Connie Ogle

A Hijacking is not quite as exciting as it should be, but its realistic examination of grit and folly are still more intriguing than swaggering action movie heroics.

Despite the increasingly annoying presence of the mugging, fatuous Cuba Gooding Jr., The Fighting Temptations pulls off what feels like a major feat: Its musical sequences could make the most hardened atheist want to go to church.

Based on a graphic novel, 30 Days of Night opens with a premise so promising it seems almost impossible to screw up.

There's little warmth or depth to the characters who, for the most part, trudge through the film with little wonder at the magical journey they're making.

Fans of period drama will find things to like about The Duchess; it's not as ludicrous as "The Other Boleyn Girl," for instance, and it's not overly long or ponderous.

A large part of the movie's appeal can be attributed to Wilson, more dour than he's been in ages and yet more interesting, too.

Dan in Real Life is basically a slightly less-sappy version of "TheFamily Stone."

The film isn't particularly original, but its dark mood, end-of-times landscape and unique characters will seem fresher to the young audience for which it's aiming than to jaded sci-fi veterans.

Delicacy bears a slight whiff of Anthony Minghella's fantastic "Truly Madly Deeply," but while Minghella's film is a romantic comedy classic, Delicacy hovers just this side of memorable.

This new Brideshead Revisted, though imperfectly revised, is not entirely regrettable.

Unapologetically appalling, more disgusting than anything you've ever seen and moronic enough to make you wonder about that theory on the depletion of the gene pool. It is also so funny it will make you choke.

Trade's wake-up call needs to be heeded, but its missteps detract from its devastating message.

A decent thriller made better by good performances and an intriguing setting.

Stomp the Yard hasn't an original bone in its fierce, sweaty body, but explosive choreography, high-energy moves and a generous helping of hot, frequently shirtless guys offer plenty of entertainment.

Wimbledon may have its faults, but it's the sort of upbeat fantasy that's tough to resist. Maybe love wins in tennis after all.

Sometimes less truly is more, and Love in the Time of Cholera is proof.

Absolutely Fabulous works best consumed bite-sized; there’s not enough here to warrant a full-length movie. Too much feels like padding.

The Pick of Destiny is fast and funny, and you can't beat the songs (especially the not exactly heartwrenching Dude I Totally Miss You).

The actors, aside from Sevani, were clearly not cast for their mad acting skills.

If it's not quite as funny as you want it to be, it's still more than enough to keep you entertained.

Where the film goes wrong is in its attempts to cling too firmly to "Pride and Prejudice."

It's the sort of film that's entertaining while you're in the theater.

Never reaches this level of devastating loss despite its tragedies, but it's not the dismal bomb that much of the British press claims.

Its flimsy plot can’t quite support all the characters stuffed into the script, and the movie plays out in a weirdly static way that makes it feel improvised and uneven, leaving a few too much time during which nothing funny is happening.

Manages to be entertaining, largely because of the appealing Adam Brody.

Wah-Wah's characters are wonderfully human and flawed and still capable of stirring empathy, which is appealing. But in the end, the film isn't saying much at all.

In the end, Roger Dodger doesn't really add up to much. Guys can be jerks when they're lonely, or even when they're not. It's not news. But Kidd's version of this truth shows he's a writer worth watching.

Doesn't feel quite so lengthy as its predecessor. And while it still falls short of becoming the classic fans so badly want it to be, the film is livelier and better overall than "The Sorcerer's Stone."

More than just another feel-good teacher movie.

The film is never more than an amalgamation of other movies.

The movie wanders off course in the final act, as if none of its three screenwriters could quite figure out how to end it.

In the end the film stacks up just this side of twee, as the sort of quirky fare that's passably entertaining without ever offering anything real or remarkable.

It's fun to watch the stocky, scowling Ice Cube and skinny, jittery Epps play off each other; they click on screen.

It still feels a little like a lesson you’re supposed to learn before you can enjoy anything truly satisfying.

Harmless, mildly enjoyable.

Unfinished Song is full of predictably poignant moments; you’d be lucky to survive the film dry-eyed.

A well-intentioned coming-of-age film anchored by two indelible performances but weakened by an overabundance of drama.

Plays out as little more than a diversion, one that does not truly break any new ground. But it's undeniably interesting and leaves plenty of room for a more thoughtful film about women and education.

In an ironic twist, Mira Nair's big-hearted yet by-the-numbers biopic of Amelia Earhart never -- unlike the famous aviatrix -- takes chances.

Letters to Juliet will never be mistaken for an epic romance -- too light, too silly, too mistake-prone -- but the ingredients of its tasty chick-flick stew are tried and true.

Despite its exciting moments, the film is too long.

Jackman's charisma breathes the fire into Wolverine, not the rather pedestrian script or the by-the-numbers action.

It's more amusing than not, but some scenes outlast the humor in them.

A better primer-for-the-uninitiated than an in-depth, fresh and insightful examination of a famous and remarkable life.

If nothing else, Yes is certainly a brave experiment.

Unknown is never boring, and Collet-Serra mostly keeps up a lively pace, but he doesn't do the movie any favors with the flat, dull way he films the scene in which we finally learn what's going on.

Zombie lore doesn't allow for redemption, only head shots, and Levine's film, amusing though it may be, is never gory enough to truly become a classic zombie movie. It also ignores the one basic necessity of monster films, even the funny ones: It really ought to be creepy or scary or gross, at least once or twice.

Blended isn’t Sandler’s funniest movie or his best, but it is a big step up from the dregs he’s been churning out, a messy, shaggy dog of a comedy that you can’t help but like even as it sheds all over your house.

The bigger problem is that neither Jolie nor the script bothers to flesh Louis out as a fully formed person with faults and fears and regrets, which keeps the film from ever capturing you emotionally.

The Family Stone should have been a glittering holiday bauble along the lines of the irresistible Love Actually. Instead, Bezucha stuffs into our stockings what he thinks is good for us. It's not coal, but it's not entirely what we were hoping for, either.

The most interesting aspect of Danny Deckchair, though, may be that the film is based on the true story.

The film makes coupling look less like bliss and more like an exhausting series of skirmishes that can send one party scurrying into infidelity or out the door in search of something better.

The undeniable star is the diminutive comedian. He’s the glue that holds the movie together when it wanders into the weeds and starts believing it’s a serious meditation on relationships.

Me and You and Everyone We Know brings to mind the work of happily downbeat, bad-boy provocateur Todd Solondz (Happiness, Palindromes), but July is more kind to her oddballs, although she displays a disturbing aptitude for perversity that Solondz would applaud.

The film, which comes way too close to preaching, lurches away from the control of director Mark Waters (Mean Girls, Freaky Friday) and ends on a stretched-out note so sappy it makes "Must Love Dogs" look like "8 Mile."

What the film truly reveals is something else entirely: how Jennifer Lawrence can elevate any material, any time, even middle-of-the-pack fare like this.

The most fortunate thing about The Lucky One is that despite a plot hole so big it could generate its own gravity field, it's still not a bad movie.

Vardalos may not have been the best possible Connie. But as Billy Wilder could have told you, nobody's perfect.

Solid family entertainment, with thrilling action sequences and gorgeous scenery.

And still 42 persists in entertaining you, even when you’re cringing, because the real story is so compelling.

If you can overlook that last little bit of sports fantasy, you just might like Just Wright.

It's really just a dance movie, interrupted sporadically for PG-13 romance, bad acting, ridiculous dialogue and earnest "let's put on a show to save our homes!" spirit.

Despite its slight and vaguely silly premise, Driving Lessons turns out to be sweet, never cloying, and amusing in an understated British way.

Fey is a good fit with the material, and her co-stars are all solid, including Billy Bob Thornton as a laconic general; Martin Freeman as a boozy, charming Scottish journalist; Alfred Molina as a local politician with a crush on Kim; and Christopher Abbott (Girls) as Kim’s fixer and translator (he tries to keep her out of trouble).

Snow Flower and the Secret Fan moves slowly, languidly; its art direction is often lovely, and despite their truncated screen time Lily and Snow Flower do make you care about their fates. But you would have cared more without all the distraction.

Easy A is unnecessarily hard on the religious kids. Unlike "Saved," it uses broad caricatures of gospel-singing fanatics to get laughs, and the bug-eyed, over-the-top performance by Bynes (who apparently really should have retired after making this film) doesn't help matters.

By the time it's over, Insidious is less scary than a mortgage payment.

A pleasant if unremarkable romantic comedy that plays out like a sitcom with great scenery.

Gerwig and Hawke are outstanding reasons to see this movie, but your patience — just like Maggie’s — will be tested before it’s over.

Essentially an old-fashioned movie, nothing fancy, nothing new, just some jokes and some action and a crowd-pleasing finale.

The Reader doesn't do enough to explore the guilt and betrayal the adult Michael feels over the acts of his elders.

Has nothing new to say, but it has a lot of fun covering the same old territory.

Too slight to bear up under the weight of the final melodrama, and the film ends too abruptly, as if MacLachlan just ran out of things to write. Still, this visit to the old homestead is worthwhile, if only to meet its unflappable, charismatic women.

It's full of lively and crude sexual banter, discussions of hookups and sex and Joel McHale's bare butt. Oddly, all this makes the film funnier and more accessible than you might imagine.

Unlike "The Ring," Dark Water -- which features one of the mad, whispery ghost children who populate such films -- is never actually frightening.

The film's heart lies in what goes on at Calvin's shop, that haven from the cold, cruel world. Where else can you get philosophy, humor, friendship and a little off the top?

A briskly-paced, refreshing kick in this season of draggy, two-hour-plus movies. The film is smarter and funnier than its trailers indicate, and, as a bonus, there are no superheroes, pirates or Wilson brothers to be found.

A fatal lack of character development dooms Enduring Love as little more than a fleeting curiosity.

On the plus side, if you're flummoxed by the twisty plot or its occasional holes, you can always gaze contentedly at Clive Owen and be wholly entertained.

It's a pleasure to see acceptance portrayed so matter-of-factly. May never happen in our lifetimes, but Lesnick's vision of tolerance is a soothing thought, anyway.

Carries an undeniable follow-your-field-of-dreams appeal.

There's no doubt that Leigh gets inside his characters' lives. But that's often someplace we'd rather not be.

Likable, cheerfully off-color comedy.

Pine, who has been so good and so instrumental in J.J. Abrams’ Star Trek series as Captain Kirk, turns out to be a decent Ryan.

It's not quite layered or weighty enough to fill the aching hole left in our psyches by the end of "The Sopranos," and most of the developments are as obvious as sauce on spaghetti. Still, Brooklyn Rules is a decent, if derivative, movie.

Far more imaginative and intriguingly moody than other recent thrillers.

Instead of a tense, emotional and psychological thriller or a thoughtful exploration of grief and guilt, what we end up with is ... soap. Whether you choose to wash your hands of it is up to you.

She could come off preachy here but instead sounds blunt and honest. And that's more than enough.

Thoughtfully directed and co-written by Arie Posin, the film is not a ghost story, nor is it played for campy laughs, but its melodramatic subject matter flirts with Douglas Sirk territory — and sometimes just dives right into it.

This is a film about depression, though, and it comes awfully close to trivializing its subject by suggesting that all Craig needed, really, was a cute girl to like him back.

Half-hearted satire of Hollywood and small-town life, and Bosworth is not particularly memorable in it.

A poignant film punctuated with clumsy moments and a resolution that occurs far too abruptly.

Don't forget the waves. They're the stars of this show, and Blue Crush smartly never lets you forget it.

Gripping family drama keeps Swimming Upstream from going under.

For a low-brow, psycho-on-the-loose-in-paradise thriller, A Perfect Getaway is surprisingly entertaining.

Maybe it's a measure of the numbing awfulness of romantic comedies in general lately, but Definitely, Maybe isn't nearly so bad as you might fear; it's actually fairly pleasant, a bit too off-color to be a family film but enjoyable just the same.

Provides the rare pleasure of a blossoming romance between two people older than Kate Hudson or Ryan Reynolds.

Even Greg’s tattooed and charismatic history teacher (Jon Bernthal) is more interesting than the self-absorbed kid we’re supposed to care about.