Carrie Rickey

Carrie Rickey, an Inquirer film critic since 1986, was born in L.A. around the time the Jennifer Jones/Laurence Olivier movie Carrie hit screens. Hence her name. Since then she's seen more than 12,000 films without losing her love of movies -- or wordplay. But don't envy her job too much. She has to sit through the likes of Battlefield Earth just so she can warn you not to.

Read Carrie's blog Flickgrrl
Latest post: What Would Dickens Say About "Disney's Christmas Carol"? - 11/06/2009
See recent entries in Carrie Rickey's Q&A Forum
Email Carrie at crickey@phillynews.com

George Clooney (left) and Ewan McGregor star in "The Men Who Stare at Goats," a satire about a military unit that uses paranormal powers.

Our critics' selections

Posted 11/07/2009

An Education Carey Mulligan shines as the Oxford-bound honors student courted by a mysterious suitor twice her age (Peter Sarsgaard) in this resonant story directed by Lone Scherfig from Lynn Barber's memoir. PG-13

Video: Disney's A Christmas Carol
What Would Dickens Say About "Disney's Christmas Carol"?

A South African tale in living color - 11/05/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic

Based on the improbable-but-true saga of Sandra Laing, the dark-complected daughter of light-complected Afrikaner parents in South Africa during the apartheid era, Skin is a surreal melodrama of arbitrary racial labeling that estranged a woman from herself, her family of origin, and the father of her children.
Our critics' selections - 10/31/2009: Coco Before Chanel In Anne Fontaine's portrait of the influential designer, Audrey Tautou, the fetching gamine of Amélie, is the determined and prickly peasant who would dress princesses. PG-13
Jackson’s moves star in “This Is It” - 10/28/2009: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC

Michael Jackson's This Is It looks beyond the reconstructed face and spindly body of the late King of Pop and basks in his meteoric light.
Swank shares Amelia Earhart's derring-do - 10/23/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic

NEW YORK - On screen, Hilary Swank incarnates the larger-than-life Amelia Earhart, pioneering aviatrix, as a towering figure. Yet in life the two-time Oscar winner, 35, is of medium height, slim as a tulip stem.
Our critics' selections - 10/24/2009: Coco Before Chanel In Anne Fontaine's portrait of the influential designer, Audrey Tautou, the fetching gamine of Amélie, is the determined and prickly peasant who would dress princesses. PG-13
Swank soars as flier Amelia Earhart - 10/22/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic

In The Aviator, Martin Scorsese mythologized Howard Hughes as a 20th-century Icarus who, scorched by the sun, plummeted to earth. In Amelia, director Mira Nair presents Amelia Earhart, legendary aviatrix, as a female Odysseus who navigates uncharted territory while a patient spouse knits his brow until she returns.
A timeless tale about life's choices - 10/22/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic

Disarming and unexpectedly poignant, An Education contrasts the knowledge learned inx school with that learned from life. The pupil in question is Jenny, a 16-year-old honors student circa 1961 at a girls' prep school in Twickenham, a middle-class London suburb, who is destined for Oxford.
Our critics' selections - 10/17/2009: Bright Star Jane Campion's ecstatic ode to tubercular Romantic poet John Keats (Ben Whishaw) and his muse, robust Regency fashion plate Fanny Brawne (Abbie Cornish), is intimate as a whisper and timeless as first love. PG
A modern-day Job and his woes - 10/15/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic

A Serious Man, the Book of Job according to the Coen Brothers, is set to the music of Jefferson Airplane. This unsettling, shaggy, surrealistic pillow of a movie - a mixed bag more funny-strange than ha-ha - goes something like this:
10 mini-romances, set in N.Y. - 10/15/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic

New York, I Love You – the second (after 2006's Paris, je t'aime) in a proposed "Cities of Love" series - is more diverting than lovable.

MORE STORIES

Our critics' selections - 10/10/2009
Young rebel of an overdecorated gilded age - 10/08/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Coco Before Chanel *** (out of four stars) - 10/09/2009
Our critics' selections - 10/03/2009
Eloquent, if scattershot, diatribe - 10/01/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Roller-derby romp celebrates women - 10/01/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Our critics' selections - 09/26/2009
In "Bright Star", the poetry of love - 09/24/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Filmgoers won't remember this 'Fame' - 09/24/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
About 30 films will half-fill the bill for fall's festival - 09/22/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Our critics' selections - 09/19/2009
Witty acting, but a muddled message - 09/17/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Horror-comedy with feminist bite - 09/17/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Romantic comedy with a heavy message - 09/17/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'Bad' Is Good - 09/12/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Our critics' selections - 09/12/2009
The yin and yang of Vogue's success - 09/10/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A doll who's No. 9 dares to ask why - 09/09/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A director's captivating memoir - 09/03/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Three guitar stars tell how their style came to be - 09/03/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A plucky good turn by Zellweger - 09/03/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A cringeworthy dating comedy - 08/27/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Ang Lee's wry take on Woodstock - 08/27/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
State budget impasse chases Shyamalan film to Canada - 08/25/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A boy, two girls, music goes round - 08/13/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Sea dream from the master Miyazaki - 08/13/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A portrait of a sitcom pioneer - 08/13/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'Ice Age': The search for a plot - 06/30/2009: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Transformers 2: Bigger, not better - 06/23/2009: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Compelling - and dizzying - 04/23/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A metrosexual meets a caveman - 03/19/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Cleaning up crime scenes - and her toxic life - 03/19/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Tangled-up tale of immigrants in L.A. - 03/12/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
An end-of-life adventure - 02/26/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
The middle-school tango in Paris - 02/12/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Slapstick in a 'Prada' knockoff - 02/12/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Fall in love with these movies for Valentine's Day - 02/10/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer movie critic
The dream parents: A scary notion indeed - 02/05/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A diverting rom-com with nine characters - 02/05/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Disturbing dreams of war in Lebanon - 01/22/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Dueling brothers battle Nazis - 01/15/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Dog doings topped with a bone of seriousness - 01/15/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Making the mall safe for citizens, Paul Blart - 01/15/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Winsome twosome turns gruesome - 01/08/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Uncoupling in the '50s suburbs - 01/01/2009: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Animal magnetism in 'Marley & Me' - 12/23/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
The story of a an entanglement across decades - 12/23/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
"Seven Pounds" a mix of heavyhearted and heavy-handed - 12/18/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Jim Carrey goes with less no, mo' yes - 12/18/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Earth's in peril, but human element shines - 12/11/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
La navidad's going to be less than feliz - 12/11/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A super-pooch, or so he thinks - 11/20/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A quiet indie look at suicide's survivors - 11/13/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Time to get these animals out of Africa - 11/06/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A director re-creates, reobserves his life - 11/06/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVE CRITIC
Zack and Miri make a trash-talking farce - 10/31/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Musical a sweet reflection on high school dilemmas - 10/23/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Trio of actresses powers Demme's family drama - 10/17/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'Secret Life of Bees': Honey with a sting - 10/17/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Crowe, DiCaprio in cell-phone showdown - 10/09/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Compassion for gays, and their Christian saviors - 10/09/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A dog tale with laughs and heart - 10/02/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Their talk is like music to the ear - 10/02/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Comic Maher has faith in his lack of faith - 10/02/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
A buddy tale in the old West - 10/02/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
A duchess adored by all save her duke - 09/25/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Black GIs in WWII 'Miracle' - 09/25/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Gere and Lane: Again, they just feel right - 09/25/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Momma's Man - 09/18/2008
Growing up with stress of sex, war and racism - 09/18/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Righteous Kill - 09/11/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'The Women' of today: Softer - 09/11/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
The lush memories of a libertine imp - 09/04/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
No secrets, simply a time line - 08/28/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
This 'Bunny' trips over its own tale - 08/21/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A lothario losing control to love - 08/21/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'Frozen River': A survival story - 08/21/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Musical 'Hamlet': Tee-hee or not tee-hee - 08/21/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Henry Poole Is Here - 08/14/2008
Animation adds little to 'Clone' - 08/14/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Writer paid the price for sticking to principles - 08/14/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A band of brothers explodes in spoofy sibling revelry - 08/12/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
The right kind of 'Sisterhood' - 08/05/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
An authentic look at high schoolers in heartland - 07/31/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
It all comes down to Costner, and he's great - 07/31/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'Mistress' passionate, unbridled - 07/17/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'Mamma Mia,' here we go again - this time on screen - 07/17/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Brooding, brilliant 'Dark Knight' - 07/16/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
It's a carnival-ride, 3-D journey back to 'Center of the Earth' - 07/10/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
It's 'End of the World,' as Herzog knows it - 07/10/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Dave finds his way, awkwardly, into hearts - 07/10/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
All-American living doll - 07/01/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
It's alive! A modern B-movie - 06/12/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'Zohan's' silly, separate peace - 06/05/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
‘Sex and the City’ review: Contagious fun - 05/28/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Abu Ghraib verdict: Not so fast - 05/22/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Wartime theme suits 'Narnia' - 05/15/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Roman de Gare - 05/08/2008
Childhood reveries, suffused with Stallone visions - 05/08/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
They marry in haste and repent in laughter - 05/08/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Soldier's story of war in Iraq hurts, moves - 05/01/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Funny tale of Italian brothers, political enemies - 05/01/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Mother-daughterhood movie tests limits of maternal bond - 05/01/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'Iron Man' is fast, funny and deliriously entertaining - 04/30/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Winning pair in 'Baby Mama' - 04/25/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Chapter 27 - 04/24/2008
Richard Jenkins a worthy lead - 04/24/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Plucky Nim needs human interaction - 04/03/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A vibrant and vivacious Young@Heart - 04/02/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Redeployed boys still don't cry - 03/27/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
An impressionistic teen drama - 03/20/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'Chicago 10' lacks the context of the tumultuous times - 03/13/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Seuss that's a delight, not a fright - 03/13/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Lesson in faith from boy with Down syndrome - 03/13/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
McDormand sparkles in ‘Miss Pettigrew’ - 03/06/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
A sensual & compelling ‘The Witnesses’ - 03/06/2008: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Boleyn who kept her head - 02/28/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Will Ferrell, playing out the string - 02/28/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Glitter, yes; but golden, no - 02/07/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Paris an actress? Nottie at all - 02/07/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A self-help guru goes home and gets his comeuppance - 02/07/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Honeydripper - 01/31/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Here comes the ghost bride - 01/31/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Rambo - 01/24/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
27 Dresses - 01/17/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Mad Money - 01/17/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Persepolis - 01/17/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Steep - 01/17/2008: By Steven Rea, Inquirer Movie Critic
The Bucket List - 01/10/2008: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Many films covered war, birth, death - 12/28/2007: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
The Great Debaters - 12/24/2007: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly - 12/20/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
The Savages - 12/20/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street - 12/20/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story - 12/20/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Juno - 12/13/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A chance to redeem a mistake - 12/13/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Please, Alvin, don't be so darned nice - 12/13/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
‘The Perfect Holiday’ - 12/11/2007: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Atonement - 12/06/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
What Would Jesus Buy? - 12/06/2007
Thrill of a 'victory of beauty' - 11/29/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
War orphans reclaim their rightful joy - 11/30/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Dysfunction dissected, spiked with comedy - 11/20/2007: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Enchanted - 11/20/2007: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Family-reunion comedy among the season’s gifts - 11/20/2007: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Music saves silly ‘Oliver Twist’ plot - 11/20/2007: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Bringing a book to the screen, but, perhaps, too much of it - 11/15/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Effects that are special in story with a sugar surplus - 11/15/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Romance and Cigarettes **1/2 - 11/15/2007
Big brother Fred, the Claus with the flaws ** - 11/08/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Wristcutters: A Love Story - 11/08/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
American Gangster *** - 11/01/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Dan in Real Life **1/2 - 10/25/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Reservation Road ** - 10/25/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Rendition ** - 10/18/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Things We Lost in the Fire **1/2 - 10/18/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
The Darjeeling Limited *** - 10/11/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Elizabeth: The Golden Age **1/2 - 10/11/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Assassination of Jesse James ** - 10/04/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Michael Clayton ***1/2:Clooney as the bad guy - 10/04/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Father's search personalizes war - 09/20/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Good vs. Evil, finely drawn - 09/06/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Bearing witness to Darfur's genocide - 08/23/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A good little scrapper, but not a title contender - 08/23/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A meet the parents with an international flavor - 08/23/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A coming-of-age choice with evil in the balance - 08/16/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Moliere's life and farcical times - 08/16/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Wrenching account of U.S. errors in Iraq - 08/09/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Jackie Chan, what a 'Rush' - 08/10/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Yummy movie, tepid star - 07/26/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A prodigy escapes the trap set by overbearing parents - 07/26/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A painter among the powerful, witness to brutality - 07/20/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'Hairspray' is one happy romp - 07/19/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
It's preachy, giddily gay, and out there - 07/19/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'English' traces path of a broken heart - 07/12/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
'Talk' testifies to power of unity - 07/12/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Harry Potter and the lack of focus - 07/09/2007: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
Heavy metal: Have a blast with a noisy toy - 07/02/2007: By Carrie Rickey, INQUIRER MOVIE CRITIC
A gathering of great actresses, to no good end - 06/28/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Moore's 'Sicko' shows U.S. health care in critical condition - 06/28/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Now grown, he returns to explore his twisted roots - 06/14/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
This Nancy's got game and good manners too - 06/14/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Interpretation of dreams gets a wild Japanimation joyride - 06/14/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
Good grief: Film ignores its point - 01/15/2008: By Carrie Rickey , Inquirer Movie Critic
A more adult way to rate films for kids - 01/25/2007: By Carrie Rickey , Inquirer Movie Critic
The focus, this night: Guys' anatomy - 01/17/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic
A magical tale of fantasy as an escape from evil - 01/12/2007: By Carrie Rickey, Inquirer Movie Critic

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