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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

67
$9.99
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66
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91
Hurt Locker, The
89
Goodbye Solo
88
Tulpan
87
Gomorrah
86
Seraphine
84
Summer Hours
83
U2 3D
83
Revanche
83
Tyson
82
Burma VJ: Reporting from a Closed Country
82
Sugar
82
Hunger
82
Anvil! The Story of Anvil
81
Il Divo
81
Beaches of Agnes, The
80
Food, Inc.
80
Tokyo Sonata
79
Harvard Beats Yale 29-29
78
Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story, The
78
O'Horten
77
Every Little Step
77
Sin Nombre
75
24 City
74
Treeless Mountain
74
Afghan Star
74
Two Lovers
74
Song of Sparrows, The
74
Lemon Tree
71
Pressure Cooker
71
Jerichow
70
Shall We Kiss?
70
Tony Manero
70
End of the Line, The
69
Valentino: The Last Emperor
69
Unmistaken Child
67
$9.99
67
Rudo y Cursi
67
Girlfriend Experience, The
66
Adoration
66
Moon
65
Sex Positive
65
Departures
64
Outrage
64
Examined Life
64
Throw Down Your Heart
64
Lymelife
63
Tokyo!
63
Cheri
63
Dead Snow
63
Tetro
63
Great Buck Howard, The
62
Cherry Blossoms
62
Big Man Japan
62
Not Forgotten
61
Sunshine Cleaning
60
Under Our Skin
59
Sleep Dealer
58
Julia
58
Easy Virtue
57
Away We Go
57
Merry Gentleman, The
57
Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love
56
Girl from Monaco, The
56
American Violet
55
Brothers Bloom, The
54
Is Anybody There?
54
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54
Stoning of Soraya M., The
52
Quiet Chaos
50
Management
48
Alien Trespass
45
Whatever Works
42
Little Ashes
42
Tennessee
40
Limits of Control, The
40
Paris 36
38
Gigantic
36
Life is Hot in Cracktown
35
New York
28
Big Shot-Caller, The
28
Surveillance
22
What Goes Up
18
Downloading Nancy
16
I Hate Valentine's Day
xx
Call of the Wild
xx
Home
xx
Offshore
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
|
Charlie Bartlett
MGM
MPAA RATING: R for language, drug content and brief nudity
Starring
Anton Yelchin,
Robert Downey Jr.,
Hope Davis,
Kat Dennings,
Tyler Hilton,
Ishan Davé,
Megan Park,
and
Jonathan Malen
Charlie Bartlett, a wealthy, intelligent 17-year-old, has been kicked out of nearly every boarding school in town and is now enrolled in the local public high school, headed by the reluctant Principal Gardner. Initially struggling to find a place in the new school, Charlie eventually establishes himself as the supportive listener who dispenses well-needed advice, and the occasional prescription, to mixed-up teens. As intuitive Charlie befriends and emotionally influences nearly every student at Western Summit High, the entire school begins to transform into a very different place. (Kimmel International)
| GENRE(S): |
Comedy
|
| WRITTEN BY: |
Gustin Nash
|
| DIRECTED BY: |
Jon Poll
|
| RELEASE DATE: |
DVD: June 24, 2008
Theatrical: February 22, 2008
|
| RUNNING TIME: |
97 minutes, Color |
| ORIGIN: |
USA |

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
80
The Hollywood Reporter
Kirk Honeycutt
Yelchin delivers one of those performances that pop eyes... It's a breakthrough role.

80
Variety
Ronnie Scheib
Rollicking story of a rich kid whose wildly successful bid for popularity has him playing drug-distributing shrink to an entire high school boasts pitch-perfect faceoffs between upstart Anton Yelchin and alcoholic principal Robert Downey Jr. that could fuel a chemistry lab.

75
ReelViews
James Berardinelli
I would classify Charlie Bartlett as a smart teen film. It's more ambitious and overall more successful than its '80s forebears even though the resemblance is unmistakable.

75
USA Today
Claudia Puig
A refreshingly entertaining character study that refuses to dumb down its youthful cast or bury their concerns in service of a catchy soundtrack.

75
Boston Globe
Wesley Morris
What the movie lacks in technical polish (it's not very handsome-looking) and dramatic perfection, it makes up for in unusual social sophistication.

75
Philadelphia Inquirer
Steven Rea
With its rebellious themes and pharmaceutical props - Ritalin, Prozac, Xanax all get doled out - Charlie Bartlett isn't going to win any awards from parent-teacher groups. But the underlying message of the film, with its nods to "Catcher in the Rye" and - '70s throwback here - "Harold and Maude," is a good one.

70
Chicago Reader
Jonathan Rosenbaum
It reminded me of "Pump Up the Volume" in many ways.

70
Wall Street Journal
Joe Morgenstern
The film functions as a high-wire act that can leave you giddy with laughter.

63
New York Post
Lou Lumenick
Starts to get a bit preachy as it works its way toward a climax heavily influenced by "Rushmore," but it's still well above average for this type of film.

63
TV Guide
Ken Fox
Jon Poll's harmless, occasionally entertaining debut feature.

60
Empire
Sam Toy
After a strong start, the story ceases to challenge itself and its characters, offering easy options and a Prozac-soft finish.

60
Village Voice
Ella Taylor
Like most wannabe heroes of the eager-to-please teen comedy, poor little rich boy Charlie Bartlett (Anton Yelchin) is too charming by half and not nearly quirky enough.

60
The New York Times
Stephen Holden
If the attention span of Charlie Bartlett didn’t wander here and there, the movie might have been a high school satire worthy of comparison with Alexander Payne’s “Election.” But as it dashes around and eventually turns soft, it loses its train of thought.

58
Portland Oregonian
Marc Mohan
Instead of a unique directorial style and a memorable soundtrack, we get a movie that, visually and aurally, pretty much goes by the book.

58
Entertainment Weekly
Lisa Schwarzbaum
Robert Downey Jr. is an uncomfortable sight as the school's hard-drinking, overstressed principal.

50
Austin Chronicle
Marjorie Baumgarten
Sequences like the silly montage of Charlie on Ritalin (which just looks like the precious doodles of a former editor), grievously underdeveloped characters, and heavy heapings of sap instead of snark keep Charlie Bartlett from making the dean’s list.

50
The Onion (A.V. Club)
Scott Tobias
Watching Charlie Bartlett only makes Wes Anderson's work seem more accomplished by comparison, because it underscores that thin line separating the agreeably fanciful from the overbearingly precious.

50
Charlotte Observer
Lawrence Toppman
Decent acting forestalls the inevitable collapse for a long time.

50
San Francisco Chronicle
David Wiegand
A relentlessly earnest teen film.

50
Los Angeles Times
Carina Chocano
For the most part, it's an uneven if amiable and occasionally inspired comedy about getting through adolescence that hits some false notes along the way.

50
The Globe and Mail (Toronto)
Rick Groen
Actually, occasionally, does feel good. Now if only it had something to say.

50
Baltimore Sun
Chris Kaltenbach
Spending more time with Downey's character would have benefited this movie no end.

30
Washington Post
Desson Thomson
The movie feels forced, cliched and derivative.

25
Seattle Post-Intelligencer
William Arnold
The dismal high school comedy Charlie Bartlett has the look, feel and sentiment of a made-for-video cheapie that might have been grudgingly whipped together by Robert Downey Jr. as some sort of court-ordered community service project for his many drug busts.

25
Chicago Tribune
Tasha Robinson
Are teenagers really supposed to identify with a clumsy caricature such as Charlie, who, in spite of all his expulsions and school crimes, comes across as a gawping, perpetually surprised infant in an adult body?


The average user rating for this movie is 7.2 (out of 10) based on 35 User Votes
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