Lawrence Van Gelder

Ordinary lives have become an ordinary film.

When it comes to an ending, Drive Me Crazy offers no surprises, but it arrives there in amiable, sensible style.

Mr. Morel's predilection for murky, nearly pitch-black cinematography and spare, elliptical dialogue indicates his debt to filmmakers like François Ozon and Claire Denis, but Three Dancing Slaves lacks the psychological precision of Mr. Ozon's or Ms. Denis's work.

The story is told in faux-documentary style, echoing the films of Christopher Guest, and if the cast never quite matches Mr. Guest's ensemble in comic inventiveness, they nonetheless manage to invest a very slight story line with a loose, scruffy charm.

May not be dispassionate filmmaking, but it is certainly entertaining.

Cause for fright in only one respect: the possibility that it could spawn sequels.

Impressive, unsettling, deeply felt film.

The novelty of a bloody horror film built around a malevolent doll carrying the soul of a serial killer has worn thin.

The characters...are well cast, well directed and skillfully acted, if not a particularly admirable lot.

A smooth, skilled example of animated filmmaking.

No more than a sentimental little comedy.

Weighing in at almost exactly one pound and unable to breathe or eat on his own, Nicholas James Baba-Conn seemed doomed to a very short life; his chance for survival was calculated at close to zero.

For juvenile filmgoers and families in search of a more-than-twice-told tale with uplifting messages about the rewards of perseverance, the virtues of animals and acceptance of the handicapped, MVP will do.

In a very real way, The Great Dance constitutes an act of preservation and a requiem.

American Chai may not tell a new story, but in its understanding, often funny way, it tells a story whose restatement is validated by the changing composition of the nation.

The portrayals by the fetching Ms. Yoshikawa and Mr. Takeda are consistently absorbing, and Mr. Limosin's plotting, though essentially gimmicky and manipulative, packs mystery and tension.

This mediocre sci-fi horror film about an Ohio high school being taken over by thirsty space aliens intent on world domination breaks no new ground. But it has an engaging cast.

People who are immune to atrocious acting in minor roles; to occasionally poor dubbing; to a totally unoriginal story; to the sort of sloppiness that allows at least one reference to the octopus as a squid; and to a climactic sequence that looks like feeding time at the aquarium when it is at all intelligible, will cull the exceedingly minor rewards of "Tentacles" from some realistic underwater photography, a nicely manipulative opening sequence in which the baby vanishes; and the bobbing corpse gimmick that was more shocking than anything else in "Jaws."

What makes the film worth watching are the extraordinary performances by the more than 250 children cast as orphans.

Some may be offended by this film's use of Sept. 11 as a plot device, but ultimately The Friend is less concerned with the politics of terror than with its psychology.

A mound of standard-issue parent-child conflicts and enough self-help cliches to drive Polonius to the aquavit barrel at Elsinore.

Warm of heart, modest in polish, Amy provides satisfactions that must be balanced against its flaws.

At once admirable and deeply unsettling.

Despite the presence of such performers as E. G. Marshall and Sean McClory and the comedy team of Penn (the hustler) and Teller (the Arab), My Chauffeur remains a victim of low literacy, muddled characterizations, frequently rudimentary acting and unrealized yearnings toward humor.

In the end, The Baxter is a Baxter of a movie: well meaning and mildly likable, but unlikely to sweep you off your feet.

Screwballs establishes that - in the absence of talent - teen-age prurience, old Thunderbirds, rock music and hula hoops do not add up to entertainment.

However fascinating the source material, there's something less than cinematic about 90 minutes of watching people read letters in front of windows.

Knock Off runs breathlessly over land and water in familiar comic book fashion, offering more action than sense and next to nothing in the way of suspense, humor or romance.