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It won't hold up over the long haul, but in the moment, Finch's tale provides the forgettable pleasures of a Saturday matinee.

Was that movie nothing more than a tepid exercise in trotting out a formula that worked five years ago but has since lost its fizz?

How good this film might be, depends if you believe that the shocking conclusion is too much of a plunge or not.

A cellophane-pop remake of the punk classic Ladies and Gentlemen, The Fabulous Stains...Crossroads is never much worse than bland or better than inconsequential.

Pretty good little movie.

If nothing else, "Rollerball" 2002 may go down in cinema history as the only movie ever in which the rest of the cast was outshined by LL Cool J.

Angel presents events partly from the perspective of Aurelie and Christelle, and infuses the film with the sensibility of a particularly nightmarish fairytale.

Nemesis suffers from a paunchy midsection, several plodding action sequences and a wickedly undramatic central theme.

Even when he's not at his most critically insightful, Godard can still be smarter than any 50 other filmmakers still at work.

The fascination comes in the power of the Huston performance, which seems so larger than life and yet so fragile, and in the way the Ivan character accepts the news of his illness so quickly but still finds himself unable to react.

(T)he film is never sure to make a clear point – even if it seeks to rely on an ambiguous presentation.

This movie is about the worst thing Chan has done in the United States.

Amazing!

The Ya-Ya's have many secrets and one is - the books are better.

The plot's contrivances are uncomfortably strained.

A thoroughly entertaining comedy that uses Grant's own twist of acidity to prevent itself from succumbing to its own bathos.

Kids will love its fantasy and adventure, and grownups should appreciate its whimsical humor.

(Allen's) best works understand why snobbery is a better satiric target than middle-America diversions could ever be.

The stars may be college kids, but the subject matter is as adult as you can get: the temptations of the flesh are unleashed by a slightly crazed, overtly determined young woman and a one-night swim turns into an ocean of trouble.

We've liked Klein's other work but Rollerball left us cold.

Both a grand tour through 300 hundred years of Russian cultural identity and a stunning technical achievement.

A markedly inactive film, City is conversational bordering on confessional.

Clever and unflinching in its comic barbs, Slap Her is a small but rewarding comedy that takes aim at contemporary southern adolescence and never lets up.

Soderbergh, like Kubrick before him, may not touch the planet's skin, but understands the workings of its spirit.

There is no denying the power of Polanski's film...

To be oblivious to the existence of this film would be very sweet indeed.

Though it goes further than both, anyone who has seen The Hunger or Cat People will find little new here, but a tasty performance from Vincent Gallo lifts this tale of cannibal lust above the ordinary.

The beautifully choreographed kitchen ballet is simple but absorbing.

From the opening strains of the Average White Band's "Pick up the Pieces", you can feel the love.

Empire can't make up its mind whether it wants to be a gangster flick or an art film.

The result is so tame that even slightly wised-up kids would quickly change the channel.

A penetrating, potent exploration of sanctimony, self-awareness, self-hatred and self-determination.

Thirteen Conversations About One Thing lays out a narrative puzzle that interweaves individual stories, and, like a Mobius strip, elliptically loops back to where it began.

Director Peter Kosminsky gives these women a forum to demonstrate their acting 'chops' and they take full advantage.

Storytelling feels slight.

Witty, vibrant, and intelligent.

Despite its shortcomings, Girls Can't Swim represents an engaging and intimate first feature by a talented director to watch, and it's a worthy entry in the French coming-of-age genre.

Interesting and thoroughly unfaithful version of Carmen

Thanks to a small star with big heart, this family film sequel is plenty of fun for all.

For most of the distance the picture provides a satisfyingly unsettling ride into the dark places of our national psyche.

It's a smart, funny look at an arcane area of popular culture, and if it isn't entirely persuasive, it does give exposure to some talented performers.

We get the comedy we settle for.

Eerily accurate depiction of depression.

Schrader aims to present an unflinching look at one man's downfall, brought about by his lack of self-awareness.

Feels like the work of someone who may indeed have finally aged past his prime ... and, perhaps more than he realizes, just wants to be liked by the people who can still give him work.

Extraordinary debut from Josh Koury.

...a bland murder-on-campus yawner.

Cannon's confidence and laid-back good spirits are, with the drumming routines, among the film's saving graces.

Just like a splendid meal, Red Dragon satisfies – from its ripe recipe, inspiring ingredients, certified cuisine and palatable presentation.

Feels more like a rejected X-Files episode than a credible account of a puzzling real-life happening.

Features what is surely the funniest and most accurate depiction of writer's block ever.

Whenever it threatens to get bogged down in earnest dramaturgy, a stirring visual sequence like a surge through swirling rapids or a leap from pinnacle to pinnacle rouses us.

Surprisingly powerful and universal.

The story has its redundancies, and the young actors, not very experienced, are sometimes inexpressive.

Even Murphy's expert comic timing and famed charisma can't rescue this effort.

A captivating coming-of-age story that may also be the first narrative film to be truly informed by the wireless age.

An intelligent, multi-layered and profoundly humanist (not to mention gently political) meditation on the values of knowledge, education, and the affects of cultural and geographical displacement.

If Hill isn't quite his generation's Don Siegel (or Robert Aldrich), it's because there's no discernible feeling beneath the chest hair; it's all bluster and cliché.

And neither do cliches, no matter how 'inside' they are.

Strictly a 'guy's film' in the worst sense of the expression.

A lightweight, uneven action comedy that freely mingles French, Japanese and Hollywood cultures.

Irwin and his director never come up with an adequate reason why we should pay money for what we can get on television for free.

Can you bear the laughter?

"Abandon" will leave you wanting to abandon the theater.

The movie fails to portray its literarily talented and notorious subject as anything much more than a dirty old man.

Not as good as The Full Monty, but a really strong second effort.

Asks what truth can be discerned from non-firsthand experience, and specifically questions cinema's capability for recording truth.

Audiences are advised to sit near the back and squint to avoid noticing some truly egregious lip-non-synching, but otherwise the production is suitably elegant.

...a solid, unassuming drama.

A formula family tearjerker told with a heavy Irish brogue...accentuating, rather than muting, the plot's saccharine thrust.

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

The holiday message of the 37-minute Santa vs. the Snowman leaves a lot to be desired.

A vile, incoherent mess...a scummy ripoff of David Cronenberg's brilliant 'Videodrome.'

Discursive but oddly riveting documentary.

What's most offensive isn't the waste of a good cast, but the film's denial of sincere grief and mourning in favor of bogus spiritualism.

Like a medium-grade network sitcom--mostly inoffensive, fitfully amusing, but ultimately so weightless that a decent draft in the auditorium might blow it off the screen.

A little melodramatic, but with enough hope to keep you engaged.

Not only is it a charming, funny and beautifully crafted import, it uses very little dialogue, making it relatively effortless to read and follow the action at the same time.

Just about all of the film is confusing on one level or another, making Ararat far more demanding than it needs to be.

Though it lacks the utter authority of a genre gem, there's a certain robustness to this engaging mix of love and bloodletting.

It's touching and tender and proves that even in sorrow you can find humor.

Collapses after 30 minutes into a slap-happy series of adolescent violence.

A spiffy animated feature about an unruly adolescent boy who is yearning for adventure and a chance to prove his worth.

Payne constructs a hilarious ode to middle America and middle age with this unlikely odyssey, featuring a pathetic, endearing hero who is all too human.

A surprisingly flat retread, hobbled by half-baked setups and sluggish pacing.

Fierce, glaring and unforgettable.

The film doesn't show enough of the creative process or even of what was created for the non-fan to figure out what makes Wilco a big deal.

There are laughs aplenty, and, as a bonus, viewers don't have to worry about being subjected to farts, urine, feces, semen, or any of the other foul substances that have overrun modern-day comedies.

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

Miller has crafted an intriguing story of maternal instincts and misguided acts of affection.

Sometimes there are very, very good reasons for certain movies to be sealed in a jar and left on a remote shelf indefinitely.

An instantly forgettable snow-and-stuntwork extravaganza that likely will be upstaged by an avalanche of more appealing holiday-season product.

Some movies suck you in despite their flaws, and Heaven is one such beast.

With a "Spy Kids" sequel opening next week, why bother with a contemptible imitator starring a "SNL" has-been acting like an 8-year-old channeling Roberto Benigni?

Muddled, melodramatic paranormal romance is an all-time low for Kevin Costner.

In a summer of clones, Harvard Man is something rare and riveting: a wild ride that relies on more than special effects.

So original in its base concept that you cannot help but get caught up.

But even then, I'd recommend waiting for DVD and just skipping straight to her scenes.

This New Zealand coming-of-age movie isn't really about anything.

Quitting offers piercing domestic drama with spikes of sly humor.