It is the boy's tough exterior and lack of self-pity that binds the narrative together, making this one of the Dardennes' most appealing undertakings.

The soul of the movie is Mia Wasikowska, a radiant young actress who captures with quiet precision the quandary of a bookish "good girl" suddenly roused to wider personal and experiential possibilities, and to their potential cost.

James keeps viewer attention the whole time, despite forcing unnecessarily sentimental music on his footage and chopping his scenes down to dramatic highlights rather than letting them play at length.

Forty-four years after his exciting debut feature "Fists in the Pocket," Italian filmmaker Marco Bellocchio continues his late-career renaissance with the passionate, beautifully crafted, period melodrama Vincere.

Jeon received the Best Actress at Cannes for her wrenching performance. She's the first Korean to receive an acting award at this Festival.

The romantic fable of love, marriage, art and second chances may not add up to all that much but the journey is exquisite.

An industry that's lost 90% of its silent films and which has consistently demonstrated - montage lip-service aside - a staggering lack of interest in its own history can hardly be trusted to transfer films from format to format and keep them intact, let alone in good shape.

Offers the kind of intimate, naturalistic look at human interaction that recalls the heyday of Eric Rohmer.

A feast for the eyes, Mysteries of Lisbon deals with 19th century passions, love affairs and escapades on a broad canvas. It might have made a lovely TV series, parsed out over several weeks, but at one sitting it's a challenge.

The kind of grim, character-based movie that needs a strong performer to anchor it. Director Derek Cianfrance has been fortunate enough to land two: Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling.

This is one of Denis's most provocative films and also one of her most compelling.

While director Sam Mendes, aided and abetted by a crack technical team, delivers big-screen action with panache and style, something about this Bond feels a little off.

The second half, though, simply descends into chaotic banality as the sisters await their fate.

Rather than take a broad-brush approach director Muntean boggs us down in the detail of an adulterous affair. There are some similarities with his previous outing "Boogie" in that the main character is a man having a premature mid-life crisis.

It's not much, but adult audiences starved for mature entertainment should be counted on to investigate this flawed, if admittedly heartfelt, work.

A coming of age story in which the children better the world for the adults, Kore-Eda's heart is in the right place.

It's a simple story that gets the gentle nudge it needs to reveal its greater purpose. Probably too subtle for most tastes, the novel's reputation and its unique idea should draw people to cinemas.

Alternately beguiling and actively irritating, Frammartino's second feature is too uneven to recommend whole-heartedly, but contains so many individually fascinating movies that attention should be paid.

Ang Lee's adaptation of Yann Martel's mega-selling novel Life Of Pi is technically adept, mildly engaging and thematically pedantic.

Gerardo Naranjo's fourth feature Miss Bala is one long slow burn with no final bang.

Bong's stylistic embellishment of the simple tale of a mother who will do anything to protect her son is breathtaking.

Like "Anvil," this is a crowd-pleasing triumph of the spirit, framed around a story so bizarre it sounds like an urban legend.

Curry also emphasizes the human drama of the kid drivers who face their own distinct challenges and setbacks in order to become champions.

The reinvention of this neighborhood may be in the cause of progress for New York's urban landscape, but sometimes you can't help feeling that the planners and the bureaucrats should leave well-enough alone.

The author's texts are used as biographical inventory, and they're not simply read, they're performed, sometimes to the detriment of the prose.

A true crime tale with added layers of intrigue and atmosphere.

The film engages sporadically but mostly fails to take advantage of its under-documented milieu.

The blistering tunes and unique animation compensate for the rather unconvincing central love story that works best as a Forrest Gump-ian device to highlight some legendary real-life musicians.

Zemeckis intends to give us a slightly more depraved version of Washington's usual charismatic hero, then pull the rug out from him. But Flight's true downward spiral is its own loss of momentum.

Ultimately rather opaque. It lacks sufficient emotional and psychological clarity to cut through our disaster fatigue.

Garbus' over-reliance on interviews that state rather than dramatize Fischer's excellence makes this a portrait that too often seems more overheard than inhabited.

Michael Fassbender (Fishtank, Inglourious Basterds) is reliably great, severely outclassing costar Knightley's grating performance.

Although Ben Stiller’s brand of nervy comic ticks can prove irritating on occasions, here he is kept in check so that the humor and the pathos shine through.

A dark and brooding story that only gets more disturbing over the course its 152 minute runtime.

Betrayals will occur and loyalties will be tested, but it's the audience that ends up ripped off.

Bernie is an interesting guy, but he doesn't make for very good company.

Essentially a sexually charged two-hander with blunt allegorical implications, Kôji Wakamatsu's one-note follow-up to United Red Army is a disappointing affair, visually indifferent and thematically simplistic.

Thrilling and suspenseful without an American star like Russell Crowe or an excess of explosions.

For all the interviewees who tearfully speak of her work, the film does anything but.

Actress and director Maïwenn Le Besco (a.k.a. Maïwenn) confounds expectations by drawing together a heart-thumping patchwork of dramas and emotions.

It's hard to watch Farewell without thinking of such '70s classics as "All the Presidents Men" and "Network," mature dramas that Hollywood has since all but abandoned (with intermittent exceptions like The Insider).

Graceful cinematography captures the loneliness and isolation of these kids with understatement, even when the director succumbs to twinkling piano that pulls a tad too hard on the heartstrings.

Don't count on special effects: it has been lovingly and traditionally animated to pay homage to E.H. Shepard's original drawings.

Higher Ground is a weird film with some very nice moments, but its odd and offbeat combination of comic touches, serious spiritual subject matter and occasional surrealist interludes never quiet gels.

Those unfamiliar with the Duplass' previous movies won't realize what's missing; they'll just enjoy the earthy angst, edgy laughs and off-kilter casting of Jonah Hill.

Fans of the 66-year-old guitar god (which is to say the only people who'll see this homespun gem) will revel in Young's winsome cruise down Memory Lane.

This is one of the super rare docs that packs an unbelievable punch despite its misguided aesthetics. It's a strange triumph of content over form, which is the province of journalists to report.

See What I’m Saying is at once heartbreaking and irritating, enlightening and boring, but frankly not aesthetically well made in any particular way.

The key point is made, if seemingly lost in the overly cheery finale.

The key selling point is Bayona's ten-minute reenactment of the tidal wave and its carnage, which is brutal, visceral and without peer. His visual mastery is almost enough to make up for The Impossible's conventional final hour and the empty feeling of trying to find the point of this whole exercise.

The first half-hour is as evocative as (and more specific than) Claire Denis' "White Material," a similarly broad treatment of post-colonial chaos. The rest, sadly, falls apart, but Haroun's formal skill confirms his continual promise.

The film, despite its promise to excavate an inner life, wilts into banality whenever Gould's thorny paranoia and control issues come up.

Stylistically dull, Crime After Crime proceeds from one talking-head interview to the next, sticking to sentiment.

Some of the performances in the film (from Mahalia Jackson to The Clara Ward Singers) are deeply affecting and the historical context the film provides is as impressive as the music itself.

ParaNorman is easily one of the most charming, imaginative and quirky comedies to come out of Laika Entertainment (Coraline), but for all its cleverness and urbane wit, it's in no way appropriate for kids.

The performances are excellent, even if none of the characters are all that likeable or involving.

Not sure if you'll enjoy Safety Not Guaranteed? Here's a quick litmus test: how do you feel about watching Mark Duplass, accompanying himself on zither (!), singing a heartfelt song about how "everyone in the big machine tries to break your heart?"

A soft and sweet cancer drama that hits with the force of an ill-timed hug.

It's in the moments Abrams attempts to combine emotional payoffs with popcorn-style thrills that the film rings most false.

Director Steven Spielberg doesn't have a steady grip on War Horse's careening tone, but he'll be damned if there's not 15 minutes in there for everyone.

By focusing on the human aspect of Al-Qaeda, The Oath does give the viewer something to think about, but the film is unsatisfying, raising questions and providing too few answers.

With perspective firmly confined to the soldiers, Armadillo has inevitably invited many comparisons to "Restrepo," last year's Oscar nominated documentary about Western forces trying to gain ground in Afghanistan. But "Restrepo" is by far the better film.

Overall it's a game effort but despite its strong ambitions and provocative themes, Shame may leave you just like its main protagonist - in need of a very cold shower.

A small film about enormous fears.

The twists and turns in The Double Hour are not arbitrary; rather, they are well considered and effective, right down to the last frame.

That sense of mischief and pleasure in the craft makes Bellamy a thoroughly intriguing and likeable experience. From Chabrol we would expect nothing less.

This is strictly talking heads fare, broken up with movie clips, stills and home movies; fortunately, Jack Cardiff's ephemera are better than yours.

The movie is really best enjoyed as a fun little addendum to a profanity-laden chapter in New Media history.

You'll be happier with the film if you don't expect fidelity to source material, but that doesn't mean you'll hate it if you loved Niels Arden Oplev's movie.

The movie, largely improvised and totally believable, is often very funny, and the glimpses of life inside what remains a very repressive regime are fascinating, but in the final analysis, despite a fairly grim denouement, there's little here you haven't already seen in Hollywood flicks like "Singles."

Though rife with clichés, Starry Starry Night has just enough nostalgic melancholy and quiet whimsy to make its coming-of-age narrative and elegy to childhood emotionally and visually compelling.

Some may say giving Mr. Killen screen time equals a bully pulpit, that it would be reckless and cheapen the heartfelt message. To the filmmakers credit they offered generous portions from both sides.

Most of its truth (and any irony) is undercut by director Vikram Jayanti's fawning approach.

To say the movie is understated is an understatement, yet it’s justified.

While it matches "Pygmalion" and "Educating Rita" in topic and pedigree, Queen to Play merely hints at plot points and character development, which leaves it to coasts on the reputations of its stars.

With a powerhouse cast that also includes Steve Buscemi, Sigourney Weaver, Robin Wright, Ben Foster, Anne Heche, Cynthia Nixon and Ice Cube, the carefully crafted and trenchant drama will appeal to more audience members than it will to critics.

Don Hahn’s documentary is an animator’s attempt to invigorate what is otherwise a dry story.

Reilly delivers another one of his trademark "nutty pal" performances that continue to win him fans.

There's no denying the film's refrain that legends are lessons, but Brave is sadly remedial.

Enter the Void was never going to be another "Avatar." It won't be another "Irreversible" either.

While the anthropomorphism Joubert employs to tell the lions' story may strike some as cloying, ultimately that doesn't distract from this tale of survival in an inhospitable environment.

The juxtaposition of the tragedy and the lunacy of the circumstances are not completely disparate; satire is an appropriate weapon here, but it's the drama in Peepi Live that truly resonates.

The Sleeping Beauty lacks either the dramatic intensity or the sexual frankness that drew attention to her previous films "Fat Girl" and "The Last Mistress."

While this film has the trademark Solondz black comedy, it does not probe into deeper emotions as successfully as "Happiness" did.

The premise is fetching and feels like a mystery, particularly as the film orchestrates its story to make the work of the Alps group seem like a kind of heist.

The bad news is that if you haven't seen "Thor," "Captain America" and "Iron Man 2" - that's six hours and three minutes of homework - The Avengers won't make sense. The good news is if you're a human under the age of 45, you probably already have.

A messy if initially intriguing take on sci-fi-underpinned high school angst for the vlogging age, Chronicle eventually grows repetitive and stale.

Aimed at kids, Arthur Christmas could be a little trying if you're over 10, but if you want an easygoing flick to get you into the mood for the holidays you could do a lot worse.

The work is a brutal rite of passage that will click with anybody who has put it all out there and lost once, twice or thrice. And still got up to face the music again.

Notwithstanding Steven Soderbergh's name among the nine credited producers, this is strictly mid-level assembly line product, designed to ride entirely on the modest marquee value of second-tier or past-prime stars.

The result is a lively mix of informative and enlightening storytelling, with a healthy dash of poignancy.

Further exploration of this psychological question might have made for a more substantial, less enervating artfilm. One less liable to be experienced as an approximation of cinematic waterboarding.

The entertaining non-stop action has the potential to give the film wide cross-over appeal and cult status.

Unsurprisingly, the strongest moments of the film are musical.

The feature directorial debut of Martin Zandvliet, Applause has moments of flourish and moments that reach towards something as pared down as Thea's play.

Leon Gast's profile of the photographer is not devoid of entertainment value or unhelpful in understanding the history of photojournalism, however, the movie is as ephemeral as one of Galella's snapshots of a coked out, B-list celeb exiting Studio 54 circa 1975.

The overarching lesson is twofold: environmental issues are never as simple or as cut-and-dried as we would like, and the first order of business is to get the science right.

Williams embodies Margot's inner turmoil with an unfussy sense of terrified instability.