Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows RT App News Showtimes
Critics list

Mel Valentin

Tomatometer-approved critic
Biography:

Born and raised on the East Coast, Mel attended NYU before moving West, settling in San Francisco, mostly for the weather and proximity to the ocean and state parks. Mel has written film and festival reviews dating back more than a decade, mostly for defunct or out-of-print publications. He currently writes for Cinapse, Screen Anarchy, and That Shelf.

Reviews

Movies TV Shows
Frank & Louis (2026) 87% EDIT “Takes an unhurried, detail-rich approach ... letting dialogue, camerawork, and performances lead the audience ... into the inner and outer lives of men typically forgotten or even discarded by society. ... Nuanced, nonjudgmental. ” – ScreenAnarchy Jan 27, 2026 Full Review Buddy (2026) 80% EDIT “Deftly balancing dark, cringe-worthy comedy with absurdist horror, Buddy delivers exactly what its primary image of a half-charred Buddy wielding an ax in an artificial forest promised: Twisted fun (not) for the whole family. ” – ScreenAnarchy Jan 27, 2026 Full Review Leviticus (2026) 100% EDIT “Brilliant in its conception and even more brilliant in its execution, Leviticus belongs high on a list of queer horror and its discontents.” – ScreenAnarchy Jan 27, 2026 Full Review The Musical (2026) EDIT “Undoubtedly will make a fine addition to the collections of cringe-comedy aficionados.” – ScreenAnarchy Jan 27, 2026 Full Review Josephine (2026) 100% EDIT “A deeply moving, heartrending exploration of the loss of innocence and the unintended consequences thereof.” – ScreenAnarchy Jan 27, 2026 Full Review Song Sung Blue (2025) 78% EDIT “Song Sung Blue skirts, but never crosses, the line between melodrama and drama, camp and non-camp, and excess and restraint.” – That Shelf Jan 12, 2026 Full Review OBEX (2025) 96% EDIT “If you’re on OBEX’s wavelength or frequency, i.e., attuned to its oddball charms, quirky humor, and irony-free, poignant exploration of its central themes, then OBEX will prove a deeply engaging, infinitely rewarding experience.” – ScreenAnarchy Jan 6, 2026 Full Review Marty Supreme (2025) 93% EDIT “Elevated by career-best performances from Chalamet and A’zion. ... Safdie’s hyperkinetic direction, and Daniel Lopatin’s dazzling, 1980s-inspired score, ... and Marty Supreme becomes a must-watch for serious and casual moviegoers alike. ” – ScreenAnarchy Dec 24, 2025 Full Review Avatar: Fire and Ash (2025) 66% EDIT “It ultimately sinks on the predictable mix of well-worn genre tropes, repetitive and/or borrowed plot beats, and the cringe-inducing dialogue that have made revisiting earlier entries a serious chore for casual fans of the series.” – That Shelf Dec 19, 2025 Full Review Kiss of the Spider Woman (2025) 77% EDIT “Now, not exactly coming full circle but coming close, it has been reimagined as a stunningly realized cinematic adaptation. ” – ScreenAnarchy Dec 2, 2025 Full Review Zootopia 2 (2025) 91% EDIT “The meta sight gags, cleverer-than-clever verbal puns, and, of course, exhilarating set pieces remain, but this Zootopia furthers the pro-diversity, pro-equity, pro-inclusion message of the first film. ” – That Shelf Nov 28, 2025 Full Review Shelby Oaks (2023) 55% EDIT “Shelby Oaks benefits from a solid, well-directed supporting cast and Camille Sullivan’s intense, grounded performance as Mia.” – That Shelf Nov 25, 2025 Full Review Chainsaw Man - The Movie: Reze Arc (2025) 96% EDIT “The literal 2D explosion of sound and images–a sensory assault to some and the realization of anime dreams for others–will leave a lingering impression long after the end credits roll and the theatre lights return.” – That Shelf Nov 25, 2025 Full Review Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere (2025) 61% EDIT “Scott Cooper's Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere is an overly familiar, painfully reductive, downbeat drama.” – That Shelf Nov 25, 2025 Full Review Predator: Badlands (2025) 86% EDIT “Predator: Badlands only stumbles when Trachtenberg’s ambitions outstrip budget limitations and the script that too often relies on overused genre tropes rather than originating tropes of its own. ” – That Shelf Nov 25, 2025 Full Review The Running Man (2025) 62% EDIT “Wright’s nimble direction, retro-futuristic production design, and Glen Powell’s personification of a rage-filled anti-hero-turned-hero, make Wright’s adaptation a worthwhile, if ultimately frustrating, experience on the big or small screen.” – That Shelf Nov 25, 2025 Full Review The Things You Kill (2025) 95% EDIT “While Khatami’s gifts as a narrative and visual storyteller are never in doubt, he’s equally adept at drawing exactly what he needs from his performers. ” – ScreenAnarchy Nov 24, 2025 Full Review HIM (2025) 30% EDIT “On its own, ambiguity can be a net positive storytelling-wise, but in [Him] it betrays both a shortage of meaningful ideas and the unwillingness to explore whatever ideas it does weave into the underwhelming, forgettable result.” – That Shelf Oct 15, 2025 Full Review The Baltimorons (2025) 95% EDIT “Far from essential viewing, The Baltimorons still manages to cross over into watchable territory, albeit with the aforementioned caveats.” – That Shelf Oct 15, 2025 Full Review Good Boy (2025) 90% EDIT “Good Boy wouldn’t be more than a cleverly executed gimmick, however, without the presence of [the dog] Indy in practically every frame.” – That Shelf Oct 15, 2025 Full Review Anemone (2025) 53% EDIT “Daniel Day-Lewis returns [from retirement] in a middling, muddled domestic drama.” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 4, 2025 Full Review Hamnet (2025) 86% EDIT “Hamnet is both singular in its depiction of a troubled relationship roiled by loss, grief, and despair, and universal as a standalone narrative intimately familiar to the audience on the other side of the screen.” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 4, 2025 Full Review The Smashing Machine (2025) 70% EDIT “Filmmaker Benny Safdie and company deliver an unsparing, unconventional sports biopic.” – ScreenAnarchy Oct 4, 2025 Full Review The Long Walk (2025) 88% EDIT “A near flawless adaptation of Stephen King's dystopian novel. ” – ScreenAnarchy Sep 12, 2025 Full Review Highest 2 Lowest (2025) 83% EDIT “Spike Lee and Denzel Washington’s first collaboration in almost 20 years and their fifth overall, Highest 2 Lowest, masterfully updates Akira Kurosawa’s seminal 1963 crime-thriller, High and Low, for the 21st century.” – ScreenAnarchy Aug 15, 2025 Full Review
No Reviews Yet
Load More