Frank Scheck

Its Hitchcockian aspirations are sabotaged by a tendency towards lurid melodrama that is more laughable than chilling.

Ultimately, there’s little to distinguish the proceedings other than their brevity. By the time the piece reaches its familiar death-strewn conclusion, with guns taking the place of swords, it has come to seem like little more than an ill-conceived exercise.

Sluggish pacing and sub-par special effects mar this would-be epic adventure film.

It relies too heavily on shock value rather than solid facts.

Much of what transpires is wholly unconvincing, although the proceedings are made palatable by the highly appealing performances by the two leads, who display a genuine onscreen chemistry.

Director Won Shin-yun delivers a seemingly non-stop series of exciting set pieces that are only slightly marred by occasional visual incoherence.

If it was still the 1980s, then Dumbbells might actually be a hit.

Blair Erickson’s inventive low-budget horror film doesn’t fully live up to its provocative premise, and its extensive use of the found-footage style gives it an all too familiar feel. But it offers some genuine scares along the way, as well as a terrific performance by the ever-reliable Ted Levine.

Boasting uncommonly handsome production values and a stellar cast, the awkwardly titled The Adventurer: The Curse of the Midas Box nonetheless feels like a stillborn attempt at a franchise starter.

While the actor lends his formidable presence to the proceedings, this rote thriller mainly succeeds in squandering his talents.

The screenplay by Eddie and Chris Borey fails to live up to the juiciness of the original premise, lacking meaningful character development and teasing out its unveiling of its mysterious plot elements in dull, plodding fashion.

Strictly for the Beliebers.

The clunky narrative doesn’t ring true for a second, and the hackneyed dialogue is even worse.

Although diffuse at times, this documentary delivers a vibrant portrait of a fascinating subculture.

Despite its flaws and unevenness, White Reindeer at least deserves points for not providing another sugarplum-infused view of Christmas.

Featuring superb performances by the principal actors, Big Bad Wolves is mesmerizing from start to finish.

Park Hong-soo’s debut feature includes enough kinetic action sequences to satisfy genre fans even while its dramatic elements leave something to be desired.

It all goes down easily thanks to a terrific cast.

Documenting the 2010 journey in somewhat haphazard but always compelling fashion, Pad Yatra: A Green Odyssey well reflects its subjects’ goal of merging spirituality and environmentalism.

The proceedings are largely engrossing and the performances are mostly excellent, with especially strong turns by the female leads.

Directors Patrick Alexander Stewart, Gina M. Angelone and Mouna B. Stewart have failed to construct the often emotional personal accounts into a compelling film.

Although a bit too leisurely and featuring a few too many interminable group therapy scenes, the film nonetheless succeeds in packing considerable dramatic impact thanks to its incisive characterizations, realistic dialogue and well-drawn milieu.

Beautifully acted by the largely unknown cast, This is Where We Live is as reticent as its characters, its emotions emerging as much from what’s unsaid as expressed. Its admirably understated approach infuses what could have been an all too predictable, feel good drama with an intriguing complexity.

Its hopelessly stodgy execution will test the patience of even the most enthusiastic audiences for faith-based films.

The filmmaker, who co-founded ADI with his wife Jan Creamer, documents the dramatic developments in compelling cinema verite fashion.

A quietly effective thriller with a few clever narrative tricks up its sleeve.

For all its fandom and self-indulgence, Dear Mr. Watterson does offer some insightful musings about the decline of comic strips in general, with their content ever shrinking due to the diminished state of the newspaper industry.

What Amir Bar-Lev and Charlie Lightening’s documentary provides that hasn’t been previously available is an amusing portrait of the backstage goings-on.

Slickly executed with glossy, neon-drenched cinematography and a throbbing techno-music score, Paris Countdown sacrifices substance for stylishness, as has become the distressing tendency of so many recent crime dramas. But its fast pacing, compelling lead performances and frequent doses of action prevent boredom from settling in.

Using the plight of the hapless team and its troubled young players as a microcosm of American society in decline, Medora, inevitably bound to be compared to the more ambitious and accomplished Hoop Dreams, nonetheless scores some winning points in powerful fashion.

The film is more impressionistic than informative, lacking the necessary dramatic structure to make it truly compelling.

The film delivers a compelling portrait of the complicated issues involved.

Sweet Dreams delivers a rare uplifting story from a country that has seen more than its share of brutality and heartache.

[A] small-scale but deeply moving documentary.

This static, talky effort ultimately doesn’t justify its feature-length running time despite some strong performances and the occasional moving moment.

Torn approaches its incendiary topical issues with intelligent modesty.

Ultimately, it’s little more than a trifle that’s enlivened by the older Huston’s inevitably referential performance.

Glossier and more lavishly produced than most faith-based films, the film directed by Steve Race is ultimately undone by a relentless preachiness that gives it the feel of a two-hour sermon.

None of the characters,--whether human, fantastical, or anthropomorphically animal—prove remotely engaging. And the cheap animation, the sort of low-grade CGI endemic to endless direct-to-video efforts, proves visually unappealing.

While only sporadically effective in its attempt at creating a modern-day Psycho, Forgetting the Girl does manage to sustain a sufficiently disturbing mood that is not easily forgotten.

What starts out as a reasonably effective ghost story devolves into familiar torture porn in Cassadaga, Anthony DiBlasi’s muddled horror film ineffectively blending two genre styles.

A slight but sweet effort that serves as an excellent showcase for its Mexican star, Jaime Camil. The effortlessly charismatic performer delivers a winning performance in this romantic comedy that somehow manages to work despite its endless contrivances.

It ultimately devolves into yet another rote horror film that in this case lives up to its name by also being seriously underlit.

There certainly are moving moments in this inspiring if necessarily somewhat morbid travelogue... but they’re buried in the sloppiness and self-indulgence that too often marks this vanity project.

The gorgeous physicality is more impressive than the sketchy storyline of this dance-centric drama.

More scares are induced by the creepy soundtrack composed by Slash and Nicholas O'Toole than by the perfunctory special effects.

The Dirties is as provocative as it is sloppily messy in its themes.

The fight sequences are staged with admirable proficiency despite the often cheesy special effects.

The film’s reluctance to fully explore its provocative moral conflict renders it terminally bland.

It offers scant insight to go along with its simplistic homilies about the power of faith and the reassuring presence of God.

This overly convoluted and contrived farce features a typically scenic setting and an engaging performance by Helena Noguerra in the central role but otherwise has little to recommend it.

The film’s chief asset is Nabaway, who delivers a subtly moving and restrained performance that transcends the contrived plot mechanics. It’s a heartfelt turn that befits this well-intentioned but ultimately reductive film.

Unfortunately, the power of the message is diluted by the pedestrian filmmaking, with the overall effect resembling a compendium of public service announcements.

Naomi Watts and Matt Dillon bring impressive emotional and physical heat to Sunlight Jr., director/screenwriter Laurie Collyer’s beautifully observed character study of an unmarried couple living on the economic margins.

Wedding Palace is being billed as the first Asian-American romantic comedy and the first U.S.-Korea independent co-production. Too bad, then, that this shrill, unfunny effort from director/co-writer Christine Yoo features such broad clichés and stereotypical characters that it doesn’t exactly reflect well on the Korean-American community.

A formulaic comedy that displays as much subtlety as its title.

This intense drama co-starring Jeanne Tripplehorn and writer-director Leland Orser is at times too minimalistic for its own good, but it has a powerful emotional immediacy that fully grips the viewer by the time it reaches its wrenching conclusion.

With a running time of nearly two hours the overall silliness wears thin rather quickly.

The young dancers' undeniable skill and athleticism is squandered in this formulaic, overly familiar dance movie.

Although not wholly successful in its sociological aspirations, the film does provide both considerable laughs and food for thought.

Jewtopia feels like a failed sitcom pilot that might have been created by Jackie Mason.

A Strange Brand of Happy is being billed as a “faith-friendly romantic comedy,” but its overall ineptness has the inadvertent impact of making you lose faith in romantic comedies altogether.

Mademoiselle C should please fashion devotees while leaving everyone else scratching their heads.

It’s all utterly silly and derivative but also undeniably entertaining.

At once heartbreaking and uplifting.

A fully rounded and complicated portrait of both the man and a company that somehow managed to survive under devastating circumstances.

This second feature based on a best-selling book by Jim Stovall is mainly repetitive in its themes and suffers from a melodramatic plotline and hamfisted execution.

Although its formulaic storyline...holds no surprises, the film nonetheless exerts a certain charm.

The actress (Amanda Plummer) delivers a beautifully understated, emotive turn that gives this otherwise opaque movie some much needed heart.

For all its thoughtful analysis, the film is more anecdotal than truly enlightening. While its cheerleading approach to the problem is admirable, it seems more designed to appeal to the heart than the head.

There’s no denying the inherent emotional power of watching Wampler, aided by two experienced climbers, endure his arduous quest to climb a mountain twice the height of the Empire State Building.

The filmmaker documents the proceedings in refreshingly matter-of fact-fashion, thankfully avoiding the temptation to overly sentimentalize or mine cheap humor and contrived suspense from the proceedings.

Annette Haywood-Carter’s slow-paced film features a plethora of colorful characters and incidents that register with little dramatic impact.

While its theme of youthful empowerment inevitably strikes an emotional chord, the film never manages to achieve any dramatic steam, plodding along in mildly diverting but essentially bland fashion.

The film doesn’t fully succeed in elucidating its complex issues. But the wide-spread problem it explores is clearly undeniable, and at the very least this rough-hewn but provocative documentary will hopefully inspire further discussion.

Watching your friends’ actual wedding videos, however painful, would be a more edifying experience than sitting through Breakup at a Wedding.

An atmospheric chiller that’s just quirky enough to achieve cult status.

Narrated in unobtrusive fashion by Forest Whitaker and featuring a jaunty Afropop soundtrack, the film is crisp and economical, with the filmmaker carefully avoiding extraneous melodramatics. They are, after all, hardly necessary in a tale that already contains such inherently powerful drama.

You can’t make this stuff up. But Smash and Grab: The Story of the Pink Panthers would be fascinating even if it wasn’t so timely.

While this is indeed a likeable enough group, watching them interact with each other over the course of 80 minutes becomes a bit wearisome.

Doesn’t exactly dig very deep, but its often fascinating archival footage and stories of royal lineage dating back to the days of Queen Victoria (who bore no less than nine children) surely will delight devoted Anglophiles.

This stupefying dull mockumentary purports to explore themes of media manipulation and political propaganda, but whatever points it’s attempting to make are buried amidst the ponderous goings-on that will result in a quick exit from theaters.

Marked by incisive characterizations and fine performances, Big Words is aptly titled, referring not only to the name of one of its lead characters but also to the torrent of dialogue driving its skimpy but evocative narrative.

Whatever suspense that might have been generated by the violently gory goings-on is dissipated by the sheer visual incomprehensibility.

The problem is, despite the fact that the cast is filled with a gallery of veteran comic performers, few of the characters they portray are very interesting.

While the pleasures of the brief (65 minutes) Viola are modest, it displays an imagination and stylishness that marks the young filmmaker as someone to watch.

Now that the filmmaker has reached a certain age, she no longer seems to have her finger on her generation’s pulse. Case in point: The Hot Flashes, a ribald comedy whose menopause-referencing title is all too indicative of its pandering humor.

Featuring veteran Austrian theater actor Philipp Hochmair and former circus performer Walter Saabel playing loosely fictionalized versions of themselves, The Shine of Day sporadically registers with beautifully observed moments even while suffering from its lack of a compelling narrative.

This striking cinematic collage provides a hauntingly personal perspective on a country that has been wracked by strife from its very beginnings.

Despite its noteworthy cast who presumably had some time to fill between better gigs, this is the sort of instantly disposable B-movie effort that Quentin Tarantino would have chucked in the wastebasket after a first draft.

By the time the proceedings reach their "Paranormal Activity"-style violent conclusion, the viewer’s interest has long since waned.

Features a top-notch cast, a few beautifully observed moments, and some amusingly bitchy dialogue. But its rambling, episodic structure and gallery of troubled characters will ultimately prove too off-putting to attract theatrical audiences.

Part somber character study and part revenge thriller, Steven Knight‘s debut feature lacks the thematic depth necessary to take it seriously while not featuring enough of the high-octane action that its star’s fans have come to expect.

The execution, however, leaves something to be desired, as this effort seems more visually muddled and choppier than previous installments.

A deeply dispiriting portrait of the systemic persecution of the LGBT community in Uganda, the country that seems to be ground zero for homophobia.

This fascinating show-business documentary brings its subject to life, warts and all, in a way that would no doubt have thoroughly pleased him.

Featuring a plethora of unsavory characters, undeveloped subplots and a confusingly jagged narrative, this extremely low-budget effort is mainly notable for its willingness to get down and dirty.

Manages to be reasonably diverting even as it proves inevitably minor in its impact.

Featuring murky visuals, an even murkier narrative that lamely sputters to its conclusion, and frequently amateurish performances — the effectively low-key Isabelle is a notable exception — the film never explores its undeniably disturbing issues with enough thematic depth to compensate for its ragged execution.

Attempting to be a meditation on the nature of creative passion and the emotionally liberating effects of physical labor, Triumph of the Wall is as much of an exercise in frustration for the viewer as for its hapless protagonist.

The sometimes forced if well-intentioned social proselytizing is alleviated by the well-drawn relationships among the central characters.

This subtly engrossing psychological thriller plays like an intellectual version of Fatal Attraction, minus the sex and the dead bunny. And that’s meant as a compliment.

Barely managing to fill its brief running time despite its surfeit of smuttily vulgar gags, 3 Geezers! proves a less than subtle argument for euthanasia.

Might not boast stylistic expertise, but it should please aficionados while providing an entertaining primer for the uninitiated.

Lacking the objectivity or contextual analysis to more fully examine the important issues it raises, it’s a minor chapter in an unfinished story.

Equal parts thriller and feel-good inspirational tale, 33 Postcards succeeds mainly in provoking the viewer’s sense of disbelief.

Depending on your age and memory, you’ll recognize cinematic DNA from everything from "Three Days of the Condor" to the "Taken" and "Bourne" franchises in this tale of a father and daughter on the run from an evil conspiracy.

You know a movie’s in trouble when it’s most dramatic element is the breaking of a piñata.

Despite the performer’s engaging charisma, One Track Heart ultimately lacks the contextual depth to make it more than mildly interesting.

Speaking his (Rourke) lines in an unintelligible accent that occasionally requires subtitles and wearing a white suit that never seems to get bloody even when he’s stabbing people to death, the actor brings an undeniably fascinating strangeness to the otherwise familiar proceedings.

This farcical romantic comedy lacks the charm and star power to compensate for its contrived plotting and only mildly amusing situations.

The film overcomes its schematic plot elements with finely observed characterizations and rich dialogue.

Barely qualifies as late-night cable television fodder.

Playing the emotionally shut-down driver for an escort service, the actor provides what little interest there is to be found in this otherwise aimless depiction of urban alienation.

While its blending of philosophy and B-movie conventions will produce more bemused chuckles than converts, the film certainly earns points for sheer audacity.

Although it sketchily touches on many provocative issues -- the inhumanity of this form of incarceration, the relationship between the artist and subject -- Herman’s House fails to explore them in a fully satisfying manner.

The strained results eventually prove wearisome, although the sexy Winter is effectively scary and at times even moving as the psycho femme fatale.

The Lords of Salem is more creepily atmospheric than truly scary and eventually lapses into silliness. But it does provide some evocatively spooky moments along the way.

This latest installment of the horror movie spoof franchise is mainly notable for its Charlie Sheen/Lindsay Lohan cameos.

Although Graham Meriwether’s film is far less incendiary than such similarly themed efforts as "Food, Inc." and "Fast Food Nation," it nonetheless offers considerable — pardon the pun — food for thought in its exploration of modern-day cattle, hog and chicken production.

Although ragged in its presentation and frustratingly unfocused in its storytelling, Babe’s and Ricky’s Inn is an endearing cinematic valentine that pays well-deserved tribute to a vanished musical institution.

Gorgeously photographed by co-director Burke in the beautiful environs of East Sussex, England, this modest but subtly powerful piece of minimalist cinema exerts a haunting spell.

Long on mood but short on just about everything else, this would-be thriller directed by David Jacobson is as boring as it is baffling.

Its highly informative recounting of this little-known tragic tale provides a vivid reminder of the ephemerality of civilizations.

It winds up as little more than a mildly fun spatter picture that will be best enjoyed by undemanding patrons at midnight screenings.

Despite its admittedly intriguing parts, the film ultimately feels too diffuse and self-indulgent to represent a truly incisive portrait of its subject.

While its supernatural premise might have fueled a perfectly good Twilight Zone episode, The Brass Teapot strains to fill its feature-length running time.

Although Andre Gregory's fans will find much here to savor, this rambling and unfocused portrait smacks of self-indulgence.

Onscreen, it somehow manages to be at once wildly overblown and terminally boring.

Detour is a tautly efficient thriller that fully succeeds in making the viewer identify with its hapless protagonist’s desperate plight.

Although it has a visceral intensity, this teen-centered prison movie doesn't avoid the familiar tropes of its genre.

Although Rulin displays a compelling neurotic edge as the driven Emily, Chenoweth and Modine are unable to breathe much life into their schematic roles, while the supporting players are basically saddled with conveying a compendium of quirks.

Despite its fast pacing and well-staged action set-pieces, the film fails to make much of an impression.

Bringing a much needed personal perspective to a war that has claimed thousands of American lives, the film nonetheless suffers from a hagiographic quality that, from everything we hear expressed about its self-effacing subject, would have disturbed even him.

This endlessly derivative, nearly unwatchable effort from debuting Italian director Christian Filipella is amateurish on every level.

Offering nary a single funny moment in its seemingly endless 84 minutes, the film...provides evidence that cinematic sketch comedy is clearly a lost art. The inevitable outtakes seen during the end credits seem to indicate that the actors, at least, were having fun. Too bad none of it managed to find its way onto the screen.

This nastily efficient horror film delivers genuine chills.

The ideal animated film for Ron Paul to watch with his grandchildren, the bizarre Silver Circle certainly deserves points for sheer eccentricity.

Features a winning performance by Sara Rue as its titular heroine but otherwise has little to recommend it. Playing a wallflower who blossoms when she finally meets the right guy, the actress has charm to spare.

This would all be moving enough, but the film also benefits greatly from Conde’s endlessly charismatic personality.

Trippy in the best sense, Vanishing Waves adds a healthy dose of eroticism to its familiar sci-fi genre.

This assemblage of star-filled shorts makes for a generally rewarding grab bag.

A modern cinematic equivalent of the sort of tired sex farces that used to populate Broadway with regularity, If I Were You simultaneously exploits and squanders the talents of its star, Marcia Gay Harden.

Part adventure saga, part elaborate home movie, the documentary showcases both the emotional and physical pitfalls faced by this emotionally fraught crew.

This head-scratcher boasts visual imagination to spare even as its logistical complexities and heavy-handed symbolism ultimately prove off-putting.

While its mixture of cinematic styles is awkward more often than not, Girl Rising deserves points for at least trying something different rather than relying on the bone-dry, academic approach usually employed for such informational ventures.

The film lacks the originality or wit to differentiate it from the countless other indie romantic comedies littering our screens.

Although the overlong film skirts with hagiography, at times feeling more like a promotional DVD extra than an objective account, it nonetheless has an undeniable emotional pull thanks to its fairy tale-like narrative.

Filled with devastating statistics documenting the devastating effects of climate change on the planet, the film takes particular aim at CEOs, or “greedy lying bastards,” of the oil and gas corporations which are contributing to the crisis.

Designed as a family film adventure promoting positive values, it’s a sort of teenage "Raiders of the Lost Ark" that will provide mild diversion for very young audiences.

A mockumentary obviously inspired by his landmark 1990 series The Civil War, misses the Christopher Guest mark by a mile.

Although directed in effectively creepy fashion by Roberto Buso-Garcia, the film’s leisurely pacing and overall restraint will likely leave genre fans dissatisfied even as its lack of depth will turn off art-house patrons.

Unfortunately, while director/co-writer Ed Gass-Donnelly displays an admirable restraint in his general eschewing of gratuitous gore, quick editing and flashy visuals, the results have a generally soporific feel.

Despite the world-changing ramifications inherent to the plot, the results are more tedious than thrilling.

The opportunity to see the stunning footage on the big screen is not to be missed, and the narration by Daniel Craig, delivered with James Bond-style drollness, makes it as much fun to listen to as to watch.

Considering the importance of the still active 93-year-old poet’s art and social activism, the film seems slight and discursive, more of an introduction than a definitive portrait.

You'll never play the titular parlor game again after watching Would You Rather, director David Guy Levy’s clever exercise in torture porn that manages to display as much restraint as genuine sickness.

A rare example of a grown-up story compellingly told from the perspective of children, The Playroom is a modest gem.

Actually offers some decent scares before descending into typical horror film bombast.

For all the impressive ease with which the filmmaker handles her tyke star, Nana never quite manages to achieve the thematic resonance to which it aspires.

While the original version's four hours might have made for wearisome viewing for Western audiences, Herzog's 94-minute cut feels just right, fully immersing us in this rarified world without lapsing into tedium.

The extra weight that the actor has packed on gives him an air of vulnerability that makes his character's ultimate emergence from his seemingly impenetrable emotional shell all the more moving.

Aims to be a cutting-edge portrait of cutthroat political machinations. But it's a mostly toothless affair that, like so many of our current political figures, proves alienating.

Despite the dizzying array of talent involved both in front of and behind the camera, this godawful exercise is so painfully unfunny, so screamingly bad that it immediately qualifies as one of the worst films of all time.

Too often settles for raunchiness instead of wit.

Essentially "Alien" set in a self-storage facility, the British low-budget horror flick Storage 24 doesn't manage to rise above the limitations of its bare-bones concept.

Ultimately A Bottle in the Gaza Sea adds little insight into a conflict that has already inspired several powerful dramas, such as the recent "The Other Son," and is sadly likely to be the subject of many more.

Interweaving clumsily staged action sequences with endless pontificating about evil mega-corporations privatizing public resources, the mediocre environmental-themed thriller A Dark Truth wears its good intentions on its sleeve.

Unlike the restrained 1974 film which cleverly relied mainly on suggestion, this version piles on the graphic, often CGI-enhanced gore.

Unfortunately, Allegiance is less sure-footed in the filmmaking department, rendering its potentially suspenseful storyline stilted and uncompelling.

Making her feature directorial debut at the tender age of 70, veteran actress Connie Stevens delivers an obviously heartfelt but sadly unfocused melodrama in the form of Saving Grace B. Jones.

This meta-theatrical attempt at creating a comically subversive film is far too self-indulgent to provide insight into its important themes.

The winning performances by its two leads elevate this contrived Israeli import.

This bloody exercise in camp quickly wears out is welcome, although its copious doses of nudity and gore, as well as its undeniably catchy title, should help it stand out on video shelves.

Patrick McGrady's documentary strains to reconcile its conflicting moods, but Fry's gushing enthusiasm for the subject is ultimately if sometimes queasily infectious.

Eventually, though, Waiting For Lightning suffers greatly from the absence of Way himself.

This tale of a dysfunctional family whose members experience enough personal crises to fuel a dozen films is a virtual compendium of clichés, but the star's sheer likeability makes it go down as easily as a cup of eggnog.

Depictions of custody battles have become a cinematic staple, but few register with the heartfelt emotion of Any Day Now.

Mixing soap-opera melodramatics with pithy one-liners, the film never achieves a coherent tone, with the uneven performances by the ensemble adding to the problem.

Remakes of '80s-era cult-favorite horror flicks seem to be all the rage these days. But they have to be better than this formulaic effort to replace the already not-so-great originals.

Say what you will about the confused narrative, blatant borrowings and wildly over-the-top gory violence of Universal Soldier: Day of Reckoning -- at least you can see what the hell is going on.

While the idea of a German romantic comedy may seem like an oxymoron, What a Man proves an amiable diversion that at least has the distinction of not starring Katherine Heigl or Kate Hudson.

Frequently slaughtered for consumption in Europe, their inhumane treatment as revealed here will surely prompt outrage among animal lovers as well as those concerned with health and environmental issues.

Unfortunately, the Collector simply isn't a very interesting screen villain. Clad in a black mask that reveals only his eyes and mouth, he mainly communicates by heavy breathing. It makes one yearn for the perversely witty chatter of Jigsaw.

Aggressively quirky but lacking any real wit - unless you consider a lengthy monologue about the taste of semen to be side-splittingly funny - the film based on David Gilbert's satirical novel is a non-starter.

The film never achieves any real depth in its unabashedly admiring portrait. What might have made a mildly interesting short feels vastly attenuated even with its brief 72-minute running time.

If the dreary Mystical Laws was designed by its creating organization as some sort of recruitment tool, then they clearly have a lot to learn from the Scientologists.

Few true-life stories are as inspiring as that of Darko Kralj, the subject of Dejan Acimovic's new documentary The King.

The only film ever to be released with the promise of a reward--$50,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the bomber--Who Bombed Judi Bari? is an engrossing account of the case.

Ra'anan Alexandroricz's documentary uses a simple framework - a starkly photographed series of interviews with nine retired judges and lawyers instrumental in administering the often arbitrary laws - to deliver a provocative examination of the nature of justice.

The comedy of errors surrounding the 11 years (and counting) efforts to rebuild the devastated Ground Zero site would be funny if it weren't so tragic. Filmmaker Richard Hankin manages to encompass both aspects in 16 Acres, his strikingly coherent documentary chronicling the tortured process.

Few will be unmoved by this film's subjects, including the great niece of Herman Goering and the daughter of concentration camp commandant Amon Goeth, as they relate the heavy burdens stemming from their fateful lineage.

This version is unlikely to strike a similar chord with young audiences while severely disappointing older fans of the original.

A quiet, nearly plot-free drama enlivened by beautifully nuanced performances by its four-person leading ensemble, In Our Nature depicts familiar dysfunctional family dynamics with a welcome lack of melodrama.

Silent Hill is not a place you want to go, and that applies for moviegoers as well as this videogame adaptation's characters.

Kate Clere McIntyre and Saraswati Clere's less than revelatory documentary that incessantly makes the point that yoga is really, really good for you.

La Vie au Ranch boasts an undeniable authenticity. But how much you enjoy it will depend on your affection for its aimless if attractive characters.

About as subtle as its subtitle, Gloria Z. Greenfield's documentary attempts to be both a comprehensive exploration of anti-Semitism throughout the ages and a forceful alarm about its modern-day threat. Not fully successful on either level...

Vivid if scattershot documentary examines today's sexualized culture by focusing on three subjects.

The resulting journey of self-discovery is not exactly profound in its revelations, but as usual with McElwee's efforts the proceedings are enlivened by his droll, witty narration, delivered in a sonorous tone.

Other than providing yet another meta-theatrical examination of the ever-blurring line between reality and artifice, Janeane From Des Moines emerges as a pointless affair.

This Chekhovian-style comedy about a group of neurotic actors endlessly kibitzing during a weekend at a country house might have some appeal for self-absorbed thespians, but "civilians," as they're derisively referred to in the film, will find little of interest here.

The Prosecution of an American President demonstrates that you can be deeply sympathetic to a film's arguments and still come away feeling unconvinced.

This witlessly antic sex farce about a yuppie substance abuser coping with myriad personal issues during a stint in a rehab facility pretty much fails on every level, other than providing big-screen exposure for a passel of veteran older actors.

This tale of an elite military unit assigned to rescue a war correspondent kidnapped by the Taliban is as frenetic and ultimately mind-numbing as a "Call of Duty" videogame, only without the thematic depth.

Self-destructs in its quest for comic outrageousness.

The result is more promotional film - Springfield happens to have recently released both a new album and an autobiography - than intriguing sociology, although the rabidly intense middle-aged female fans on display are probably deserving of psychological study.

Not quite able to make up its mind whether it's a parody or homage, this tired exercise wastes both its gorgeous visuals and a first-rate cast.

Smiley, is unfortunately less scary than, say, the prospect of your significant other accidentally discovering your search engine history.

Least Among Saints has the strained feel of a basic cable television movie, with modest production values to match.

Few will fail to be moved by this portrait of selflessness in the face of near insurmountable odds.

The bottom line: The impact of this forceful indictment of our healthcare system is lessened by the sheer ubiquity of similarly-themed documentaries.

This thriller about child sex trafficking is well-intentioned but dramatically stilted.

Cogent documentary makes the persuasive argument for the role that U.S. military and corporate interests have played in the influx of immigration from Latin American countries.

Unfortunately, the thin storyline isn't substantial enough to sustain the nearly two-hour running time.

This informative but scattershot documentary about the Occupy Wall Street suffers from a surfeit of facts and figures.

Six Million and One suggests the need for both a more ruthless editor and a well-trained family therapist.

Unfortunately, the alternately melodramatic and comic Bringing Up Bobby fails to impress, despite a showy turn by Milla Jovovich in a sharp departure from her usual zombie butt-kicking in the Resident Evil series.

The devastating effects of head injuries in sports are detailed in Steve James' wrenching documentary.

It's a nice little human interest story, but hardly seems worthy of this full-length treatment.

She's (Milla Jovovich) constantly being besieged by a seemingly never-ending series of monsters, and we -- at least every couple of years or so -- are forced to sit through yet another installment of the mind-numbing series.

The bottom line: Mirthless and unmoving drama about a depressed stand-up comedian finding a new life as a kindergarten teacher.

If the target audience for this film were any younger, they'd be embryos.

A stylish period thriller set in 1930's Shanghai, The Bullet Vanishes is one of the more striking Chinese imports.

Representing a sort of equal opportunity religious variation on an all-too-familiar theme, The Possession is a Jewish-themed "Exorcist" that, if nothing else, should discourage the practice of buying antique wooden boxes at flea markets.

Ultimately suffers from an uneven execution and repetitive overload.

This is a film so bad that not only was it not screened in advance for critics, it's publicists wouldn't even provide background information. It might as well have been entered into the Witness Protection Program.

The action sequences are strictly pro forma and -- despite the sleek killer's resemblance to the similarly lethal heroine of "La Femme Nikita" -- this dull effort lacks the excitement generated by any of its incarnations.

Clearly aiming for high artistic ground, the film doesn't even satisfy on an arousal level, with the discreet nudity and endless yakking not exactly proving a turn-on.

Primarily an actors' showcase, it does at least provide the opportunity for the virtuosic John Ventimiglia (The Sopranos) to strut his stuff in a well-deserved leading role.

The scattershot results, while admittedly providing plenty of fascinating details, doesn't quite do its subject justice.

Although there are numerous interviews with various people both directly involved with or peripheral to the action, the most compelling figure on display is a particularly articulate coach who proves all too determined to have his protégé succeed. The fact that he works strictly on commission is certainly no small element of his zeal.

Madea is starting to look a little tired.

Although Martin Sulik's drama sheds light on typically unseen populations of Eastern Europe, the film, heavy on "Hamlet" allusions, may be overstuffed.

Instantly proves itself an invaluable historical document. Shot verite-style with no narration, soundtrack or other embellishments, Tahrir: Liberation Square simply depicts the events of late January and early February 2011 with a vital immediacy.

If viewers have any remaining doubts as to whether or not the dams are a good idea, the gorgeous shots of the threatened landscapes are bound to erase them.

Much like the recent, similarly themed "Life in a Day," the results are more admirable than enlightening or even entertaining.

The proceedings have a certain haunted quality, thanks to the dramatic setting and the stark black-and-white cinematography by Steve Cosens that fully conveys its bleakness.

An ineffective indie variation on the sort of generic romantic comedy that should be starring Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson.

Predictable from first moment to last, it does at least provide a showcase for lacrosse, a sport heretofore cinematically unexploited.

Battlefield America manages to pack every cliché imaginable into its overstuffed and overlong 106 minutes.

The sort of lumbering epic drama that went out of fashion by the late 1960s, For Greater Glory is mainly notable for shedding light on a little-known historical conflict, namely the Cristero War that took place in 1920s Mexico.

Imagine a teenage lesbian love story directed by David Cronenberg and you'll have some sense of the weirdness of Jack and Diane. Bradley Rust Gray's attempt to weave horror elements into a fairly conventional narrative yields diminishing returns in this overly stylized effort.

The novelty of the setting ultimately proves highly effective. Shot mainly in Eastern European locations that effectively stand in for Prypiat, which is now actually a tourist site, the film is highly convincing in its verisimilitude.

This deeply humanistic, profoundly touching work representing independent cinema at its finest should be seen by far wider audiences.

First Position overcomes its predictable elements thanks to the inherent visual drama of watching children strain their bodies to the limit in obsessive pursuit of their goals.

The result, Chronicling a Crisis, is an admittedly harrowing exercise in solipsism that will be of little interest to anyone besides the director's diehard fans and perhaps his therapist.

An awkward mixture of melodrama and whimsical romantic comedy that should make the briefest of appearances in theaters before, like its main character, moving on to other planes. It might serve a valuable purpose if it at least prompts viewers to finally schedule those long delayed colonoscopies.

This debut feature by Anne Renton doesn't quite find the proper tone to convey its heartfelt message.

While Downtown Express suffers from a derivative storyline, it offers enough musical authenticity to provide ample compensations.

Subject matter this powerfully charged shouldn't feel like a study aid.

It's a good thing that forgiveness is a predominant theme of Woman Thou Art Loosed: On the 7th Day, because viewers will have to look deep into their hearts to forgive this kidnapping drama for its heavy-handed melodrama and tawdry plot elements.

Directors Stephen St. Leger and James Mather fill the film's obvious narrative gaps with enough witty banter and tongue-in-cheek humor for audiences to overlook the subpar special effects used throughout.

As with so many films of this ilk, plot holes and inconsistencies abound, with audiences likely to express in loudly vocal fashion their opinions about what the characters should or shouldn't be doing.

Despite the filmmaker's obvious good intentions in trying to impart valuable life lessons to younger viewers, We the Party suffers from any number of problems, including uneven acting (talent isn't always hereditary); stereotypical characters and situations; and a manic visual style featuring the sort of split-screen obsession that felt outdated decades ago.

As with many films of its ilk, Surviving Progress takes on more than it can comfortably handle, veering haphazardly from subject to subject.

Despite a talented cast lead by Halle Berry, director John Stockwell fails to take more than a bite out of this lackluster shark thriller.

Filmmaker Alan Govenar misses the mark in his attempt to document the historical French dwelling of once famous beatniks.

Benasra's documentary purports to be a sociological examination of the intimate relationship between women and their shoes. But God Save My Shoes also displays a creepily fetishistic feel.

The filmmakers, longtime music video veterans, have delivered a technically polished production that belies the film's low budget. They've also elicited mostly strong performances.

Filmmaker Julia Haslett lacks focus in her ode to the French philosopher.

The "Dexter" star gives it his all in this indie comedy about a 35-year-old unemployed man coping with various romantic and life crises, but by the end of this terminally cute effort you'll wish that he just stop moping and kill somebody already.

Adrien Brody, delivering his finest performance since "The Pianist," plays the central role of the disaffected Henry Barthes.

A bland romantic comedy in the Richard Curtis style, The Decoy Bride is mainly notable for its proof, if any was needed after "Boardwalk Empire," that Kelly Macdonald is a major talent.

The formulaic script by Steve Koren doesn't manage to exploit the absurd premise with any discernible wit or invention, and the star is left floundering.

This soapy effort about a prosperous businessman having a midlife crisis finds Perry working in the heavily melodramatic mode that marks his weakest efforts.

Martyn Burke's documentary hauntingly dissects the rise of media mortality in the war zone and the mental disorders that follow.

Presumably intended as an inspiring portrait of a private individual daring to live his dream of traveling in space, Man on a Mission instead comes across as a cautionary tale about having too much time and money on your hands.

Starring a painfully awkward Katherine Heigl, One for the Money mostly resembles a failed television pilot.

The good news is that it will be a good 15 years before we're forced to encounter the character again in Spring. Maybe by then he'll be less of a downer.