Unashamedly sticks with its light comedy roots.

Despite what you might fear, the movie is not torture. And even if it doesn’t inspire lust, you will breathe a warm sigh of relief, thinking: This could have been so much worse.

Silver garners a hilarious performance from Dempsey, whose charm is only surpassed by his talent for slapstick. And though she lets the movie lapse into a lengthy montage in the middle, she keeps the story's wit and romance intact to the very end. Loverboy is a movie worth falling for. [2 May 1989, p.C5]

Neither man nor mouse nor any other critter has a prayer of holding his/her/its own once the real star of the sequel shows up: Snowbell, the worrywart feline voiced by Nathan Lane.

Passably interesting, occasionally riveting and largely superfluous. But it's certainly a worthwhile curiosity, and it's not what anyone expected. At the movies these days, that alone is worth something.

Executive Decision is a gripping, though occasionally overcomplicated, thriller arranged like a Tom Clancy novel. [15 Mar 1996, p.7G]

The weirdest movie of the summer. OK, the year.

The movie is at its best when it flirts with becoming a meta-sequel — a film whose characters know they’ve been in a movie called “Trainspotting.”

By the end of Breach, we never come to fully understand Hanssen -- who could? -- but Cooper's beguiling performance and his tense cat-and-mouse games with Phillippe help bring an extra layer of entertainment to this otherwise rote thriller.

Despite its flaws, The Gatekeeper will keep you engaged.

What goes on in Streets of Fire is not quite stupid -- it's saved from that by the remarkable love for style of its director, Walter Hill -- but the film doesn't show an intelligence to match its style, either. [04 June 1984, p.C6]

Turtles II is unabashedly a kids' movie -- lighter on the colors, freer with its wisecracks, less vicious in its violence. [22 Mar 1991, p.G5]

It's not easy to forgive a movie that so ungratefully wastes its potential with such a poorly structured plot, but Shaft has a few redeeming moments up its sleeve after all.

As light and fluffy as it is, Return to Me still proves surprisingly inviting.

Eagle vs. Shark feels like a low-budget, foreign cousin to Napolean Dynamite, less polished and sly. But it's definitely in the same family, lulling us into friendly acceptance with its persuasively silly rhythm and deceptively big heart.

Hiding Out is a pleasant bit of fluff; it's Back to the Future without the fantasy. It's no breakthrough in movie- making, but it's not dumb either. There are enough funny lines and enough winning performances to forgive the implausibilities and the ridiculous action scene at the end. [06 Nov 1987, p.D5]

This lavish, spectacular reworking of director Desmond Davis' beloved 1981 original is the rare sort of remake that actually makes sense: With all due respect (and copious apologies) to the generation that grew up with the first film, Clash of the Titans just wasn't very good.

Only Nunn has enough charisma -- despite relying on a stereotype or two as Bradley -- to easily command attention whenever he's onscreen. If only he could have transferred some of that charisma to Ford -- and to Regarding Henry -- during the therapy sessions. [10 July 1991, p.D1]

The Homesman, director Tommy Lee Jones’ drama about the hardships of pioneer life in 1850s Nebraska, goes from deathly dull to shocking to intriguing to “Look, there’s Meryl Streep in a bonnet!”

It's not much, but it isn't awful, either, provided you're interested in this sort of thing to begin with.

I Want to Believe provides a welcome reminder of what made Carter's franchise a pop-culture gem.

Openly embraces its noir roots, right down to the femme fatale (Connie Nielsen) who strikes a Lauren Bacall-ish pose in an open doorway and whose eyes are lit by a horizontal slant of light.

A captivating documentary.

Basically a one-joke movie, and they take their sweet time -- too much of it, actually -- getting to the good stuff. But what excellent laughs they provide in the end.

Now that it has been set to film, it seems somehow dated as well. The greed of the 1980s, thematic backdrop for Mamet's original, is presumed gone. Glengarry Glen Ross looks almost . . . quaint. [02 Oct 1992, p.G5]

Move over donkey, it's Banderas' time to shine.

The movie's second half, which grows progressively sadder, also starts to feel a bit repetitive.

Greystoke has its many pleasures, and despite its bobtailing at the hands of the bottom-line-watchers, it has the sweep of epic. [30 Mar 1984, p.D1]

Its silly Snow White allusions aside, Sydney White is a simple but amiable modern fairy tale.

There are precious few moments in Elf when Ferrell doesn't manage to at least get a smile out of you. Considering how cloying the movie might have turned out without him, that's a huge gift all its own.

That rare biopic that’s shorter and swifter than it should be. This turns out to be both a blessing and a curse.

All about watching Jaa.

If its dark heart had won out to the very end, The Ref could have been a minor classic. But it's a hilarious antidote to heartwarming holiday films -- and has some of the cruelest humor of any comedy in quite some time. [11 Mar 1994, p.G5]

Hits the parallels between love and hip-hop a little too hard when the message is relatively easy to grasp: Don't sell out: not your art, not your heart. If only music business executives were listening.

Leatherheads goes on a good 20 minutes too long, and there's very little in it that makes a lasting impression, but it's easy to watch while it's unspooling -- much like, you know, a lot of Cary Grant comedies.

Tsui Hark, the director, is apparently one of those filmmakers to whom the screwball comedy is not only still alive, but worthy of an extended salute. [07 Feb 1986, p.D9]

Instead of leaving you lamenting the lack of creativity and originality in the film industry, this modest, playful thriller puts you in a forgiving mood.

Taylor is effective as a woman struggling to take control of her life, but Ambrose's work feels shallow in comparison.

The best moments in Matchstick Men belong to Cage and Lohman, who, in "Paper Moon" fashion, prove that the family that cons together, laughs together.

You don't need a Ouija board to suss out where all this is heading, but Is Anybody There? counteracts its deficiencies -- predictability, sentimentality -- with a healthy dose of dark humor.

Once you get past its intriguing title, What's Eating Gilbert Grape turns out to be a plain if beautifully photographed slice-of-life drama decked in eccentric garb. Beneath its veneer of oddball characters, it's a rather simple, essentially bloodless tale about life in Endora, Iowa, a tiny dead-end town. [4 March 1994, p.G4]

Unfortunately, Ghobadi doesn't trust his film to convey the message that has already been clearly and entertainingly spelled out, and No One Knows About Persian Cats ends on a sudden note of tragedy that almost ruins the exuberant spirit of everything that has preceded it.

It's a tomb-raiding adventure movie several notches below Indiana Jones status.

Wields some power, but it's hard to shake the feeling you've seen it all before.

Back to the Future Part III nicely concludes the threesome (calling this a "trilogy" confers just a bit too much honor on an extended, live-action cartoon). Unlike the second, III is quite satisfying -- often funny, and ultimately thrilling. [25 May 1990, p.G5]

Cars is certainly watchable, and there's always some amusing bit of business happening at the edges of the frame.

The film also plays to the strengths of the found-footage format, proving that sometimes the scariest things are the ones you can barely see. For horror hounds, this is required viewing.

A high tolerance for syrupy melodrama is required in order to enjoy Together.

We never get much insight into this rather mysterious composer, a difficult task but one the movie seems to promise. [04 Feb 1994, p.G21]

Watching Eastwood and Costner is a pleasure (even though they don't have much screen time together). In Costner's case, it's an unexpected one. Give him a role with weight, apparently, and he can carry the load. [24 Nov 1993, p.E1]

The film is not so much suspenseful as intriguing.

Bayona is restrained here in terms of gore, but his landscape is a realistic vision of a hell we never hope to visit.

Has that formulaic, cookie-cutter feel typical of many Disney toons. The premise is inspired, but the follow-through is merely adequate.

For the farce it so desperately wants to be, the film often feels slack and too reliant on so-so punch lines for laughs.

Eventually loses its cheerful goofiness and its momentum, climaxing with a lengthy and embarrassing showdown scene at a big party. But it gets worse.

The mere idea of making a musical version of Pride and Prejudice set in modern-day India is delicious, though, and Chadha's lively imagination and good intentions almost make the concept work.

Worth seeing for Dafoe's performance alone, a singular mixture of camp and pathos that echoes the tragic, romantic allure of vampires in literature and film.

But unlike most teen dance films, Girls Just Want to Have Fun does not dwell over long on boogie, even though it motivates the plot and allows the filmmakers to show off beautiful young bodies. Metter and his associates know that, finally, sizzle must also have steak. Or at least ground round. [11 May 1985, p.C7]

When Mulholland Falls should reverberate with complexity, it simply echoes other movies. It's a glossy tribute to film noir, not a memorable entry in the genre. It's too simple-minded, yet it leaves a heap of questions unanswered. [26 Apr 1996, p.5G]

Whatever faults Avatar may have -- and there are many -- the movie succeeds in immersing you in a photorealistic, painstakingly detailed world more fully than any science fiction movie before.

Lean on Me is one of those movies that you know is swollen with hyperbole, but that you want to like anyway. Freeman provides a big reason. [3 March 1989, p.5]

A mediocre widget stamped straight out of the mold of the popular police procedural.

Rocky Balboa is far from essential, and there are moments in it bad enough to make you wince. But I dare you not to feel at least a tiny little rush when that opening bell rings, and Rocky starts swinging one final time.

It's the summer's most avant-garde experiment, and those who hate it (and there will be plenty) will complain the movie doesn't have a point. Then again, neither did Seinfeld, and look how that turned out.

Populated by all kinds of grinning skeletons and decomposing zombies, but in Burton's universe, they aren't the slightest bit threatening. It's the drab, flesh-and-blood living you have to worry about.

Marvel Studios will only be able to draw from this well only so many times, though, before fatigue sets in.

De Niro is solid in a role that requires little more than righteous indignation. The stretch, however, is by Sam Wanamaker in the role of a Los Angeles attorney who specializes in getting his Hollywood clients out of trouble by feeding them names to inform on. Wanamaker himself did 10 years in exile in England rather than answer a congressional subpoena after publicly defending the Hollywood Ten among other witch-hunt victims. The film is worth seeing if only for a look at him in this role -- these days, when the word hero is tossed about with something approaching desperation, Wanamaker gives us a glimpse of the real thing. Maybe he should have directed this one. [15 Mar 1991, p.G5]

It’s filmed with a sharp eye and filled with good performances.

The sort of movie you enjoy much more while you're watching it in the theater than when you're deconstructing it on the way home.

Though the filmmakers have clearly done their homework, and clearly care, they don't find much remarkable in the story of Ritchie Valens. Even given the short life at hand, La Bamba is as schematic and predictable as it is likable. [24 July 1987, p.D1]

My Cousin Vinny is not without its flaws: The movie is overlong, the middle section sags, and there are a couple of running gags that simply aren't very funny. And while the film's courtroom climax is preposterous, the last half hour is definitely worth sticking around for: Pesci makes it a hoot. [13 Mar 1992, p.8]

Some older movies are so terrific, so capable of touching new generations that they cry out to be updated and remade. The mildly entertaining Freaky Friday isn't one of them.

Despite the lack of substance, Run All Night is far better than those clunky "Taken" movies with their timid PG-13 ratings. If you’re gonna cut Neeson loose against the mob, a bloody R is the way to go.

Octopussy is not very good. Though there's a good car- and-train chase scene and the usual schedule of narrow escapes, this one has fewer adventure sequences and less drama even than the last half-dozen. There are more gimmicks. [10 June 1983, p.12]

It's not particularly plausible or well-developed, but it does allow the two seasoned actors to share a sexually tense, vodka-fueled scene at Helen's grave.

Worst of all, though, is Huppert. This fine actress, who has been so effective in European films, walks through her part. Her last American film was Heaven's Gate. For her own sake, she should stay away from Hollywood. [16 Jan 1987, p.D5]

Reynolds, who directed the little-seen but brilliantly realized The Beast , makes the camera his plaything in Prince of Thieves. This makes the movie at times obnoxious -- he repeatedly jams the lens into the bad guys' faces -- but most of it is highly watchable. Reynolds captures the dark and dank stuff better than Tim Burton did in Batman , and the action sequences thrust and cut across the screen. [14 June 1991, p.G5]

Though the quality of animation remains dismal, Care Bears II has many pretty pictures; they just don't move very well. Kids under five, particularly little girls, seem enthralled nonetheless. [31 Mar 1986, p.D6]

If Blake Edwards had gotten this one back when he was still fresh (say, around 10), this would have been a physical as well as verbal comedy, and it would have had some kicks. As it is, Chances Are is dreamy, amiable and utterly unmemorable. See it for Cybill. [10 March 1989, p.1]

Like Midnight Express, for which Stone received an Academy Award for his screenplay adaptation, Salvador is better movie than document. But if Stone's style is entirely too florid for history, it is grimly arresting by Hollywood standards. Whatever else, Salvador is an original. [9 May 1986, p.D1]

Unlike "Jaws," Open Water isn't much for traditional popcorn-movie scares. Instead, the movie is more interested in depicting the gradual deterioration of its protagonists' sanity, and how that affects their relationship.

When he means to be funny, Balaban has a wicked way about him. When he means to scare, he's just like the rest of the pack. Still, there's something wonderfully subversive at work in Parents. Be warned. [17 March 1989, p.11]

The music is of course majestic, blending well with a loving cinematography.

Born in East L.A. is a real middle-of-the-roader as comedies go -- not hysterically funny, sort of laid back in pace, with a plot as substantial as the peso -- but its heart is as warm as an enchilada. [22 Aug 1987, p.B4]

A Dry White Season hits with the force of its convictions, and it hits hard. But it could have been more. [06 Oct 1989, p.G5]

Certainly pleasant, but it's also a bit safe.

Boiler Room's behind-the-scenes veracity makes it highly compelling.

If you're interested in the sheer craft of filmmaking, Cloud Atlas is required viewing - a rare example of a movie getting by entirely on technique and creative bravado.

The overriding tone of A Mighty Heart is neither indignant nor sentimental: The film is consistently cool, almost to a fault.

One of the craziest, most random and insane slasher films ever made. [31 Oct 2010, p.A8]

Night Watch represents the best in Russian special effects, a collaboration between 42 different CGI specialty firms all working in the service of a single goal: to create the nation's most visually transgressive film.

If the other theme-park movies are as appealing, go ahead, bring 'em on.

Bergman can't bring individual scenes together into a collective whole, and the ending (which was reshot at the last minute) closes things on a disappointingly limp note. [28 Jun 1996, p.5G]

The charms of Lucía, Lucía rely heavily on the charismatic Roth, who is funny and warm and a lot of fun to watch as she embraces her new life.

Despite some forced lines and an overlong competition sequence, Holland holds The Wizard together well, supplementing the obvious stand-up-and-cheer climax with a moving conclusion. [15 Dec 1989, p.12]

Mild and unassuming, the movie gleans its modest charm from Clooney and Pfeiffer's chaste flirtation, much like Doris Day and Rock Hudson did 40 years ago: There are no hot-blooded boudoir scenes here. Like its sensible co-stars, One Fine Day has both feet firmly planted on terra firma. [20 Dec 1996, p.6G]

The script, which Harron co-wrote with Guinevere Turner, presents a disappointingly superficial portrait of Page as a person.

For all its charms, sometimes feels as self-obsessed as the characters it slyly mocks.