David Rooney, Variety
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For 243 reviews, this critic has graded:
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56% higher than the average critic
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3% same as the average critic
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41% lower than the average critic
On average, this critic grades 4.2 points higher than other critics.
(0-100 point scale)
David Rooney's Scores
- Movies
| Average review score: | 63 |
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| Highest review score: |
Critic Score
100
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| Lowest review score: |
Critic Score
10
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Score distribution:
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Positive: 134 out of 243
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Mixed: 94 out of 243
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Negative: 15 out of 243
243
movie reviews
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David Rooney 80
The film's unhurried pace will target it for discerning audiences only, but its wry humor and coolly amused observation of contemporary Japan should score with smart urbanites. -
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David Rooney 100
The mesmerizing performance of Phillip Seymour Hoffman as the celebrated writer dominates every scene, while director Bennett Miller and screenwriter Dan Futterman's penetrating study enthralls in every aspect. -
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David Rooney 90
Theater veteran Recoing is utterly compelling. Both the script and the resourceful, subtle actor provide enormous insight into the troubled character. -
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David Rooney 70
Writer-director Joshua Marston's strikingly confident debut maintains an unblinking focus and sustains an almost unbearable level of tension. -
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David Rooney 80
Delivers continuous pinpricks of irreverent humor and subversive cultural commentary. -
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David Rooney 90
Rendered deeply moving by the director's peerless capacity to combine humor and compassion with honesty and despair. -
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David Rooney 80
Somewhat haphazardly organized yet fascinatingly detailed and enriched by the candor and dignity of its shockingly deprived interview subjects. -
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David Rooney 90
This slow but brilliantly sustained journey into madness is fronted by a remarkable performance from Ralph Fiennes and superb backup from Miranda Richardson in a triple role. -
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David Rooney 100
Mike Leigh is at the peak of his powers with Vera Drake, a compassionate, morally complex drama that stands easily alongside his best work, "Secrets & Lies" and "Topsy-Turvy." -
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David Rooney 80
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. -
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David Rooney 70
This feels like short film material stretched exasperatingly thin but nonetheless casts a certain sad spell, graced by moments of droll observational humor. -
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David Rooney 80
First-time feature director Rob Marshall and Oscar-winning "Gods and Monsters" screenwriter Bill Condon have spun the dark tale of two murdering floozies into a widely palatable entertainment, but the long-gestating film comes up short in rhythm and personality. -
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David Rooney 80
The gifted repertory company again creates an amusing gallery of incisively observed characters, riffing off each other with enjoyment levels that frequently prove contagious. -
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David Rooney 90
This fascinating portrait of an eccentric visionary and his chaotic triple family life is an accomplished, enormously satisfying non-fiction work. -
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David Rooney 70
While the film feels overlong at two hours 20 minutes, there's a seductive stillness to its enveloping mood. -
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David Rooney 90
Dowd's graciousness and enthusiasm, and the enormous respect afforded him by industryites on record here, make this a thorough and satisfying acknowledgement of one man's unique contribution to popular music. -
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David Rooney 80
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. -
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David Rooney 70
Provides deeply humanistic insight into the complexities of the Middle East conflict that political analysis or front-line news coverage often lacks. -
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David Rooney 80
The tireless volley of ideas and inventions make this a delight that should connect with kids and adults in both dubbed and original-language versions. -
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David Rooney 80
Pic's distinguished by a flawless cast, a gentle spirit of rebellion and a smart script by first-time screenwriter Michael Arndt that knows never to push its character quirks too hard. -
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David Rooney 80
An eloquent expression of both unorthodox romance and bitter disillusionment with the hypocritical institutions of family and society. -
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David Rooney 70
The impressive filmmaking craftsmanship and sharp storytelling skills make this two-hour-plus epic fly by. -
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David Rooney 50
Whatever valid points are being explored are hopelessly clouded by the film's unwavering earnestness as it descends into silliness and excess. -
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David Rooney 90
Exhaustively informative and powerfully emotional. -
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David Rooney 70
Almost as much an art piece as a film, this playful Prohibition-era tale is visually inventive and initially amusing but, at feature length, becomes somewhat wearing in its cacophonous eccentricity. -
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David Rooney 90
A highly accomplished, compact feature, which, while it may be light on depth, is rich in humor, rhythm, energy and inventiveness. -
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David Rooney 90
Joyously re-creates the brief but resplendent reign of the legendary freakadelic drag troupe. -
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David Rooney 80
Richly human in focus, the drama steadily cranks up its political and emotional charge. -
