Critics Consensus

Critical Consensus: Rush Hour 3 Runs On Fumes; Stardust Shines; Daddy Day Camp Is Laugh-Free

Skinwalkers Not Screened For Critics; Guess the Tomatometer!

by Tim Ryan | August 9, 2007 | Comments

This week at the movies, we’ve got wacky cops (Rush
Hour 3, starring
Jackie Chan and
Chris Tucker), fairy tales (Stardust,
starring Robert De
Niro and
Michelle Pfeiffer), the great outdoors (Daddy
Day Camp, starring
Cuba Gooding Jr.),
and lycanthropes (Skinwalkers).
What do the critics have to say?

Making the most of Jackie
Chan‘s deft physical comedy skills and
Chris Tucker‘s brash
affability, Rush Hour
was a refreshing, breezy take on the cop/buddy action/comedy subgenre. However,
two sequels later, critics say the thrill is gone, and formula has set in. In
Rush Hour 3, our
heroes head to Paris to take on the Triads; action, wisecracks, and cultural
misunderstandings ensue. Pundits say Rush Hour 3 simply doesn’t add
enough new elements to the mix to make it worthwhile; worse, they say there’s a
lack of energy that makes schlepping through an incomprehensible plot pretty
difficult. At 23 percent on the Tomatometer, this franchise’s Hour may be
up. (Check out RT’s interview with Tucker and director Brett Ratner
here.)

"And here’s me giving testimony via video link.
Don’t I just look adorable?"

A mashup of fantasy, adventure, romance, and comedy, critics are calling
Stardust one of the
best big-kid fairy tales since
The Princess Bride.
Based upon Neil Gaiman‘s
fantasy novel, Stardust spins a tale of a young man who sets out to prove
his love to the girl of his dreams by presenting her with a fallen star; he
embarks on a journey through a forbidden kingdom, encountering witches, pirates, and other magical folks along the way. The pundits say the cast —
which features Robert
De Niro, Sienna
Miller,
Michelle Pfeiffer,
Claire Danes, Peter
O’Toole, and
Charlie Cox — is top-notch, and helps to enliven director
Matthew Vaughn‘s
imaginative fantasy world. While some pundits say the movie has moments of
unevenness, it has enough visual razzle-dazzle, good humor, and well-drawn
performances to compensate. At 76 percent on the Tomatometer, Stardust
shines brightly.

Claire Danes is a star-crossed lover once again.

If you are of the opinion that what is sorely lacking from contemporary American
cinema is flatulence, critics don’t deny that
Daddy Day Camp
has an ample supply of it. However, if you require laughs from your comedies,
you may want to book another trip. Picking up where 2003’s poorly-reviewed
Eddie Murphy vehicle
Daddy Day Care
left off, Camp stars Cuba Gooding Jr. as the head of a dilapidated summer
camp, where a ragtag bunch of kids cause him no end of trouble. The pundits say
Daddy Day Camp is little more than a collection of predictable, insipid
gags that generate more guffaws than chuckles. The scribes also lament the state
of Gooding’s once-promising career, noting that he’s largely reduced to mugging
though mediocre projects like this one. At two percent on the Tomatometer,
Daddy Day Camp is one of the worst-reviewed films of the year.

“What would you think if I directed this projectile vomit scene? Would you stand up and walk out on me?”

Apparently, the people behind the werewolf flick
Skinwalkers are
afraid those pesky critics may have revolvers full of silver bullets, since it
wasn’t screened prior to release. Skinwalkers tells the tale of two packs
of hairy, sharp-toothed creatures waging a battle for control of a small town —
with two of the locals caught in the middle. Kids, change out of those torn
clothes and Guess the Tomatometer!

Sniffing hair is a sign of affection amongst werewolves.

Also opening this week in limited release:
The Signal, in which
technology turns a city into zombies, is at 100 percent on the Tomatometer; the
culture-clash comedy 2 Days in Paris, starring and directed by Julie Delpy, is
at 88 percent;
Rocket Science, a teen angst comedy from
Spellbound
helmer Jeffrey Blitz,
is at 86 percent (check out RT’s mini-review

here);
Crossing
the Line, a doc about an American defector to North Korea, is at 80
percent; Dans Paris,
a family drama set in the City of Lights, is at 62 percent; and
Descent,
starring Rosario
Dawson as a woman bent on revenge after a violent act, is at 38 percent.

"Candygram for Mongo!"

Finally, props to

unbreakable_samurai for coming the closest to guessing
Underdog’s 14 percent
Tomatometer.

Recent Robert De Niro Movies:
————————————-
20% —
Arthur and the Invisibles (2007)
56% — The Good
Shepherd (2006)
12% — Hide
and Seek (2005)
5% —
The
Bridge of San Luis Rey (2005)
38% — Meet the
Fockers (2004)

Recent Cuba Gooding Jr. Movies:
—————————————-
7% — Norbit (2007)
17% — What Love Is
(2007)
20% — Shadowboxer
(2006)
19% — Dirty
(2005)
54% — Home on
the Range (2004)