V.A. Musetto

Clever, wise and witty.

You don't have to be a fan of Daniel Johnston, an underground artist and singer-songwriter whose manic-depression has kept him from realizing his full potential, to appreciate director Jeff Feuerzeig's documentary.

The stunning adventure Mountain Patrol: Kekexili is like a John Ford western set, not in the master's beloved Monument Valley, but in remotest China.

A charming and enjoyable movie.

A devastating indictment of unbridled greed and materalism, made all the more relevant by the Enron and WorldCom scandals.

Pleasant but lifeless love story.

The plot has all the ingredients of a soap opera, but Bani-Etemad, who has been making movies since the '80s, is able to make it much more.

The Holy Girl ends without resolution, but one isn't needed in this mature, thoughtful drama.

Circo is more like "The Smallest Show on Earth" than "The Greatest Show on Earth," the 1952 Oscar winner, but it does provide a look at a unique family and a disappearing way of life.

Uninspired in style, and Joan Allen's narration is dry.

Pity that the direction and narrative lack passion. If there's anything a story of interracial adultery needs, it's passion.

The poetry has more in common with rap lyrics than Baudelaire, but that just increases the fun.

It boggles the mind to think that Elite Squad won the top prize at the prestigious Berlin Film Festival in February.

A must for hip-hop heads. Others will either be won over or left wondering what all the fuss is about.

There's not enough here to justify the almost two hours.

The hit man's narration is compelling and frightening on its own.

Cinematographer Mohammad Davudi's nighttime shots of jammed Tehran highways help convey the society's dehumanization. Scenes of a vast forest outside the city, where Ali releases tension by hunting, are powerful in their own, sparse way.

It's scary to see how one man can brainwash a gigantic nation, as Mao did.

A 3-D epic that, despite its title, is more of a soap opera than a swordplay thriller.

Buck is best left to TV, where it will land soon. It's "The Horse Whisperer" that should be seen on the big screen.

Pegg and director/co-writer Edgar Wright mix numerous references to other zombie flicks with hilarious bits of their own. The best has Ed and Shaun deciding which LPs can be used as ammo.

Few directors make action movies with the pizazz of Hong Kong's Johnnie To, although his films rarely get runs in New York. That's all the more reason to see his Vengeance.

Has no profound statements to make, but it does provide warm and fuzzy comfort.

There is much opportunity to turn the film into a soaper, but Hansen-Love resists.

Too-convenient coincidences hurt the movie's credibility. A melodramatic script best left to cable TV doesn't help, either.

Ruscio's script is grim and darkly funny, but the big attraction is Wright's right-on performance. She's an actress waiting to be discovered.

A high point shows O'Day, in a black-and-white hat and form-fitting dress, singing "Sweet Georgia Brown" at the Newport Jazz Festival. That scene alone confirms O'Day's place among the greats.

There are moments of fun (an aphrodisiac-laced dessert, for example), but generally the humor seems warmed-over.