but ticket-buyers with great expectations will wind up as glum as mr. de niro .


the film was produced by jerry bruckheimer and directed by joel schumacher , and reflects the worst of their shallow styles : wildly overproduced , inadequately motivated every step of the way and demographically targeted to please every one -lrb- and no one -rrb- .


it 's a great performance and a reminder of dickens ' grandeur .


not at all clear what it 's trying to say and even if it were -- i doubt it would be all that interesting .


a movie where story is almost an afterthought amidst a swirl of colors and inexplicable events .


real women may have many agendas , but it also will win you over , in a big way .


what i saw , i enjoyed .


lazily and glumly settles into a most traditional , reserved kind of filmmaking .


it appears as if even the filmmakers did n't know what kind of movie they were making .


the dangerous lives of altar boys ' take on adolescence feels painfully true .


witherspoon puts to rest her valley-girl image , but it 's dench who really steals the show .


spider-man is about growing strange hairs , getting a more mature body , and finding it necessary to hide new secretions from the parental units .


the isolated moments of creative insanity finally are lost in the thin soup of canned humor .


how i killed my father would be a rarity in hollywood .


at its best , this is grand-scale moviemaking for a larger-than-life figure , an artist who has been awarded mythic status in contemporary culture .


there are some movies that hit you from the first scene and you know it 's going to be a trip .


i 'm not sure these words have ever been together in the same sentence : this erotic cannibal movie is boring .


no matter how you slice it , mark wahlberg and thandie newton are not hepburn and grant , two cinematic icons with chemistry galore .


maybe you 'll be lucky , and there 'll be a power outage during your screening so you can get your money back .


with spy kids 2 : the island of lost dreams , however , robert rodriguez adorns his family-film plot with an elegance and maturity that even most contemporary adult movies are lacking .


less about shakespeare than the spawn of fools who saw quentin tarantino 's handful of raucous gangster films and branched out into their own pseudo-witty copycat interpretations .


... unbearably lame .


certainly not a good movie , but it was n't horrible either .


where the film falters is in its tone .


this film biggest problem ?


this is a movie that is what it is : a pleasant distraction , a friday night diversion , an excuse to eat popcorn .


the gags are often a stitch .


the complex , politically charged tapestry of contemporary chinese life this exciting new filmmaker has brought to the screen is like nothing we westerners have seen before .


the sinister inspiration that fuelled devito 's early work is confused in death to smoochy into something both ugly and mindless .


the script feels as if it started to explore the obvious voyeuristic potential of ` hypertime ' but then backed off when the producers saw the grosses for spy kids .


it wraps up a classic mother\/daughter struggle in recycled paper with a shiny new bow and while the audience can tell it 's not all new , at least it looks pretty .


-lrb- shyamalan -rrb- continues to cut a swathe through mainstream hollywood , while retaining an integrity and refusing to compromise his vision .


as averse as i usually am to feel-good , follow-your-dream hollywood fantasies , this one got to me .


you 'll know a star when you see one .


sorority boys , which is as bad at it is cruel , takes every potential laugh and stiletto-stomps the life out of it .


it 's another retelling of alexandre dumas ' classic .


in between the icy stunts , the actors spout hilarious dialogue about following your dream and ` just letting the mountain tell you what to do . '


this gorgeous epic is guaranteed to lift the spirits of the whole family .


horrible .


you could love safe conduct -lrb- laissez passer -rrb- for being a subtitled french movie that is 170 minutes long .


if deuces wild had been tweaked up a notch it would have become a camp adventure , one of those movies that 's so bad it starts to become good .


it 's like an old warner bros. costumer jived with sex -- this could be the movie errol flynn always wanted to make , though bette davis , cast as joan , would have killed him .


grating and tedious .


at three hours and with very little story or character development , there is plenty of room for editing , and a much shorter cut surely would have resulted in a smoother , more focused narrative without sacrificing any of the cultural intrigue .


better effects , better acting and a hilarious kenneth branagh .


it 's too interested in jerking off in all its byzantine incarnations to bother pleasuring its audience .


none of this so-called satire has any sting to it , as if woody is afraid of biting the hand that has finally , to some extent , warmed up to him .


a keep - 'em - guessing plot and an affectionate take on its screwed-up characters .


a prison comedy that never really busts out of its comfy little cell .


an elegant and sly deadpan comedy .


neither as scary-funny as tremors nor demented-funny as starship troopers , the movie is n't tough to take as long as you 've paid a matinee price .


the delicious trimmings ... arrive early and stay late , filling nearly every minute ... with a lighthearted glow , some impudent snickers , and a glorious dose of humankind 's liberating ability to triumph over a scrooge or two .


the movie is a dud .


it 's not particularly subtle ... however , it still manages to build to a terrifying , if obvious , conclusion .


unfolds in a low-key , organic way that encourages you to accept it as life and go with its flow .


does n't do more than expand a tv show to movie length .


expanded to 65 minutes for theatrical release , it still feels somewhat unfinished .


one of the best movies of the year .


by applying definition to both sides of the man , the picture realizes a fullness that does not negate the subject .


the movie turns out to be -lrb- assayas ' -rrb- homage to the gallic ` tradition of quality , ' in all its fusty squareness .


once the downward spiral comes to pass , auto focus bears out as your typical junkie opera ...


tsai ming-liang 's ghosts are painfully aware of their not-being .


` butterfingered ' is the word for the big-fisted direction of jez butterworth , who manages to blast even the smallest sensitivities from the romance with his clamorous approach .


cal is an unpleasantly shallow and immature character with whom to spend 110 claustrophobic minutes .


berry 's saucy , full-bodied performance gives this aging series a much needed kick , making `` die another day '' one of the most entertaining bonds in years


despite the film 's bizarre developments , hoffman keeps us riveted with every painful nuance , unexpected flashes of dark comedy and the character 's gripping humanity .


if you love reading and\/or poetry , then by all means check it out .


driven by a fantastic dual performance from ian holm ... the film is funny , insightfully human and a delightful lark for history buffs .


douglas mcgrath 's nicholas nickleby does dickens as it should be done cinematically .


diane lane 's sophisticated performance ca n't rescue adrian lyne 's unfaithful from its sleazy moralizing .


simply put , `` far from heaven '' is a masterpiece .


shot in rich , shadowy black-and-white , devils chronicles , with increasingly amused irony , the relationship between reluctant captors and befuddled captives .


mcgrath has deftly trimmed dickens ' wonderfully sprawling soap opera , the better to focus on the hero 's odyssey from cowering poverty to courage and happiness .


anyone who suffers through this film deserves , at the very least , a big box of consolation candy .


a worthwhile documentary , whether you 're into rap or not , even if it may still leave you wanting more answers as the credits roll .


halloween : resurrection is n't exactly quality cinema , but it is n't nearly as terrible as it cold have been .


it seems grant does n't need the floppy hair and the self-deprecating stammers after all .


works because we 're never sure if ohlinger 's on the level or merely a dying , delusional man trying to get into the history books before he croaks .


the original was n't a good movie but this remake makes it look like a masterpiece !


the venezuelans say things like `` si , pretty much '' and `` por favor , go home '' when talking to americans .


it 's a fun adventure movie for kids -lrb- of all ages -rrb- that like adventure .


one sloughs one 's way through the mire of this alleged psychological thriller in search of purpose or even a plot .


limps along on a squirm-inducing fish-out-of-water formula that goes nowhere and goes there very , very slowly .


no amount of nostalgia for carvey 's glory days can disguise the fact that the new film is a lame kiddie flick and that carvey 's considerable talents are wasted in it .


consistently clever and suspenseful .


this is an ungainly movie , ill-fitting , with its elbows sticking out where the knees should be .


a real audience-pleaser that will strike a chord with anyone who 's ever waited in a doctor 's office , emergency room , hospital bed or insurance company office .


... if you , like me , think an action film disguised as a war tribute is disgusting to begin with , then you 're in for a painful ride .


if you 're as happy listening to movies as you are watching them , and the slow parade of human frailty fascinates you , then you 're at the right film .


one funny popcorn flick .


bad company has one of the most moronic screenplays of the year , full of holes that will be obvious even to those who are n't looking for them .


i 'd be hard pressed to think of a film more cloyingly sappy than evelyn this year .


a gem of a romantic crime comedy that turns out to be clever , amusing and unpredictable .


smith finds amusing juxtapositions that justify his exercise .


a charming , banter-filled comedy ... one of those airy cinematic bon bons whose aims -- and by extension , accomplishments -- seem deceptively slight on the surface .


it 's that rare family movie -- genuine and sweet without relying on animation or dumb humor .


hollywood ending is the most disappointing woody allen movie ever .


it 's mildly amusing , but i certainly ca n't recommend it .


this dreadfully earnest inversion of the concubine love triangle eschews the previous film 's historical panorama and roiling pathos for bug-eyed mugging and gay-niche condescension .


formula 51 promises a new kind of high but delivers the same old bad trip .


for a movie audience , the hours does n't connect in a neat way , but introduces characters who illuminate mysteries of sex , duty and love .


what madonna does here ca n't properly be called acting -- more accurately , it 's moving and it 's talking and it 's occasionally gesturing , sometimes all at once .


rifkin 's references are ... impeccable throughout .


insomnia does not become one of those rare remakes to eclipse the original , but it does n't disgrace it , either .


the director explores all three sides of his story with a sensitivity and an inquisitiveness reminiscent of truffaut .


the fact that the ` best part ' of the movie comes from a 60-second homage to one of demme 's good films does n't bode well for the rest of it .


an enjoyable comedy of lingual and cultural differences ... the château is a film -- full of life and small delights -- that has all the wiggling energy of young kitten .


try hell house , which documents the cautionary christian spook-a-rama of the same name .


tennessee williams by way of oprah 's book club .


an engaging , formulaic sports drama that carries a charge of genuine excitement .


something must have been lost in the translation .


witty , contemplative , and sublimely beautiful .


foster and whitaker are especially fine .


the lightest , most breezy movie steven spielberg has made in more than a decade .


if i want a real movie , i 'll buy the criterion dvd .


an earnest , roughshod document , it serves as a workable primer for the region 's recent history , and would make a terrific 10th-grade learning tool .


a conventional but heartwarming tale .


a sly female empowerment movie , although not in a way anyone would expect .


there are a few modest laughs , but certainly no thrills .


the problem is the needlessly poor quality of its archival prints and film footage .


there 's something unintentionally comic in the film 's drumbeat about authenticity , given the stale plot and pornographic way the film revels in swank apartments , clothes and parties .


strange occurrences build in the mind of the viewer and take on extreme urgency .


almost everything about the film is unsettling , from the preposterous hairpiece worn by lai 's villainous father to the endless action sequences .


it wo n't harm anyone , but neither can i think of a very good reason to rush right out and see it .


the formula is familiar but enjoyable .


its screenplay serves as auto-critique , and its clumsiness as its own most damning censure .


less an examination of neo-nazism than a probe into the nature of faith itself .


good performances and a realistic , non-exploitive approach make paid in full worth seeing .


the trinity assembly approaches the endeavor with a shocking lack of irony , and george ratliff 's documentary , hell house , reflects their earnestness -- which makes for a terrifying film .


just is n't as weird as it ought to be .


if you love the music , and i do , its hard to imagine having more fun watching a documentary ...


watching queen of the damned is like reading a research paper , with special effects tossed in .


stinks from start to finish , like a wet burlap sack of gloom .


the merchant-ivory team continues to systematically destroy everything we hold dear about cinema , only now it 's begun to split up so that it can do even more damage .


while there are times when the film 's reach exceeds its grasp , the production works more often than it does n't .


hugely accomplished slice of hitchcockian suspense .


exhibits the shallow sensationalism characteristic of soap opera ... more salacious telenovela than serious drama .


i 'm sure there 's a teenage boy out there somewhere who 's dying for this kind of entertainment .


why sit through a crummy , wannabe-hip crime comedy that refers incessantly to old movies , when you could just rent those movies instead , let alone seek out a respectable new one ?


a thoroughly awful movie -- dumb , narratively chaotic , visually sloppy ... a weird amalgam of ` the thing ' and a geriatric ` scream . '


contains the humor , characterization , poignancy , and intelligence of a bad sitcom .


laughably , irredeemably awful .


one long , numbing action sequence made up mostly of routine stuff yuen has given us before .


together -lrb- time out and human resources -rrb- establish mr. cantet as france 's foremost cinematic poet of the workplace .


... a gleefully grungy , hilariously wicked black comedy ...


everything its title implies , a standard-issue crime drama spat out from the tinseltown assembly line .


with spy kids 2 : the island of lost dreams , the spy kids franchise establishes itself as a durable part of the movie landscape : a james bond series for kids .


reno himself can take credit for most of the movie 's success .


boldly engineering a collision between tawdry b-movie flamboyance and grandiose spiritual anomie , rose 's film , true to its source material , provides a tenacious demonstration of death as the great equalizer .


outside of burger 's desire to make some kind of film , it 's really unclear why this project was undertaken


as for children , they wo n't enjoy the movie at all .


if you saw it on tv , you 'd probably turn it off , convinced that you had already seen that movie .


while it is interesting to witness the conflict from the palestinian side , longley 's film lacks balance ... and fails to put the struggle into meaningful historical context .


journalistically dubious , inept and often lethally dull .


brilliantly written and well-acted , yellow asphalt is an uncompromising film .


like mike is n't going to make box office money that makes michael jordan jealous , but it has some cute moments , funny scenes , and hits the target audience -lrb- young bow wow fans -rrb- - with nothing but net .


exposing the ways we fool ourselves is one hour photo 's real strength .


the gags that fly at such a furiously funny pace that the only rip off that we were aware of was the one we felt when the movie ended so damned soon .


while the path may be familiar , first-time director denzel washington and a top-notch cast manage to keep things interesting .


standing in the shadows of motown is the best kind of documentary , one that makes a depleted yesterday feel very much like a brand-new tomorrow .


the filmmaker 's heart is in the right place ...


a series of escapades demonstrating the adage that what is good for the goose is also good for the gander , some of which occasionally amuses but none of which amounts to much of a story .


j. lo will earn her share of the holiday box office pie , although this movie makes one thing perfectly clear : she 's a pretty woman , but she 's no working girl .


this documentary is a dazzling , remarkably unpretentious reminder of what -lrb- evans -rrb- had , lost , and got back .


their work is fantastic .


much of the movie 's charm lies in the utter cuteness of stuart and margolo .


looks and feels like a low-budget hybrid of scarface or carlito 's way .


a profoundly stupid affair , populating its hackneyed and meanspirited storyline with cardboard characters and performers who value cash above credibility .


like its script , which nurses plot holes gaping enough to pilot an entire olympic swim team through , the characters in swimfan seem motivated by nothing short of dull , brain-deadening hangover .


jonah is only so-so ... the addition of a biblical message will either improve the film for you , or it will lessen it .


do we really need the tiger beat version ?


if it 's unnerving suspense you 're after -- you 'll find it with ring , an indisputably spooky film ; with a screenplay to die for .


gosling creates a staggeringly compelling character , a young man whose sharp intellect is at the very root of his contradictory , self-hating , self-destructive ways .


a beautiful paean to a time long past .


a highly personal look at the effects of living a dysfunctionally privileged lifestyle , and by the end , we only wish we could have spent more time in its world .


an extremely funny , ultimately heartbreaking look at life in contemporary china .


sheds light on a subject few are familiar with , and makes you care about music you may not have heard before .


bad in such a bizarre way that it 's almost worth seeing , if only to witness the crazy confluence of purpose and taste .


an ambitious and moving but bleak film .


but for the most part , the weight of water comes off as a two-way time-switching myopic mystery that stalls in its lackluster gear of emotional blandness .


and diesel is n't the actor to save it .


only those most addicted to film violence in all its forms will find anything here to appreciate .


a feeble tootsie knockoff .


see it for his performance if nothing else .


terrific casting and solid execution give all three stories life .


the skirmishes for power waged among victims and predators settle into an undistinguished rhythm of artificial suspense .


a thriller without a lot of thrills .


yet the act is still charming here .


strictly middle of the road .


far more enjoyable than its predecessor .


i was sent a copyof this film to review on dvd .


a moving essay about the specter of death , especially suicide .


phillip noyce and all of his actors -- as well as his cinematographer , christopher doyle -- understand the delicate forcefulness of greene 's prose , and it 's there on the screen in their version of the quiet american .


though it runs 163 minutes , safe conduct is anything but languorous .


barry sonnenfeld owes frank the pug big time


this is the kind of movie that you only need to watch for about thirty seconds before you say to yourself , ` ah , yes , here we have a bad , bad , bad movie . '


even at its worst , it 's not half-bad .


... even if you 've never heard of chaplin , you 'll still be glued to the screen .


a long , dull procession of despair , set to cello music culled from a minimalist funeral .


i would be shocked if there was actually one correct interpretation , but that should n't make the movie or the discussion any less enjoyable .


the concert footage is stirring , the recording sessions are intriguing , and -- on the way to striking a blow for artistic integrity -- this quality band may pick up new admirers .


most of the dialogue made me want to pack raw dough in my ears .


vividly conveys the shadow side of the 30-year friendship between two english women .


queen of the damned is too long with too little going on .


whatever about warning kids about the dangers of ouija boards , someone should dispense the same advice to film directors .


the sound of gunfire and cell phones ringing .


it ai n't art , by a long shot , but unlike last year 's lame musketeer , this dumas adaptation entertains .


campanella 's competent direction and his excellent cast overcome the obstacles of a predictable outcome and a screenplay that glosses over rafael 's evolution .


schütte 's dramatic snapshot of the artist three days before his death offers an interesting bit of speculation as to the issues brecht faced as his life drew to a close .


would be an unendurable viewing experience for this ultra-provincial new yorker if 26-year-old reese witherspoon were not on hand to inject her pure fantasy character , melanie carmichael , with a massive infusion of old-fashioned hollywood magic .


a horror movie with seriously dumb characters , which somewhat dilutes the pleasure of watching them stalked by creepy-crawly bug things that live only in the darkness .


their parents would do well to cram earplugs in their ears and put pillowcases over their heads for 87 minutes .


cloaks a familiar anti-feminist equation -lrb- career - kids = misery -rrb- in tiresome romantic-comedy duds .


naomi watts is terrific as rachel ; her petite frame and vulnerable persona emphasising her plight and isolation .


idiotic and ugly .


` film aficionados can not help but love cinema paradiso , whether the original version or new director 's cut . '


if you can keep your eyes open amid all the blood and gore , you 'll see del toro has brought unexpected gravity to blade ii .


hard , endearing , caring , warm .


the major problem with windtalkers is that the bulk of the movie centers on the wrong character .


- greaseballs mob action-comedy .


visually exciting sci-fi film which suffers from a lackluster screenplay .


writer and director otar iosseliani 's pleasant tale about a factory worker who escapes for a holiday in venice reveals how we all need a playful respite from the grind to refresh our souls .


a refreshingly realistic , affectation-free coming-of-age tale .


`` simone '' is a fun and funky look into an artificial creation in a world that thrives on artificiality .


is truth stranger than fiction ?


supposedly , pokemon ca n't be killed , but pokemon 4ever practically assures that the pocket monster movie franchise is nearly ready to keel over .


the acting is amateurish , the cinematography is atrocious , the direction is clumsy , the writing is insipid and the violence is at once luridly graphic and laughably unconvincing .


it 's the type of stunt the academy loves : a powerful political message stuffed into an otherwise mediocre film .


you have to see it .


pray has really done his subject justice .


some elements of it really blow the big one , but other parts are decent .


will you go ape over this movie ?


... the implication is kissinger may have decided that -- when it comes to truncheoning -- it 's better to give than to receive .


woody , what happened ?


but it 's also disappointing to a certain degree .


coarse , cliched and clunky , this trifling romantic comedy in which opposites attract for no better reason than that the screenplay demands it squanders the charms of stars hugh grant and sandra bullock .


bears about as much resemblance to the experiences of most battered women as spider-man does to the experiences of most teenagers .


at times a bit melodramatic and even a little dated -lrb- depending upon where you live -rrb- , ignorant fairies is still quite good-natured and not a bad way to spend an hour or two .


a boring masquerade ball where normally good actors , even kingsley , are made to look bad .


a semi-autobiographical film that 's so sloppily written and cast that you can not believe anyone more central to the creation of bugsy than the caterer had anything to do with it .


the skills of a calculus major at m.i.t. are required to balance all the formulaic equations in the long-winded heist comedy who is cletis tout ?


though there are entertaining and audacious moments , the movie 's wildly careening tone and an extremely flat lead performance do little to salvage this filmmaker 's flailing reputation .


efteriades gives the neighborhood -- scenery , vibe and all -- the cinematic equivalent of a big , tender hug .


two weeks notice has appeal beyond being a sandra bullock vehicle or a standard romantic comedy .


could use a little more humanity , but it never lacks in eye-popping visuals .


the leads are natural and lovely , the pace is serene , the humor wry and sprightly .


offers big , fat , dumb laughs that may make you hate yourself for giving in .


hardly a film that comes along every day .


definitely worth 95 minutes of your time .


certainly the big finish was n't something galinsky and hawley could have planned for ... but part of being a good documentarian is being there when the rope snaps .


rollerball is as bad as you think , and worse than you can imagine .


there 's the plot , and a maddeningly insistent and repetitive piano score that made me want to scream .


it would be great to see this turd squashed under a truck , preferably a semi .


`` it 's all about the image . ''


the pacing is deadly , the narration helps little and naipaul , a juicy writer , is negated .


this may be dover kosashvili 's feature directing debut , but it looks an awful lot like life -- gritty , awkward and ironic .


i 'm going to give it a marginal thumbs up .


this beautifully animated epic is never dull .


human nature , in short , is n't nearly as funny as it thinks it is ; neither is it as smart .


davis ... gets vivid performances from her cast and pulls off some deft ally mcbeal-style fantasy sequences .


even in the summertime , the most restless young audience deserves the dignity of an action hero motivated by something more than franchise possibilities .


an enigmatic film that 's too clever for its own good , it 's a conundrum not worth solving .


neither a rousing success nor a blinding embarrassment .


a mesmerizing cinematic poem from the first frame to the last .


the setting turns out to be more interesting than any of the character dramas , which never reach satisfying conclusions .


this painfully unfunny farce traffics in tired stereotypes and encumbers itself with complications ... that have no bearing on the story .


take nothing seriously and enjoy the ride .


any intellectual arguments being made about the nature of god are framed in a drama so clumsy , there is a real danger less sophisticated audiences will mistake it for an endorsement of the very things that bean abhors .


it is different from others in its genre in that it is does not rely on dumb gags , anatomical humor , or character cliches ; it primarily relies on character to tell its story .


still rapturous after all these years , cinema paradiso stands as one of the great films about movie love .


be patient with the lovely hush !


the actors are simply too good , and the story too intriguing , for technical flaws to get in the way .


i 'd be lying if i said my ribcage did n't ache by the end of kung pow .


it may also be the best sex comedy about environmental pollution ever made .


an entertaining , if ultimately minor , thriller .


and the reason for that is a self-aware , often self-mocking , intelligence .


whether jason x is this bad on purpose is never clear .


all comedy is subversive , but this unrelenting bleak insistence on opting out of any opportunity for finding meaning in relationships or work just becomes sad .


the movie is concocted and carried out by folks worthy of scorn , and the nicest thing i can say is that i ca n't remember a single name responsible for it .


all too familiar ... basically the sort of cautionary tale that was old when ` angels with dirty faces ' appeared in 1938 .


seems like something american and european gay movies were doing 20 years ago .


this is a truly , truly bad movie .


the way the roundelay of partners functions , and the interplay within partnerships and among partnerships and the general air of gator-bashing are consistently delightful .


both flawed and delayed , martin scorcese 's gangs of new york still emerges as his most vital work since goodfellas .


what ` blade runner ' would 've looked like as a low-budget series on a uhf channel .


there is a difference between movies with the courage to go over the top and movies that do n't care about being stupid


an ebullient tunisian film about the startling transformation of a tradition-bound widow who is drawn into the exotic world of belly dancing .


a lovely film for the holiday season .


... ice age treads predictably along familiar territory , making it a passable family film that wo n't win many fans over the age of 12 .


after one gets the feeling that the typical hollywood disregard for historical truth and realism is at work here , it 's a matter of finding entertainment in the experiences of zishe and the fiery presence of hanussen .


tadpole may be one of the most appealing movies ever made about an otherwise appalling , and downright creepy , subject -- a teenage boy in love with his stepmother .


a film centering on a traditional indian wedding in contemporary new delhi may not sound like specialized fare , but mira nair 's film is an absolute delight for all audiences .


when you think you 've figured out bielinsky 's great game , that 's when you 're in the most trouble : he 's the con , and you 're just the mark .


the most amazing super-sized dosage of goofball stunts any `` jackass '' fan could want .


k-19 : the widowmaker is derivative , overlong , and bombastic -- yet surprisingly entertaining .


every visual joke is milked , every set-up obvious and lengthy , every punchline predictable .


by that measure , it is a failure .


rather than real figures , elling and kjell bjarne become symbolic characters whose actions are supposed to relate something about the naïf 's encounter with the world .


seeing as the film lacks momentum and its position remains mostly undeterminable , the director 's experiment is a successful one .


... a pretentious mess ...


full of flatulence jokes and mild sexual references , kung pow !


`` 13 conversations '' holds its goodwill close , but is relatively slow to come to the point .


so mind-numbingly awful that you hope britney wo n't do it one more time , as far as movies are concerned .


laced with liberal doses of dark humor , gorgeous exterior photography , and a stable-full of solid performances , no such thing is a fascinating little tale .


in the new release of cinema paradiso , the tale has turned from sweet to bittersweet , and when the tears come during that final , beautiful scene , they finally feel absolutely earned .


remove spider-man the movie from its red herring surroundings and it 's apparent that this is one summer film that satisfies .


spectators will indeed sit open-mouthed before the screen , not screaming but yawning .


, the sum of all fears is simply a well-made and satisfying thriller .


-lrb- raimi 's -rrb- matured quite a bit with spider-man , even though it 's one of the most plain white toast comic book films you 'll ever see .


what makes the movie special is its utter sincerity .


the thing just never gets off the ground .


after several scenes of this tacky nonsense , you 'll be wistful for the testosterone-charged wizardry of jerry bruckheimer productions , especially because half past dead is like the rock on a wal-mart budget .


the film oozes craft .


once the expectation of laughter has been quashed by whatever obscenity is at hand , even the funniest idea is n't funny .


funny , sexy , devastating and incurably romantic .


eastwood winces , clutches his chest and gasps for breath .


and how .


an ambitious , guilt-suffused melodrama crippled by poor casting .


not one moment in the enterprise did n't make me want to lie down in a dark room with something cool to my brow .


norton holds the film together .


this is an exercise not in biography but in hero worship .


the densest distillation of roberts ' movies ever made .


with this masterful , flawless film , -lrb- wang -rrb- emerges in the front ranks of china 's now numerous , world-renowned filmmakers .


a live-wire film that never loses its ability to shock and amaze .


throughout all the tumult , a question comes to mind : so why is this so boring ?


ong chooses to present ah na 's life as a slight , weightless fairy tale , whose most unpleasant details seem to melt away in the face of the character 's blank-faced optimism .


the large-format film is well suited to capture these musicians in full regalia and the incredible imax sound system lets you feel the beat down to your toes .


a finely tuned mood piece , a model of menacing atmosphere .


egoyan 's work often elegantly considers various levels of reality and uses shifting points of view , but here he has constructed a film so labyrinthine that it defeats his larger purpose .


an original little film about one young woman 's education .


by the end , you just do n't care whether that cold-hearted snake petrovich -lrb- that would be reno -rrb- gets his comeuppance .


it 's packed with adventure and a worthwhile environmental message , so it 's great for the kids .


too bad maggio could n't come up with a better script .


sensual , funny and , in the end , very touching .


a movie just for friday fans , critics be damned .


charming , if overly complicated ...


it 's a fairy tale that comes from a renowned indian film culture that allows americans to finally revel in its splendor .


will no doubt delight plympton 's legion of fans ; others may find 80 minutes of these shenanigans exhausting .


all mood and no movie .


the movie ultimately relies a bit too heavily on grandstanding , emotional , rocky-like moments ... but it 's such a warm and charming package that you 'll feel too happy to argue much .


will assuredly rank as one of the cleverest , most deceptively amusing comedies of the year .


what a vast enterprise has been marshaled in the service of such a minute idea .


a half-assed film .


it 's truly awful and heartbreaking subject matter , but one whose lessons are well worth revisiting as many times as possible .


the most ingenious film comedy since being john malkovich .


being latently gay and liking to read are hardly enough .


the cast is phenomenal , especially the women .


inventive , fun , intoxicatingly sexy , violent , self-indulgent and maddening .


director oliver parker labors so hard to whip life into the importance of being earnest that he probably pulled a muscle or two .


much of it comes from the brave , uninhibited performances by its lead actors .


a chiller resolutely without chills .


while -lrb- roman coppola -rrb- scores points for style , he staggers in terms of story .


the first hour is tedious though ford and neeson capably hold our interest , but its just not a thrilling movie .


and it is .


even when it drags , we are forced to reflect that its visual imagination is breathtaking


mildly amusing .


imperfect ?


missteps take what was otherwise a fascinating , riveting story and send it down the path of the mundane .


this mess of a movie is nothing short of a travesty of a transvestite comedy .


a baffling subplot involving smuggling drugs inside danish cows falls flat , and if you 're going to alter the bard 's ending , you 'd better have a good alternative .


there 's surely something wrong with a comedy where the only belly laughs come from the selection of outtakes tacked onto the end credits .


no , it 's not as single-minded as john carpenter 's original , but it 's sure a lot smarter and more unnerving than the sequels .


the boys ' sparring , like the succession of blows dumped on guei , wears down the story 's more cerebral , and likable , plot elements .


beating the austin powers films at their own game , this blaxploitation spoof downplays the raunch in favor of gags that rely on the strength of their own cleverness as opposed to the extent of their outrageousness .


while this gentle and affecting melodrama will have luvvies in raptures , it 's far too slight and introspective to appeal to anything wider than a niche audience .


viewers are asked so often to suspend belief that were it not for holm 's performance , the film would be a total washout .


there 's no palpable chemistry between lopez and male lead ralph fiennes , plus the script by working girl scribe kevin wade is workmanlike in the extreme .


- spy action flick with antonio banderas and lucy liu never comes together .


there 's already been too many of these films ...


peralta 's mythmaking could have used some informed , adult hindsight .


we want the funk - and this movie 's got it .


`` the kid stays in the picture '' is a great story , terrifically told by the man who wrote it but this cliff notes edition is a cheat .


creeps you out in high style , even if nakata did it better .


-lrb- a -rrb- thoughtful , visually graceful work .


shows moments of promise but ultimately succumbs to cliches and pat storytelling .


` snow dogs ' has both .


like the rugrats movies , the wild thornberrys movie does n't offer much more than the series , but its emphasis on caring for animals and respecting other cultures is particularly welcome .


almost .


a waterlogged version of ` fatal attraction ' for the teeny-bopper set ... a sad , soggy potboiler that wastes the talents of its attractive young leads .


the film starts promisingly , but the ending is all too predictable and far too cliched to really work .


the script manages the rare trick of seeming at once both refreshingly different and reassuringly familiar .


kudos to the most enchanting film of the year .


the engagingly primitive animated special effects contribute to a mood that 's sustained through the surprisingly somber conclusion .


by its modest , straight-ahead standards , undisputed scores a direct hit .


chances are you wo n't , either .


i 'm guessing the director is a magician .


a dashing and absorbing outing with one of france 's most inventive directors .


it irritates and saddens me that martin lawrence 's latest vehicle can explode obnoxiously into 2,500 screens while something of bubba ho-tep 's clearly evident quality may end up languishing on a shelf somewhere .


that chirpy songbird britney spears has popped up with more mindless drivel .


none of the characters or plot-lines are fleshed-out enough to build any interest .


when all is said and done , she loves them to pieces -- and so , i trust , will you .


ultimately too repellent to fully endear itself to american art house audiences , but it is notable for its stylistic austerity and forcefulness .


i saw juwanna mann so you do n't have to .


kids do n't mind crappy movies as much as adults , provided there 's lots of cute animals and clumsy people .


it forces you to watch people doing unpleasant things to each other and themselves , and it maintains a cool distance from its material that is deliberately unsettling .


wonder , hope and magic can never escape the heart of the boy when the right movie comes along , especially if it begins with the name of star wars


while the performances are often engaging , this loose collection of largely improvised numbers would probably have worked better as a one-hour tv documentary .


here 's my advice , kev .


haneke 's script -lrb- from elfriede jelinek 's novel -rrb- is contrived , unmotivated , and psychologically unpersuasive , with an inconclusive ending .


there is only so much baked cardboard i need to chew .


the movie is loaded with good intentions , but in his zeal to squeeze the action and our emotions into the all-too-familiar dramatic arc of the holocaust escape story , minac drains his movie of all individuality .


tully is worth a look for its true-to-life characters , its sensitive acting , its unadorned view of rural life and the subtle direction of first-timer hilary birmingham .


filmmaker tian zhuangzhuang triumphantly returns to narrative filmmaking with a visually masterful work of quiet power .


... a movie that , quite simply , should n't have been made .


it 's about time .


the importance of being earnest , so thick with wit it plays like a reading from bartlett 's familiar quotations


five screenwriters are credited with the cliché-laden screenplay ; it seems as if each watered down the version of the one before .


director alfonso cuaron gets vivid , convincing performances from a fine cast , and generally keeps things going at a rapid pace , occasionally using an omniscient voice-over narrator in the manner of french new wave films .


... manages to deliver a fair bit of vampire fun .


shadyac , who belongs with the damned for perpetrating patch adams , trots out every ghost trick from the sixth sense to the mothman prophecies .


guys say mean things and shoot a lot of bullets .


wewannour money back , actually .


more than anything else , kissing jessica stein injects freshness and spirit into the romantic comedy genre , which has been held hostage by generic scripts that seek to remake sleepless in seattle again and again .


when cowering and begging at the feet a scruffy giannini , madonna gives her best performance since abel ferrara had her beaten to a pulp in his dangerous game .


the sheer joy and pride they took in their work -- and in each other -- shines through every frame .


the cumulative effect of the movie is repulsive and depressing .


... digs beyond the usual portrayals of good kids and bad seeds to reveal a more ambivalent set of characters and motivations .


much of all about lily chou-chou is mesmerizing : some of its plaintiveness could make you weep .


unfortunately , neither sendak nor the directors are particularly engaging or articulate .


it 's a rollicking adventure for you and all your mateys , regardless of their ages .


an empty shell of an epic rather than the real deal .


yes they can swim , the title is merely anne-sophie birot 's off-handed way of saying girls find adolescence difficult to wade through .


-lrb- scherfig -rrb- has made a movie that will leave you wondering about the characters ' lives after the clever credits roll .


it may be a somewhat backhanded compliment to say that the film makes the viewer feel like the movie 's various victimized audience members after a while , but it also happens to be the movie 's most admirable quality


a delightful entree in the tradition of food movies .


-lrb- johnnie to and wai ka fai are -rrb- sure to find an enthusiastic audience among american action-adventure buffs , but the film 's interests may be too narrow to attract crossover viewers .


conceptually brilliant ... plays like a living-room war of the worlds , gaining most of its unsettling force from the suggested and the unknown .


this feature is about as necessary as a hole in the head


-lrb- danny huston gives -rrb- an astounding performance that deftly , gradually reveals a real human soul buried beneath a spellbinding serpent 's smirk .


in addition to hoffman 's powerful acting clinic , this is that rare drama that offers a thoughtful and rewarding glimpse into the sort of heartache everyone has felt , or will feel someday .


thin period piece .


this is n't exactly profound cinema , but it 's good-natured and sometimes quite funny .


hailed as a clever exercise in neo-hitchcockianism , this clever and very satisfying picture is more accurately chabrolian .


it leers , offering next to little insight into its intriguing subject .


a pleasant and engaging enough sit , but in trying to have the best of both worlds it ends up falling short as a whole .


because eight legged freaks is partly an homage to them , tarantula and other low - budget b-movie thrillers of the 1950s and '60s , the movie is a silly -lrb- but not sophomoric -rrb- romp through horror and hellish conditions .


the picture does n't know it 's a comedy .


touches smartly and wistfully on a number of themes , not least the notion that the marginal members of society ... might benefit from a helping hand and a friendly kick in the pants .


yakusho , as always , is wonderful as the long-faced sad sack ... and his chemistry with shimizu is very believable .


works , it 's thanks to huston 's revelatory performance .


in moonlight mile , no one gets shut out of the hug cycle .


ararat feels like a book report


the beautiful images and solemn words can not disguise the slack complacency of -lrb- godard 's -rrb- vision , any more than the gorgeous piano and strings on the soundtrack can drown out the tinny self-righteousness of his voice .


tully is in many ways the perfect festival film : a calm , self-assured portrait of small town regret , love , duty and friendship that appeals to the storytelling instincts of a slightly more literate filmgoing audience .


it 's a shame the marvelous first 101 minutes have to be combined with the misconceived final 5 .


a surprisingly charming and even witty match for the best of hollywood 's comic-book adaptations .


my advice is to skip the film and pick up the soundtrack .


audacious-impossible yet compelling ...


a quasi-documentary by french filmmaker karim dridi that celebrates the hardy spirit of cuban music .


family fare .


... a mostly boring affair with a confusing sudden finale that 's likely to irk viewers .


the movie resolutely avoids all the comic possibilities of its situation , and becomes one more dumb high school comedy about sex gags and prom dates .


one of recent memory 's most thoughtful films about art , ethics , and the cost of moral compromise .


god is great , the movie 's not .


... a somber film , almost completely unrelieved by any comedy beyond the wistful everyday ironies of the working poor .


even if you 're an agnostic carnivore , you can enjoy much of jonah simply , and gratefully , as laugh-out-loud lunacy with a pronounced monty pythonesque flavor .


one of the best of a growing strain of daring films ... that argue that any sexual relationship that does n't hurt anyone and works for its participants is a relationship that is worthy of our respect .


set in a 1986 harlem that does n't look much like anywhere in new york .


if you do n't ... well , skip to another review .


in the spirit of the season , i assign one bright shining star to roberto benigni 's pinocchio -- but i guarantee that no wise men will be following after it .


evokes a palpable sense of disconnection , made all the more poignant by the incessant use of cell phones .


they crush each other under cars , throw each other out windows , electrocute and dismember their victims in full consciousness .


with its hint of an awkward hitchcockian theme in tact , harmon 's daunting narrative promotes a reasonable landscape of conflict and pathos to support the scattershot terrorizing tone


in addition to scoring high for originality of plot -- putting together familiar themes of family , forgiveness and love in a new way -- lilo & stitch has a number of other assets to commend it to movie audiences both innocent and jaded .


perhaps it 's cliche to call the film ` refreshing , ' but it is .


as predictable as the outcome of a globetrotters-generals game , juwanna mann is even more ludicrous than you 'd expect from the guy-in-a-dress genre , and a personal low for everyone involved .


almodovar is an imaginative teacher of emotional intelligence in this engaging film about two men who discover what william james once called ` the gift of tears . '


a fantastically vital movie that manages to invest real humor , sensuality , and sympathy into a story about two adolescent boys .


... the story is far-flung , illogical , and plain stupid .


and lee seems just as expectant of an adoring , wide-smiling reception .


it 's all arty and jazzy and people sit and stare and turn away from one another instead of talking and it 's all about the silences and if you 're into that , have at it .


an old-fashioned drama of substance about a teacher 's slide down the slippery slope of dishonesty after an encounter with the rich and the powerful who have nothing but disdain for virtue .


another useless recycling of a brutal mid - '70s american sports movie .


the kind of movie that leaves vague impressions and a nasty aftertaste but little clear memory of its operational mechanics .


hartley adds enough quirky and satirical touches in the screenplay to keep the film entertaining .


as literary desecrations go , this makes for perfectly acceptable , occasionally very enjoyable children 's entertainment .


this insufferable movie is meant to make you think about existential suffering .


goofy , nutty , consistently funny .


two big things are missing -- anything approaching a visceral kick , and anything approaching even a vague reason to sit through it all .


if `` lilo & stitch '' is n't the most edgy piece of disney animation to hit the silver screen , then this first film to use a watercolor background since `` dumbo '' certainly ranks as the most original in years .


while it has definite weaknesses -- like a rather unbelievable love interest and a meandering ending -- this '60s caper film is a riveting , brisk delight .


it 's a talking head documentary , but a great one .


an extremely unpleasant film .


director juan jose campanella could have turned this into an argentine retread of `` iris '' or `` american beauty , '' but instead pulls a little from each film and creates something more beautiful than either of those films .


not good enough to pass for a litmus test of the generation gap and not bad enough to repulse any generation of its fans .


after seeing the film , i can tell you that there 's no other reason why anyone should bother remembering it .


an `` o bruin , where art thou ? ''


it stars schticky chris rock and stolid anthony hopkins , who seem barely in the same movie .


merely -lrb- and literally -rrb- tosses around sex toys and offers half-hearted paeans to empowerment that are repeatedly undercut by the brutality of the jokes , most at women 's expense .


terrible .


throwing in everything except someone pulling the pin from a grenade with his teeth , windtalkers seems to have ransacked every old world war ii movie for overly familiar material .


chai 's structure and pacing are disconcertingly slack .


if you grew up on scooby -- you 'll love this movie .


enjoyably fast-moving , hard-hitting documentary .


if you come from a family that eats , meddles , argues , laughs , kibbitzes and fights together , then go see this delightful comedy .


the director mostly plays it straight , turning leys ' fable into a listless climb down the social ladder .


it will break your heart many times over .


millions of dollars heaped upon a project of such vast proportions need to reap more rewards than spiffy bluescreen technique and stylish weaponry .


any film that does n't even in passing mention political prisoners , poverty and the boat loads of people who try to escape the country is less a documentary and more propaganda by way of a valentine sealed with a kiss .


it 's depressing to see how far herzog has fallen .


some episodes work , some do n't .


like its new england characters , most of whom wander about in thick clouds of denial , the movie eventually gets around to its real emotional business , striking deep chords of sadness .


all the more disquieting for its relatively gore-free allusions to the serial murders , but it falls down in its attempts to humanize its subject .


a film of empty , fetishistic violence in which murder is casual and fun .


for those in search of something different , wendigo is a genuinely bone-chilling tale .


a poorly scripted , preachy fable that forgets about unfolding a coherent , believable story in its zeal to spread propaganda .


about a boy vividly recalls the cary grant of room for one more , houseboat and father goose in its affectionate depiction of the gentle war between a reluctant , irresponsible man and the kid who latches onto him .


disappointing in comparison to other recent war movies ... or any other john woo flick for that matter .


it may not be `` last tango in paris '' but ...


it 's a familiar story , but one that is presented with great sympathy and intelligence .


becomes a fascinating study of isolation and frustration that successfully recreates both the physical setting and emotional tensions of the papin sisters .


murderous maids pulls no punches in its depiction of the lives of the papin sister and the events that led to their notorious rise to infamy ...


it 's not nearly as fresh or enjoyable as its predecessor , but there are enough high points to keep this from being a complete waste of time .


the movie does n't add anything fresh to the myth .


... delivers few moments of inspiration amid the bland animation and simplistic story .


it is n't that stealing harvard is a horrible movie -- if only it were that grand a failure !


the script falls back on too many tried-and-true shenanigans that hardly distinguish it from the next teen comedy .


a rote exercise in both animation and storytelling .


it tells its story in a flat manner and leaves you with the impression that you should have gotten more out of it than you did .


in his latest effort , storytelling , solondz has finally made a movie that is n't just offensive -- it also happens to be good .


enough is not a bad movie , just mediocre .


a smart , sassy and exceptionally charming romantic comedy .


stuffy , full of itself , morally ambiguous and nothing to shout about .


a piquant meditation on the things that prevent people from reaching happiness .


reyes ' directorial debut has good things to offer , but ultimately it 's undone by a sloppy script


it wears its heart on the sleeve of its gaudy hawaiian shirt .


it 's a spectacular performance - ahem , we hope it 's only acting .


... the film 's considered approach to its subject matter is too calm and thoughtful for agitprop , and the thinness of its characterizations makes it a failure as straight drama . '


harris is supposed to be the star of the story , but comes across as pretty dull and wooden .


symbolically , warm water under a red bridge is a celebration of feminine energy , a tribute to the power of women to heal .


they were right .


you come away from his film overwhelmed , hopeful and , perhaps paradoxically , illuminated .


equlibrium could pass for a thirteen-year-old 's book report on the totalitarian themes of 1984 and farenheit 451 .


a film of delicate interpersonal dances .


-lrb- westbrook -rrb- makes a wonderful subject for the camera .


cusack 's just brilliant in this .


what a bewilderingly brilliant and entertaining movie this is .


never lets go your emotions , taking them to surprising highs , sorrowful lows and hidden impulsive niches ... gorgeous , passionate , and at times uncommonly moving .


every child 's story is what matters .


there are far worse messages to teach a young audience , which will probably be perfectly happy with the sloppy slapstick comedy .


few films have captured the chaos of an urban conflagration with such fury , and audience members will leave feeling as shaken as nesbitt 's cooper looks when the bullets stop flying .


ferrara 's best film in years .


we have poignancy jostling against farce , thoughtful dialogue elbowed aside by one-liners , and a visual style that incorporates rotoscope animation for no apparent reason except , maybe , that it looks neat .


spare yet audacious ...


` all in all , reign of fire will be a good -lrb- successful -rrb- rental . '


sometimes this modest little number clicks , and sometimes it does n't .


watching war photographer , you come to believe that nachtwey hates the wars he shows and empathizes with the victims he reveals .


you 'd be hard put to find a movie character more unattractive or odorous -lrb- than leon -rrb- .


what soured me on the santa clause 2 was that santa bumps up against 21st century reality so hard , it 's icky .


... only bond can save us from the latest eccentric , super-wealthy megalomaniac bent on world domination and destruction .


ash wednesday is not edward burns ' best film , but it is a good and ambitious film .


the lead actors share no chemistry or engaging charisma .


ms. phoenix is completely lacking in charm and charisma , and is unable to project either esther 's initial anomie or her eventual awakening .


when not wallowing in its characters ' frustrations , the movie is busy contriving false , sitcom-worthy solutions to their problems .


polished , well-structured film .


basically , it 's pretty but dumb .


the laughs are as rare as snake foo yung .


an eloquent , reflective and beautifully acted meditation on both the profoundly devastating events of one year ago and the slow , painful healing process that has followed in their wake .


but there 's plenty to offend everyone ...


after that it becomes long and tedious like a classroom play in a college history course .


suffers from a decided lack of creative storytelling .


an exceptionally acted , quietly affecting cop drama .


stuart 's poor-me persona needs a whole bunch of snowball 's cynicism to cut through the sugar coating .


one of the best films i have ever seen , constantly pulling the rug from underneath us , seeing things from new sides , plunging deeper , getting more intense .


stitch is a bad mannered , ugly and destructive little \*\*\*\* .


alain choquart 's camera barely stops moving , portraying both the turmoil of the time and giving conduct a perpetual sense of urgency , which , for a film that takes nearly three hours to unspool , is both funny and irritating .


an intelligently made -lrb- and beautifully edited -rrb- picture that at the very least has a spark of life to it -- more than you can say for plenty of movies that flow through the hollywood pipeline without a hitch .


charlie hunnam has the twinkling eyes , repressed smile and determined face needed to carry out a dickensian hero .


what should have been a painless time-killer becomes instead a grating endurance test .


the film has -lrb- its -rrb- moments , but they are few and far between .


if religious films are n't your bailiwick , stay away .


this enthralling documentary ... is at once playful and haunting , an in-depth portrait of an iconoclastic artist who was fundamentally unknowable even to his closest friends .


schnitzler 's film has a great hook , some clever bits and well-drawn , if standard issue , characters , but is still only partly satisfying .


a wild , endearing , masterful documentary .


on a certain base level , blue crush delivers what it promises , just not well enough to recommend it .


a dreadful day in irish history is given passionate , if somewhat flawed , treatment .


the april 2002 instalment of the american war for independence , complete with loads of cgi and bushels of violence , but not a drop of human blood .


if there was any doubt that peter o'fallon did n't have an original bone in his body , a rumor of angels should dispel it .


there is something in full frontal , i guess , about artifice and acting and how it distorts reality for people who make movies and watch them , but like most movie riddles , it works only if you have an interest in the characters you see .


a minor-league soccer remake of the longest yard .


` it 's painful to watch witherspoon 's talents wasting away inside unnecessary films like legally blonde and sweet home abomination , i mean , alabama . '


nothing more than a run-of-the-mill action flick .


it 's absolutely amazing how first-time director kevin donovan managed to find something new to add to the canon of chan .


at its worst , it 's rambo - meets-john ford .


it 's as raw and action-packed an experience as a ringside seat at a tough-man contest .


to me , it sounds like a cruel deception carried out by men of marginal intelligence , with reactionary ideas about women and a total lack of empathy .


you wo n't have any trouble getting kids to eat up these veggies .


if you can tolerate the redneck-versus-blueblood cliches that the film trades in , sweet home alabama is diverting in the manner of jeff foxworthy 's stand-up act .


too bland and fustily tasteful to be truly prurient .


it does n't work as either .


this one aims for the toilet and scores a direct hit .


innocuous enough to make even jean-claude van damme look good .


in the name of an allegedly inspiring and easily marketable flick , the emperor 's club turns a blind eye to the very history it pretends to teach .


the movie is undone by a filmmaking methodology that 's just experimental enough to alienate the mainstream audience while ringing cliched to hardened indie-heads .


two tedious acts light on great scares and a good surprise ending .


and your reward will be a thoughtful , emotional movie experience .


obvious .


` lovely and amazing , ' unhappily , is neither ... excessively strained and contrived .


muddled , trashy and incompetent


`` birthday girl '' is an actor 's movie first and foremost .


the little girls understand , and mccracken knows that 's all that matters .


the pacing is often way off and there are too many bona fide groaners among too few laughs .


i liked it because it was so endlessly , grotesquely , inventive .


that , in itself , is extraordinary .


... one big laugh , three or four mild giggles , and a whole lot of not much else .


yes .


sunshine state surveys the landscape and assesses the issues with a clear passion for sociology .


k-19 : the widowmaker is a great yarn .


and educational !


in his determination to lighten the heavy subject matter , silberling also , to a certain extent , trivializes the movie with too many nervous gags and pratfalls .


an undeniably moving film to experience , and ultimately that 's what makes it worth a recommendation .


confessions is n't always coherent , but it 's sharply comic and surprisingly touching , so hold the gong .


the film has the thrown-together feel of a summer-camp talent show : hastily written , underrehearsed , arbitrarily plotted and filled with crude humor and vulgar innuendo .


sharp edges and a deep vein of sadness run through its otherwise comic narrative .


crush is so warm and fuzzy you might be able to forgive its mean-spirited second half .


a meatballs for the bare-midriff generation .


strong filmmaking requires a clear sense of purpose , and in that oh-so-important category , the four feathers comes up short .


the best didacticism is one carried by a strong sense of humanism , and bertrand tavernier 's oft-brilliant safe conduct -lrb- `` laissez-passer '' -rrb- wears its heart on its sleeve .


i have returned from the beyond to warn you : this movie is 90 minutes long , and life is too short .


... despite lagging near the finish line , the movie runs a good race , one that will have you at the edge of your seat for long stretches . '


witty and often surprising , a dark little morality tale disguised as a romantic comedy .


they 're the unnamed , easily substitutable forces that serve as whatever terror the heroes of horror movies try to avoid .


ice age posits a heretofore unfathomable question : is it possible for computer-generated characters to go through the motions ?


watching these eccentrics is both inspiring and pure joy .


spain 's greatest star wattage does n't overcome the tumult of maudlin tragedy .


director jay russell stomps in hobnail boots over natalie babbitt 's gentle , endearing 1975 children 's novel .


colorful , energetic and sweetly whimsical ... the rare sequel that 's better than its predecessor .


... a pretentious and ultimately empty examination of a sick and evil woman .


a small movie with a big heart .


maggie g. makes an amazing breakthrough in her first starring role and eats up the screen .


most of the movie is so deadly dull that watching the proverbial paint dry would be a welcome improvement .


-lrb- the cockettes -rrb- provides a window into a subculture hell-bent on expressing itself in every way imaginable . '


-lrb- taylor -rrb- takes us on a ride that 's consistently surprising , easy to watch -- but , oh , so dumb .


most thrillers send audiences out talking about specific scary scenes or startling moments ; `` frailty '' leaves us with the terrifying message that the real horror may be waiting for us at home .


the difference between cho and most comics is that her confidence in her material is merited .


this remake of lina wertmuller 's 1975 eroti-comedy might just be the biggest husband-and-wife disaster since john and bo derek made the ridiculous bolero .


-lrb- a -rrb- poorly executed comedy .


holland lets things peter out midway , but it 's notably better acted -- and far less crass - than some other recent efforts in the burgeoning genre of films about black urban professionals .


... rogers 's mouth never stops shut about the war between the sexes and how to win the battle .


lawrence plumbs personal tragedy and also the human comedy .


maintains your sympathy for this otherwise challenging soul by letting you share her one-room world for a while .


tends to pile too many `` serious issues '' on its plate at times , yet remains fairly light , always entertaining , and smartly written .


a close-to-solid espionage thriller with the misfortune of being released a few decades too late .


an inventive , absorbing movie that 's as hard to classify as it is hard to resist .


-lrb- russell -rrb- makes good b movies -lrb- the mask , the blob -rrb- , and the scorpion king more than ably meets those standards .


what little grace -lrb- rifkin 's -rrb- tale of precarious skid-row dignity achieves is pushed into the margins by predictable plotting and tiresome histrionics .


the last scenes of the film are anguished , bitter and truthful .


however sincere it may be , the rising place never quite justifies its own existence .


the whole thing feels like a ruse , a tactic to cover up the fact that the picture is constructed around a core of flimsy -- or , worse yet , nonexistent -- ideas .


supposedly authentic account of a historical event that 's far too tragic to merit such superficial treatment .


no laughs .


but the actors make this worth a peek .


a gem of a movie .


the whole thing plays like a tired tyco ad .


it 's exactly the kind of movie toback 's detractors always accuse him of making .


mr. clooney , mr. kaufman and all their collaborators are entitled to take a deep bow for fashioning an engrossing entertainment out of an almost sure-fire prescription for a critical and commercial disaster .


it would be churlish to begrudge anyone for receiving whatever consolation that can be found in dragonfly , yet it is impossible to find the film anything but appalling , shamelessly manipulative and contrived , and totally lacking in conviction .


both deserve better .


between them , de niro and murphy make showtime the most savory and hilarious guilty pleasure of many a recent movie season .


upsetting and thought-provoking , the film has an odd purity that does n't bring you into the characters so much as it has you study them .


slap me , i saw this movie .


visually , ` santa clause 2 ' is wondrously creative .


there 's no question that epps scores once or twice , but it 's telling that his funniest moment comes when he falls about ten feet onto his head .


a coming-of-age tale from new zealand whose boozy , languid air is balanced by a rich visual clarity and deeply felt performances across the board .


the porky 's revenge : ultimate edition ?


` it 's better to go in knowing full well what 's going to happen , but willing to let the earnestness of its execution and skill of its cast take you down a familiar road with a few twists .


a portrait of hell so shattering it 's impossible to shake .


hopelessly inane , humorless and under-inspired .


bogdanich is unashamedly pro-serbian and makes little attempt to give voice to the other side .


like a pack of dynamite sticks , built for controversy .


but the execution is a flop with the exception of about six gags that really work .


take any 12-year-old boy to see this picture , and he 'll be your slave for a year .


miyazaki 's nonstop images are so stunning , and his imagination so vivid , that the only possible complaint you could have about spirited away is that there is no rest period , no timeout .


stage director sam mendes showcases tom hanks as a depression era hit-man in this dark tale of revenge .


vereté has a whip-smart sense of narrative bluffs .


ponderous , plodding soap opera disguised as a feature film .


gets the look and the period trappings right , but it otherwise drowns in a sea of visual and verbal clichés .


director roger kumble offers just enough sweet and traditional romantic comedy to counter the crudity .


a bittersweet contemporary comedy about benevolent deception , which , while it may not rival the filmmaker 's period pieces , is still very much worth seeing .


if you want to see a train wreck that you ca n't look away from , then look no further , because here it is .


gorgeous to look at but insufferably tedious and turgid ... a curiously constricted epic .


then again , in a better movie , you might not have noticed .


a fairly enjoyable mixture of longest yard ... and the 1999 guy ritchie caper lock stock and two smoking barrels .


the re - enactments , however fascinating they may be as history , are too crude to serve the work especially well .


if a horror movie 's primary goal is to frighten and disturb , then they works spectacularly well ... a shiver-inducing , nerve-rattling ride .


oedekerk mugs mercilessly , and the genuinely funny jokes are few and far between .


often silly -- and gross -- but it 's rarely as moronic as some campus gross-out films .


perhaps the film should be seen as a conversation starter .


spielberg 's first real masterpiece , it deserved all the hearts it won -- and wins still , 20 years later .


-lrb- haynes ' -rrb- homage to such films as `` all that heaven allows '' and `` imitation of life '' transcends them .


... unlike -lrb- scorsese 's mean streets -rrb- , ash wednesday is essentially devoid of interesting characters or even a halfway intriguing plot .


you may feel compelled to watch the film twice or pick up a book on the subject .


slow and ponderous , but rohmer 's drama builds to an intense indoor drama about compassion , sacrifice , and christian love in the face of political corruption .


sheridan 's take on the author 's schoolboy memoir ... is a rather toothless take on a hard young life .


godard has never made a more sheerly beautiful film than this unexpectedly moving meditation on love , history , memory , resistance and artistic transcendence .


under-rehearsed and lifeless


the film offers an intriguing what-if premise .


this 10th film in the series looks and feels tired .


you need n't be steeped in '50s sociology , pop culture or movie lore to appreciate the emotional depth of haynes ' work .


rarely have i seen a film so willing to champion the fallibility of the human heart .


a witty , low-key romantic comedy .


what enlivens this film , beyond the astute direction of cardoso and beautifully detailed performances by all of the actors , is a note of defiance over social dictates .


an exhausting family drama about a porcelain empire and just as hard a flick as its subject matter .


a delightful little film that revels in its own simplicity , mostly martha will leave you with a smile on your face and a grumble in your stomach .


it 's hard to quibble with a flick boasting this many genuine cackles , but notorious c.h.o. still feels like a promising work-in-progress .


a shoddy male hip hop fantasy filled with guns , expensive cars , lots of naked women and rocawear clothing .


a strong and confident work which works so well for the first 89 minutes , but ends so horrendously confusing in the final two


even the hastily and amateurishly drawn animation can not engage .


with ` bowling for columbine , ' michael moore gives us the perfect starting point for a national conversation about guns , violence , and fear .


i liked it just enough .


it 's the funniest american comedy since graffiti bridge .


after an uncertain start , murder hits and generally sustains a higher plateau with bullock 's memorable first interrogation of gosling .


a decidedly mixed bag .


although devoid of objectivity and full of nostalgic comments from the now middle-aged participants , dogtown and z-boys has a compelling story to tell .


... a delicious crime drama on par with the slickest of mamet .


on top of a foundering performance , -lrb- madonna 's -rrb- denied her own athleticism by lighting that emphasizes every line and sag .


it comes off as so silly that you would n't be surprised if ba , murdock and rest of the a-team were seen giving chase in a black and red van .


paxton 's uneven directorial debut fails to unlock the full potential of what is in many ways a fresh and dramatically substantial spin on the genre .


on the surface a silly comedy , scotland , pa would be forgettable if it were n't such a clever adaptation of the bard 's tragic play .


mostly works because of the universal themes , earnest performances ... and excellent use of music by india 's popular gulzar and jagjit singh .


about the only thing to give the movie points for is bravado -- to take an entirely stale concept and push it through the audience 's meat grinder one more time .


but the performances of pacino , williams , and swank keep the viewer wide-awake all the way through .


it somehow managed to make its way past my crappola radar and find a small place in my heart


a boring , pretentious muddle that uses a sensational , real-life 19th-century crime as a metaphor for -- well , i 'm not exactly sure what -- and has all the dramatic weight of a raindrop .


far from heaven is a dazzling conceptual feat , but more than that , it 's a work of enthralling drama .


blessed with a searing lead performance by ryan gosling -lrb- murder by numbers -rrb- , the movie is powerful and provocative .


this movie has a strong message about never giving up on a loved one , but it 's not an easy movie to watch and will probably disturb many who see it .


although it does n't always hang together -- violence and whimsy do n't combine easily -- `` cherish '' certainly is n't dull .


the film desperately sinks further and further into comedy futility .


it almost feels as if the movie is more interested in entertaining itself than in amusing us .


a low-rent retread of the alien pictures .


it merely indulges in the worst elements of all of them .


there 's none of the happily-ever - after spangle of monsoon wedding in late marriage -- and that 's part of what makes dover kosashvili 's outstanding feature debut so potent .


the entire film is one big excuse to play one lewd scene after another .


a fascinating examination of the joyous , turbulent self-discovery made by a proper , middle-aged woman .


has an unmistakable , easy joie de vivre .


it 's a rare window on an artistic collaboration .


an unremarkable , modern action\/comedy buddy movie whose only nod to nostalgia is in the title .


report card : does n't live up to the exalted tagline - there 's definite room for improvement .


too intensely focused on the travails of being hal hartley to function as pastiche , no such thing is hartley 's least accessible screed yet .


a backstage must-see for true fans of comedy .


it 's got the brawn , but not the brains .


but i do .


lacks dramatic punch and depth .


it may be a no-brainer , but at least it 's a funny no-brainer .


like the excruciating end of days , collateral damage presents schwarzenegger as a tragic figure , but sympathy really belongs with any viewer forced to watch him try out so many complicated facial expressions .


who is this movie for ?


a great cast and a wonderful but sometimes confusing flashback movie about growing up in a dysfunctional family .


ozpetek offers an aids subtext , skims over the realities of gay sex , and presents yet another tired old vision of the gay community as an all-inclusive world where uptight , middle class bores like antonia can feel good about themselves .


the leads are so unmemorable , despite several attempts at lengthy dialogue scenes , that one eventually resents having to inhale this gutter romancer 's secondhand material .


a relative letdown .


from its nauseating spinning credits sequence to a very talented but underutilized supporting cast , bartleby squanders as much as it gives out .


a realistically terrifying movie that puts another notch in the belt of the long list of renegade-cop tales .


brings an irresistible blend of warmth and humor and a consistent embracing humanity in the face of life 's harshness .


inconsequential road-and-buddy pic .


with miscast leads , banal dialogue and an absurdly overblown climax , killing me softly belongs firmly in the so-bad-it 's - good camp .


it 's been 13 months and 295 preview screenings since i last walked out on a movie , but resident evil really earned my indignant , preemptive departure .


the leanest and meanest of solondz 's misanthropic comedies .


about schmidt belongs to nicholson .


its metaphors are opaque enough to avoid didacticism , and the film succeeds as an emotionally accessible , almost mystical work .


starts as an intense political and psychological thriller but is sabotaged by ticking time bombs and other hollywood-action cliches .


unspools like a highbrow , low-key , 102-minute infomercial , blending entrepreneurial zeal with the testimony of satisfied customers .


even if it pushes its agenda too forcefully , this remains a film about something , one that attempts and often achieves a level of connection and concern .


it 's a sight to behold .


the setting is so cool that it chills the characters , reducing our emotional stake in the outcome of `` intacto 's '' dangerous and seductively stylish game .


if you 're not totally weirded - out by the notion of cinema as community-therapy spectacle , quitting hits home with disorienting force .


better than the tepid star trek : insurrection ; falls short of first contact because the villain could n't pick the lint off borg queen alice krige 's cape ; and finishes half a parsec -lrb- a nose -rrb- ahead of generations .


at times the guys taps into some powerful emotions , but this kind of material is more effective on stage .


anyone else seen this before ?


the film is grossly contradictory in conveying its social message , if indeed there is one .


daringly perceptive , taut , piercing and feisty , biggie and tupac is undeniably subversive and involving in its bold presentation .


boyd 's screenplay -lrb- co-written with guardian hack nick davies -rrb- has a florid turn of phrase that owes more to guy ritchie than the bard of avon .


not about scares but a mood in which an ominous , pervasive , and unknown threat lurks just below the proceedings and adds an almost constant mindset of suspense .


this deeply spiritual film taps into the meaning and consolation in afterlife communications .


i know that i 'll never listen to marvin gaye or the supremes the same way again


bearable .


a big , loud , bang-the-drum bore .


mostly the film is just hectic and homiletic : two parts exhausting men in black mayhem to one part family values .


horrendously amateurish filmmaking that is plainly dull and visually ugly when it is n't incomprehensible .


after collateral damage , you might imagine that most every aggrieved father cliché has been unturned .


predictable storyline and by-the-book scripting is all but washed away by sumptuous ocean visuals and the cinematic stylings of director john stockwell .


laugh-out-loud lines , adorably ditsy but heartfelt performances , and sparkling , bittersweet dialogue that cuts to the chase of the modern girl 's dilemma .


essentially a collection of bits -- and they 're all naughty .


you get the impression that writer and director burr steers knows the territory ... but his sense of humor has yet to lose the smug self-satisfaction usually associated with the better private schools .


ultimately engages less for its story of actorly existential despair than for its boundary-hopping formal innovations and glimpse into another kind of chinese ` cultural revolution . '


happily , some things are immune to the folly of changing taste and attitude .


viewers will need all the luck they can muster just figuring out who 's who in this pretentious mess .


the viewer takes great pleasure in watching the resourceful molly stay a step ahead of her pursuers .


with we were soldiers , hollywood makes a valiant attempt to tell a story about the vietnam war before the pathology set in .


i just saw this movie ... well , it 's probably not accurate to call it a movie .


the director has injected self-consciousness into the proceedings at every turn .


one of the smarter offerings the horror genre has produced in recent memory , even if it 's far tamer than advertised .


a well-done film of a self-reflexive , philosophical nature .


still , it just sits there like a side dish no one ordered .


wiser souls would have tactfully pretended not to see it and left it lying there


how i killed my father is one of those art house films that makes you feel like you 're watching an iceberg melt -- only it never melts .


filmmakers dana janklowicz-mann and amir mann area headed east , far east , in retelling a historically significant , and personal , episode detailing how one international city welcomed tens of thousands of german jewish refugees while the world 's democracie


who , exactly , is fighting whom here ?


can be as tiresome as 9 seconds of jesse helms ' anti- castro rhetoric , which are included


it 's a lot to ask people to sit still for two hours and change watching such a character , especially when rendered in as flat and impassive a manner as phoenix 's .


in truth , it has all the heart of a porno flick -lrb- but none of the sheer lust -rrb- .


cherish would 've worked a lot better had it been a short film .


sometimes shorter is better .


as schmidt , nicholson walks with a slow , deliberate gait , chooses his words carefully and subdues his natural exuberance .


if you 're looking for an intelligent movie in which you can release your pent up anger , enough is just the ticket you need .


hardly a nuanced portrait of a young woman 's breakdown , the film nevertheless works up a few scares .


maybe there 's a metaphor here , but figuring it out would n't make trouble every day any better .


a zippy 96 minutes of mediocre special effects , hoary dialogue , fluxing accents , and -- worst of all -- silly-looking morlocks .


every so often a film comes along that is so insanely stupid , so awful in so many ways that watching it leaves you giddy .


but it is entertaining on an inferior level .


plummer steals the show without resorting to camp as nicholas ' wounded and wounding uncle ralph .


a penetrating glimpse into the tissue-thin ego of the stand-up comic .


evokes the frustration , the awkwardness and the euphoria of growing up , without relying on the usual tropes .


the problems of the people in love in the time of money are hardly specific to their era .


the question hanging over the time machine is not , as the main character suggests , ` what if ? '


it 's a head-turner -- thoughtfully written , beautifully read and , finally , deeply humanizing .


as it is , it 's too long and unfocused .


this is not a classical dramatic animated feature , nor a hip , contemporary , in-jokey one .


i 'm not a fan of the phrase ` life affirming ' because it usually means ` schmaltzy , ' but real women have curves truly is life affirming .


too much of storytelling moves away from solondz 's social critique , casting its audience as that of intellectual lector in contemplation of the auteur 's professional injuries .


charlotte sometimes is a gem .


the movie , while beautiful , feels labored , with a hint of the writing exercise about it .


the symbols float like butterflies and the spinning styx sting like bees .


the result is more depressing than liberating , but it 's never boring .


australia : land beyond time is an enjoyable big movie primarily because australia is a weirdly beautiful place .


as immaculate as stuart little 2 is , it could be a lot better if it were , well , more adventurous .


further sad evidence that tom tykwer , director of the resonant and sense-spinning run lola run , has turned out to be a one-trick pony -- a maker of softheaded metaphysical claptrap .


benigni presents himself as the boy puppet pinocchio , complete with receding hairline , weathered countenance and american breckin meyer 's ridiculously inappropriate valley boy voice .


-lrb- a -rrb- satisfying niblet .


this is a more fascinating look at the future than `` bladerunner '' and one of the most high-concept sci fi adventures attempted for the screen .


coupling disgracefully written dialogue with flailing bodily movements that substitute for acting , circuit is the awkwardly paced soap opera-ish story .


it rapidly develops into a gut-wrenching examination of the way cultural differences and emotional expectations collide .


you try to guess the order in which the kids in the house will be gored .


i highly recommend irwin , but not in the way this film showcases him .


payne has created a beautiful canvas , and nicholson proves once again that he 's the best brush in the business .


-lrb- siegel -rrb- and co-writers lisa bazadona and grace woodard have relied too much on convention in creating the characters who surround frankie .


while the material is slight , the movie is better than you might think .


meant for star wars fans .


the video work is so grainy and rough , so dependent on being ` naturalistic ' rather than carefully lit and set up , that it 's exhausting to watch .


unambitious writing emerges in the movie , using a plot that could have come from an animated-movie screenwriting textbook .


the film 's strength is n't in its details , but in the larger picture it paints - of a culture in conflict with itself , with the thin veneer of nationalism that covers our deepest , media-soaked fears .


i do n't think most of the people who loved the 1989 paradiso will prefer this new version .


a sluggish pace and lack of genuine narrative hem the movie in every bit as much as life hems in the spirits of these young women .


broomfield 's style of journalism is hardly journalism at all , and even those with an avid interest in the subject will grow impatient .


mostly , -lrb- goldbacher -rrb- just lets her complicated characters be unruly , confusing and , through it all , human .


even with its $ 50-million us budget , pinocchio never quite achieves the feel of a fanciful motion picture .


adam sandler 's heart may be in the right place , but he needs to pull his head out of his butt


a genuine mind-bender .


the master of disguise is funny -- not `` ha ha '' funny , `` dead circus performer '' funny .


cynical and serious look at teenage boys doing what they do best - being teenagers .


just as the recent argentine film son of the bride reminded us that a feel-good movie can still show real heart , time of favor presents us with an action movie that actually has a brain .


that frenetic spectacle -lrb- on the tv show -rrb- has usually been leavened by a charm that 's conspicuously missing from the girls ' big-screen blowout .


nonchalantly freaky and uncommonly pleasurable , warm water may well be the year 's best and most unpredictable comedy .


she 's all-powerful , a voice for a pop-cyber culture that feeds on her bjorkness .


qualities that were once amusing are becoming irritating .


this is a story that zings all the way through with originality , humour and pathos .


what a stiflingly unfunny and unoriginal mess this is !


too stagey , talky -- and long -- for its own good .


as pure over-the-top trash , any john waters movie has it beat by a country mile .


a tasty appetizer that leaves you wanting more .


on its own staggeringly unoriginal terms , this gender-bending comedy is generally quite funny .


a clumsily manufactured exploitation flick , a style-free exercise in manipulation and mayhem .


it lacks the compassion , good-natured humor and the level of insight that made -lrb- eyre 's -rrb- first film something of a sleeper success .


personally , i 'd rather watch them on the animal planet .


as commander-in-chief of this film , bigelow demonstrates a breadth of vision and an attention to detail that propels her into the upper echelons of the directing world .


an annoying orgy of excess and exploitation that has no point and goes nowhere .


the art demands live viewing .


paul cox needed to show it .


astonishing ... -lrb- frames -rrb- profound ethical and philosophical questions in the form of dazzling pop entertainment .


more than simply a portrait of early extreme sports , this peek into the 1970s skateboard revolution is a skateboard film as social anthropology ...


although the subject matter may still be too close to recent national events , the film works - mostly due to its superior cast of characters .


quelle surprise !


a stirring road movie .


bursting through the constraints of its source , this is one adapted - from-television movie that actually looks as if it belongs on the big screen .


even with all its botches , enigma offers all the pleasure of a handsome and well-made entertainment .


the images lack contrast , are murky and are frequently too dark to be decipherable .


there 's real visual charge to the filmmaking , and a strong erotic spark to the most crucial lip-reading sequence .


if you 're in the right b-movie frame of mind , it may just scare the pants off you .


city by the sea is a gritty police thriller with all the dysfunctional family dynamics one could wish for .


dismally dull sci-fi comedy .


it 's weird , wonderful , and not necessarily for kids .


executed with such gentle but insistent sincerity , with such good humor and appreciation of the daily grind that only the most hardhearted scrooge could fail to respond .


maybe he was reading the minds of the audience .


may seriously impair your ability to ever again maintain a straight face while speaking to a highway patrolman .


grenier is terrific , bringing an unforced , rapid-fire delivery to toback 's heidegger - and nietzsche-referencing dialogue .


burns ' fifth beer-soaked film feels in almost every possible way -- from the writing and direction to the soggy performances -- tossed off .


less the sensational true-crime hell-jaunt purists might like and more experimental in its storytelling -lrb- though no less horrifying for it -rrb- .


if reno is to the left of liberal on the political spectrum , her tough , funny , rather chaotic show is n't subversive so much as it is nit-picky about the hypocrisies of our time .


it 's not so much a movie as a joint promotion for the national basketball association and teenaged rap and adolescent poster-boy lil ' bow wow .


it labours as storytelling .


a first-class road movie that proves you can run away from home , but your ego and all your problems go with you .


maybe thomas wolfe was right : you ca n't go home again .


the plot 's clearly mythic structure may owe more to disney 's strong sense of formula than to the original story .


the nonstop artifice ultimately proves tiresome , with the surface histrionics failing to compensate for the paper-thin characterizations and facile situations .


it makes me say the obvious : abandon all hope of a good movie ye who enter here .


festers in just such a dungpile that you 'd swear you were watching monkeys flinging their feces at you .


yes , i have given this movie a rating of zero .


a buoyant romantic comedy about friendship , love , and the truth that we 're all in this together .


the locations go from stark desert to gorgeous beaches .


an acceptable way to pass a little over an hour with moviegoers ages 8-10 , but it 's unlikely to inspire anything more than a visit to mcdonald 's , let alone some savvy street activism .


those who are n't put off by the film 's austerity will find it more than capable of rewarding them .


we could have expected a little more human being , and a little less product .


tom shadyac has learned a bit more craft since directing adams , but he still lingers over every point until the slowest viewer grasps it .


veers uncomfortably close to pro-serb propaganda .


has nothing good to speak about other than the fact that it is relatively short , tries its best to hide the fact that seagal 's overweight and out of shape .


like a three-ring circus , there are side stories aplenty -- none of them memorable .


a fascinating literary mystery story with multiple strands about the controversy of who really wrote shakespeare 's plays .


just too silly and sophomoric to ensnare its target audience .


... one of the more influential works of the ` korean new wave ' .


the closest thing to the experience of space travel


in the long , dishonorable history of quickie teen-pop exploitation , like mike stands out for its only partly synthetic decency .


right now , they 're merely signposts marking the slow , lingering death of imagination .


while easier to sit through than most of jaglom 's self-conscious and gratingly irritating films , it 's still tainted by cliches , painful improbability and murky points .


bon appétit !


a movie that seems motivated more by a desire to match mortarboards with dead poets society and good will hunting than by its own story .


as animation increasingly emphasizes the computer and the cool , this is a film that takes a stand in favor of tradition and warmth .


boy , has this franchise ever run out of gas .


the film itself is about something very interesting and odd that would probably work better as a real documentary without the insinuation of mediocre acting or a fairly trite narrative .


two hours of junk .


this is absolutely and completely ridiculous and an insult to every family whose mother has suffered through the horrible pains of a death by cancer .


i love the opening scenes of a wintry new york city in 1899 .


-lrb- d -rrb- espite its familiar subject matter , ice age is consistently amusing and engrossing ...


though its rather routine script is loaded with familiar situations , the movie has a cinematic fluidity and sense of intelligence that makes it work more than it probably should .


alternative medicine obviously has its merits ... but ayurveda does the field no favors .


a living testament to the power of the eccentric and the strange .


it 's not as awful as some of the recent hollywood trip tripe ... but it 's far from a groundbreaking endeavor .


infidelity drama is nicely shot , well-edited and features a standout performance by diane lane .


overall , it 's a pretty mediocre family film .


a soulless jumble of ineptly assembled cliches and pabulum that plays like a 95-minute commercial for nba properties .


talkiness is n't necessarily bad , but the dialogue frequently misses the mark .


but the 2002 film does n't really believe in it , and breaks the mood with absurdly inappropriate ` comedy ' scenes .


not so much farcical as sour .


like life on the island , the movie grows boring despite the scenery .


the material and the production itself are little more than routine .


aspires to the cracked lunacy of the adventures of buckaroo banzai , but thanks to an astonishingly witless script ends up more like the adventures of ford fairlane .


it 's packed to bursting with incident , and with scores of characters , some fictional , some from history .


far more successful , if considerably less ambitious , than last year 's kubrick-meets-spielberg exercise .


when it 's this rich and luscious , who cares ?


and `` they 're coming ! ''


a glossy knock-off of a b-movie revenge flick .


informative , intriguing , observant , often touching ... gives a human face to what 's often discussed in purely abstract terms .


a compelling pre-wwii drama with vivid characters and a warm , moving message .


a bizarre piece of work , with premise and dialogue at the level of kids ' television and plot threads as morose as teen pregnancy , rape and suspected murder


at best , cletis tout might inspire a trip to the video store -- in search of a better movie experience .


skip this turd and pick your nose instead because you 're sure to get more out of the latter experience .


what a concept , what an idea , what a thrill ride .


unlike most surf movies , blue crush thrillingly uses modern technology to take the viewer inside the wave .


be forewarned , if you 're depressed about anything before watching this film , you may just end up trying to drown yourself in a lake afterwards .


it has become apparent that the franchise 's best years are long past .


i 'm all for the mentally challenged getting their fair shot in the movie business , but surely it does n't have to be as a collection of keening and self-mutilating sideshow geeks .


it strikes hardest ... when it reminds you how pertinent its dynamics remain .