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Hail the Conque...
Very Good 66 Points 1944

Hail The Conquering Hero is a welcome stop on the Tour de Sturges, even if not one of the best.

The Greatest Generation dealt with challenge differently than we 2nd Millenniums do, to put it mildly. Preston Sturges made Hail The Conquering Hero during World War II, right after the Marines…

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WikChip Image Demarest turns Bracken into a hero
The Help
Very Good 66 Points 2011

Women rule The Help. They rule the Junior League, they rule their roosts and they rule each other. Some are white and privileged, most of whom behave in ugly ways. Others are black and disenfranchised. Their world seems far away, yet existed a mere 50 years ago in the Jim Crow South.

Vie…

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WikChip Image Someone get this woman an Oscar!
Made in Dagenham
Good 66 Points 2010

Message-movies that dramatize real world events start with two strikes against them. The message they promote likely doesn’t resonate with everyone. And they have to hew to an often humdrum storyline.

Thus Made in Dagenham is a pleasant surprise, quirky instead of humdrum, not heavy-handed…

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In a World...
Great 66 Points 2013

In a world … where shallow people and male chauvinists thrive, and attractiveness drives income, there’s a woman smart enough, pretty enough and funny enough to write, direct and star in a great little RomCom.

Lake Bell’s her name and taking on the patriarchy’s her game. Well, the part of t…

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WikChip Image Lake Bell pimps her movie
Thérèse
Great 66 Points 2012

Thérèse is a great film by the great Claude Miller of the great French novel Thérèse Desqueyroux, 1927. Think of it as Madame Bovary in the pine forests of Southwest France. Only Thérèse barely has sex, let alone affairs. Talk about a banal life. Look at her stunning poster visag…

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WikChip Image Taking in their combined estate.
The Family
Very Good 66 Points 2013

Less an LOL comedy than one that keeps you in a semi-sustained semi-grin, The Family has lots to like if not enough to love. Luc Besson’s Mafia satire does score easily and often, with major stars delivering most of its best lines. They each shine brightly, though not in the order you might e…

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WikChip Video Dickhead boys get taught a lesson.
Closed Season
Great 66 Points 2012

Closed Season’s home-front Holocaust drama gets amplified by delving into some serious sexual intrigue. Result? A great movie, one that’s titled Ende der Schonzeit in its native Germany. Google translates that as “End of the grace period”. Hmm, besser in Deutsch.

A near feudal German…

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WikChip Image "I need you to impregnate my wife here."
Beautiful Girls
Great 66 Points 1996

Beautiful Girls & Butthead Guys should be this movie’s full title. Emotionally stunted and beer powered, the guys of Knights Ridge, Massachusetts haven’t changed much since High School, notwithstanding the random wife, another guy’s wife and the girls they can’t bring themselves to commit to. …

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WikChip Video A girl named Marty: indelibly Natalie
Anchorman 2: Th...
Good 66 Points 2013

The Legend Continues and so do the laughs. Unfortunately so do the gaffes, which way outnumber the LOLs, driving the gaffe-to-laugh ratio well above 1. That’s far from great, even if some of the bits are truly great. Yes, you’ll laugh YAO early & often enough, so one can say The Legend C…

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WikChip Video Good, Bad & Ugly: Carell, Ferrell, Team
Saving Mr. Banks
Really Great 66 Points 2013

Mary Poppins has a fascinating and affecting backstory. Who knew. Yet it’s not a surprise when you think about it. Then, how much have we thought about Mary Poppins? Deeply that is. We’ve watched it, each of us, first as kids, loving it like no other movie. It’s the perfect kid’s movie afte…

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WikChip Video Don't love this? You're dead.