the lady and the duke is a smart , romantic drama that dares to depict the french revolution from the aristocrats ' perspective .

a compelling yarn , but not quite a ripping one .


if divine secrets of the ya-ya sisterhood suffers from a ploddingly melodramatic structure , it comes to life in the performances .


there are so few films about the plight of american indians in modern america that skins comes as a welcome , if downbeat , missive from a forgotten front .


adrift , bentley and hudson stare and sniffle , respectively , as ledger attempts , in vain , to prove that movie-star intensity can overcome bad hair design .


pretend like your sat scores are below 120 and you might not notice the flaws .

cinematic pyrotechnics aside , the only thing avary seems to care about are mean giggles and pulchritude .


it must be the end of the world : the best film so far this year is a franchise sequel starring wesley snipes .


what starts off as a potentially incredibly twisting mystery becomes simply a monster chase film .

... the whole thing succeeded only in making me groggy .


the movie is hardly a masterpiece , but it does mark ms. bullock 's best work in some time .


jackson shamefully strolls through this mess with a smug grin , inexplicably wearing a kilt and carrying a bag of golf clubs over one shoulder .


it 's about issues most adults have to face in marriage and i think that 's what i liked about it -- the real issues tucked between the silly and crude storyline .


little more than a well-mounted history lesson .

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


the story 's scope and pageantry are mesmerizing , and mr. day-lewis roars with leonine power .


what they 're doing is a matter of plumbing arrangements and mind games , of no erotic or sensuous charge .

while some of the camera work is interesting , the film 's mid-to-low budget is betrayed by the surprisingly shoddy makeup work .


what makes the film special is the refreshingly unhibited enthusiasm that the people , in spite of clearly evident poverty and hardship , bring to their music .


it 's good , hard-edged stuff , violent and a bit exploitative but also nicely done , morally alert and street-smart .


cherry orchard is badly edited , often awkwardly directed and suffers from the addition of a wholly unnecessary pre-credit sequence designed to give some of the characters a ` back story . '


a rambling ensemble piece with loosely connected characters and plots that never quite gel .


the film , despite the gratuitous cinematic distractions impressed upon it , is still good fun .


dogtown & z-boys evokes the blithe rebel fantasy with the kind of insouciance embedded in the sexy demise of james dean .


a loud , brash and mainly unfunny high school comedy .


the lively appeal of the last kiss lies in the ease with which it integrates thoughtfulness and pasta-fagioli comedy .

a compelling yarn , but not quite a ripping one .


the events of the film are just so weird that i honestly never knew what the hell was coming next .


it collapses when mr. taylor tries to shift the tone to a thriller 's rush .

the country bears wastes an exceptionally good idea .


the re-release of ron howard 's apollo 13 in the imax format proves absolutely that really , really , really good things can come in enormous packages .


the cinematic equivalent of patronizing a bar favored by pretentious , untalented artistes who enjoy moaning about their cruel fate .

first-time director joão pedro rodrigues ' unwillingness to define his hero 's background or motivations becomes more and more frustrating as the film goes on .


waiting for godard can be fruitful : ` in praise of love ' is the director 's epitaph for himself .


one of those rare films that come by once in a while with flawless amounts of acting , direction , story and pace .

the bottom line with nemesis is the same as it has been with all the films in the series : fans will undoubtedly enjoy it , and the uncommitted need n't waste their time on it .


i 'm sorry to say that this should seal the deal - arnold is not , nor will he be , back .


one ca n't shake the feeling that crossroads is nothing more than an hour-and-a-half-long commercial for britney 's latest album .

chan 's stunts are limited and so embellished by editing that there 's really not much of a sense of action or even action-comedy .


` if you are in the mood for an intelligent weepy , it can easily worm its way into your heart . '


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

if divine secrets of the ya-ya sisterhood suffers from a ploddingly melodramatic structure , it comes to life in the performances .


as a film director , labute continues to improve .

an energizing , intoxicating documentary charting the rise of hip-hop culture in general and the art of scratching -lrb- or turntablism -rrb- in particular .


adults , other than the parents ... will be hard pressed to succumb to the call of the wild .


its initial excitement settles into a warmed over pastiche .

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


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


with so many bad romances out there , this is the kind of movie that deserves a chance to shine .

one of those rare films that come by once in a while with flawless amounts of acting , direction , story and pace .


what starts off as a potentially incredibly twisting mystery becomes simply a monster chase film .


the wild thornberrys movie is pleasant enough and the message of our close ties with animals can certainly not be emphasized enough .

fortunately , elling never gets too cloying thanks to the actors ' perfect comic timing and sweet , genuine chemistry .


the emotion is impressively true for being so hot-blooded , and both leads are up to the task .

a harrowing account of a psychological breakdown .


long before it 's over , you 'll be thinking of 51 ways to leave this loser .


when your subject is illusion versus reality , should n't the reality seem at least passably real ?

but unless you 're an absolute raving star wars junkie , it is n't much fun .


and thanks to kline 's superbly nuanced performance , that pondering is highly pleasurable .


though in some ways similar to catherine breillat 's fat girl , rain is the far superior film .


little more than a well-mounted history lesson .


it 's just that it 's so not-at-all-good .

make like the title and dodge this one .


after you laugh once -lrb- maybe twice -rrb- , you will have completely forgotten the movie by the time you get back to your car in the parking lot .


angel presents events partly from the perspective of aurelie and christelle , and infuses the film with the sensibility of a particularly nightmarish fairytale .


it establishes its ominous mood and tension swiftly , and if the suspense never rises to a higher level , it is nevertheless maintained throughout .

a raunchy and frequently hilarious follow-up to the gifted korean american stand-up 's i 'm the one that i want .


mostly , shafer and co-writer gregory hinton lack a strong-minded viewpoint , or a sense of humor .


and we do n't avert our eyes for a moment .


first , for a movie that tries to be smart , it 's kinda dumb .


it 's a funny little movie with clever dialogue and likeable characters .


the re-release of ron howard 's apollo 13 in the imax format proves absolutely that really , really , really good things can come in enormous packages .

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


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

we just do n't really care too much about this love story .


it 's never dull and always looks good .


an improvement on the feeble examples of big-screen poke-mania that have preceded it .

a film of delicate interpersonal dances .


although god is great addresses interesting matters of identity and heritage , it 's hard to shake the feeling that it was intended to be a different kind of film .


what 's really sad is to see two academy award winning actresses -lrb- and one academy award winning actor -rrb- succumb to appearing in this junk that 's tv sitcom material at best .


as comedic spotlights go , notorious c.h.o. hits all the verbal marks it should .


this comic gem is as delightful as it is derivative .


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


it should be doing a lot of things , but does n't .

it 's difficult to conceive of anyone who has reached puberty actually finding the characters in slackers or their antics amusing , let alone funny .


although shot with little style , skins is heartfelt and achingly real .


undoubtedly the scariest movie ever made about tattoos .

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


a pretty decent kid-pleasing , tolerable-to-adults lark of a movie .

the performers are so spot on , it is hard to conceive anyone else in their roles .


like the hanks character , he 's a slow study : the action is stilted and the tabloid energy embalmed .


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

for all its shoot-outs , fistfights , and car chases , this movie is a phlegmatic bore , so tedious it makes the silly spy vs. spy film the sum of all fears , starring ben affleck , seem downright hitchcockian .


the movie 's thesis -- elegant technology for the masses -- is surprisingly refreshing .

what makes the film special is the refreshingly unhibited enthusiasm that the people , in spite of clearly evident poverty and hardship , bring to their music .


make like the title and dodge this one .


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- .

what 's hard to understand is why anybody picked it up .


the re-release of ron howard 's apollo 13 in the imax format proves absolutely that really , really , really good things can come in enormous packages .


the whole film has this sneaky feel to it -- as if the director is trying to dupe the viewer into taking it all as very important simply because the movie is ugly to look at and not a hollywood product .

but the movie 's narrative hook is way too muddled to be an effectively chilling guilty pleasure .


a weird little movie that 's amusing enough while you watch it , offering fine acting moments and pungent insights into modern l.a. 's show-biz and media subcultures .


exudes the fizz of a busby berkeley musical and the visceral excitement of a sports extravaganza .

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


snoots will no doubt rally to its cause , trotting out threadbare standbys like ` masterpiece ' and ` triumph ' and all that malarkey , but rarely does an established filmmaker so ardently waste viewers ' time with a gobbler like this .


for all its shoot-outs , fistfights , and car chases , this movie is a phlegmatic bore , so tedious it makes the silly spy vs. spy film the sum of all fears , starring ben affleck , seem downright hitchcockian .

enough is not a bad movie , just mediocre .


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 .


comes off as a long , laborious whine , the bellyaching of a paranoid and unlikable man .

to the filmmakers , ivan is a prince of a fellow , but he comes across as shallow and glib though not mean-spirited , and there 's no indication that he 's been responsible for putting together any movies of particular value or merit .


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 .


lovingly photographed in the manner of a golden book sprung to life , stuart little 2 manages sweetness largely without stickiness .

one of those rare films that come by once in a while with flawless amounts of acting , direction , story and pace .


a rambling ensemble piece with loosely connected characters and plots that never quite gel .


but there 's plenty to offend everyone ...

nothing happens , and it happens to flat characters .


there are so few films about the plight of american indians in modern america that skins comes as a welcome , if downbeat , missive from a forgotten front .


whether or not you 're enlightened by any of derrida 's lectures on `` the other '' and `` the self , '' derrida is an undeniably fascinating and playful fellow .

... by the time it 's done with us , mira nair 's new movie has its audience giddy with the delight of discovery , of having been immersed in a foreign culture only to find that human nature is pretty much the same all over .


what they 're doing is a matter of plumbing arrangements and mind games , of no erotic or sensuous charge .


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- .


dark and unrepentant , this excursion into the epicenter of percolating mental instability is not easily dismissed or forgotten .


while some of the camera work is interesting , the film 's mid-to-low budget is betrayed by the surprisingly shoddy makeup work .

little more than a well-mounted history lesson .


it establishes its ominous mood and tension swiftly , and if the suspense never rises to a higher level , it is nevertheless maintained throughout .


if divine secrets of the ya-ya sisterhood suffers from a ploddingly melodramatic structure , it comes to life in the performances .

dull , a road-trip movie that 's surprisingly short of both adventure and song .


the lively appeal of the last kiss lies in the ease with which it integrates thoughtfulness and pasta-fagioli comedy .


all leather pants & augmented boobs , hawn is hilarious as she tries to resuscitate the fun-loving libertine lost somewhere inside the conservative , handbag-clutching sarandon .


the script has less spice than a rat burger and the rock 's fighting skills are more in line with steven seagal .


it all plays out ... like a high-end john hughes comedy , a kind of elder bueller 's time out .


the story is bogus and its characters tissue-thin .


... too contrived to be as naturally charming as it needs to be .

a baffling mixed platter of gritty realism and magic realism with a hard-to-swallow premise .


it is scott 's convincing portrayal of roger the sad cad that really gives the film its oomph .


the banter between calvin and his fellow barbers feels like a streetwise mclaughlin group ... and never fails to entertain .

dogtown & z-boys evokes the blithe rebel fantasy with the kind of insouciance embedded in the sexy demise of james dean .


a droll , bitchy frolic which pokes fun at the price of popularity and small-town pretension in the lone star state .


true to its animatronic roots : ... as stiff , ponderous and charmless as a mechanical apparatus ... ` the country bears ' should never have been brought out of hibernation .

after you laugh once -lrb- maybe twice -rrb- , you will have completely forgotten the movie by the time you get back to your car in the parking lot .


an energizing , intoxicating documentary charting the rise of hip-hop culture in general and the art of scratching -lrb- or turntablism -rrb- in particular .


talky , artificial and opaque ... an interesting technical exercise , but a tedious picture .


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


ah , yes , that would be me : fighting off the urge to doze .


-lrb- a -rrb- rather thinly-conceived movie .

adrift , bentley and hudson stare and sniffle , respectively , as ledger attempts , in vain , to prove that movie-star intensity can overcome bad hair design .


and they succeed merrily at their noble endeavor .


full frontal , which opens today nationwide , could almost be classified as a movie-industry satire , but it lacks the generous inclusiveness that is the genre 's definitive , if disingenuous , feature .


these people are really going to love the piano teacher .

visually breathtaking , viscerally exciting , and dramatically moving , it 's the very definition of epic adventure .


one ca n't shake the feeling that crossroads is nothing more than an hour-and-a-half-long commercial for britney 's latest album .


cinematic pyrotechnics aside , the only thing avary seems to care about are mean giggles and pulchritude .

has all the complexity and realistic human behavior of an episode of general hospital .


it 's difficult to conceive of anyone who has reached puberty actually finding the characters in slackers or their antics amusing , let alone funny .


turturro is fabulously funny and over the top as a ` very sneaky ' butler who excels in the art of impossible disappearing\/reappearing acts


a beguiling evocation of the quality that keeps dickens evergreen : the exuberant openness with which he expresses our most basic emotions .


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


if ever such a dependable concept was botched in execution , this is it .

it 's just that it 's so not-at-all-good .


these people are really going to love the piano teacher .


mostly , shafer and co-writer gregory hinton lack a strong-minded viewpoint , or a sense of humor .


spielberg 's picture is smarter and subtler than -lrb- total recall and blade runner -rrb- , although its plot may prove too convoluted for fun-seeking summer audiences .


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

this comic gem is as delightful as it is derivative .


a dark comedy that goes for sick and demented humor simply to do so .


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 .

an uncluttered , resonant gem that relays its universal points without lectures or confrontations . '


a seriously bad film with seriously warped logic by writer-director kurt wimmer at the screenplay level .

director elie chouraqui , who co-wrote the script , catches the chaotic horror of war , but why bother if you 're going to subjugate truth to the tear-jerking demands of soap opera ?


one of those rare films that come by once in a while with flawless amounts of acting , direction , story and pace .


to the filmmakers , ivan is a prince of a fellow , but he comes across as shallow and glib though not mean-spirited , and there 's no indication that he 's been responsible for putting together any movies of particular value or merit .

it should be doing a lot of things , but does n't .


chan 's stunts are limited and so embellished by editing that there 's really not much of a sense of action or even action-comedy .

the script was reportedly rewritten a dozen times -- either 11 times too many or else too few .


serious movie-goers embarking upon this journey will find that the road to perdition leads to a satisfying destination .


as a feature-length film , it wears out its welcome as tryingly as the title character .

impostor is a step down for director gary fleder .


lovingly photographed in the manner of a golden book sprung to life , stuart little 2 manages sweetness largely without stickiness .


it 's a funny little movie with clever dialogue and likeable characters .


one can only assume that the jury who bestowed star hoffman 's brother gordy with the waldo salt screenwriting award at 2002 's sundance festival were honoring an attempt to do something different over actually pulling it off

enough is not a bad movie , just mediocre .


a soul-stirring documentary about the israeli\/palestinian conflict as revealed through the eyes of some children who remain curious about each other against all odds .


the solid filmmaking and convincing characters makes this a high water mark for this genre .


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 .


the film never finds its tone and several scenes run too long .

i suspect that you 'll be as bored watching morvern callar as the characters are in it .


the low-key direction is pleasingly emphatic in this properly intense , claustrophobic tale of obsessive love .


i suspect that you 'll be as bored watching morvern callar as the characters are in it .

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 .


dark and unrepentant , this excursion into the epicenter of percolating mental instability is not easily dismissed or forgotten .


there 's got to be a more graceful way of portraying the devastation of this disease .

contrived , maudlin and cliche-ridden ... if this sappy script was the best the contest received , those rejected must have been astronomically bad .


this is a fragmented film , once a good idea that was followed by the bad idea to turn it into a movie .

imagine susan sontag falling in love with howard stern .


woven together handsomely , recalling sixties ' rockumentary milestones from lonely boy to do n't look back .


this bond film goes off the beaten path , not necessarily for the better .


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


a weird little movie that 's amusing enough while you watch it , offering fine acting moments and pungent insights into modern l.a. 's show-biz and media subcultures .

offers a clear-eyed chronicle of a female friendship that is more complex and honest than anything represented in a hollywood film .


there 's got to be a more graceful way of portraying the devastation of this disease .


it 's far from a frothy piece , and the characters are complex , laden with plenty of baggage and tinged with tragic undertones .

fortunately , elling never gets too cloying thanks to the actors ' perfect comic timing and sweet , genuine chemistry .


but there 's plenty to offend everyone ...


first-time director joão pedro rodrigues ' unwillingness to define his hero 's background or motivations becomes more and more frustrating as the film goes on .


and they succeed merrily at their noble endeavor .


the country bears wastes an exceptionally good idea .

make like the title and dodge this one .


it 's never dull and always looks good .


yet another iteration of what 's become one of the movies ' creepiest conventions , in which the developmentally disabled are portrayed with almost supernatural powers to humble , teach and ultimately redeem their mentally `` superior '' friends , family ...

but seriously , folks , it does n't work .


long before it 's over , you 'll be thinking of 51 ways to leave this loser .


the script has less spice than a rat burger and the rock 's fighting skills are more in line with steven seagal .

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


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

the low-key direction is pleasingly emphatic in this properly intense , claustrophobic tale of obsessive love .


impostor is a step down for director gary fleder .


this low-rent -- and even lower-wit -- rip-off of the farrelly brothers ' oeuvre gets way too mushy -- and in a relatively short amount of time .

one of those films that seems tailor made to air on pay cable to offer some modest amusements when one has nothing else to watch .


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 . '


never inspires more than an interested detachment .

-lrb- a -rrb- rather thinly-conceived movie .


this comic gem is as delightful as it is derivative .


mr. wollter and ms. seldhal give strong and convincing performances , but neither reaches into the deepest recesses of the character to unearth the quaking essence of passion , grief and fear .


a beguiling evocation of the quality that keeps dickens evergreen : the exuberant openness with which he expresses our most basic emotions .


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


a compelling yarn , but not quite a ripping one .


talky , artificial and opaque ... an interesting technical exercise , but a tedious picture .

though it pretends to expose the life of male hustlers , it 's exploitive without being insightful .


boasts a handful of virtuosic set pieces and offers a fair amount of trashy , kinky fun .


adults , other than the parents ... will be hard pressed to succumb to the call of the wild .

it 's difficult to conceive of anyone who has reached puberty actually finding the characters in slackers or their antics amusing , let alone funny .


with an admirably dark first script by brent hanley , paxton , making his directorial feature debut , does strong , measured work .


it all plays out ... like a high-end john hughes comedy , a kind of elder bueller 's time out .


i suspect that you 'll be as bored watching morvern callar as the characters are in it .


so devoid of pleasure or sensuality that it can not even be dubbed hedonistic .

it collapses when mr. taylor tries to shift the tone to a thriller 's rush .


the story is bogus and its characters tissue-thin .

full frontal , which opens today nationwide , could almost be classified as a movie-industry satire , but it lacks the generous inclusiveness that is the genre 's definitive , if disingenuous , feature .


the wonder of mostly martha is the performance of gedeck , who makes martha enormously endearing .

waiting for godard can be fruitful : ` in praise of love ' is the director 's epitaph for himself .


when your subject is illusion versus reality , should n't the reality seem at least passably real ?


the low-key direction is pleasingly emphatic in this properly intense , claustrophobic tale of obsessive love .


but seriously , folks , it does n't work .


... by the time it 's done with us , mira nair 's new movie has its audience giddy with the delight of discovery , of having been immersed in a foreign culture only to find that human nature is pretty much the same all over .

whether or not you 're enlightened by any of derrida 's lectures on `` the other '' and `` the self , '' derrida is an undeniably fascinating and playful fellow .


if you 're willing to have fun with it , you wo n't feel cheated by the high infidelity of unfaithful .


a dark comedy that goes for sick and demented humor simply to do so .


and we do n't avert our eyes for a moment .

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 .


but unless you 're an absolute raving star wars junkie , it is n't much fun .


michele is a such a brainless flibbertigibbet that it 's hard to take her spiritual quest at all seriously .

a rambling ensemble piece with loosely connected characters and plots that never quite gel .


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


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

the script was reportedly rewritten a dozen times -- either 11 times too many or else too few .


boasts a handful of virtuosic set pieces and offers a fair amount of trashy , kinky fun .


adrift , bentley and hudson stare and sniffle , respectively , as ledger attempts , in vain , to prove that movie-star intensity can overcome bad hair design .


a poignant and gently humorous parable that loves its characters and communicates something rather beautiful about human nature .

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


its initial excitement settles into a warmed over pastiche .


wonder of wonders -- a teen movie with a humanistic message .

a poignant and gently humorous parable that loves its characters and communicates something rather beautiful about human nature .


contrived , maudlin and cliche-ridden ... if this sappy script was the best the contest received , those rejected must have been astronomically bad .


what 's hard to understand is why anybody picked it up .


nohe 's documentary about the event is sympathetic without being gullible : he is n't blind to the silliness , but also captures moments of spontaneous creativity and authentic co-operative interaction .


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


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


comes off as a long , laborious whine , the bellyaching of a paranoid and unlikable man .


one of the most gloriously unsubtle and adrenalized extreme shockers since the evil dead .

a beguiling evocation of the quality that keeps dickens evergreen : the exuberant openness with which he expresses our most basic emotions .


mostly , shafer and co-writer gregory hinton lack a strong-minded viewpoint , or a sense of humor .


although god is great addresses interesting matters of identity and heritage , it 's hard to shake the feeling that it was intended to be a different kind of film .


a film of delicate interpersonal dances .


boasts a handful of virtuosic set pieces and offers a fair amount of trashy , kinky fun .

it 's never dull and always looks good .


it 's never dull and always looks good .

there are so few films about the plight of american indians in modern america that skins comes as a welcome , if downbeat , missive from a forgotten front .


turturro is fabulously funny and over the top as a ` very sneaky ' butler who excels in the art of impossible disappearing\/reappearing acts

the bottom line with nemesis is the same as it has been with all the films in the series : fans will undoubtedly enjoy it , and the uncommitted need n't waste their time on it .


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

when your subject is illusion versus reality , should n't the reality seem at least passably real ?


but it also has many of the things that made the first one charming .


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

how this one escaped the lifetime network i 'll never know .


all leather pants & augmented boobs , hawn is hilarious as she tries to resuscitate the fun-loving libertine lost somewhere inside the conservative , handbag-clutching sarandon .


waiting for godard can be fruitful : ` in praise of love ' is the director 's epitaph for himself .


despite terrific special effects and funnier gags , harry potter and the chamber of secrets finds a way to make j.k. rowling 's marvelous series into a deadly bore .

even accepting this in the right frame of mind can only provide it with so much leniency .


spielberg 's picture is smarter and subtler than -lrb- total recall and blade runner -rrb- , although its plot may prove too convoluted for fun-seeking summer audiences .


with an admirably dark first script by brent hanley , paxton , making his directorial feature debut , does strong , measured work .

-lrb- rises -rrb- above its oh-so-hollywood rejiggering and its conventional direction to give the film a soul and an unabashed sense of good old-fashioned escapism .


but seriously , folks , it does n't work .


there are so few films about the plight of american indians in modern america that skins comes as a welcome , if downbeat , missive from a forgotten front .

and they succeed merrily at their noble endeavor .


a baffling mixed platter of gritty realism and magic realism with a hard-to-swallow premise .


an uncluttered , resonant gem that relays its universal points without lectures or confrontations . '

and , there 's no way you wo n't be talking about the film once you exit the theater .


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 .


one of those films that seems tailor made to air on pay cable to offer some modest amusements when one has nothing else to watch .

there 's nothing to gain from watching they .


although frailty fits into a classic genre , in its script and execution it is a remarkably original work .

it 's never dull and always looks good .


the story is bogus and its characters tissue-thin .


the events of the film are just so weird that i honestly never knew what the hell was coming next .

eddie murphy and owen wilson have a cute partnership in i spy , but the movie around them is so often nearly nothing that their charm does n't do a load of good .


the re-release of ron howard 's apollo 13 in the imax format proves absolutely that really , really , really good things can come in enormous packages .


as comedic spotlights go , notorious c.h.o. hits all the verbal marks it should .

but it also has many of the things that made the first one charming .


nicks and steinberg match their own creations for pure venality -- that 's giving it the old college try .


-lrb- rises -rrb- above its oh-so-hollywood rejiggering and its conventional direction to give the film a soul and an unabashed sense of good old-fashioned escapism .

the bottom line with nemesis is the same as it has been with all the films in the series : fans will undoubtedly enjoy it , and the uncommitted need n't waste their time on it .


if there was ever a movie where the upbeat ending feels like a copout , this is the one .


` if you are in the mood for an intelligent weepy , it can easily worm its way into your heart . '

woody allen has really found his groove these days .


jackson shamefully strolls through this mess with a smug grin , inexplicably wearing a kilt and carrying a bag of golf clubs over one shoulder .


a raunchy and frequently hilarious follow-up to the gifted korean american stand-up 's i 'm the one that i want .

happily stays close to the ground in a spare and simple manner and does n't pummel us with phony imagery or music .


serious movie-goers embarking upon this journey will find that the road to perdition leads to a satisfying destination .

woven together handsomely , recalling sixties ' rockumentary milestones from lonely boy to do n't look back .


to the filmmakers , ivan is a prince of a fellow , but he comes across as shallow and glib though not mean-spirited , and there 's no indication that he 's been responsible for putting together any movies of particular value or merit .


a lot more dimensional and complex than its sunny disposition would lead you to believe .

an energizing , intoxicating documentary charting the rise of hip-hop culture in general and the art of scratching -lrb- or turntablism -rrb- in particular .


it 's just that it 's so not-at-all-good .


angel presents events partly from the perspective of aurelie and christelle , and infuses the film with the sensibility of a particularly nightmarish fairytale .

with an unusual protagonist -lrb- a kilt-wearing jackson -rrb- and subject matter , the improbable `` formula 51 '' is somewhat entertaining , but it could have been much stronger .


when your subject is illusion versus reality , should n't the reality seem at least passably real ?


with an unusual protagonist -lrb- a kilt-wearing jackson -rrb- and subject matter , the improbable `` formula 51 '' is somewhat entertaining , but it could have been much stronger .

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


despite terrific special effects and funnier gags , harry potter and the chamber of secrets finds a way to make j.k. rowling 's marvelous series into a deadly bore .


the acting , for the most part , is terrific , although the actors must struggle with the fact that they 're playing characters who sometimes feel more like literary conceits than flesh-and-blood humans .

spielberg 's picture is smarter and subtler than -lrb- total recall and blade runner -rrb- , although its plot may prove too convoluted for fun-seeking summer audiences .


after you laugh once -lrb- maybe twice -rrb- , you will have completely forgotten the movie by the time you get back to your car in the parking lot .


a moving tale of love and destruction in unexpected places , unexamined lives .

the movie 's thesis -- elegant technology for the masses -- is surprisingly refreshing .


the characters are based on stock clichés , and the attempt to complicate the story only defies credibility .


nicks and steinberg match their own creations for pure venality -- that 's giving it the old college try .

... the whole thing succeeded only in making me groggy .


waiting for godard can be fruitful : ` in praise of love ' is the director 's epitaph for himself .


another trumpet blast that there may be a new mexican cinema a-bornin ' . '

a timely look back at civil disobedience , anti-war movements and the power of strong voices .


for all its shoot-outs , fistfights , and car chases , this movie is a phlegmatic bore , so tedious it makes the silly spy vs. spy film the sum of all fears , starring ben affleck , seem downright hitchcockian .


a hypnotic cyber hymn and a cruel story of youth culture .

with an admirably dark first script by brent hanley , paxton , making his directorial feature debut , does strong , measured work .


the film never finds its tone and several scenes run too long .


pretend like your sat scores are below 120 and you might not notice the flaws .


the characters are more deeply thought through than in most ` right-thinking ' films .


problem is , we have no idea what in creation is going on .


a weird little movie that 's amusing enough while you watch it , offering fine acting moments and pungent insights into modern l.a. 's show-biz and media subcultures .


the movie is hardly a masterpiece , but it does mark ms. bullock 's best work in some time .


the cinematic equivalent of patronizing a bar favored by pretentious , untalented artistes who enjoy moaning about their cruel fate .


with so many bad romances out there , this is the kind of movie that deserves a chance to shine .


the whole film has this sneaky feel to it -- as if the director is trying to dupe the viewer into taking it all as very important simply because the movie is ugly to look at and not a hollywood product .


the film is so busy making reference to other films and trying to be other films that it fails to have a heart , mind or humor of its own .

chan 's stunts are limited and so embellished by editing that there 's really not much of a sense of action or even action-comedy .


ah , yes , that would be me : fighting off the urge to doze .

the story is bogus and its characters tissue-thin .


likely to have decades of life as a classic movie franchise ?


on the granger movie gauge of 1 to 10 , the powerpuff girls is a fast , frenetic , funny , even punny 6 -- aimed specifically at a grade-school audience .


we just do n't really care too much about this love story .


a good film with a solid pedigree both in front of and , more specifically , behind the camera .

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


an essentially awkward version of the lightweight female empowerment picture we 've been watching for decades


impostor is a step down for director gary fleder .

mr. wollter and ms. seldhal give strong and convincing performances , but neither reaches into the deepest recesses of the character to unearth the quaking essence of passion , grief and fear .


boasts a handful of virtuosic set pieces and offers a fair amount of trashy , kinky fun .


a beguiling evocation of the quality that keeps dickens evergreen : the exuberant openness with which he expresses our most basic emotions .

a film of delicate interpersonal dances .


the movie is so resolutely cobbled together out of older movies that it even uses a totally unnecessary prologue , just because it seems obligatory .


likely to have decades of life as a classic movie franchise ?

it 's about issues most adults have to face in marriage and i think that 's what i liked about it -- the real issues tucked between the silly and crude storyline .


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


director elie chouraqui , who co-wrote the script , catches the chaotic horror of war , but why bother if you 're going to subjugate truth to the tear-jerking demands of soap opera ?

what starts off as a potentially incredibly twisting mystery becomes simply a monster chase film .


the re-release of ron howard 's apollo 13 in the imax format proves absolutely that really , really , really good things can come in enormous packages .


long before it 's over , you 'll be thinking of 51 ways to leave this loser .

true to its animatronic roots : ... as stiff , ponderous and charmless as a mechanical apparatus ... ` the country bears ' should never have been brought out of hibernation .


we just do n't really care too much about this love story .

enough is not a bad movie , just mediocre .


the movie is hardly a masterpiece , but it does mark ms. bullock 's best work in some time .


visually breathtaking , viscerally exciting , and dramatically moving , it 's the very definition of epic adventure .


a baffling mixed platter of gritty realism and magic realism with a hard-to-swallow premise .


it 's difficult to conceive of anyone who has reached puberty actually finding the characters in slackers or their antics amusing , let alone funny .


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

with an admirably dark first script by brent hanley , paxton , making his directorial feature debut , does strong , measured work .


depicts the sorriest and most sordid of human behavior on the screen , then laughs at how clever it 's being .


... by the time it 's done with us , mira nair 's new movie has its audience giddy with the delight of discovery , of having been immersed in a foreign culture only to find that human nature is pretty much the same all over .


although shot with little style , skins is heartfelt and achingly real .

imamura has said that warm water under a red bridge is a poem to the enduring strengths of women .


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- .


jackson shamefully strolls through this mess with a smug grin , inexplicably wearing a kilt and carrying a bag of golf clubs over one shoulder .

the film never finds its tone and several scenes run too long .


ourside the theatre roger might be intolerable company , but inside it he 's well worth spending some time with .


it 's a wonderful , sobering , heart-felt drama .

dogtown & z-boys evokes the blithe rebel fantasy with the kind of insouciance embedded in the sexy demise of james dean .


your children will be occupied for 72 minutes .

spielberg 's picture is smarter and subtler than -lrb- total recall and blade runner -rrb- , although its plot may prove too convoluted for fun-seeking summer audiences .


the cinematic equivalent of patronizing a bar favored by pretentious , untalented artistes who enjoy moaning about their cruel fate .


the only camouflage carvey should now be considering is a paper bag to wear over his head when he goes out into public , to avoid being recognized as the man who bilked unsuspecting moviegoers .

first-time director joão pedro rodrigues ' unwillingness to define his hero 's background or motivations becomes more and more frustrating as the film goes on .


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


if you 're down for a silly hack-and-slash flick , you can do no wrong with jason x.


a droll , bitchy frolic which pokes fun at the price of popularity and small-town pretension in the lone star state .


eddie murphy and owen wilson have a cute partnership in i spy , but the movie around them is so often nearly nothing that their charm does n't do a load of good .


and thanks to kline 's superbly nuanced performance , that pondering is highly pleasurable .


it 's a day at the beach -- with air conditioning and popcorn .

it all plays out ... like a high-end john hughes comedy , a kind of elder bueller 's time out .


director elie chouraqui , who co-wrote the script , catches the chaotic horror of war , but why bother if you 're going to subjugate truth to the tear-jerking demands of soap opera ?


a harrowing account of a psychological breakdown .

a pretty decent kid-pleasing , tolerable-to-adults lark of a movie .


there are now two signs that m. night shyamalan 's debut feature sucked up all he has to give to the mystic genres of cinema : unbreakable and signs .

an overstylized , puréed mélange of sex , psychology , drugs and philosophy .


dark and unrepentant , this excursion into the epicenter of percolating mental instability is not easily dismissed or forgotten .

your 20th outing shows off a lot of stamina and vitality , and get this , madonna 's cameo does n't suck !


though it pretends to expose the life of male hustlers , it 's exploitive without being insightful .


the film does n't sustain its initial promise with a jarring , new-agey tone creeping into the second half

but seriously , folks , it does n't work .


angel presents events partly from the perspective of aurelie and christelle , and infuses the film with the sensibility of a particularly nightmarish fairytale .


an energizing , intoxicating documentary charting the rise of hip-hop culture in general and the art of scratching -lrb- or turntablism -rrb- in particular .

the story 's scope and pageantry are mesmerizing , and mr. day-lewis roars with leonine power .


if there was ever a movie where the upbeat ending feels like a copout , this is the one .

mr. wollter and ms. seldhal give strong and convincing performances , but neither reaches into the deepest recesses of the character to unearth the quaking essence of passion , grief and fear .


the movie is hardly a masterpiece , but it does mark ms. bullock 's best work in some time .


dull , a road-trip movie that 's surprisingly short of both adventure and song .


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 .


does n't deserve a passing grade -lrb- even on a curve -rrb- .

the story is bogus and its characters tissue-thin .


woody allen has really found his groove these days .


a sloppy slapstick throwback to long gone bottom-of-the-bill fare like the ghost and mr. chicken .

despite terrific special effects and funnier gags , harry potter and the chamber of secrets finds a way to make j.k. rowling 's marvelous series into a deadly bore .


at times , the movie looks genuinely pretty .


what makes the film special is the refreshingly unhibited enthusiasm that the people , in spite of clearly evident poverty and hardship , bring to their music .

dogtown & z-boys evokes the blithe rebel fantasy with the kind of insouciance embedded in the sexy demise of james dean .


the film is so busy making reference to other films and trying to be other films that it fails to have a heart , mind or humor of its own .


hawn and sarandon form an acting bond that makes the banger sisters a fascinating character study with laughs to spare .

with so many bad romances out there , this is the kind of movie that deserves a chance to shine .


the script was reportedly rewritten a dozen times -- either 11 times too many or else too few .


how this one escaped the lifetime network i 'll never know .

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 .


imamura has said that warm water under a red bridge is a poem to the enduring strengths of women .


a hugely rewarding experience that 's every bit as enlightening , insightful and entertaining as grant 's two best films -- four weddings and a funeral and bridget jones 's diary .

waiting for godard can be fruitful : ` in praise of love ' is the director 's epitaph for himself .


a loud , brash and mainly unfunny high school comedy .


i have a new favorite musical -- and i 'm not even a fan of the genre

happily stays close to the ground in a spare and simple manner and does n't pummel us with phony imagery or music .


first , for a movie that tries to be smart , it 's kinda dumb .

like the hanks character , he 's a slow study : the action is stilted and the tabloid energy embalmed .


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


i 'm sorry to say that this should seal the deal - arnold is not , nor will he be , back .


the low-key direction is pleasingly emphatic in this properly intense , claustrophobic tale of obsessive love .


the events of the film are just so weird that i honestly never knew what the hell was coming next .


snoots will no doubt rally to its cause , trotting out threadbare standbys like ` masterpiece ' and ` triumph ' and all that malarkey , but rarely does an established filmmaker so ardently waste viewers ' time with a gobbler like this .

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 .


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


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

... the whole thing succeeded only in making me groggy .


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


full frontal , which opens today nationwide , could almost be classified as a movie-industry satire , but it lacks the generous inclusiveness that is the genre 's definitive , if disingenuous , feature .

a lightweight , uneven action comedy that freely mingles french , japanese and hollywood cultures .


and we do n't avert our eyes for a moment .


there 's a whole heap of nothing at the core of this slight coming-of-age\/coming-out tale .


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 .


the characters are based on stock clichés , and the attempt to complicate the story only defies credibility .

though it pretends to expose the life of male hustlers , it 's exploitive without being insightful .


on the granger movie gauge of 1 to 10 , the powerpuff girls is a fast , frenetic , funny , even punny 6 -- aimed specifically at a grade-school audience .


this is an insultingly inept and artificial examination of grief and its impacts upon the relationships of the survivors .

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


the bottom line with nemesis is the same as it has been with all the films in the series : fans will undoubtedly enjoy it , and the uncommitted need n't waste their time on it .


it celebrates the group 's playful spark of nonconformity , glancing vividly back at what hibiscus grandly called his ` angels of light . '


one can only assume that the jury who bestowed star hoffman 's brother gordy with the waldo salt screenwriting award at 2002 's sundance festival were honoring an attempt to do something different over actually pulling it off


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

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


an overstylized , puréed mélange of sex , psychology , drugs and philosophy .


a compelling yarn , but not quite a ripping one .


a soul-stirring documentary about the israeli\/palestinian conflict as revealed through the eyes of some children who remain curious about each other against all odds .

exudes the fizz of a busby berkeley musical and the visceral excitement of a sports extravaganza .


a seriously bad film with seriously warped logic by writer-director kurt wimmer at the screenplay level .


it 's good , hard-edged stuff , violent and a bit exploitative but also nicely done , morally alert and street-smart .

at times , the movie looks genuinely pretty .


it 's difficult to conceive of anyone who has reached puberty actually finding the characters in slackers or their antics amusing , let alone funny .


hollywood ending is the most disappointing woody allen movie ever .


a hypnotic cyber hymn and a cruel story of youth culture .


never inspires more than an interested detachment .


nohe 's documentary about the event is sympathetic without being gullible : he is n't blind to the silliness , but also captures moments of spontaneous creativity and authentic co-operative interaction .


the problem with the bread , my sweet is that it 's far too sentimental .


it 's about issues most adults have to face in marriage and i think that 's what i liked about it -- the real issues tucked between the silly and crude storyline .


and they succeed merrily at their noble endeavor .

as a film director , labute continues to improve .


one of those films that seems tailor made to air on pay cable to offer some modest amusements when one has nothing else to watch .


make like the title and dodge this one .

the script was reportedly rewritten a dozen times -- either 11 times too many or else too few .


the film has a terrific look and salma hayek has a feel for the character at all stages of her life .


waiting for godard can be fruitful : ` in praise of love ' is the director 's epitaph for himself .


dull , a road-trip movie that 's surprisingly short of both adventure and song .


a dark comedy that goes for sick and demented humor simply to do so .

depicts the sorriest and most sordid of human behavior on the screen , then laughs at how clever it 's being .


i have a new favorite musical -- and i 'm not even a fan of the genre


a weird little movie that 's amusing enough while you watch it , offering fine acting moments and pungent insights into modern l.a. 's show-biz and media subcultures .


imagine kevin smith , the blasphemous bad boy of suburban jersey , if he were stripped of most of his budget and all of his sense of humor .

a baffling mixed platter of gritty realism and magic realism with a hard-to-swallow premise .


everything about girls ca n't swim , even its passages of sensitive observation , feels secondhand , familiar -- and not in a good way .


the re-release of ron howard 's apollo 13 in the imax format proves absolutely that really , really , really good things can come in enormous packages .


the bottom line with nemesis is the same as it has been with all the films in the series : fans will undoubtedly enjoy it , and the uncommitted need n't waste their time on it .

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


but seriously , folks , it does n't work .


a droll , bitchy frolic which pokes fun at the price of popularity and small-town pretension in the lone star state .

this is a fragmented film , once a good idea that was followed by the bad idea to turn it into a movie .


a compelling yarn , but not quite a ripping one .


what 's really sad is to see two academy award winning actresses -lrb- and one academy award winning actor -rrb- succumb to appearing in this junk that 's tv sitcom material at best .

make like the title and dodge this one .


offers a clear-eyed chronicle of a female friendship that is more complex and honest than anything represented in a hollywood film .


ourside the theatre roger might be intolerable company , but inside it he 's well worth spending some time with .

and , there 's no way you wo n't be talking about the film once you exit the theater .


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


a baffling mixed platter of gritty realism and magic realism with a hard-to-swallow premise .

true to its animatronic roots : ... as stiff , ponderous and charmless as a mechanical apparatus ... ` the country bears ' should never have been brought out of hibernation .


turturro is fabulously funny and over the top as a ` very sneaky ' butler who excels in the art of impossible disappearing\/reappearing acts


never inspires more than an interested detachment .


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

although god is great addresses interesting matters of identity and heritage , it 's hard to shake the feeling that it was intended to be a different kind of film .


it must be the end of the world : the best film so far this year is a franchise sequel starring wesley snipes .


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

there 's a whole heap of nothing at the core of this slight coming-of-age\/coming-out tale .


woody allen has really found his groove these days .

likely to have decades of life as a classic movie franchise ?


even accepting this in the right frame of mind can only provide it with so much leniency .


contrived , maudlin and cliche-ridden ... if this sappy script was the best the contest received , those rejected must have been astronomically bad .

it 's just that it 's so not-at-all-good .


nohe 's documentary about the event is sympathetic without being gullible : he is n't blind to the silliness , but also captures moments of spontaneous creativity and authentic co-operative interaction .


i 'm sorry to say that this should seal the deal - arnold is not , nor will he be , back .

there 's got to be a more graceful way of portraying the devastation of this disease .


mr. wollter and ms. seldhal give strong and convincing performances , but neither reaches into the deepest recesses of the character to unearth the quaking essence of passion , grief and fear .

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- .


nothing happens , and it happens to flat characters .

the movie is so resolutely cobbled together out of older movies that it even uses a totally unnecessary prologue , just because it seems obligatory .


imamura has said that warm water under a red bridge is a poem to the enduring strengths of women .


the film has a terrific look and salma hayek has a feel for the character at all stages of her life .


the country bears wastes an exceptionally good idea .


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 .

after you laugh once -lrb- maybe twice -rrb- , you will have completely forgotten the movie by the time you get back to your car in the parking lot .


a film of delicate interpersonal dances .


a film of delicate interpersonal dances .

ourside the theatre roger might be intolerable company , but inside it he 's well worth spending some time with .


first , for a movie that tries to be smart , it 's kinda dumb .


like the hanks character , he 's a slow study : the action is stilted and the tabloid energy embalmed .

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


the acting , for the most part , is terrific , although the actors must struggle with the fact that they 're playing characters who sometimes feel more like literary conceits than flesh-and-blood humans .


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

a soul-stirring documentary about the israeli\/palestinian conflict as revealed through the eyes of some children who remain curious about each other against all odds .


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


-lrb- a -rrb- rather thinly-conceived movie .


an essentially awkward version of the lightweight female empowerment picture we 've been watching for decades


the film is so busy making reference to other films and trying to be other films that it fails to have a heart , mind or humor of its own .


it celebrates the group 's playful spark of nonconformity , glancing vividly back at what hibiscus grandly called his ` angels of light . '


but unless you 're an absolute raving star wars junkie , it is n't much fun .

depicts the sorriest and most sordid of human behavior on the screen , then laughs at how clever it 's being .


the wonder of mostly martha is the performance of gedeck , who makes martha enormously endearing .


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 .

dogtown & z-boys evokes the blithe rebel fantasy with the kind of insouciance embedded in the sexy demise of james dean .


the movie is so resolutely cobbled together out of older movies that it even uses a totally unnecessary prologue , just because it seems obligatory .


hawn and sarandon form an acting bond that makes the banger sisters a fascinating character study with laughs to spare .


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 .


even accepting this in the right frame of mind can only provide it with so much leniency .


the script was reportedly rewritten a dozen times -- either 11 times too many or else too few .

impostor is a step down for director gary fleder .


undoubtedly the scariest movie ever made about tattoos .


a moving tale of love and destruction in unexpected places , unexamined lives .


chan 's stunts are limited and so embellished by editing that there 's really not much of a sense of action or even action-comedy .


a compelling yarn , but not quite a ripping one .

this comic gem is as delightful as it is derivative .


what starts off as a potentially incredibly twisting mystery becomes simply a monster chase film .


imamura has said that warm water under a red bridge is a poem to the enduring strengths of women .

it 's fairly solid -- not to mention well edited so that it certainly does n't feel like a film that strays past the two and a half mark .


like the hanks character , he 's a slow study : the action is stilted and the tabloid energy embalmed .


and , there 's no way you wo n't be talking about the film once you exit the theater .

and thanks to kline 's superbly nuanced performance , that pondering is highly pleasurable .


there 's nothing to gain from watching they .


the movie is hardly a masterpiece , but it does mark ms. bullock 's best work in some time .


imagine susan sontag falling in love with howard stern .

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


an improvement on the feeble examples of big-screen poke-mania that have preceded it .


with an admirably dark first script by brent hanley , paxton , making his directorial feature debut , does strong , measured work .


an essentially awkward version of the lightweight female empowerment picture we 've been watching for decades


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 .

full frontal , which opens today nationwide , could almost be classified as a movie-industry satire , but it lacks the generous inclusiveness that is the genre 's definitive , if disingenuous , feature .


it 's a wonderful , sobering , heart-felt drama .


true to its animatronic roots : ... as stiff , ponderous and charmless as a mechanical apparatus ... ` the country bears ' should never have been brought out of hibernation .


a weird little movie that 's amusing enough while you watch it , offering fine acting moments and pungent insights into modern l.a. 's show-biz and media subcultures .


richard pryor mined his personal horrors and came up with a treasure chest of material , but lawrence gives us mostly fool 's gold .

but seriously , folks , it does n't work .


a sham construct based on theory , sleight-of-hand , and ill-wrought hypothesis .

a rambling ensemble piece with loosely connected characters and plots that never quite gel .


has all the complexity and realistic human behavior of an episode of general hospital .

it 's difficult to conceive of anyone who has reached puberty actually finding the characters in slackers or their antics amusing , let alone funny .


the acting , for the most part , is terrific , although the actors must struggle with the fact that they 're playing characters who sometimes feel more like literary conceits than flesh-and-blood humans .


visually breathtaking , viscerally exciting , and dramatically moving , it 's the very definition of epic adventure .


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 .


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 .


a sloppy slapstick throwback to long gone bottom-of-the-bill fare like the ghost and mr. chicken .


and thanks to kline 's superbly nuanced performance , that pondering is highly pleasurable .

although frailty fits into a classic genre , in its script and execution it is a remarkably original work .


mr. wollter and ms. seldhal give strong and convincing performances , but neither reaches into the deepest recesses of the character to unearth the quaking essence of passion , grief and fear .


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


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 .


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

although god is great addresses interesting matters of identity and heritage , it 's hard to shake the feeling that it was intended to be a different kind of film .


it 's good , hard-edged stuff , violent and a bit exploitative but also nicely done , morally alert and street-smart .


cherry orchard is badly edited , often awkwardly directed and suffers from the addition of a wholly unnecessary pre-credit sequence designed to give some of the characters a ` back story . '

what starts off as a potentially incredibly twisting mystery becomes simply a monster chase film .


the emotion is impressively true for being so hot-blooded , and both leads are up to the task .


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

snoots will no doubt rally to its cause , trotting out threadbare standbys like ` masterpiece ' and ` triumph ' and all that malarkey , but rarely does an established filmmaker so ardently waste viewers ' time with a gobbler like this .


the low-key direction is pleasingly emphatic in this properly intense , claustrophobic tale of obsessive love .


adrift , bentley and hudson stare and sniffle , respectively , as ledger attempts , in vain , to prove that movie-star intensity can overcome bad hair design .


all leather pants & augmented boobs , hawn is hilarious as she tries to resuscitate the fun-loving libertine lost somewhere inside the conservative , handbag-clutching sarandon .


an edifying glimpse into the wit and revolutionary spirit of these performers and their era .

a poignant and gently humorous parable that loves its characters and communicates something rather beautiful about human nature .


depicts the sorriest and most sordid of human behavior on the screen , then laughs at how clever it 's being .

despite terrific special effects and funnier gags , harry potter and the chamber of secrets finds a way to make j.k. rowling 's marvelous series into a deadly bore .


exudes the fizz of a busby berkeley musical and the visceral excitement of a sports extravaganza .


a timely look back at civil disobedience , anti-war movements and the power of strong voices .

below may not mark mr. twohy 's emergence into the mainstream , but his promise remains undiminished .


yet another iteration of what 's become one of the movies ' creepiest conventions , in which the developmentally disabled are portrayed with almost supernatural powers to humble , teach and ultimately redeem their mentally `` superior '' friends , family ...


the film , despite the gratuitous cinematic distractions impressed upon it , is still good fun .

and , there 's no way you wo n't be talking about the film once you exit the theater .


richard pryor mined his personal horrors and came up with a treasure chest of material , but lawrence gives us mostly fool 's gold .


happily stays close to the ground in a spare and simple manner and does n't pummel us with phony imagery or music .

a beguiling evocation of the quality that keeps dickens evergreen : the exuberant openness with which he expresses our most basic emotions .


there are now two signs that m. night shyamalan 's debut feature sucked up all he has to give to the mystic genres of cinema : unbreakable and signs .


while insomnia is in many ways a conventional , even predictable remake , nolan 's penetrating undercurrent of cerebral and cinemantic flair lends -lrb- it -rrb- stimulating depth .


the characters are more deeply thought through than in most ` right-thinking ' films .

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 .


enough is not a bad movie , just mediocre .


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


the events of the film are just so weird that i honestly never knew what the hell was coming next .


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

but it also has many of the things that made the first one charming .


the problem with the bread , my sweet is that it 's far too sentimental .


while most films these days are about nothing , this film seems to be about everything that 's plaguing the human spirit in a relentlessly globalizing world .

boasts a handful of virtuosic set pieces and offers a fair amount of trashy , kinky fun .


one can only assume that the jury who bestowed star hoffman 's brother gordy with the waldo salt screenwriting award at 2002 's sundance festival were honoring an attempt to do something different over actually pulling it off


no amount of arty theorizing -- the special effects are ` german-expressionist , ' according to the press notes -- can render it anything but laughable .

as a feature-length film , it wears out its welcome as tryingly as the title character .


spielberg 's picture is smarter and subtler than -lrb- total recall and blade runner -rrb- , although its plot may prove too convoluted for fun-seeking summer audiences .


a lightweight , uneven action comedy that freely mingles french , japanese and hollywood cultures .

i 'm sorry to say that this should seal the deal - arnold is not , nor will he be , back .


offers a clear-eyed chronicle of a female friendship that is more complex and honest than anything represented in a hollywood film .

and we do n't avert our eyes for a moment .


the country bears wastes an exceptionally good idea .


if you 're the kind of parent who enjoys intentionally introducing your kids to films which will cause loads of irreparable damage that years and years of costly analysis could never fix , i have just one word for you - -- decasia

so devoid of pleasure or sensuality that it can not even be dubbed hedonistic .


as comedic spotlights go , notorious c.h.o. hits all the verbal marks it should .


an overstylized , puréed mélange of sex , psychology , drugs and philosophy .

after you laugh once -lrb- maybe twice -rrb- , you will have completely forgotten the movie by the time you get back to your car in the parking lot .


while insomnia is in many ways a conventional , even predictable remake , nolan 's penetrating undercurrent of cerebral and cinemantic flair lends -lrb- it -rrb- stimulating depth .


but it also has many of the things that made the first one charming .

dogtown & z-boys evokes the blithe rebel fantasy with the kind of insouciance embedded in the sexy demise of james dean .


adults , other than the parents ... will be hard pressed to succumb to the call of the wild .


a loud , brash and mainly unfunny high school comedy .

adrift , bentley and hudson stare and sniffle , respectively , as ledger attempts , in vain , to prove that movie-star intensity can overcome bad hair design .


turturro is fabulously funny and over the top as a ` very sneaky ' butler who excels in the art of impossible disappearing\/reappearing acts


and they succeed merrily at their noble endeavor .


if you 're down for a silly hack-and-slash flick , you can do no wrong with jason x.

the film , despite the gratuitous cinematic distractions impressed upon it , is still good fun .


what 's hard to understand is why anybody picked it up .


woven together handsomely , recalling sixties ' rockumentary milestones from lonely boy to do n't look back .

hawn and sarandon form an acting bond that makes the banger sisters a fascinating character study with laughs to spare .


below may not mark mr. twohy 's emergence into the mainstream , but his promise remains undiminished .


spielberg 's picture is smarter and subtler than -lrb- total recall and blade runner -rrb- , although its plot may prove too convoluted for fun-seeking summer audiences .

a raunchy and frequently hilarious follow-up to the gifted korean american stand-up 's i 'm the one that i want .


one can only assume that the jury who bestowed star hoffman 's brother gordy with the waldo salt screenwriting award at 2002 's sundance festival were honoring an attempt to do something different over actually pulling it off


though it pretends to expose the life of male hustlers , it 's exploitive without being insightful .


i have a new favorite musical -- and i 'm not even a fan of the genre


but seriously , folks , it does n't work .

mr. wollter and ms. seldhal give strong and convincing performances , but neither reaches into the deepest recesses of the character to unearth the quaking essence of passion , grief and fear .


these people are really going to love the piano teacher .


fortunately , elling never gets too cloying thanks to the actors ' perfect comic timing and sweet , genuine chemistry .

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


your 20th outing shows off a lot of stamina and vitality , and get this , madonna 's cameo does n't suck !

a hugely rewarding experience that 's every bit as enlightening , insightful and entertaining as grant 's two best films -- four weddings and a funeral and bridget jones 's diary .


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


an inexperienced director , mehta has much to learn .


all leather pants & augmented boobs , hawn is hilarious as she tries to resuscitate the fun-loving libertine lost somewhere inside the conservative , handbag-clutching sarandon .


the adventures of pluto nash is a whole lot of nada .


a film of delicate interpersonal dances .


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 .


exudes the fizz of a busby berkeley musical and the visceral excitement of a sports extravaganza .


at times , the movie looks genuinely pretty .

as a film director , labute continues to improve .


a dark comedy that goes for sick and demented humor simply to do so .


enough is not a bad movie , just mediocre .

the only camouflage carvey should now be considering is a paper bag to wear over his head when he goes out into public , to avoid being recognized as the man who bilked unsuspecting moviegoers .


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 . '

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


cinematic pyrotechnics aside , the only thing avary seems to care about are mean giggles and pulchritude .


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

it 's a day at the beach -- with air conditioning and popcorn .


jackson shamefully strolls through this mess with a smug grin , inexplicably wearing a kilt and carrying a bag of golf clubs over one shoulder .


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 .

` if you are in the mood for an intelligent weepy , it can easily worm its way into your heart . '


director elie chouraqui , who co-wrote the script , catches the chaotic horror of war , but why bother if you 're going to subjugate truth to the tear-jerking demands of soap opera ?


the performers are so spot on , it is hard to conceive anyone else in their roles .

and we do n't avert our eyes for a moment .


rarely does a film so graceless and devoid of merit as this one come along .


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

stevens ' vibrant creative instincts are the difference between this and countless other flicks about guys and dolls .


eddie murphy and owen wilson have a cute partnership in i spy , but the movie around them is so often nearly nothing that their charm does n't do a load of good .


even accepting this in the right frame of mind can only provide it with so much leniency .

chan 's stunts are limited and so embellished by editing that there 's really not much of a sense of action or even action-comedy .


but it also has many of the things that made the first one charming .


... the whole thing succeeded only in making me groggy .

first , for a movie that tries to be smart , it 's kinda dumb .


the low-key direction is pleasingly emphatic in this properly intense , claustrophobic tale of obsessive love .


at times , the movie looks genuinely pretty .


but unless you 're an absolute raving star wars junkie , it is n't much fun .


rarely does a film so graceless and devoid of merit as this one come along .

the problem with the bread , my sweet is that it 's far too sentimental .


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


it must be the end of the world : the best film so far this year is a franchise sequel starring wesley snipes .


... the whole thing succeeded only in making me groggy .


it 's about issues most adults have to face in marriage and i think that 's what i liked about it -- the real issues tucked between the silly and crude storyline .

with an unusual protagonist -lrb- a kilt-wearing jackson -rrb- and subject matter , the improbable `` formula 51 '' is somewhat entertaining , but it could have been much stronger .


full frontal , which opens today nationwide , could almost be classified as a movie-industry satire , but it lacks the generous inclusiveness that is the genre 's definitive , if disingenuous , feature .


it 's fairly solid -- not to mention well edited so that it certainly does n't feel like a film that strays past the two and a half mark .


while some of the camera work is interesting , the film 's mid-to-low budget is betrayed by the surprisingly shoddy makeup work .


but the movie 's narrative hook is way too muddled to be an effectively chilling guilty pleasure .


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 .


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


if you 're willing to have fun with it , you wo n't feel cheated by the high infidelity of unfaithful .


if you 're willing to have fun with it , you wo n't feel cheated by the high infidelity of unfaithful .

offers a clear-eyed chronicle of a female friendship that is more complex and honest than anything represented in a hollywood film .


dull , a road-trip movie that 's surprisingly short of both adventure and song .


a fake street drama that keeps telling you things instead of showing them .

... too contrived to be as naturally charming as it needs to be .


on the granger movie gauge of 1 to 10 , the powerpuff girls is a fast , frenetic , funny , even punny 6 -- aimed specifically at a grade-school audience .


the story 's scope and pageantry are mesmerizing , and mr. day-lewis roars with leonine power .

a compelling yarn , but not quite a ripping one .


the country bears wastes an exceptionally good idea .


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


comes off as a long , laborious whine , the bellyaching of a paranoid and unlikable man .


stevens ' vibrant creative instincts are the difference between this and countless other flicks about guys and dolls .

a moving tale of love and destruction in unexpected places , unexamined lives .


this is a fragmented film , once a good idea that was followed by the bad idea to turn it into a movie .


the lady and the duke is a smart , romantic drama that dares to depict the french revolution from the aristocrats ' perspective .

exudes the fizz of a busby berkeley musical and the visceral excitement of a sports extravaganza .


but there 's plenty to offend everyone ...


a droll , bitchy frolic which pokes fun at the price of popularity and small-town pretension in the lone star state .


boasts a handful of virtuosic set pieces and offers a fair amount of trashy , kinky fun .


it 's a wonderful , sobering , heart-felt drama .


but the movie 's narrative hook is way too muddled to be an effectively chilling guilty pleasure .


pretend like your sat scores are below 120 and you might not notice the flaws .

yet another iteration of what 's become one of the movies ' creepiest conventions , in which the developmentally disabled are portrayed with almost supernatural powers to humble , teach and ultimately redeem their mentally `` superior '' friends , family ...


fortunately , elling never gets too cloying thanks to the actors ' perfect comic timing and sweet , genuine chemistry .


what starts off as a potentially incredibly twisting mystery becomes simply a monster chase film .


a hugely rewarding experience that 's every bit as enlightening , insightful and entertaining as grant 's two best films -- four weddings and a funeral and bridget jones 's diary .


a dark comedy that goes for sick and demented humor simply to do so .


little more than a well-mounted history lesson .

the events of the film are just so weird that i honestly never knew what the hell was coming next .


what they 're doing is a matter of plumbing arrangements and mind games , of no erotic or sensuous charge .

while some of the camera work is interesting , the film 's mid-to-low budget is betrayed by the surprisingly shoddy makeup work .


the wonder of mostly martha is the performance of gedeck , who makes martha enormously endearing .


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


cinematic pyrotechnics aside , the only thing avary seems to care about are mean giggles and pulchritude .


a rambling ensemble piece with loosely connected characters and plots that never quite gel .

rarely does a film so graceless and devoid of merit as this one come along .


serious movie-goers embarking upon this journey will find that the road to perdition leads to a satisfying destination .


dogtown & z-boys evokes the blithe rebel fantasy with the kind of insouciance embedded in the sexy demise of james dean .

a soul-stirring documentary about the israeli\/palestinian conflict as revealed through the eyes of some children who remain curious about each other against all odds .


i 'm sorry to say that this should seal the deal - arnold is not , nor will he be , back .


the lively appeal of the last kiss lies in the ease with which it integrates thoughtfulness and pasta-fagioli comedy .

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


little more than a well-mounted history lesson .


it collapses when mr. taylor tries to shift the tone to a thriller 's rush .


the cinematic equivalent of patronizing a bar favored by pretentious , untalented artistes who enjoy moaning about their cruel fate .

michele is a such a brainless flibbertigibbet that it 's hard to take her spiritual quest at all seriously .


one of those rare films that come by once in a while with flawless amounts of acting , direction , story and pace .

and they succeed merrily at their noble endeavor .


mostly , shafer and co-writer gregory hinton lack a strong-minded viewpoint , or a sense of humor .


one ca n't shake the feeling that crossroads is nothing more than an hour-and-a-half-long commercial for britney 's latest album .

-lrb- a -rrb- rather thinly-conceived movie .


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

true to its animatronic roots : ... as stiff , ponderous and charmless as a mechanical apparatus ... ` the country bears ' should never have been brought out of hibernation .


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 .


as a film director , labute continues to improve .

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


the adventures of pluto nash is a whole lot of nada .


its initial excitement settles into a warmed over pastiche .

enough is not a bad movie , just mediocre .


another trumpet blast that there may be a new mexican cinema a-bornin ' . '


with so many bad romances out there , this is the kind of movie that deserves a chance to shine .


the wild thornberrys movie is pleasant enough and the message of our close ties with animals can certainly not be emphasized enough .

the re-release of ron howard 's apollo 13 in the imax format proves absolutely that really , really , really good things can come in enormous packages .


no amount of arty theorizing -- the special effects are ` german-expressionist , ' according to the press notes -- can render it anything but laughable .


the emotion is impressively true for being so hot-blooded , and both leads are up to the task .


... too contrived to be as naturally charming as it needs to be .


when your subject is illusion versus reality , should n't the reality seem at least passably real ?

to the filmmakers , ivan is a prince of a fellow , but he comes across as shallow and glib though not mean-spirited , and there 's no indication that he 's been responsible for putting together any movies of particular value or merit .


ourside the theatre roger might be intolerable company , but inside it he 's well worth spending some time with .


though in some ways similar to catherine breillat 's fat girl , rain is the far superior film .


this is a fragmented film , once a good idea that was followed by the bad idea to turn it into a movie .


it 's just that it 's so not-at-all-good .

there 's a whole heap of nothing at the core of this slight coming-of-age\/coming-out tale .


offers a clear-eyed chronicle of a female friendship that is more complex and honest than anything represented in a hollywood film .


after you laugh once -lrb- maybe twice -rrb- , you will have completely forgotten the movie by the time you get back to your car in the parking lot .

but the movie 's narrative hook is way too muddled to be an effectively chilling guilty pleasure .


on the granger movie gauge of 1 to 10 , the powerpuff girls is a fast , frenetic , funny , even punny 6 -- aimed specifically at a grade-school audience .


it establishes its ominous mood and tension swiftly , and if the suspense never rises to a higher level , it is nevertheless maintained throughout .

although shot with little style , skins is heartfelt and achingly real .


dogtown & z-boys evokes the blithe rebel fantasy with the kind of insouciance embedded in the sexy demise of james dean .


it 's a funny little movie with clever dialogue and likeable characters .


the characters are based on stock clichés , and the attempt to complicate the story only defies credibility .


the re-release of ron howard 's apollo 13 in the imax format proves absolutely that really , really , really good things can come in enormous packages .

a poignant and gently humorous parable that loves its characters and communicates something rather beautiful about human nature .


jackson shamefully strolls through this mess with a smug grin , inexplicably wearing a kilt and carrying a bag of golf clubs over one shoulder .


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

this is an insultingly inept and artificial examination of grief and its impacts upon the relationships of the survivors .


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


an improvement on the feeble examples of big-screen poke-mania that have preceded it .

likely to have decades of life as a classic movie franchise ?


director elie chouraqui , who co-wrote the script , catches the chaotic horror of war , but why bother if you 're going to subjugate truth to the tear-jerking demands of soap opera ?


the adventures of pluto nash is a whole lot of nada .


a hypnotic cyber hymn and a cruel story of youth culture .


this comic gem is as delightful as it is derivative .

a raunchy and frequently hilarious follow-up to the gifted korean american stand-up 's i 'm the one that i want .


the events of the film are just so weird that i honestly never knew what the hell was coming next .


it should be doing a lot of things , but does n't .

a sham construct based on theory , sleight-of-hand , and ill-wrought hypothesis .


fortunately , elling never gets too cloying thanks to the actors ' perfect comic timing and sweet , genuine chemistry .


undoubtedly the scariest movie ever made about tattoos .

woody allen has really found his groove these days .


but seriously , folks , it does n't work .


a pretty decent kid-pleasing , tolerable-to-adults lark of a movie .

a beguiling evocation of the quality that keeps dickens evergreen : the exuberant openness with which he expresses our most basic emotions .


full frontal , which opens today nationwide , could almost be classified as a movie-industry satire , but it lacks the generous inclusiveness that is the genre 's definitive , if disingenuous , feature .


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

a seriously bad film with seriously warped logic by writer-director kurt wimmer at the screenplay level .


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


the movie 's thesis -- elegant technology for the masses -- is surprisingly refreshing .

your 20th outing shows off a lot of stamina and vitality , and get this , madonna 's cameo does n't suck !


the movie is so resolutely cobbled together out of older movies that it even uses a totally unnecessary prologue , just because it seems obligatory .


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- .

problem is , we have no idea what in creation is going on .


the whole film has this sneaky feel to it -- as if the director is trying to dupe the viewer into taking it all as very important simply because the movie is ugly to look at and not a hollywood product .

imagine susan sontag falling in love with howard stern .


imamura has said that warm water under a red bridge is a poem to the enduring strengths of women .


exudes the fizz of a busby berkeley musical and the visceral excitement of a sports extravaganza .

another trumpet blast that there may be a new mexican cinema a-bornin ' . '


yet another iteration of what 's become one of the movies ' creepiest conventions , in which the developmentally disabled are portrayed with almost supernatural powers to humble , teach and ultimately redeem their mentally `` superior '' friends , family ...


for all its shoot-outs , fistfights , and car chases , this movie is a phlegmatic bore , so tedious it makes the silly spy vs. spy film the sum of all fears , starring ben affleck , seem downright hitchcockian .


although frailty fits into a classic genre , in its script and execution it is a remarkably original work .


comes off as a long , laborious whine , the bellyaching of a paranoid and unlikable man .

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


while most films these days are about nothing , this film seems to be about everything that 's plaguing the human spirit in a relentlessly globalizing world .


lovingly photographed in the manner of a golden book sprung to life , stuart little 2 manages sweetness largely without stickiness .

a poignant and gently humorous parable that loves its characters and communicates something rather beautiful about human nature .


long before it 's over , you 'll be thinking of 51 ways to leave this loser .


but there 's plenty to offend everyone ...

hollywood ending is the most disappointing woody allen movie ever .


a soul-stirring documentary about the israeli\/palestinian conflict as revealed through the eyes of some children who remain curious about each other against all odds .


whether or not you 're enlightened by any of derrida 's lectures on `` the other '' and `` the self , '' derrida is an undeniably fascinating and playful fellow .

it is scott 's convincing portrayal of roger the sad cad that really gives the film its oomph .


... too contrived to be as naturally charming as it needs to be .


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 .


and thanks to kline 's superbly nuanced performance , that pondering is highly pleasurable .


while some of the camera work is interesting , the film 's mid-to-low budget is betrayed by the surprisingly shoddy makeup work .

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


if divine secrets of the ya-ya sisterhood suffers from a ploddingly melodramatic structure , it comes to life in the performances .


what makes the film special is the refreshingly unhibited enthusiasm that the people , in spite of clearly evident poverty and hardship , bring to their music .


all leather pants & augmented boobs , hawn is hilarious as she tries to resuscitate the fun-loving libertine lost somewhere inside the conservative , handbag-clutching sarandon .

hawn and sarandon form an acting bond that makes the banger sisters a fascinating character study with laughs to spare .


enough is not a bad movie , just mediocre .


... too contrived to be as naturally charming as it needs to be .

but the movie 's narrative hook is way too muddled to be an effectively chilling guilty pleasure .


the low-key direction is pleasingly emphatic in this properly intense , claustrophobic tale of obsessive love .


the banter between calvin and his fellow barbers feels like a streetwise mclaughlin group ... and never fails to entertain .

dark and unrepentant , this excursion into the epicenter of percolating mental instability is not easily dismissed or forgotten .


what starts off as a potentially incredibly twisting mystery becomes simply a monster chase film .