Funny, sad, and skeptical in about equal measures, it announces writer-director Dylan Kidd as a filmmaker with a bright future.

Chalk this razzle-dazzle chase picture up as effective Friday-night entertainment, not the heart-stirring romantic thriller it might have been. That's the real truth about "Charlie."

This pungently filmed 1947 melodrama doesn't rank with Clouzot classics like "Diabolique" and "The Wages of Fear," but it's full of hard-boiled charm and has a musical score that adds extra dimensions to its impact.

I doubt if the results would have satisfied Kahlo, whose originality in matters of life, art, and ideas was vastly more far-reaching.

Suffers from touches of sentimentality in its last portion -- Many viewers may welcome this last-minute brightening, though. If so, All or Nothing could join "Topsy Turvy" and "Secrets & Lies" as one of Leigh's most widely enjoyed recent films.

Who would have guessed a documentary about Derrida, the great French philosopher of deconstruction and "différence," would be so entertaining?

Its best moments offer a sense of motion-picture poetry that will lift receptive viewers out of their seats.

On one level, it's an unsettling biopic and an acerbic look at a bygone media age. On another, it's a cautionary tale with uncommon relevance and bite.

Bravo works too hard at extolling Castro -- The film's historical footage is compelling, though, and provides plenty to think about.

Timely, chilling, and grimly instructive.

Most of the characters are one-dimensional, and Avary's over-the-top directing doesn't make them interesting for more than a few isolated moments.

The story is a string of sub-Scorsese clichés, and if engaging actors like Malkovich and Hopper seem to be sleepwalking through their roles, imagine how unwatchable Diesel manages to be.

Moore turns the camera on himself too often for comfort, but he provides an eye-opening array of facts and revelations.

Best of all, Ben Kingsley as the menacing man in the yellow suit, brings the picture pungently to life every time he flashes his enigmatic smile.

The junior Giannini, who has inherited Giancarlo's handsome looks, portrays his mercurial character with energy and flair. Madonna doesn't. Indeed, it's hard to remember the last time a certified celebrity gave a performance so monotonous, unimaginative, and all-around tiresome to watch.

What diminishes the film's impact is Mary Agnes Donoghue's schematic screenplay, which follows Astrid from home to home as unswervingly as a faithful pet.

One of the most inventive offerings so far this season.

The film discusses important social and personal issues, although the interview subjects don't always have enlightening things to say.

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

Tykwer doesn't aim for the heights of excitement and invention he reached in "Run Lola Run," but he blends an impressively varied palette of moods into an intriguingly unpredictable story that's never short of ideas.

The most refreshing aspect of Red Dragon is its reliance on old-fashioned acting instead of computer-aided gizmos. Hopkins overdoes his role at times -- his vocal tones are almost campy -- but his piercing eyes are as menacing as ever, and Ralph Fiennes is scarily good as his fellow lunatic.

The story gets off to a slow start after its riveting documentary-style introduction, but heartfelt acting and unexpected plot twists eventually give it solid dramatic impact.

The account is highly informative, although it would come across more vividly if there were fewer talking heads and longer stretches of archival footage.

It doesn't have a speck of authentic heart -- you can bet its Hollywood creators wouldn't move to Alabama if their lives depended on it -- but if you belong to the growing legion of Witherspoon worshippers, this is definitely the movie of the week.

This movie has promising ingredients. But you'll leave wanting much, much more.

Pungent, opinionated, outspoken.

In short, they don't make 'em like this one anymore. Viewing it is like taking a time machine to a movie age that was more naive than our own in some ways, more sophisticated and ambitious in others.

The Four Feathers ends on the same dubious note as "Black Hawk Down" and other recent war movies, suggesting that loyalty in the trenches -- not the reason for fighting in the first place -- is all that matters. Many will disagree.