressionistic style.
  48. My Best Friend's Wedding
    Ultimately, My Best Friend's Wedding works for some very old-fashioned reasons: It skillfully engages us in the story and its characters. And, for no additional cost, it has something to say about how we live, act, commit and relate.
    • Variety
  49. The Original Kings of Comedy
    Consistently hilarious.
  50. People I Know
    Compelling 24-hour odyssey into the life of a world-weary Gotham publicist, driven by a vivid performance from Al Pacino.
    • 66 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Barbershop
    A rousing celebration of the family-run small business, this Ice Cube-topped ensemble comedy, without offering anything especially new or exciting, provides a springboard for high-voltage comic exchanges that double as wisecrack-coated lessons in community relations.
  52. Cruel Intentions
    Nasty, profane and wickedly entertaining for the most part.
  53. The Return
    Constructed like an eerie, metaphorical thriller, this tense, riveting character study offers viewers nearly two hours of emotions with a stunning pay-off no one will be expecting.
  54. Panic Room
    Smartly plotted, convincingly acted and brilliantly executed technically, this engrossing thriller adds some clever modern wrinkles to the time-tested formula of sinister intruders threatening innocents in their home.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Flirting with Disaster
    Although it eventually throws more balls in the air than it can easily juggle, Flirting with Disaster is, most of the time, a diabolically clever satire that has its way with any number of contemporary shiboleths.
  56. Ride with the Devil
    Lee has made a brutal but sensitively observed film about the fringes of the Civil War.
  57. O Brother, Where Art Thou?
    A charming, if lightweight, Coen brothers escapade flecked by plenty of visual and performance grace notes.
    • 96 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Battle of Algiers
    It's a dedicated effort with importance as a 'document.' (Review of original release)
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Herod's Law
    Provocative, well-shot and vastly entertaining in its malice.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back
    A worthy sequel to "Star Wars," equal in both technical mastery and characterization, suffering only from the familiarity with the effects generated in the original and imitated too much by others.
  61. Spy Game
    Serves up a judicious blend of showy action, political intrigue, ticking-clock suspense and intramural CIA one-upsmanship for mainstream entertainment.
  62. Blind Shaft
    Has a low-key power that comes as much from its off-handed approach to the dark material as from any manipulative techniques.
  63. Deconstructing Harry
    A tremendous, stellar cast is mostly confined to minor roles, but all shine under Allen's assured direction.
  64. Goya in Bordeaux
    Feverish, elegant movie.
  65. Runaway Bride
    The central idea is quite clever and appealing, and that the charm meter is turned up all the way.
  66. Next Stop Wonderland
    Low on plot but high on charm and personality, Next Stop Wonderland is a sly, hand-crafted indie that is very alive and attentive to its characters' feelings and foibles.
  67. American Wedding
    The funny stuff continues for a quite satisfying conclusion during the wedding prep and ceremonies, which Stifler single-handedly transforms into his own personal gross-out comedy masterpiece.
  68. Metallica: Some Kind of Monster
    Pic itself is a long haul, at nearly 2½ hours; yet one needn't be a fan of Metallica or heavy metal to be engrossed throughout.
    • tbd Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Night and the City (re-release)
    Jules Dassin, in his direction, manages extraordinarily interesting backgrounds, realistically filmed to create a feeling both of suspense and mounting menace.
  70. Lost Boys of Sudan
    A potent, engrossing look at several young refugees from Sudan's disastrous, endless civil war who've been relocated to the U.S.
  71. About Schmidt
    Films exist for different reasons, and the indisputable raison d'etre for About Schmidt is to showcase Jack Nicholson giving a master class in the art of screen acting.
    • 68 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Braveheart
    The sort of massive vanity piece that would be easy to disparage if it didn't essentially deliver.
  73. Clerks
    A randy, irreverent, slice-of-life no-budgeter that's played for laughs and gets them.
  74. Dudley Do-Right
    One of the summer's more pleasant surprises. A silly bit of tiptop tomfoolery with cross-generational appeal.
  75. In the Bedroom
    Beautifully acted by a diverse ensemble, this Good Machine production is carefully crafted and deliberately paced.
  76. Mostly Martha
    A charming relationships comedy about food, gourmet cooking and emotionally chilling out. Anchored by a career-best performance from German thesp Martina Gedeck.
  77. Narc
    A darkly textured, powerfully suspenseful genre piece.
  78. Shanghai Knights
    A hugely entertaining and more lavishly mounted follow-up to 2000's "Shanghai Noon," the high-concept East-meets-Western that first teamed top-billed duo, pic rides even taller in the saddle as a fleet and funny crowd-pleaser.
  79. Mind the Gap
    Warm-hearted but clear-eyed indie effort richly repays audience patience during deliberately paced and provocatively allusive early scenes with a cumulative emotional impact that is immensely satisfying.
  80. Notting Hill
    Has buckets to spare of that rarest screen commodity — genuine, engaging charm.
    • Variety
  81. Selena
    Although Nava's screenplay hits the subject of every scene right on the head and doesn't ask for much subtlety or subtext, Lopez is wonderful to watch in the dramatic sequences as well as in the numerous musical interludes.
  82. Love and Death on Long Island
    This is arguably Hurt's best role in years, and he bites into it with relish, managing to seem both manipulative and vulnerable, dour and droll at the same time.
  83. The Corporation
    A surprisingly cogent, entertaining, even rabble-rousing indictment of perhaps the most influential institutional model for our era.
  84. Behind the Sun
    Consummately crafted and stunningly shot in magnificent locations deep in Brazil's remote northeastern badlands, the film unapologetically courts the commercial curve of the international arthouse arena with its rustic exotica and sensory overload of poetic imagery, giving it something of a grandiose air.
    • 91 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    On the Waterfront
    Under Elia Kazan's direction, Marlon Brando puts on a spectacular show, giving a fascinating, multi-faceted performance.
  86. Open Range
    An intensely scenic, refreshingly humanistic oater that dares to be sincere and open-hearted.
    • 55 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Cirque du Soleil: Journey of Man
    Tech elements, including music, lensing, costumes and production design are blazingly impressive and strikingly evocative on all levels.
  88. Sling Blade
    Marked by some powerful scenes, fine performances and colorful dialogue, this talented directorial debut by actor-writer Billy Bob Thornton has its effectiveness diluted by serious overlength and a rather monotonous, unmodulated tone.
  89. Rush Hour 2
    Superior sequel, which is the very model of the limber, transnational Hollywood action comedy.
  90. Monster's Ball
    Burning with a quiet intensity, Monster's Ball is bolstered by a poetic, intelligent sensibility not seen in an American film since Terrence Malick's "The Thin Red Line."
  91. Galaxy Quest
    One of the holiday movie season's more pleasant surprises. A mischievously clever and slickly commercial sci-fi comedy.
    • 86 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Straight Story
    Lynch has directed his most satisfyingly disciplined movie.
  93. The Accidental Spy
    After several years of transition, Jackie Chan finally gets the mix right in The Accidental Spy, an entertaining meld of far-flung locales and criminal shenanigans that sees the 47-year-old action star comfortably combining the twin demands of action and maturity.
    • 60 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Total Recall
    The fierce and unrelenting pace, accompanied by a tongue-in-cheek strain of humor in the roughhouse screenplay, keeps the film moving like a juggernaut.
  95. Broadway: The Golden Age, by the Legends Who Were There
    Rick McKay's exceptional new documentary Broadway: The Golden Age presents a veritable avalanche of interviews with some of the biggest names in the history of the American theater, preserving for posterity their wise words and disarming anecdotes.
  96. Japan
    Its powerfully visual storytelling delivers great rewards as the meditative drama moves into increasingly complex, at times confrontational territory.
  97. Scream 2
    Visceral, witty and appropriately redundant, the sequel has a winning commercial recipe that's certain to cook up excellent returns in all areas.
  98. Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring
    A sublime, witty, gritty and transcendental movie reflecting one man's life journey.
  99. The Thin Red Line
    Like a Rousseau painting splattered with carnage of warfare.
  100. Faster
    An often thrilling, always compelling intro to the sport.
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