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Dan DiNicola
Tomatometer-approved critic
Movies reviews only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
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Twister (1996) |
With the aid of computer-generated effects not possible even a few years ago, threatening sound effects and impressively staged scenes of destruction, Twister survives and almost transcends its paltry plot. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Jul 15, 2024
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When Harry Met Sally... (1989) |
Enhanced by a dreamy mood and a quintessentially American score, When Harry Met Sally has some deft, witty observations about the nature of male-female relationships in our time. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Jul 12, 2024
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Under the Sand (2000) |
One of the most involving psychological mysteries in recent memory. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Songcatcher (2001) |
The music is heavenly, as are the performances of Miss McTeer and Aidan Quinn. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Shrek (2001) |
Smart, funny, deliciously hip, irreverent and just plain lovable, it's for everyone from pre-school to post retirement. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Sexy Beast (2000) |
Remember the Gandhi of Ben Kingsley? Wait until you seem him here as Don Logan, a psychotic gangster, the British equivalent of Pesci in GoodFellas. Kingsley's work is more bizarrely eccentric. And more accomplished. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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The Score (2001) |
The best heist flick since The Usual Suspects, a perfect 10 of a movie that makes beautiful music out of the basics. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Scary Movie 2 (2001) |
A series of gags that indicate the task for the seven writers led by the Wayans Brothers was more enforced labor than creative fun. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Rush Hour 2 (2001) |
Despite the presence of the terrific Zhang Ziyi as the dark lady, the movie cannot escape its stale "I Spy" trap of Formula. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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The Princess Diaries (2001) |
The Princess Diaries is as sappy as they come, a Pygmalion story told in Pollyanna terms. But sometimes sappy works, and this is one of those times. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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The Princess and the Warrior (2000) |
Texture and atmosphere outdo the actual story, but there's not discounting the engaging presence of Potente. This film may not reach the high-water mark of [Run Lola Run], but it moves with the same, alluring flow. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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The Others (2001) |
Nicole Kidman is at her icy best in this psychological thriller, showing the kind of silent inner fear that first brought her attention outside her native Australia in 1989's Dead Calm. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Osmosis Jones (2001) |
It's imaginative, ingenious and dramatically flat. Still, it may satisfy his who will learn a lot about the nasty effects of junk food on the human body. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Original Sin (2001) |
At least seven deadly sins of rotten filmmaking are at work in this thrill-less romantic thriller. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Memento (2000) |
Memento isn't an easy film, but it gives viewers plenty to ponder. And Pearce's startling performance is unforgettable. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Legally Blonde (2001) |
See this delightfully silly comedy just for the performance of Reese Witherspoon, who, after her Oscar-worthy coup in Election, proves once more that she is for real an American treasure. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) |
A thoroughly numb and insulting excuse for an adventure. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Jurassic Park III (2001) |
Super to the lame Lost World, and hardly as riveting as the original. But let's face it: How many new Dino scenarios can writers muster up? - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001) |
The storytelling here is inane, but the first major release to highlight a complete cast of computer-generated characters is a breakthrough of ominous proportions. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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The Fast and the Furious (2001) |
The equivalent of a drive-in special audiences savored in the '50s, this is no Rebel Without a Cause, but it will end up being a summer sensation with teens. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001) |
This sequel is crazy in a mellow way. Odds are you will pronounce it either dull or charming. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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The Closet (2001) |
If some situations strain credulity, it's still a rare comedy that will make us laugh and get us to think. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Cats & Dogs (2001) |
No real drama here, only little spurts of humor, and the decision to blend animatronics with live-action animals can get annoying. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001) |
This feature plays more like the best Disney animated film of 1981 than 2001. The unfortunate retrograde look of this cartoon is further hindered by the conventional nature of the characters and weak dialogue. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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America's Sweethearts (2001) |
It's so sad that a movie called America's Sweethearts should leave such a sour taste, that the blindingly brilliant Julia Roberts should be so dull, that nearly every joke from comic genius and co-star Billy Crystal should land with such a thud. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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A.I.: Artificial Intelligence (2001) |
A movie with magical moments and force but lacking in sustained narrative power. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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American Pie 2 (2001) |
Less a second slice than a reheated piece of the original, the sequel tastes just as good. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Planet of the Apes (2001) |
As visually impressive as it might seem, this is a movie that does not always seem to know where it is heading. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 30, 2024
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Postcards From the Edge (1990) |
Keeping the movie from becoming a bitter, tiring, laborious melodrama are Fisher's sharp and pungent one-liners. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Apr 29, 2024
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Seven (1995) |
Its virtues are marred by filmmakers who do not always balance their jolts and thrills with a sense of clever, nasty, and devious restraint. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Mar 28, 2024
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The Shawshank Redemption (1994) |
You have to suspend some belief to enjoy yourself, but the ride we take has some kicks, some perversely wild humor and some intimidating moments of suspense. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Mar 01, 2024
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Forrest Gump (1994) |
Yes, its intended climax is not as powerful as the rest of the film. Yet Rob Zemeckis' movie serves up so much fun for such a long time that you hardly mind its sentimental conclusion. It's a delightful trip, this excursion into the mind of Forrest Gump. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Mar 01, 2024
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Pulp Fiction (1994) |
It is -- and I mean this with the highest respect one can give a film -- great trash, an exquisite blend of junk food, the absolute perfect hamburger of movies... Go and savor every last minute of this extraordinarily entertaining movie. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Feb 29, 2024
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Amélie (2001) |
Amélie is the romantic comedy adults have been waiting for. Maybe the one they need. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Feb 13, 2024
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Quiz Show (1994) |
A brilliant, multi-layered and vigorously entertaining movie. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Feb 12, 2024
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Grease (1978) |
Grease Lacks intelligence, energy, drive, and holds a story line you can fit on a thimble. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Feb 02, 2024
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Heat (1995) |
From a pure narrative standpoint, Heat does not stand up to the test of a three-hour movie. As interesting or as gripping as some of the scenes may be, this is no soaring epic. But it is great grand opera. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Dec 19, 2023
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The Last of the Mohicans (1992) |
Thanks to a piercing and powerful performance by Wes Studi, Magua is a memorable movie villain. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Dec 14, 2023
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Alien (1979) |
By far the most impressive, and indeed, awesome highlight of the movie are the sets and special effects which are superior to and even more compelling than those in Star Wars. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Nov 16, 2023
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Goodfellas (1990) |
In a word, GoodFellas is brilliant entertainment, and every bit on the level of Scorsese's other two masterpieces, Raging Bull and Taxi Driver. Again, however, GoodFellas is the most entertaining. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Oct 18, 2023
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Traffic (2000) |
On almost every level, Traffic is a rich and provocative movie. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Sep 07, 2023
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Moulin Rouge (2001) |
You have never seen anything like this Moulin Rouge, and even if you leave the theater dissatisfied, head whirling with confusion, it's one of those rare movies you won't mind seeing again. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Sep 05, 2023
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Moscow on the Hudson (1984) |
Quite certainly, this is Williams' finest film performance. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Aug 22, 2023
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Batman (1989) |
Watching the tale unfold, you sense that with each film Burton is going to get even better. There's a maniacal gloom to his work balanced by a wacky sense of humor. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Jul 25, 2023
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The Matrix (1999) |
A $60 million, high-tech assault on the senses and a pretentious insult to the mind. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Jul 15, 2023
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In the Mood for Love (2000) |
If ever it were possible to have a movie that is magical and dull, enchanting and frustrating all at once, this is it. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Jul 15, 2023
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Magnolia (1999) |
Magnolia is ambitious. Ambitious and audacious in all the right ways. When it fails or falters, and these moments are few, the shortcomings are honorable. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Jul 15, 2023
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Mulholland Dr. (2001) |
Surrealistic? Expressionistic? Decide for yourselves. But don't discount the power and genius of David Lynch, even when he makes movies you cannot understand. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Jul 11, 2023
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Mulan (1998) |
It's a fast-paced story laced with catchy tunes and occasionally startling animation. Eddie Murphy delivers a knockout performance as the voice of her sidekick. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Jun 20, 2023
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The Mask of Zorro (1998) |
A terrifically entertaining movie, and at heart, an old-fashioned adventure. - The Daily Gazette (Schenectady, NY)
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| Posted Jun 20, 2023
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