Without question, the bold Jeanne Dielman deserves to be seen by those curious about new directions in cinema or about the vigorous Belgian film scene of which Akerman is an important member. But it's a long shot that so challenging and demanding a work will have much widespread appeal. [31 Mar 1983, p.17]

Haneke brings his usual dark sensibility to bear on the multifaceted story, expressing the fractured quality of modern city life through scenes that wander through a labyrinth of missing links and lost connections.

The farce is energetically written, breezily acted, and never quite as dumb as the lunkheads it's about.

The first half drags a bit, but the adventure scenes are exciting and the visual effects are as dazzling as Hollywood's most advanced technology can make them. Focusing as much on time and memory as on danger and disaster, it's an epic with a heart.

Divine Intervention is the "Dr. Strangelove" of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, bringing barely acknowledged fears to the surface so they can be understood.

The plot switches gears every time it threatens to run out of energy, which keeps the show as lively as it is preposterous.

Davison gives one of his many bravura performances in this 1977 adaptation of Miguel Pinero's hard-hitting play.

At least Erik/Magneto, as played by Michael Fassbender, is, well, magnetic.

The story of Laurel Canyon doesn't ultimately live up to the technical polish Cholodenko brings to it, but it's worth a visit if you want to check out the latest emotional vibes emanating from the Hollywood Hills.

Rodriguez makes a promising debut with this unsentimental drama. If she keeps working on her screenwriting skills, she could become a filmmaker to reckon with.

It’s easy to call this film a video action game starring real people, but that “real” part means a lot.

Courtly intrigue should be intriguing, and in that sense, The Princess of Montpensier – although it's somewhat wan and too cerebral for its own good – does a fairly keen job.

Too staid and stolid for audiences on the hunt for easy entertainment.

Distinguished less by its elements of melodrama and psychodrama than by its intense acting and the vivid immediacy of Levring's powerful imagery.

Its ethical and intellectual insights wane when the love story kicks in, weakening what might have been a much deeper movie. Still, its performances are wonderful to watch.

Burden of Dreams is most fascinating, however, when it zeroes in on Herzog himself. [28 Oct 1982, p.18]

The drama makes up in intellectual weight what it sometimes lacks in psychological interest and cinematic realism.

You may not literally laugh or cry, as the ads promise. But you'll have a good time watching the dream-fulfilling denims make their comic-romantic rounds.

Henderson steals the show as an elderly African-American man befriended by one of the main characters.

Strong acting and no-nonsense filmmaking lend interest and impact to the dramatic story.

Although the action tends to become melodramatic and even overwrought at times, the imaginative power of Campion's images and emotional insights (especially with regard to the heroin) rarely allow the story to seem artificial or exaggerated. [12 Nov 1993]

The action is as perky as the main characters.

The coolness here has its creepiness, as in the dispassionate way Fincher depicts Lisbeth's rape and her subsequent, harrowing revenge, but the suspicion remains: Fincher didn't make this movie his own because he doesn't consider it his own.

The athletic scenes are so lively and the main performances are so magnetic that even moviegoers who resist sports-centered pictures may be won over. [11 Sep 1998, p.B2]

It's fun to watch Marlon Brando parody one of his most justly celebrated roles and to see Bert Parks singing ``Maggie's Farm''; Matthew Broderick gives the comedy extra charm. The action sometimes gets bogged down in silly slapstick, though.

Moving the action to a modern American city, the hyperactive movie seems goofy and gimmicky at first, but it acquires real power when the cinematography settles down enough for Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes to do some excellent acting.

As slow-moving as the voyage it portrays,...a surprisingly complex view of contemporary life beneath its good-natured surface.

Although there's quite a bit of nudity and sex, the potentially sensationalistic story is acted with sincerity and directed with a creative eye.

There's only one kind of movie that Spielberg has truly mastered: the kind that looks like a wide-screen video game complete with loony plot twists and mind-bending special effects. And that's Jurassic Park down to its bones. [11 June 1993, Arts, p.12]

The screenplay by director Bell is packed with surprises, and the acting is excellent.

It's often beautiful to watch, although it's more interested in visual style than philosophical depth.

The CGI effects in this film, directed by Brad Peyton, are quite remarkable and help take one’s mind off the cornball disaster-brings-families-together underpinnings.

There's heavy influence from the "Brave New World" brand of dystopian fantasy, but engaging performances and a stylized visual approach lend it originality.

The movie is Allen's most successful in years, even if you don't see it as a self-made commentary on his own career. Credit goes less to the comic dialogue than to the razor-sharp performances of an excellent cast.

If you have a hankering for a pretty good Woody Allen movie and want to brush up on your French at the same time, Shall We Kiss? is the ticket.

Is there a moral objection to be raised about a movie that features a teenage girl as an assassin? I suppose there is, but I couldn't find it in me to object.

Noe's despairing view of human nature is as thoughtful as it is grim, limning the most appalling aspects of earthly experience in terms recalling Dante and Bosh, among other apocalyptic artists.

The sensationalistic beginning and needless mumbo-jumbo ending aside, this is a female buddy film with bite.

The action is tight and suspenseful, and the plot culminates in the most astounding last-minute switch of the decade. Kevin Costner and Gene Hackman shine as the main characters, and Will Patton leads a solid supporting cast.

Trumpets the worthwhile message that ballet is just as manly and athletic as any other masculine activity - and maybe a touch more so, if you have to defy an uncomprehending community in order to pursue it.

Not surprisingly, a documentary constructed entirely from newsreel footage proves inadequate to the task of sounding the depths of someone as complicated or driven (pun intended) as Senna.

As thin and jokey as this movie often is, I prefer it to the serioso treatment that usually encrusts this type of material. At its best, The Savages captures the lunacy that comes with coping with sorrow.

Sincere acting and heartfelt filmmaking add energy to this unassuming Tunisian drama.

It packs an emotional punch despite shortcomings of story and style.

The visuals are amazingly realistic, filling the screen with authentic effects.

Jeffs is an unusually gifted director, but her screenplay (based on Kirsty Gunn's novel) never quite gets a firm grip or a fresh perspective on its coming-of-age subject matter.

Touching and sentimental.

Because almost all animated films now are computer generated, the 2-D animated Curious George has the not-unpleasant patina of an antique.

A gripping documentary, although we learn too little of the relationship between the filmmaker and his subjects.

The film is fine enough to make you forgive, if not forget, the fact that it exists primarily as a corporate enterprise and not as an imaginative tour de force.

Has undertones of serious commentary on American violence, thanks to the screenplay by Larry Cohen, who often uses horror-film plots to explore cracks and contradictions in society.

The analytical discussions don't run very deep, but eyes will shine and toes will tap whenever this picture is shown.

It would have better if Brooks had invested more time trying to discover what makes AMERICANS laugh.

The film basically upholds the verity of the news story while not condoning the sloppiness, and it’s worth seeing mostly for Cate Blanchett’s firebrand performance as Mapes, a battler consumed by righteousness.

This is Eastwood's first acting job since "Million Dollar Baby," and his range, like his raspiness, is fairly one-note.

The material is vivid and harrowing, although the movie provides little analysis or larger-scale context.

Very well acted and directed, if overlong.

The picture has enough assets to please moviegoers willing to put up with its many four-letter words and the bursts of violence that spring from nowhere at unexpected moments. [27 October 1995, Arts Film, p.12]

The movie's seven scenes were filmed in real time (as opposed to condensed editing-room time) over the course of a year, giving the drama an extra touch of realism and humanity.

The overall result is a serious though harrowing journey into the dark corners of this century, marked by a compassionate approach and even a fillip of optimism at the end.

A pleasantly disposable romantic comedy starring the once and future indie-queen Parker Posey.

It's too emotionally honest and psychologically dense for its own good. It's a movie that demands more than one viewing to absorb all its ideas and feelings.

All emerge as vivid historical figures in this lucid account.

A reasonably bright and original movie -- with enough good-natured star performances to make up for glitches in the screenplay, which never quite decides if it's more interested in laughs, chills, or romance.

Rambling, meandering, likable.

The black comedy Noise may be a one-joke movie but it's a resonant one.

The dense interweave of relationships, a Farhadi specialty, is continually compelling.

The gentle story, told via old-fashioned "flat" animation, is perfect for the very youngest viewers.

The movie is all a bit more airy than it needs to be, but Isabelle’s startlements are like a double take that never lets up.

This is one of the few films that captures the complex intensity of the diva/personal assistant dynamic.

From scene to scene The Connection is never less than watchable, although it is also never less than predictable.

The result would be an important drama if the screenplay (based on an early Arthur Miller novel) didn't lapse into preachiness and imprecision at times.

Few American filmmakers put more faith in the ability of words to stimulate mind and heart.

Balaban's superb performance blends with Moyle's mostly understated directing to produce an uneven but sometimes enchanting comedy-drama.

Gries and Morris act up a storm as the optimistically named Sunny Holiday and his long-suffering manager.

Shannon chalks up another line on his rapidly growing résumé of memorable performances. But it's mostly Cardellini's show – she's in every scene. Her portrayal may at first seem opaque, as though she isn't quite sure who Kelli is. But that is, of course, the point. Kelli isn't quite sure who Kelli is.

You never know what to expect from Boyle, and that goes triple in this offbeat comedy drama. It's a movie about family that family viewers will find good, quirky fun.

As summer franchise movies go, Mission: Impossible – Fallout is near the top of the heap.

Romantic comedy about a bridegroom-to-be who gets sidetracked on the way to his wedding, especially by an unexpected traveling companion who's both free-spirited and beautiful.

Entertaining as the movie often is, this all-American, can-do attitude is also the source of its shortcomings. Given the enormousness of its subject, there is a radical lack of awe in this movie.

It has a good heart, though, and makes an amiable introduction to the integration battles of the '60s and '70s.

It gains a major charge of dramatic energy from Kurt Russell's ferocious acting, almost certainly the best of his career.

The film makes clear that the soft-spoken, diminutive Ginsburg fought early and hard for gender equality in the courts in her own steadfastly clearsighted way. She’s the opposite of a late bloomer.

Thanks to Tukur, what we get here is still something: a stunning portrait of a good man caught in a widening inferno.

What makes the film intriguing, and somewhat off-putting, is that Romain is deliberately portrayed as a heel; he strains his relations with his lover and his family, except for his grandmother (Moreau), to the breaking point.

This may be the first crime thriller to explicitly utilize superstring theory but, in its woozy romanticism, it's not that far removed from this year's other time-warp movie, "The Lake House," about two lovers living in parallel years - or "Frequency," which starred Jim Caviezel as a good guy.

Tarantino has always been an inventive director, and in Kill Bill: Vol. 2 he's at his cinematic best, showing an ingenuity that nothing in his monster hit "Pulp Fiction" surpasses.

Denzel Washington is stellar, and so is Tak Fujimoto's cinematography, which is as edgy and antsy as the story it tells.

The film's biggest unexplored question: Why is someone with a reputation for laying bare the truth so addicted to plastic surgery?

While this slightly edgy comedy has moments of offbeat charm, it would carry more conviction if the acting were richer and the characters focused on more sophisticated attitudes and ambitions.

Although the story slips into clichés despite its offbeat subject, Leconte's cinematic style is fresh and vigorous, and Auteuil remains one of France's most engaging actors.

Distinctive feel.

I wish the truly searing moments in this film were not continually counterbalanced by an overall historical-reenactment stiffness in the presentation.

The ending is especially inventive, managing to be sour, cynical, sentimental, and upbeat at the same time. [22 Dec 1989]

Lee may, in the end, be too balanced a filmmaker to give Life of Pi the extra spin of lyric delirium it sorely needs. It's a sane movie about an essentially deranged situation.

Heartfelt performances make up for some stodgy dialogue and corny moments, though. And it's nice to know some filmmakers still have a foot firmly planted in old-fashioned humanistic storytelling.

The mid-'50s version is slow going most of the way, but there's no beating Cary Grant and Deborah Kerr in the charm department, and director Leo McCarey comes up with some amusing moments that are more diverting than anything in Beatty's updated edition. [13 Oct 1994, p.10]

The film’s thesis is that the struggle to survive did not end with the camps. Each of the women profiled recounts, with varying degrees of intensity, the difficulties in creating a “normal” life in a world where the concept of “home” can no longer fully resonate.