Steven Rea

A frightening portrait of corruption, cynicism, intimidation, greed and violence, Gomorrah is tough stuff.

A heart-grabbing, awe-inspiring work that needs no embellishment.

Using a screenplay polished and honed by the Coen Brothers, Spielberg dips into John le Carré territory (you can't help but think of The Spy Who Came in From the Cold when Donovan looks onto the newly erected Berlin Wall, in the searchlights, in the snow).

It shows how the energy, and innocence, of children can be found - and fostered - in even the bleakest spots on earth.

This is an indie film with big stars - but also an indie films with big ideas about bringing real people to life.

Ted is really a rather sweet examination of loyalty, friendship, and love. Wahlberg and Kunis are charming together (though not exactly in a Cary Grant / Audrey Hepburn kind of way), and both manage to play this thing - at least the challenges-of-a-serious-relationship part of this thing - straight.

Watts is extraordinary - she manages both the physical and emotional demands of the role, with soul-deep conviction.

Funny, fear-inducing, with periods of voyeuristic gore and an undercurrent of anxiety and dread, Let the Right One In is up there with the bloodsucking classics.

Supermensch is one of those truth-is-stranger-than-fiction tales.

Shot in simple, elegant black and white, unfolding at a measured pace, The Wild Child is fascinating not only for its Tarzan-like true-life story, but also for what it says about the process of nurturing and educating children, and the tools we use - language, discipline, affection - to do so. [20 Feb 2009, p.W05]

A masterfully creepy and beautifully turned variation on the teen horror formula.

Murray and Linney are terrific together (and apart), their notes pitch perfect, and the supporting cast is good all around.

At once noble and naive, earnest and a tad obnoxious.

Greenberg, with Stiller's sad and self-mocking portrait at its core, is well worth getting to know.

There's a loneliness at the heart of this world, and Ghost World, that's really touching -- and a bit scary, too.

Merchants of Doubt shouldn't be a hard sell. The fact that it is should make you very mad.

The beautiful misery of The Deep Blue Sea - Terence Davies' crushing adaptation of Terence Rattigan's 1952 play - is almost too much.

So disturbing, on so many levels.

A terrific mystery, equal parts haunting love story and nimble thriller.

The Last Mountain, more than anything, asks us to consider where our energy comes from, and how we can bring about changes that benefit all of us and the planet we live on.

The lack of any readily identifiable star - no Cage, no McConaughey - makes Blue Ruin feel even more authentic, more rooted in this frightening world.

Exhilarating and, ultimately, filled with a sense of existential dread.

In the end, this earnest, inquisitive film leaves the viewer longing for some sanity, and some hope, in a world that appears to be seriously lacking in both.

Singular and stunning.

Smoking, shouting, practically shooting off sparks, Cruz spreads a wildfire sexuality across Allen's sunny tableau of Catalan country picnics and scenic Barcelona ramblings.

Pray the Devil Back to Hell is at once inspiring and horrific.

The Martian is never less than engaging, and often much more than that.

Client 9 speaks plenty of truth - about politics, power, human nature - even if you don't buy into the hit-job hypothesis.