Behind The Curtain

Concise Reviews for Movie Addicts Who Don't Have Time to Waste

2-Star Movies

Recent Reviews

Still of Marisa Tomei and Christian Slater in ‘Untamed Hearts’ (1993)

Untamed Heart (1993)

Marisa Tomei, Christian Slater, Rosie Perez. What more could you want? How about a plausible screenplay.

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Still of Jaden Martell and Clive Owen in ‘The Confirmation’ (2016)

The Confirmation (2016)

Clive Owen navigates a weekend full of bad luck as he struggles to confirm he deserves redemption

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Still of Marthe Keller and John Savage in ‘The Amateur’ (1981)

The Amateur (1981)

If the intensity of the opening scenes could have been sustained, ‘The Amateur’ might have been a classic

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Still of Jon Bernthal and Ben Affleck in ‘The Accountant 2” (2025)

The Accountant 2 (2025)

Ben Affleck and Jon Bernthal exchange brotherly banter as they blast through a horde of despicable bad guys

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Still of Cho Jin-woong and Lee Je-hoon in ‘An Ethics Lesson’ (2013)

An Ethics Lesson (2013)

You may feel guilty watching this whacky dark comedy, which is a tad bloody and perverse; but also oddly fun

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Still Of Gladiator Ii 2024

Gladiator II (2024)

Laughable CGI undercuts the impact, but Denzel Washington saves Gladiator II (though not Rome)

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Still of Jade Quon and Ben Kingsley in ‘Jules’ (2023)

Jules (2023)

This quirky tale of three elders helping an endearing alien has something to say about life’s regrets and growing older

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Still of Brittany Murphy and Holly Hunter in ‘Little Black Book’ (2004)

Little Black Book (2004)

Brittany Murphy and Holly Hunter may be the stars, but it's Julianne Nicholson who breaks your heart

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Still of Peter Dinklage, Glenn Close, and Josh Brolin in ‘Brothers’ (2024)

Brothers (2024)

If you can believe Peter Dinklage and Josh Brolin are twins, maybe you’ll believe this movie is funny

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Still of Josh Harnett and Ariel Donoghue in ‘Trap’ (2024)

Trap (2024)

Josh Harnett is the only reason to see Trap, for a closing shot that evokes Norman Bates in that Hitchcock classic

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Still of Amy Adams in ‘The Woman in the Window’ (2021)

The Woman in the Window (2021)

Let this be a lesson to filmmakers trying to emulate a masterwork like ‘Rear Window’: Less is more

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Still of Lee Jae-in and Jo Woo-jin in ‘Hard Hit’ (2021)

Hard Hit (2021)

Jo Woo-jin is terrific as the desperate father whose one wrong move could be the end of him and his kids

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Recent Quick Takes

Ruthless (2023)

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Dermot Mulroney goes bare knuckles against sex traffickers, but can't punch his way out of this mediocre script

A Special Lady (2017)

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A twisty plot, Godfather-reminiscent set pieces, and a gutsy heroine can't make up for the exploitive brutality

Night in Paradise (2020)

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Gangster gets sold out, with bloody results. But Jeon Yeo-been shines as a terminal case with a deadly aim

Meg 2: The Trench (2023)

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It’s not as bad as you’d think. So while it’s a waste of time, it’s your time to waste

Christmas in Scotland (2023)

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A vacationing New York installation designer overcomes cliches to transform her Scottish hometown

Grace of Monaco (2014)

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Try as she might, even audaciously talented Nicole Kidman can't breath any life into this wooden script

The Accidental Husband (2008)

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This chaotic tale of revenge and romance is too convoluted to follow and too silly to tolerate

Transfusion (2023)

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Sam Worthington is mired in a plodding plot that wants to be actioner and think piece and winds up being neither

Conan the Barbarian (2011)

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For a guy facing the fight of his life, Conan sure does spend a lot of time sword-twirling.