Claudia Puig

It's an intriguing match of material and filmmaker. Dahl's distinctive, edgy storytelling seems to fit well with Anderson's idiosyncratic worldview and visuals.

Drawing upon "Wag the Dog," "Dr. Strangelove" and "This Is Spinal Tap," this sardonic tale is adapted from the critically acclaimed BBC series "The Thick of It."

The movie opens with wit and dash, then devolves into a rather generic spy thriller.

Last Chance Harvey is the "Before Sunrise" for the over-45 set.

Audiences meet the most memorable voices in the world of backup singers. They perform with world-famous musical acts, but theirs are not household names. Their stories, however, are inspiring, heartbreaking and enthralling.

The scenes in Pandora -- a planet with an Earth-like environment -- are so breathtaking that the narrative seems almost beside the point.

Overall, however, the manner in which the film blends the tale of an imperiled boy and the history of cinema makes for an ambitious and fanciful ride.

The all-Lego adventure is warm and witty, showing flashes of satire.

Drag Me to Hell is unlike any scary thriller in a while: frightening, frenzied and fun.

Timeliness can be tricky to pull off convincingly in movies. It's tough to capture an era while it's still happening, yet Up in the Air does so brilliantly, with wit and humanity.

Penn's Oscar-caliber transformation is breathtaking, and the saga of one man's fight for human rights is engrossing.

It is an unsettling tale told simply and chillingly by director Peter Mullan, with stand-out performances, an evocative soundtrack and spare, haunting visuals.

Eastern Promises has a compelling story and strong performances to back up what may seem excessive or sensationalistic.

Viewers should know that the film's resolution, though admirably restrained and unsentimental, is devastatingly sad. Parents should take this into account. This beautifully rendered family film is told in a classic and old-fashioned style, in the best sense, providing poignant and powerful teachable moments.

Mesmerizing and highly entertaining.

Although it's reasonably well-acted and offers a few certifiable jolts, feels awfully familiar.

This Pride & Prejudice is a stellar adaptation, bewitching the viewer completely and incandescently with an exquisite blend of emotion and wit.

Peter O'Toole's tour-de-force performance makes Venus a movie not to be missed.

The movie and its theme of self-acceptance has an honesty, undercut by occasional preciousness, that makes it worth seeing.

Only a truly visionary filmmaker could take a story largely set in a cramped canyon and give it a sense of openness and hope.

The film's most climactic moments involve the chilling audiotapes of avaricious Enron traders as they toy with California's energy crisis, wringing millions in profits from the misfortune of an entire state.

This is precisely the kind of film that parents clamor for and rarely get: a substantive, stirring, Huck Finn-style saga that doesn't insult anyone's intelligence or mindlessly entertain with crass humor.

A masterwork of suspense, romance and political intrigue.

Well-written, terrifically acted and compelling. It deftly avoids sentimentality and offers a window into the lives of believable, multilayered characters.

Sugar is that sweetest of films: A sensitive and memorable story that surprises at every turn.

The young actors' performances are particularly haunting.

When it comes to sheer spectacle, Star Trek, as re-imagined by J.J. Abrams, delivers.

An engaging and moving film with a universal story about the bonds of family as told through two generations of a Bengali family.