Stephanie Merry

Mike and Dave Need Wedding Dates is uproarious and flamboyantly raunchy, utterly stupid yet also occasionally winning

There’s never any question where this is all headed: a huge blowup argument and a tidy resolution. That being said, the cast is excellent.

In the end, “Rental Family” is a movie that gives viewers a lot to ponder — about loneliness and family, about the importance of truth and the comfort of white lies — even if the delivery mechanism proves imperfect.

For fans of dance, Ballet 422 will produce plenty of pleasures. But as with great ballet, great movies always benefit from a little drama.

The documentary’s greatest strength is its ability to humanize Paulson.

The First Monday in May isn’t a deep examination of its subjects, but at least it’s breathtaking to look at.

The filmmakers invite the audience to get close enough to feel the pain without having to relive the depths of the real-life horror.

A movie that’s visually stunning and often poetic, but also leaves too much unsaid.

Free Birds has the colorful palette, zippy action and silly story to keep kids giggling, but it also delivers a few worthwhile winks to parents.

The human scale of this story about a very real threat to one Norwegian village makes the movie more tragic and also more chilling.

“Fate” gives fans of the franchise exactly what they want, provided they can ditch logic as easily as the movie does.

For a movie that lasts longer than two hours and is made up solely of talking, it’s impressive that the story never seems to drag. But with all of the possibilities of movie magic, it’s a shame that the characters keep us at arm’s length.

The Galapagos Affair spins a strange and compelling tale, with perfectly sinister music by Laura Karpman setting the mood. But the movie is better at building suspense than following through.

The movie may not have quite the mind-bending wallop of “Inception,” but Predestination is about something deeper than fantasy.

One of the selling points of The Confirmation is how it steers clear of melodrama or tidy perfection in favor of a taste of life on the margins, where even living paycheck to paycheck would be a luxury.

“Murder” may lack urgency, but it does have style. The sets, the costumes and the vistas are stunning.

I’m on to you, Spurlock. There are holes in your story about five lads who don’t appear to ever drink, smoke, fight, curse or partake in romantic dalliances of any kind. At least, not on screen.

The script, written by Trevor De Silva and Kevin Hood, falters when farce gives way to melodrama, but the movie regains momentum with a climax in a ballroom.

Touched With Fire is by no means a perfect film. The production values and melodrama sometimes seem better suited for a small-screen movie. But the drama deserves points for its measured, realistic view of mental illness.

The Good Dinosaur is hardly catastrophic. But the movie is a lot like Arlo. On its own, it seems fine; just don’t compare it to its capable siblings.

Even if at times its structure feels overly complicated and the B-roll seems silly, the movie makes compelling points. More important, the film suggests both long-term and short-term solutions.

With strong performances, plenty of chemistry between the leads and pithy dialogue, the movie is fun until things get serious — which is to say, until things get unbelievable.

The movie lacks some of the verve and chemistry that made the series a must-see. I guess that makes the movie more of a good-to-see.

There’s something refreshingly realistic about the director’s approach. The movie has an unhurried pace, letting the camera linger over long conversations.

It is, as the title suggests, sweet — but also slight.

In a jovial, if superficial way, he offers some perspective on the men behind the banana hammocks.

You might call it a black comedy of errors, but the humorous side of the film is less well executed than Slattery’s impeccable creation of a certain neighborhood feel.

The movie doesn’t always feel cohesive, but the stories are unexpectedly touching.