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Arbitrage
Barely OK 66 Points 2012

Second-rate performances by first-rate stars in a second-rate thriller with a heavy-handed political agenda make Arbitrage a third-rate movie. Don’t believe the praise it’s received from the Mainstream Media. They’re in love with writer-director Nicholas Jarecki’s politics more than his movie…

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WikChip Image The movie's lone shining star: Tim Roth
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  • BrianSez – Regarding "Wick's Review":http://www.viewguide.com/m...
Monkey Business
Great 66 Points 1952

A married Cary Grant being tempted by Marilyn Monroe is ample inducement to watch Monkey Business. Yet mere adulterous titillation undersells this sparkling marital comedy from the early Fifties. The movie centers on Grant’s loving relationship with his wife, played by a deft Ginger Rodgers. …

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WikChip Image Cary & Ginger find their inner children
Malèna
Perfect 66 Points 2000

Deeply, floridly Italian, Malèna is a sumptuous WWII find, a Sicilian movie extraordinaire and a devastating depiction of Italian machismo reacting to the hottest signorina since Sophia Loren.

Monica Belluci plays the title character, a gorgeous war bride living in a small Sicilian town, bro…

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WikChip Image where Malèna went, the town followed
Butter
Pretty Bad 66 Points 2012

Butter is rancid, a comedy devoid of laughs and full of bile. No LOLs, no guffaws, not even a single smile gets triggered by its steady stream of condescension. Mean spiritedness in a comedy can work, so long as the movie brings the laughs. If it’s unfunny, then it’s just smug, catty and mean…

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WikChip Image A figment of Hollywood imagination
King of the Hill
Really Great 66 Points 1993

King of the Hill is a real life Little Rascals, what with pipsqueak brothers living alone during the Great Depression. Amazingly, it’s the truthy autobiography of A.E. Hotchner, Paul Newman’s pal and business partner. Even if fictional, it would still charm and enlighten, as it’s a perfect fi…

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WikChip Video Charming and Enlightening
Gainsbourg: A H...
Good 66 Points 2010

French musical sensation Serge Gainsbourg explains himself in this surreal biopic. Largely unknown here in America, Gainsbourg was a cross between Dylan, Sinatra and Leonard Cohen in France. The women he squired – including Brigitte Bardot during her superstar heyday – comprise a good part of h…

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WikChip Image Musician's Beauty: Gainsbourg & Bardot
Coco Chanel & I...
OK 66 Points 2010

Visually scintillating, musically avant-garde, dramatically turgid: This biopic of two cultural giants goes down like Brussels sprouts instead of foie gras. IOW, it takes effort to work through the two hour running time, when it should feel like savoring a rich delicacy. Pity, since Coco & Igor…

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WikChip Image Great design barely trumps turgid drama.
Witness for the...
Really Great 66 Points 1957

Starched and stilted, Witness for the Prosecution nonetheless packs one hell of a punch at the end, with glorious detail throughout and a powerhouse cast who are the complete masters of their juicy roles. Nevermind that its theatrical roots show. Agatha Christie knew how to write for max view…

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WikChip Image Wilder angle: Dietrich looks up at Power
Black Widow
Really Great 66 Points 1987

Genre movies get no better than Black Widow, a noirish crime drama that delivers just what its title promises. A stunning woman seduces rich men to marry her, kills them, absconds with their fortunes and finds her next mark. You hardly want her caught, especially if you’re a guy and she’s not…

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WikChip Image Black Widow in Bridal Mode
Wanderlust
Very Good 66 Points 2012

Comedies get no respect, so perceptively intelligent movies like Wanderlust get discounted by the critics. Never mind that it’s continuously clever even if only sporadically LOL.

The LOLs do come however, some hitting various parts of the audience and some slaying everyone. When a Big One …

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WikChip Image Justin Theroux's 2-faced manipulator