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Ramble On With Buffa (Substack)

Ramble On With Buffa (Substack) is not a Tomatometer-approved publication. Reviews from this publication only count toward the Tomatometer® when written by the following Tomatometer-approved critic(s): Dan Buffa.

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Rating Title | Year Author Quote
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere (2025) Dan Buffa Jeremy Allen White and Scott Cooper lean into the darkness of Bruce Springsteen's musical mind with both feet. It's not for everybody, but the story told is deft and precise.
Posted Dec 31, 2025  Edit critic review
Weapons (2025) Dan Buffa You will never see Amy Madigan the same ever again. Give her the Oscar today.
Posted Dec 31, 2025  Edit critic review
John Candy: I Like Me (2025) Dan Buffa Watching this will allow the sadness to creep in, but the joy of watching a comedic artist bring so much joy to people's lives is something to revisit.
Posted Dec 31, 2025  Edit critic review
Predator: Badlands (2025) Dan Buffa Making a classic villain change sides is a daring feat that the writer/director pulls off with precise emotion and game performances. Also some of the best action sequences of the year.
Posted Dec 31, 2025  Edit critic review
A HOUSE OF DYNAMITE (2025) Dan Buffa The ending is troublesome and sudden, but the acting and writing are strong enough to make this a fresh recommendation overall.
Posted Dec 31, 2025  Edit critic review
The Running Man (2025) Dan Buffa Glen Powell continues to do a lot of Tom Cruising, which has its good and bad effects. The action is entertaining enough, but there isn't a strong argument in my mind for this remake to exist.
Posted Dec 31, 2025  Edit critic review
Marty Supreme (2025) Dan Buffa Chalamet goes for broke, Safdie's storytelling method is relentless, and Gwyneth Paltrow gives her best performance in a long time.
Posted Dec 31, 2025  Edit critic review
Die My Love (2025) Dan Buffa Both of the stars go for broke and lift the depressing material up a few notches until a bittersweet finale carries the impact of the film home.
Posted Dec 21, 2025  Edit critic review
A-
One Battle After Another (2025) Dan Buffa DiCaprio and Del Toro are fantastic, but the star of the show here is the director having the time of his life behind the camera showing us a decrepit world that we know all too well.
Posted Dec 21, 2025  Edit critic review
B
Jay Kelly (2025) Dan Buffa Clooney and Dern deliver assured performances to lift up the art-imitating-real-life material, but it's Sandler who delivers the most sincere (and heartbreaking) performance. Watch it for him. He's all of us.
Posted Dec 21, 2025  Edit critic review
B+
F1 The Movie (2025) Dan Buffa While Brad Pitt effortlessly conveys Sonny's turmoil and edge, it's the breathtaking racing scenes that pack the hardest punch. Oh, and using a Led Zeppelin classic to kick things off isn't a bad idea at all.
Posted Dec 21, 2025  Edit critic review
Train Dreams (2025) Dan Buffa Soulful and steady, these cinematic dreams convey a powerful message about endurance in one's trade. Sadly, it is a one time only watch due to the dreariness.
Posted Dec 21, 2025  Edit critic review
C+
Avatar: Fire and Ash (2025) Dan Buffa The third entry is more of the tiresome same: Impressive yet overfed visuals mixed with underfed storytelling. The actors deserve better material.
Posted Dec 21, 2025  Edit critic review
Havoc (2025) Dan Buffa It’s not everyone’s cup of cinema tea, but it delivers on what Gareth Evans fans like and offers a nice Hardy performance.
Posted Apr 26, 2025  Edit critic review
A-
The Accountant 2 (2025) Dan Buffa Bernthal can do a lot with a little, and he and Affleck riff so naturally on screen and are able to convincingly build a runway of a past that makes the current events sing and sting with reckless abandon.
Posted Apr 26, 2025  Edit critic review
The Gorge (2025) Dan Buffa All in all, a solid action adventure that spins a new take on the forbidden romance setup. Levi taking the leap to go see a woman he just met does unleash chaos, but would you resist the urge to dive headfirst over a large canyon for love?
Posted Apr 26, 2025  Edit critic review
G20 (2025) Dan Buffa Call this the Viola Davis show. She makes any film better with a unique blend of authentic gravitas, and this easy-to-digest actioner falls right into that bracket.
Posted Apr 26, 2025  Edit critic review
Drop (2025) Dan Buffa It doesn’t mess around when it comes to action when the time calls for it, and the screenplay mixes in some laughs for the audience to cool off with as the tension rises. This is an easy one to place yourself into as the movie plays out.
Posted Apr 11, 2025  Edit critic review
A
Warfare (2025) Dan Buffa Garland and Mendoza are a dream team for a war movie. The former gives you the precision of an accomplished director working at the top of his game, while the latter delivers the authenticity of the events depicted.
Posted Apr 11, 2025  Edit critic review
A
The Friend (2024) Dan Buffa There’s so much to love about this movie, especially how unforced and pure it is throughout its two-hour runtime. The screenplay includes dialogue that sounds as if it were spoken by real people and not punchline memes and cliched girl talk.
Posted Apr 11, 2025  Edit critic review
A Working Man (2025) Dan Buffa Statham is one of a kind. There’s a reason Ayer quickly returned to working with him, and Stallone continues to write scripts for his talents. He’s a silent man of action who achieves more with a kick and a stare than with a mouthy speech.
Posted Apr 11, 2025  Edit critic review
Novocaine (2025) Dan Buffa Quaid turns in a star-making performance that proves he can carry a movie like this and make it entertaining and far away from annoying. While the box office receipts would say otherwise, it is a nice movie theater experience.
Posted Apr 11, 2025  Edit critic review
Black Bag (2025) Dan Buffa If you’re in the mood for a jazzy-sounding, intricately plotted, and well-acted thriller with a deft touch of suspense, Steven Soderbergh’s latest collaboration with David Koepp may be in your wheelhouse.
Posted Apr 11, 2025  Edit critic review
Last Breath (2025) Dan Buffa Parkinson’s no frills approach to telling a true story is what makes this a dynamic thriller with some staying power for multiple viewings. The movie says a lot without having to produce monologues or speeches.
Posted Apr 11, 2025  Edit critic review
3/4
Captain America: Brave New World (2025) Dan Buffa Anthony Mackie is the driving force behind a good old time at the movies that reminded me of a school night at the cinema with my dad when I was a kid. No world-building, just an action adventure that aims to please and ease the mind.
Posted Feb 14, 2025  Edit critic review
D
You're Cordially Invited (2025) Dan Buffa A January streaming release is like shoving your kid out into the alley and leaving them there for two hours. All the warning signs were there, but a chance to see a 90s-star-driven release prompted me to attend the screening. Bad idea.
Posted Feb 09, 2025  Edit critic review
Better Man (2024) Dan Buffa The monkey gimmick runs cold halfway through, making one long for a music biopic that swam on ordinary waters with the same human cast.
Posted Jan 25, 2025  Edit critic review
Unstoppable (2024) Dan Buffa Cheadle and Lopez, along with a very good Michael Pena, make all the big moments hit for extra power. Lopez goes understated in the role of the fiery mother behind the incredible son; she could have hammed it up and still produced a good performance.
Posted Jan 25, 2025  Edit critic review
The Last Showgirl (2024) Dan Buffa Anderson and Bautista give lived-in performances, but it's Jamie Lee Curtis who steals scenes and ultimately the show. A dim look at barely hanging on that strikes a chord.
Posted Jan 25, 2025  Edit critic review
Den of Thieves: Pantera (2025) Dan Buffa Come for the Butler swagger, some unexpected laughs, the most elaborate diamond heist in cinema history, and a crown jewel of a car chase sequence. Stay for a dedicated-to-unique sequel.
Posted Jan 25, 2025  Edit critic review
B-
Flight Risk (2025) Dan Buffa Ladies and gentlemen, here’s the deal. This is B-movie territory, elevated by good actors who understood the task at hand. Don’t go in expecting too much from a movie that produces just enough thrills to climb over its brainless screenplay.
Posted Jan 25, 2025  Edit critic review
The Brutalist (2024) Dan Buffa Of all the direction in films this year, Brady Corbet’s gaze and poise is among the strongest. Whatever he was going for, he hit the bullseye. What he did is pull another superb performance from one of Hollywood’s most underrated chameleons in Brody.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
Sideways (2004) Dan Buffa My favorite scene in the film is an emotionally flattened Miles chowing down on a burger and fries while he pours a vintage bottle of wine into a Styrofoam cup while wearing a tux in a fast food shop. Giamatti made you feel all of it.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
A Complete Unknown (2024) Dan Buffa Mangold’s film is overlong and disjointed, carving out a dull middle act that drains the energy from the sails of the solid first act. Chalamet sings better than he acts while Norton's Seeger steals the film with a performance that I felt.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
Carry-On (2024) Dan Buffa Egerton and Bateman deserved a better script that didn't suck all the juice out of a certain Bruce Willis-led late 80s action film. Little of it is surprising, most of it is forgettable, and the end is just too neat.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
Anora (2024) Dan Buffa Madison has the attitude, screen presence, and a man-kneeling stare that will only get better with more roles like this. She’s a force of nature who keeps this energy drink of a movie grounded.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story (2024) Dan Buffa Christopher Reeve’s incredible story was long overdue for a documentary. Instead of all these different Supermans on screens big and small, it’s about time the OG stood up and showed us his superpower.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
Nightbitch (2024) Dan Buffa In one of her most impressive performances, Adams reinvents herself yet again. That’s not small talk for someone who owns six Oscar nominations. Heller’s wacky story needed an actress does wackiness, and Adams fulfills the task of every act.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
Conclave (2024) Dan Buffa Fiennes putting out great work is about as natural as water poured into a glass. His work here is assured, dead-on, and strikes the perfect tone of nobility and acceptance.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
B-
Gladiator II (2024) Dan Buffa Washington's brazen, over the top, and electric performance is the biggest reason this movie rates fresh. The rest of it is a pale imitation of the original.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
My Old Ass (2024) Dan Buffa You won't see this one coming. it's sneaky great. A comedy with some dramatic heft saved for its finale is empowered by Plaza, who just gets better with age.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
Thelma (2024) Dan Buffa The best part of Josh Margolin’s light and breezy comedy is the sarcastic take on the action-adventure revenge plot dealt through a sardonic lens with the help of Squibb, who rides a motorized scooter all over Los Angeles.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
The Wild Robot (2024) Dan Buffa Movies like this don’t need to change the narrative wheel, providing a familiar yet effective effect for the whole family. Try not to feel something in the final scenes of the movie.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
Heretic (2024) Dan Buffa Far-fetched plot twists and too-on-the-nose moments don’t deter Grant from arguably his best performance. Gone is the slick, magazine-cover rom-com star, and in his place is a multi-faceted performer who can give a chilly monologue some conviction.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
The Substance (2024) Dan Buffa Writer/director Coralie Fargeat gives Demi Moore arguably the most go-for-broke, layered role of her career as a fading star pushing on that one button even the most desperate souls shouldn’t. The result is bold but not for the squeamish.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
A Real Pain (2024) Dan Buffa Presenting the gifted Culkin as the real centerpiece of the film was a wise choice. With all due respect to his brothers, the cinema pie shines the brightest in Kieran’s eyes.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
Pulp Fiction (1994) Dan Buffa From the riveting split story lines and hyper-profanity to the quotable dialogue and shocking action, Tarantino's movie reverberated then and still does to this day.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
The Order (2024) Dan Buffa One of the best parts of the film is the old school, 70s-style aesthetic. It’s a non-showy and precise thriller that knows how to set up the lives of both the protagonists and the antagonists.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
Multiplicity (1996) Dan Buffa There aren't many actors who can portray four personalities this well, and I can only wish comedies made me laugh today as much as this one did.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
The Outrun (2024) Dan Buffa There’s a few nice performances in the movie, but it runs on the lead’s energy and audacity to peel back the layers of a complicated character without a single showy scene.
Posted Dec 29, 2024  Edit critic review
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