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John McMurtrie

Tomatometer-approved critic
Biography:

San Francisco Chronicle contributor.

Reviews

Movies TV Shows
Re-Animator (1985) 90% 2.5/4 EDIT “It's classic camp.” – San Francisco Chronicle Oct 15, 2025 Full Review Stalag 17 (1953) 91% 3/4 EDIT “The mystery of who the real spy is provides the drama, yet the movie in many ways is a series of comic vignettes that wouldn't be out of place in M*A*S*H.” – San Francisco Chronicle Nov 4, 2022 Full Review Two Drifters (2005) 47% 1/4 EDIT “An overwrought weepie, it may be inspired by the recent dramas of Pedro Almodvar, but it comes off as Almodvar Lite -- muy lite.” – San Francisco Chronicle Sep 1, 2006 Full Review Darshan, the Embrace (2005) 53% 2/4 EDIT “A loose and often not-so-engrossing assortment of scenes intended to showcase Amma's hold on her followers.” – San Francisco Chronicle Aug 18, 2006 Full Review Clean (2004) 73% 2/4 EDIT “Despite Cheung's efforts (she won the best actress award at Cannes in 2004) and a strong and subtle supporting performance by Nick Nolte, the story could have used a good dose of adrenaline to keep it from often seeming lifeless.” – San Francisco Chronicle May 26, 2006 Full Review American Gun (2005) 39% 2/4 EDIT “It's a bit like watching a weaker version of Crash, with fewer coincidences.” – San Francisco Chronicle Apr 21, 2006 Full Review Sir! No Sir! (2005) 89% 4/4 EDIT “The voices of the veterans alone, however, make this an important and poignant film that can speak to any generation.” – San Francisco Chronicle Apr 7, 2006 Full Review Evil (2003) 68% 3/4 EDIT “Wilson, who plays Erik, had never been in a film before Evil -- which was nominated for a best foreign-language Oscar in 2004 -- and there's no reason that he can't make many more of them.” – San Francisco Chronicle Mar 31, 2006 Full Review Sorry, Haters (2005) 38% 1.5/4 EDIT “It's a well-meaning but ultimately feeble and misguided attempt to say something profound about the aftereffects of the 2001 attacks on New York.” – San Francisco Chronicle Mar 17, 2006 Full Review The Ister (2004) 88% 2/4 EDIT “A film about profound ideas deserved more imagination.” – San Francisco Chronicle Mar 15, 2006 Full Review Plagues and Pleasures on the Salton Sea (2004) 96% 3/4 EDIT “Although the lake may be slowly dying, it is still beloved by a motley bunch of eccentrics who are profiled in the highly entertaining documentary Plagues and Pleasures on the Salton Sea.” – San Francisco Chronicle Feb 28, 2006 Full Review 39 Pounds of Love (2005) 62% 3/4 EDIT “An uplifting documentary.” – San Francisco Chronicle Dec 9, 2005 Full Review Three of Hearts: A Postmodern Family (2004) 79% 3/4 EDIT “An often tender and revealing documentary.” – San Francisco Chronicle Dec 2, 2005 Full Review Naked in Ashes (2005) 56% 3/4 EDIT “An inspirational and cautionary film that documents the hermetic lives of a handful of Indian yogis.” – San Francisco Chronicle Dec 2, 2005 Full Review Los Angeles Plays Itself (2003) 96% 4/4 EDIT “Using well-chosen clips from roughly 200 films, many of them obscure, Andersen makes a powerful and impassioned case for reassessing his beloved city.” – San Francisco Chronicle Oct 14, 2005 Full Review Henri Langlois: The Phantom of the Cinematheque (2004) 93% 3/4 EDIT “A treat for anyone who's passionate about films or who's ever wanted to learn more about them.” – San Francisco Chronicle Oct 11, 2005 Full Review 24 Hours on Craigslist (2005) 50% 2/4 EDIT “A fun and free-form celebration of the site's communal spirit and only-in-San Francisco ethos.” – San Francisco Chronicle Oct 7, 2005 Full Review Keane (2004) 82% 3/4 EDIT “Lewis delivers a convincing, powerful and highly nuanced performance as a man who's fighting desperately to keep his illness in check and lead a normal life.” – San Francisco Chronicle Sep 30, 2005 Full Review Margaret Cho: Assassin (2005) 38% 3/4 EDIT “If Margaret Cho's act shows no signs of getting old, it's because the world is kind enough to provide her with sufficient lunacy to fill countless concert tours.” – San Francisco Chronicle Sep 2, 2005 Full Review McLibel (2005) 100% 3/4 EDIT “A stirring and sometimes funny film.” – San Francisco Chronicle Jun 10, 2005 Full Review Ethan Mao (2004) 36% 0/4 EDIT “It'd be unfair to reveal whether Ethan's prayers go answered, but viewers can take comfort in knowing that their own prayers will be: Yes, this movie, eventually, comes to an end.” – San Francisco Chronicle Apr 8, 2005 Full Review Fear X (2003) 56% 2/4 EDIT “The story, in the end, is less than satisfying and, unfortunately, doesn't match the movie's eerie style.” – San Francisco Chronicle Jan 28, 2005 Full Review Alexandra's Project (2003) 53% 1/4 EDIT “De Heer, who also wrote the script, would have us believe that a wife who's tired of her oblivious bloke of a husband could suddenly become conniving and cruel, coolly defending her actions with twisted logic that's sold as feminism.” – San Francisco Chronicle Jan 14, 2005 Full Review In the Realms of the Unreal (2004) 69% 4/4 EDIT “A thoughtful and inspired exploration of the man's life and leaves the viewer with a sense of wonder about the lives of countless people with unknown talents that deserve recognition.” – Miami Herald Dec 22, 2004 Full Review Woman Thou Art Loosed (2004) 52% 2/4 EDIT “As a film it plays like a heavy-handed morality tale one might come across on a middling cable network.” – San Francisco Chronicle Oct 22, 2004 Full Review
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