Editorials > The Good, The Bad and What Pete Hammond Said for Dec. 8

Once again, kids, it is Friday. And if you're like me, you're cold, sick and about to spend three days with the scum of the earth (American anime "otaku") and the cat-girl (boys) who love them. This week we've got much-buzzed about Juno, the bland Golden Compass and a political thriller with Woody Harrelson as a flamboyant escort in The Walker.

The Golden Compass

Metacritic Average: 53

Rotten Tomatoes: 44 percent

The Good: "A darker, deeper fantasy epic than the "Rings" trilogy, "The Chronicles of Narnia" or the "Potter" films. It springs from the same British world of quasi-philosophical magic, but creates more complex villains and poses more intriguing questions. As a visual experience, it is superb. As an escapist fantasy, it is challenging."

-The Chicago Sun-Times, Roger Ebert 

The Bad: "Five minutes before The Golden Compass started, I was wondering when it was going to start. Forty minutes into it, I was wondering exactly the same thing."

-The New York Post, Kyle Smith 

And What Pete Hammond Said: " Beyond spectacular in it's scope and ambition, The Golden Compass is the latest in a series of thrilling fantasies in the tradition of The Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia to land in theaters just in time for the lucrative holiday season."

-Maxim, Pete Hammond 

Juno

Metacritic Average: 81

Rotten Tomatoes: 92 percent

The Good: "Hollywood's Woman of the Year is a pregnant 16-year-old, the incredibly hip, smart-mouthed and totally endearing heroine of the wise and witty Juno."

-The New York Post, Lou Lumemnick 

The Bad: "If Diablo Cody is the future of screenwriting, then I'll bite down angrily on a cyanide pill now. I don't want to live in a world where random ThunderCats references pass for wit."

-eFilmCritic.com, Brian Orndorf 

And What Pete Hammond Said: " The new comedy Juno may not be as big or high profile as a lot of the holiday releases, but we guarantee this is the one you will be telling your friends about. A pure charmer and a heartfelt original, you will find this a totally unexpected, enormously satisfying, and oddly rewarding trip to the movies."

-Maxim, Pete Hammond 

Grace is Gone

Metacritic Average: 66

Rotten Tomatoes: 71 percent

The Good: "Mr. Cusack demonstrates once again that he is Hollywood’s second-most-reliable nice guy, after Tom Hanks. Devoid of vanity, with no hidden agendas, he never strains to be likable. Good will, integrity and a native common sense ooze out of him."

-The New York Times, Stephen Holden 

The Bad: "it's the Paul Haggis version of National Lampoon's Vacation, though a whole lot less amusing than that description might imply."

-Slant Magazine, Nick Schager 

And What Pete Hammond Said: "Sometimes a movie is worth checking out just for one great performance. In this case it's John Cusack, who has long been one of the most consistently fine actors in movies (think High Fidelity, Grosse Pointe Blank, Being John Malkovich, The Grifters, and last summer's 1408, to name just a few)."

-Maxim, Pete Hammond 

The Walker

Metacritic Average: 56

Rotten Tomatoes:56 percent (no kidding.)

The Good: "This is a serious movie and, gliding around the center of power, a stylish one. But, like its protagonist, The Walker is unable to close the deal."

-Village Voice, J. Hoberman 

The Bad: "But for a film aspiring to relevance, The Walker – which ostensibly addresses both of the above issues – is neutrally weighted in every topical regard. It looks shiny and boasts a great (or at least committed) lead performance, but has absolutely no spark, infuriating or otherwise."

-The Reeler, Vadim Rizov 

And What Pete Hammond Said: No review.

Revolver

Metacritic Average: 26

Rotten Tomatoes: 14 percent

The Good: "By turns clever, impassioned, incoherent and silly."

-The New York Times, Matt Zoller Seitz 

The Bad: "This 2005 feature offered me my first taste of Guy Ritchie's macho-centric artiness, and I hope it's my last."

-The Chicago Reader, Jonathan Rosenbaum 

And What Pete Hammond Said: "But who says everything has to make sense when you're just trying to blow a few brains out? This electrifying, if intentionally confusing, mob job stars Jason Statham and is full of great visual style and a wry tone most foreign critics (who panned the flick when it came out two years ago in the U.K.) didn't get."

-Maxim, Pete Hammond