 | The Humbling  January 26, 2015 The Humbling begins like a Master Class in acting, with Al Pacino emoting grandly. About 1/2 hour into the film, actress Greta Gerwig arrives straight from her senior class play. King Lear becomes Glee. |
 | Boyhood January 15, 2015 I've tried to avoid reviewing Boyhood, but the raves - like locusts - keep coming. Since it's awards season, I guess I should step up. Boyhood didn't move me. In fact, it seemed inert. B ... more |
 | Inherent Vice  January 7, 2015 You should take brownies, instead of popcorn, to Inherent Vice. The film is a heady snack. Director/screenwriter Paul Thomas Anderson blows smoke for 148 minutes - the film's essence is captured by an image of smoke ... more |
 | Force Majeure January 5, 2015 Force Majeure is the film that probably caused more intense discussion by viewers leaving the theater in 2014. Not just Swedish viewers - universal viewers. Force Majeure is a battle of the sexes, and a battle be ... more |
 | Unbroken December 26, 2014 Released in the U.S. on December 25, Unbroken is a Jolie, Jolie Christmas. It's also an ordeal. Director Angelina Jolie has made a film that is part genus, part adventure, and part religious tract. Jolie tries to walk in ... more |
 | Top/Favorite Movies of 2014 December 20, 2014 For much of 2014, it appeared as though it was going to be a forgettable year at the movies. But in November and December, the film vaults opened, and quality sprang out. The year is ending with a barrage of powerful films. They are challe ... more |
 | Foxcatcher  December 18, 2014 Foxcatcher is one of the bleakest visions ever about the American Dream in a mainstream movie. It's a gruelling, disspiriting ordeal. Audiences may be reluctant to stew in 134 minutes of bile. But Foxcatcher is instructiv ... more |
 | Selma  December 11, 2014 When one has a powerful film experience, he has to get away from it for a while and let it settle. Selma is a punch in the gut. It's brutal, visceral, and it opens old wounds. It's a troubling film. But it's a tr ... more |
 | Citizenfour December 6, 2014 The word surveillance has the letters "evil" in it. At least metaphorically, Edward Snowden realized that illegal intrusion by the National Security Agency into private lives and confidential communications opened a Pandora's b ... more |
 | A Most Violent Year November 29, 2014 A Most Violent Year is the American Dream in winter. Long ago the American Dream lost its spirituality and turned into the American Success Story. In A Most Violent Year, set in 1981, Abel Morales (Oscar Isaac) is try ... more |
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Tony Macklin is a freelance film critic. A current member of the Las Vegas Film Critics Society, he is a former film and literature professor at the University of Dayton, and the former editor of the filmcrit magazine Film Heritage. His articles and reviews have been most recently featured at Rotten Tomatoes and The Internet Movie Database, as well as in the Bright Lights Film Journal and The Fayetteville Free Weekly.
Tony's well-received book, Voices from the Set: The Film Heritage Interviews (2000), includes his 1970s interviews with Alfred Hitchcock, Howard Hawks, Martin Scorsese, Alan Rudolph, Robert Altman, Sam Peckinpah, John Wayne, Edith Head, Stockard Channing, Richard Baskin, and others. It's an excellent read for anyone who loves film.
Since 1972, and in every decade since, Tony's picks for best films of all time have been included in the British Film Institute's Critics' Top 10 Poll. Published in BFI's international film magazine, Sight and Sound, the most recent Critics' Top 10 Poll was published in 2002.
Tony's votes are also included in the American Film Institute's lists of bests, including Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Comedies, 100 Greatest Movies, and more.