Susan Wloszczyna

Dramatically moving and good-naturedly humorous, it transmits a sharp picture of humanity that inspires both awe and laughter.

A tidy and tension-filled exercise in terror that takes stage fright to literal extremes.

Note this in your Starlog: Tacky toupees are out. Chrome domes are in. And not only is the future in safe hands, so is the "Star Trek" franchise. [22 Nov 1996 Pg.05.D]

It's a rare movie that prefers a moral victory over a rah-rah one. [18 Sept 1992, p.5D]

The first all computer-animated feature, which brings a bedroom of playthings to bouncy life, is yummy eye candy spiked with 3-D-style tactile treats.

A well-done but all-too-woeful wallow of a documentary.

The special effects are pretty special for the most part, and the movie seems only about 10 minutes too long. [23 June 1989, p.1D]

Has the refined taste to crib from classics like "Double Indemnity."

Artful it's not. But it's awfully affable. [26 March 1999, Life, p.9E]

There's much mumbo-jumbo about past lives and symbolic tattoos, but who cares when you can gaze at a sight as lovely as a dirigible floating in the night sky?

Its makers know all too well how to fully exploit the power of a catchy pop song.

A family movie with a heart and a brain. And if you aren't moved to tears, you might need an organ transplant.

Nothing will break your heart as much as watching this man, desperate to keep this woman in his life, waltzing around the room with a laptop in his arms while staring into her faraway eyes.

It is a good thing these actors are charming enough that they aren’t too hampered by a long string of fish-out-of-water gags.

This fairly laugh-packed comedy aims to address the desire for intimate companionship in older adults, an increasingly topical issue as more Americans live into their nineties.

There is a welcome sense of familiarity in Bridget Jones's Baby — but also of the fresh and au courant.

A dinner-party-from-hell scenario best served as unspoiled as possible. After all, a psychological thriller built upon slow-simmering tension is only as good as its surprises.

As shallow as a shot glass.

It's as disturbing a movie as you are likely to witness this year. [21Feb1997 Pg.04.D]

The director was smart enough to take a trait that often caused an actor to be be typecast as a menacing figure and turn it into a strength.

All about macho my-weapon-is-bigger-than-your-weapon posturing and far-fetched coincidences that slam together in an entertaining rush.

A decidedly sentimental American version, with much comedy (by mistake, Bob Cratchit actually knocks Scrooge's hat off with a snowball) and fortified with a Scrooge who is not so much a born-to-be-cruel wretch but a tortured soul who lost the meaning of Christmas along the way. [15 Dec 1992, p.6D]

The smart script is brave enough to venture beyond yesterday’s fleeting Twitter fodder for its pop-cultural references. As a result, Paper Towns might be the only movie to ever pay tribute to Walt Whitman’s poetry, Woody Guthrie’s music and the empowering theme song from the “Pokemon” cartoon series.

Nothing too fancy or ambitious. Instead, writer-director George Tillman Jr. serves up down-home fare that enriches the heart and leaves you satisfied if stuffed. [26Sep1997 Pg.06.D]

The film bobs along like a designer balloon, pumped with wry observations on Marky Mark and Mentos ads. But none of the other cartoonish characters command like twinkly Silverstone.

With the astonishingly assured newcomer Jason Schwartzman to bounce off of, Murray has his best comic foil since those feisty rodents in Groundhog Day and Caddyshack. [5 February 1999, Life, p.11E]

With near-Swiss precision, director/producer Jay Roach and his writers make sure familiarity breeds hilarity.

Arnie is Arnie. He has all the cute lines ("No problemo," "Hasta la vista, baby''). And he does more with a squint than anyone since Popeye. [3 July 1991, Life, p.1D]