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Rob Vaux
Tomatometer-approved critic
A native Californian, Rob Vaux grew up in the greater Los Angeles area before attending college in Minnesota and graduate school in Syracuse, NY. He moved back to So Cal after earning his M.A. and currently works as a writer and editor, as well as serving as a film critic for Mania.com and The Sci-Fi Movie Page. He's also a faithful fan of the Anaheim Angels, though he considers the Rally Monkey a dubious asset at best. He lives in the suburbs, has three black cats, and probably liked The Phantom Menace more than you.
Brazil, The Third Man, Raiders of the Lost Ark, Throne of Blood, West Side Story, Wings of Desire, Miller's Crossing, John Carpenter's The Thing, and too many others to count. The Lord of the Rings is moving up with a bullet.
The greater Los Angeles area.
http://flipsidearchive.com
Movies reviews only
| Rating | T-Meter | Title | Year | Review |
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Color Out of Space (2019) |
It does not go well for the alpacas. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Jan 24, 2020
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Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker (2019) |
"I loved it. It was much better than Cats. I'm going to see it again and again." - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Dec 19, 2019
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Doctor Sleep (2019) |
Even if you just want a solid spook story, it's still more than worthy of its lofty pedigree. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Nov 09, 2019
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Terminator: Dark Fate (2019) |
It can't match the first two entries in the series, but judging it on those terms denies the very real pleasures it works hard to offer. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Nov 02, 2019
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Maleficent: Mistress of Evil (2019) |
The role is Jolie's and if that's all you need, she delivers when she can. But be ready for a long wait between those moments, devoid of nothing but pretty pictures that melt at the slightest touch. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Oct 18, 2019
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Gemini Man (2019) |
The more you strip down the experience, the more enjoyable it all becomes. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Oct 11, 2019
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Joker (2019) |
We get the monsters we deserve. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Oct 04, 2019
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It: Chapter Two (2019) |
The first chapter stands as one of the best horror movies of the last few years. This one is just... adequate. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Sep 07, 2019
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Ready or Not (2019) |
Ready or Not has nothing more than a little dark fun on its mind, but it knows the evil in men's hearts and has no interest in letting anyone off the hook for that. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Aug 23, 2019
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The Lion King (2019) |
[It] treads far too close to a predecessor that blazed the trail from which it refuses to stray. That is neither praise nor condemnation, but a simple statement of fact. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Jul 19, 2019
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Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019) |
There's no better character to put the bow on top of this extraordinary chapter in Marvel's story. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Jul 03, 2019
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The Last Unicorn (1982) |
Its charms hold up exceptionally well, in part because it grows along with its audience. Few stories carry that kind of power, and fewer pieces of animation can bring it so marvelously to life. - Collider
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| Posted Jun 17, 2019
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Men in Black: International (2019) |
Strictly filler: a charming pair of stars soft-shoeing their way through wafer-thin material held up by vaguely interesting special effects. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Jun 14, 2019
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Dark Phoenix (2019) |
What a tired, deflated end it turns out to be. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Jun 08, 2019
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Godzilla: King of the Monsters (2019) |
This King falls distressingly short of the crown. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Jun 01, 2019
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Aladdin (2019) |
It doesn't suck. REPEAT: IT DOESN'T SUCK! - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted May 23, 2019
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Avengers: Endgame (2019) |
You'll never see a victory lap look quite as awesome as this one. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Apr 28, 2019
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Shazam! (2019) |
Whatever magic this film holds just passed me by. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Apr 06, 2019
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Pet Sematary (2019) |
Sometimes, the first one is better. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Apr 06, 2019
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Us (2019) |
Yeah... Jordan Peele's good at this. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Mar 28, 2019
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Captain Marvel (2019) |
They cast Brie Larson and let the rest take care of itself. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Mar 09, 2019
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The Death of Superman / Reign of the Supermen Double Feature (2019) |
It's a solid piece of storytelling, inspired by a beloved chapter in the Man of Steel's comics history, and it captures the right mood for the story in a tight little package. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Feb 05, 2019
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Aquaman (2018) |
Cheesy and ridiculous, but also a surprising amount of fun. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Jan 07, 2019
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Mary Poppins Returns (2018) |
It's perhaps most impressive for its apparent effortlessness: laboring mightily to float on air and revealing none of its Herculean efforts in the meantime. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Jan 07, 2019
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Mortal Engines (2018) |
There's something supremely cool going on here, and at times you can catch sight of it. But not often enough to make up for what it squanders. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Jan 07, 2019
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Ralph Breaks the Internet (2018) |
An expansion on the character that might not have been necessary, but certainly feels worthwhile. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Nov 20, 2018
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Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (2018) |
The Crimes of Grindelwald is far from a perfect adventure, but its pleasures are no less potent than those of its fellows. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Nov 17, 2018
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Dr. Seuss' The Grinch (2018) |
The bauble is shiny, but hollow inside. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Nov 10, 2018
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Halloween (2018) |
The results justify the hype... provided you never presume to compare it to the original. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Oct 18, 2018
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Bad Times at the El Royale (2018) |
A crackerjack neo-noir that never confuses artifice with elegance and never allows the mechanics of its labyrinthine plot to substitute for human drama. - Cinema-stache
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| Posted Oct 11, 2018
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(undefined) |
This version feels much more unified than the first two Robot Chicken Star Wars specials. - Collider
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| Posted Sep 24, 2018
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The Predator (2018) |
Somewhere along the line, its copious shortcomings end up overwhelming its better elements. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Sep 14, 2018
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The Happytime Murders (2018) |
There's only so many times a puppet can say "fuck" or engage in a lewd act before the novelty wears off. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Aug 24, 2018
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Ant-Man and The Wasp (2018) |
Its quiet optimism feels both welcome and badly needed. - Action Figure Junkies
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| Posted Jul 03, 2018
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Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (2018) |
The film commits the rookie horror movie mistake of equating suffering with fear. We the audience pay the price. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Jun 21, 2018
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Incredibles 2 (2018) |
It's a work of pure craftsmanship, designed to hold up to repeat viewings and making a grand companion piece to the first film. - Action Figure Junkies
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| Posted Jun 14, 2018
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Solo: A Star Wars Story (2018) |
Solo probably won't top anyone's list of their favorite Star Wars movies, and if you're looking for any surprises, you've come to the wrong place. But that doesn't mean it's not a whole lot of fun. - Action Figure Junkies
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| Posted May 24, 2018
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Deadpool 2 (2018) |
You can feel the filmmakers pulling their punches when they should be lunging for the jugular: more interested in protecting the franchise than letting the character do what we paid good money to watch him do. - Action Figure Junkies
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| Posted May 19, 2018
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Avengers: Infinity War (2018) |
An impressive feat simply because of the discipline and skill required to deliver so much in such a comparatively tight package. - Action Figure Junkies
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| Posted Apr 27, 2018
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Ready Player One (2018) |
It may be just a roller coaster, but it respects itself enough to be the best rollercoaster it possibly can. - Action Figure Junkies
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| Posted Mar 28, 2018
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Tomb Raider (2018) |
The pieces are there. They just need better assembly. - Action Figure Junkies
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| Posted Mar 17, 2018
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Black Panther (2018) |
Black is beautiful. - Action Figure Junkies
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| Posted Feb 14, 2018
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Justice League (2017) |
it makes for a reasonable amount of fun in its own right... enough to put a gentle smile on your face and look towards future movies with a little more hope. - Action Figure Junkies
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| Posted Feb 01, 2018
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Please Stand By (2017) |
The journey itself matters less than the particular steps that this character needs to take. - Cinema-stache
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| Posted Feb 01, 2018
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Mayhem (2017) |
A strong script, a good sense of timing, and the kind of anarchic glee than more prestige projects can't manage. - Sci-Fi Movie Page
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| Posted Dec 26, 2017
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Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) |
Take away the arch tone and deadpan ridiculousness, and the scenario is all too real. - Cinema-stache
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| Posted Dec 19, 2017
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Star Wars: The Last Jedi (2017) |
It arrives at a very dark moment indeed, and yet like the movies that preceded it, it speaks very powerfully to where we're at right now. - Cinema-stache
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| Posted Dec 13, 2017
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Gladiator (2000) |
A movie initially intended as summer popcorn, but which somehow scored a Best Picture Oscar: the only one of Scott's lengthy and impressive canon to have done so. - Cinema-stache
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| Posted Dec 05, 2017
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12 Monkeys (1995) |
Terry Gilliam always had a unique spin on dystopian fantasy - Cinema-stache
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| Posted Nov 29, 2017
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Life of Brian (1979) |
The Pythons' instincts strike home, not only in Brian's miserable failure to imbue his followers with some basic decency, but in the self-apparent barbarism that he's fighting against. - Cinema-stache
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| Posted Nov 29, 2017
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