Harper Barnes

The Rescuers Down Under is further evidence that the Disney organization has regained its magic touch with animated features. [16 Nov 1990, p.3F]

Sean Penn is excellent as a lawyer who gets in way over his modish curls, but the movie belongs to Pacino, who gives a remarkably controlled performance as a Wise Guy desperately trying to get smart. It's one of Pacino's best roles. [12 Nov 1993, p.3G]

The overall direction of the movie may be strongly polemical, but its real strength comes from the resonance of a hundred subtle moments. [04 May 1990, p.3F]

The Wedding Banquet is sweet and touching and, at times, very funny. [27 Aug 1993, p.3F]

IF you can accept the notion of a sympathetic character who is also a hit man - in other words, if you went along with the game in "Pulp Fiction" and "Bulletproof Heart" - you should enjoy 2 Days in the Valley, a fast-moving, sometimes violent, sometimes sexy, sometimes surprisingly funny story of crime and romance in the San Fernando Valley. [27 Sept 1996, p.3E]

Ruby in Paradise is a fine, quietly moving look at a young woman's voyage of discovery. It is most memorable for the feature-film debut of Ashley Judd in the title role, but the rest of the cast is excellent, as well, and Gregory Nunez (Gal Young 'Un) directs from his own script with heartfelt clarity. [26 Nov 1993, p.3F]

Among the pleasures of "Ghosts of Mississippi" is the rare chance to see Goldberg, who is such a fine actress, in a serious role. [03 Jan 1997, p.E03]

The River Wild is an exhilarating thriller, and Streep is memorable as a former whitewater river guide who has to summon up all of her old skills to save her life and the lives of her husband (David Straithairn) and son (Joseph Mazzello). [30 Sep 1994, p.3G]

It takes awhile for the contemporary moviegoer to adapt to the deliberate pace and the lack of dialogue, but ''Sidewalk Stories'' becomes harder and harder to resist as it goes along, and the ending in a small park filled with homeless people is quite effective. [11 Jan 1990, p.3E]

A generally effective revenge thriller. [12 Jan 1996, p.3E]

The Secret of Roan Inish glows with a misty, lyrical beauty, helped no little by the cinematography of Haskell Wexler. Once again, writer-director Sayles ("Passion Fish") succeeds in creating a mature, complex film that touches the heart without using any Hollywood tricks. [14 Apr 1995, p.3E]

The central question of Trees Lounge is whether Tommy will ever get wise to himself. The movie does not exactly provide an answer to the question, but Buscemi poses it in an entertaining, insightful and humane way. [24 Oct 1996, p.4G]

FOR about an hour, this movie is like a smooth ride with a good cabbie through the winding streets of deepest lower Manhattan. It's a fascinating, disturbing, at times exhilarating look at the way politics work in a big city, and you better pay attention or you'll miss something...Then, something happens, and it's like being lost on some triple-decker expressway interchange with no idea of how to get home. I think the problem is that there were too many writers with too many different ideas of what they wanted to tell, and the result is it eventually takes a wrong turn into an emotional and intellectual muddle...That first hour is so terrific, with minor exceptions, and the cast is so good, that "City Hall" is still well worth seeing, but ultimately it may leave you with the empty feeling of lost opportunities. [16 Feb 1996, p.3E]

Elijah Wood Jr. is excellent as a boy who goes looking for a new father and mother. A fairly amusing, very light fantasy from Rob Reiner. [14 Aug 1994, p.14C]

Hill fans - and I'm one - should find Last Man Standing intriguing, but it's certainly not among his top four or five works. [20 Sep 1996, p.3E]

A generally entertaining Western with some striking images, Young Guns II is significantly better than the original Young Guns. [02 Aug 1990, p.4E]

Warren Beatty's new tour de force about the ax-jawed detective is generally fun to watch. Visually, it's brilliant. Dramatically, it's OK. [15 Jun 1990, p.3F]

Ultimately, however, the only real problem with the new version of "The Getaway" is that Alec Baldwin and Kim Basinger just don't seem very believable as tough professional criminals. You just know they are only a shower and a manicure away from dinner at Spago. [11 Feb 1994, p.3E]

Since the movie never really gets very far beneath the skin of these immensely talented people, their battles and her final victory seldom rise above the level of moderately entertaining melodrama. [11 Jun 1993, p.3G]

The movie is a little too long, and sinks briefly into the doldrums when it turns overly serious in the last half hour or so. But Little Big League recovers nicely, and the ending is terrific. This is one of the few recent movies that parents and children would enjoy together. [03 Jul 1994, p.16C]

AFTER the first 10 minutes or so, there are few surprises in The Package. But director Andrew Davis, given a suspense script with little actual suspense in it, keeps this espionage tale moving right along, and Gene Hackman, as usual, is a plus. The result is a moderately entertaining if predictable action film. [25 Aug 1989, p.3F]

A generally entertaining schmaltzy melodrama, as long as you are not overly reverent about traditional versions of the Arthurian legend and can get over William Nicholson's sometimes clumsy dialogue. [07 Jul 1995, p.3E]

The movie is enjoyable if it isn't taken too seriously. Geena Davis sparkles as a TV reporter who is among those rescued, Chevy Chase is amusing in an uncredited role as a TV executive and Garcia is, as usual, both charming and believable, in a movie-star kind of way. Hoffman is always interesting to watch, even when, as in this movie, he reminds us a little too much of some of the other roles on his resume. [04 Oct 1992, p.12C]

Taken as low comedy, Army of Darkness is fairly successful. The violence, although there is plenty of it, seems even more cartoonish and less gory than in the earlier movies. I have a feeling boys of about 11 or 12, with their normal penchant for bad puns and gross-out tactics, would be the most likely audience for this silliness, which often has the feel of an old "Tales From the Crypt" comic book. [19 Feb 1993, p.3G]

A SURPRISING number of good, long, serious, thought-provoking movies have opened in the past few weeks. This isn't one of them. But if you're looking for a break from heavy fare, this fluffy serving of junk food might be just right. [12 Nov 1993]

Don't let anyone off the hook. That's a basic rule of good satire, and on the whole Amos & Andrew follows it. The result is a generally amusing, occasionally hilarious send-up of racial posturing in America. [05 Mar 1993, p.3G]

Taken as mindless entertainment, "Chain Reaction" is a cut or two below "Independence Day" and a couple of cuts above "Fled." It's a little better than "Eraser," not as good as "The Rock." [2 Aug 1996, p.3E]

IF you loved ''Hairspray,'' you'll probably like ''Cry-Baby.'' John Waters' latest teen-age musical spoof is entertaining. But it lacks some of the satiric edge that made ''Hairspray'' rather outrageous, although it was quite tame compared to some of Waters' earlier movies. [6 Apr 1990, p.3F]