There is a hazy, gauzy quality to all of this, which keeps things just out of reach. Certainly, it looks like a lot of fun to be young, beautiful and rich in Naples. But Parthenope is also out of reach, almost an idea as much as a character. What that idea is I’m not quite certain.

You just have to hope for some fun along the way. The movie delivers that every now and then, but not nearly enough. Bigger! Dumber! Something! I’d settle for just better.

It’s surprising how much you miss the star power of the original Avengers bunch. Or maybe it’s not surprising. Whatever the case, watching this movie too often feels like you suspect there’s a better party going on next door, but you can’t get in.

One of the things that really makes “Companion” more entertaining than it might otherwise have been is the strength of the supporting cast. Gage and Guillén are particularly good as a mismatched couple who discover more about each other during the admittedly eventful stay at the cabin.

One of Them Days is proof that a good, old-school style comedy is still achievable with perfect casting, even when it's a story we've seen time and time again.

It’s good, it’s intriguing, but in the end it’s nothing to howl about.

Ultimately “The Last Showgirl” is worth watching for its final scene alone, but a lack of character and relationship-building leads to the film being as deep as a kiddie pool.

It’s 3 hours and 35 minutes long (including a 15-minute intermission), and while it’s full and complete, it never drags or feels padded. It is, simply put, a great movie.

It stands on its own as another in a long line of attempted explanations of what made Dylan Dylan. The more the merrier.

There is an edginess to Babygirl, an uncomfortableness that is part and parcel of the subject matter. But it’s somehow accessible. Maybe that’s a plus, maybe that’s a minus; perhaps it depends on your taste for this sort of thing. But there’s undeniable power in Kidman’s performance, one of the most interesting and, along the way, best of the year.

Even at its most disgusting, and it does get disgusting, the film is engrossing. It’s not that you can’t look away. It’s that you want to look and look again. That’s the lure of the vampire. And it’s the lure of “Nosferatu,” Eggers’ best film (at least so far).

As a retelling of Shakespeare's "Hamlet," "The Lion King" has it all: drama, an interesting love story, personal growth, dynamic characters and a satisfying ending — all things "Mufasa" ultimately lacks.

With a brilliant twist at the end, “Nickel Boys” is a masterpiece of an adaptation that showcases the harsh realities of racism within American society.

At 2 hours and 17 minutes, the film is a little bloated, though the expansiveness and inventiveness of the filmmaking make that sound like complaining about too much dessert.

There’s a danger in critiquing the movie you wish a director had made instead of the one they did, but in this case, Heller did make a horror film and then backed off from the horror aspects.

If the path seems familiar — hard work and a good attitude triumph over all — it’s because it’s a successful one. Robles is a real-life hero worth rooting for; Jerome makes him relatable and human.

I liked Moana 2 better than the original. Its story is darker and more challenging, its stakes are high and its message is surprisingly contemporary and relevant.

Maria rounds out the trilogy of important women in the 20th century in consummate fashion. Lorraín sticks to his melodic style while highlighting an undeniable actress of our time, this time with Angelina Jolie.

We’ve seen it all before — maybe not quite as spectacular, maybe not quite as dumb. It’s Washington who ultimately makes “Gladiator II” stand apart from the first film and makes it a lot more fun than it has any right to be.

Wicked isn’t the best movie you’ll see this year, but it’s almost certainly the most movie. … There’s not a frame wasted, not a second of down time. It’s a little like having dessert for dinner, as well as for the appetizer and dessert again, too. And it’s fun, a good time at the movies.

With “A Real Pain,” Jesse Eisenberg — who wrote, directed and stars in the film — pulls off a kind of magic trick. He’s made a movie with backdrops of pain and despair, both personal and existential, that is also funny, charming and something approaching uplifting. Ta-da!

There was a lot of hype surrounding it, but after one too many awkward musical numbers combined with slow pacing, I was left checking my phone for when the 2-hour and 10-minute movie would be over.

Juror #2 isn’t quite forgettable, but it’s also not the movie we’ll remember Eastwood for.

It’s lush, it’s electrifying, it’s wild. But more than that, the movie has real heart.

Smile 2 is a bigger movie in every way. Bigger isn’t necessarily better, but in this case, it’s not bad.

It’s a withering satire and a horror movie. Maddin, working with co-directors Galen and Evan Johnson, makes a good point, and he makes it over and over. But he makes it with his trademark absurdist humor, and the cast is so talented that it takes what are intentional stereotypes and runs with them.

The Apprentice — its title a play on Trump’s original identity in relation to Cohn, as well as the reality show that helped get him elected president — is well-made, entertaining in its way (particularly for fans of good acting) and not at all surprising.

There is an honesty in this performance, a genuineness that really elevates the film. It’s not always easy to watch, and it’s certainly not a lot of fun. But it is impressive, and that’s what carries it.