Peter Hartlaub

This is the type of movie that you should be getting for free on television.

Although the finished product isn't great, it's more akin to a bad Steve Martin movie from the 1980s than bad Pauly Shore from the 1990s. We mean that as a compliment (sort of).

If only the projectionist could be persuaded to play the first 10 minutes over and over for two hours, this might be a satisfying movie. Unfortunately, the middle and the end feature a weak lead character, choppy fight choreography, humorless dialogue and computer-generated effects that look as if they came from the "Ghostbusters II" era.

Difficult to recommend, without first knowing the sobriety of the viewer.

The result is 50 percent more realistic than the average sports film.

An often amusing but also an aimless and forgettable animated comedy that is noteworthy mostly for its random musical numbers and surprising amounts of violence.

A very stupid movie, with many more failed jokes than successful ones. Worse yet, much of the comedy is kind of mean.

A film so self-centered that even the director's most dedicated stalkers might find it a bit too narcissistic.

Ultimately, that's all Highwater offers - barely explored concepts and short profiles.

It's not fun to watch.

Perhaps worst of all, the movie is painfully long.

Enjoy the film for its witty dialogue and fun performances, but know that there isn't a single good scare. An episode of "Murder, She Wrote" has more thrills.

It's funny, clever and marginally educational.

Ratatouille is a classic.

The Romantics can be charming, and Holmes tackles her meatiest role since the superb "Pieces of April." But the script fails to establish the likability of any of the main characters, which dulls the sense of urgency during the dramatic moments.

Captures an artist who has decided not to burn out, but to fade away with dignity.

To cover the Abramoff scandal is to follow tangent after tangent, until it seems as if prison was in the lobbyist's plans from the beginning.

Unfortunately, the inspired concept is coupled with weak screenwriting, and the movie turns out to be much more fun to think about than it is to watch.

Succeeds in its modest goals of building tension slowly and generating a handful of legitimate scares. A few people in the audience were laughing during the first half of the film. No one was laughing during the long walk out of the theater.