Jami Bernard

That the actors can work under such scrutiny is amazing, and they are superb. The standout is Brad Renfro as Marty, the kid most under the thumb of the neighborhood bully.

Streep is perfect, as per usual, but the showy orchid role goes to Cage in an Oscar-worthy tour de force. He pours his body into Charlie's slumped frame of mind and creates a character churning with endearing contradictions -- the unforgettable nebbish.

It's like a walking tour inside the head of a deeply troubled, deeply talented young man, where most of the systems have already shut down.

It's about the kind of kids who could never sit still enough, unfortunately, for a movie that perfectly captures the frustrations, longings, obsessions and torments of the awkward years before manhood.

It's an excellent fusion of subject and style.

The results are amazing, though bittersweet, and demonstrate how complicated and expensive it is (though not impossible) to break the cycle of poverty, crime and lack of education.

An eye-pleasing French action-slasher film that is cheerfully unencumbered by the usual conventions of stuffy costume drama.

The movie is fun, fun, fun.

Moore brilliantly unmasks the inanity of the arguments used in the debate over gun control in America. He then undermines himself by leaping into the blame game without supporting his central thesis, that the media is what makes teens like the ones at Columbine turn around and shoot up their schools.

The film, written and directed with an intimate, hand-held camera by Assayas, is notable for the details how love that is ended sometimes flares up in little brush fires, only to be banked down again; how lovers awkwardly balance the push and pull of new relationships; how things neither start nor end with any punctuality or precision. [07 Jul 1999, p.38]

Kinetic, meaningless and fun.

It won't cure the ills of the world, but it doesn't need to. The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie is adorable in its own spongy way.

Hey, kids! Skip the job fairs and go directly to a screening of Me & Isaac Newton.

For sheer escapist fun, the proudly ridiculous Bandits fills the bill.

We Were Soldiers works. The action is well-staged and realistic. And Gibson is a commanding presence in a role that has more shadings and stature than his usual action heroes.

There's no refuge in this uncomfortably realistic movie, and that is its strength.

Fresh and unexpected. It feels like a real window on the lives of disenfranchised youths - these are in South Atlanta - as they make their way in a society that doesn't cut them any breaks.

It's killer, dude! [17 October 1997, p. 52]

Gives a white-knuckled, you-are-there account of a politician's dilemma, one whose repercussions are still felt in Africa.

Smart, psychologically complex film is an offbeat and effective tale.

The joy of Space Cowboys is in spending quality time with some favorite old actors who obviously enjoy working together.

An unexpected pleasure, a buoyant comedy that will make you feel young again.

The sexy, psycho Mad Love is like a Spanish "The Story of Adele H.," in which a woman loves once and only once, to the point of self-destruction, in the days before Prozac.

You'd think it would be boring to stare at Thomas's computer screen so intently for 97 minutes, but the movie is eerily riveting.

The result is a funny, tender, satisfying blend of fiction and cinema vérité.

It's got style and charisma to spare, with all the characters acting from fiery reserves of self-interest, including Christopher Plummer as a bank president with a secret in his safe-deposit box.

The real revelation of Sound and Fury is how it introduces hearing people to a culture they insist on ignoring.

A black comedy that features Renee Zellweger as the most adorable psychiatric-trauma victim ever.