Derek Elley

Though tastily lensed and with a convincing cast led by Cillian Murphy, essentially small-scale picture lacks the involving sweep of Loach's earlier historical-political yarn, "Land and Freedom."

Not so much a Hitler movie as a portrait of a totalitarian machine's spiritual and emotional collapse, Downfall is a cumulatively powerful Goetterdammerung centered on the last 10 days of the bunkered Fuehrer and those around him.

Direction, performances and lensing blend into an immensely satisfying, if almost uncategorizable, whole in Pawel Pawlikowski's My Summer of Love.

Engaging chemistry between leads Emmanuelle Devos and Vincent Cassel.

A sustained genre parody that's equally funny but (maybe in deference to the genre) much more pumped up.

The Wedding Banquet slides down easily even if it doesn't leave much aftertaste.

Has almost zero plot but molto mood. It will appeal to the most faithful of the director's camp-followers and no one else.

Precision lensing by Benoit Delhomme, and charming, contained playing by the amateur cast, add up to a tasty package.

Rarely has a veteran filmmaker rejuvenated his career to such startling effect as John Boorman with The General, a fresh-off-the-slab biopic of maverick Irish crime lord Martin Cahill that both challenges and entertains the audience at a variety of levels, as well as reviving the vitality of the helmer's earliest, mid-'60s pics.

Pic's potentially inspiring story too often remains grounded by a problematic script and unshapely direction.

The film spins a beguiling web of detail that builds to a surprisingly throat-clutching finish.

A marked strength of the movie is that it does succeed in making the unlikely central love affair believable within its own universe.

A mildly entertaining but dramatically messy kidpic.

Ultimately, this is a striking-looking film -- consciously recalling the paintings of Edward Hopper in its architectural use of space -- which, like its protag, is a little short on real feeling.

Though there's nothing here that hasn’t been dealt with in other Japanese movies, picture benefits considerably from its pitch-perfect performances.

Combo of some stunning animal direction (courtesy of ace trainer Thierry Le Portier) and exotic period setting somewhere in French colonial Indochina charms when the quadripeds stalk the action but creaks when the bipeds open their mouths.

Slight but sleek, Flirt is still fun.

Despite its merits, is neither an art movie nor an out-and-out, propulsive actioner like "Shiri."

Though it won't appeal to everyone, the concoction actually works, thanks to Huppert and Greggory's powerful negative chemistry.

Often enjoyable, massively uneven Brit ganglander with an almost surreal approach to the genre.

A movie that is utterly engrossing despite being, on the surface, about very little.

Fourth feature by Mainland helmer Lou Ye ("Suzhou River," "Purple Butterfly") shoots for metaphysical drama but ends up saying very little beneath all the poetic voiceovers, sexual encounters and political seasoning.

Key casting is aces, led by a deglammed Kim, forcefully low-key as the mother who seems capable of anything to protect her son.

Often nastily violent, and defiantly foul-mouthed in a realistic but dramatically unnecessary way, this portrait of a ruthless young hood in '60s London has several fine qualities but dilutes them with disorganized direction.

A full-bore zombie romp that more than delivers the genre goods.

Visually detailed but emotionally dry.

Overall, Wong’s movie doesn’t leave as big a wash behind it as the more ambitious “Days” and his “Mean Streets”-like debut, “As Tears Go By,” but it’s an enjoyable cruise.

Has a low-key power that comes as much from its off-handed approach to the dark material as from any manipulative techniques.