Despite its considerable faults, this bizarre, fascinating story is impossible to shake off, like the expression on the face of one of the brothers as he's talking about his father and begins getting choked up (instead of crying, he smiles convincingly, evidence of a life led having to learn to hide his emotions for fear of reprisal).

Theron's transformation in Monster goes far beyond mere appearance. As Wuornos, the actress gets to display a blunt, graceless physicality that is rarely needed in women's roles, which are traditionally internal.

Mines a great deal of its humor from the can't-be-bothered attitude of British culture, but the jokes survive the trip across the Atlantic mostly intact.

A Soldier's Story insists that attention must be paid, and in so doing re-creates a dark and still fascinating picture of the American landscape -- geographical, social, spiritual. [05 Oct 1984, p.C1]

Its overall ability to balance humor and drama, attention to emotional detail and a few winning performances outweighs its maudlin tendencies.

An intoxicating, world-class collaboration between a filmmaker (Spain's Fernando Trueba), two artists (designer Javier Mariscal and animator Tono Errando) and a musician (Cuban pianist/bandleader Bebo Valdés).

The result is an unwieldy but still compelling look at the plight of immigrants wrapped in a thriller about black-market organ transplants.

Dry humor keeps In Bruges fresh and lively and makes it a whole lot of fun to watch.

You will not necessarily know any more about life after the film is done, but you'll have killed a couple of hours painlessly, and you will have laughed a lot. [18 Apr 1984, p.C6]

Across the Universe can't achieve the transcendence and exhilaration musicals strive for, but it often generates a singular kind of magic you've never experienced before.

The Salesman doesn’t have the same precision and emotional wallop of his previous films: The plot hinges on a couple of convenient contrivances, and the first half meanders a bit.

Offers a rose-colored picture of life, but one that Campanella makes ring true.

What makes Wolf Creek so effective is not its originality (which, let's face it, is practically non-existent), or even its amount of gore (the violence is implied more often than it's shown), but the ways in which McLean tweaks the usual formulas, so what you think is going to happen next almost never does.

Sunset Boulevard is one of those films which serve as milestones in the progress of the motion picture toward its goal of an entertainment art. [08 Sep 1950, p.22]

Shortbus is, first and foremost, an experiment -- an accessible, audience-friendly movie about love and sex in which the screen doesn't fade to black once the actors start taking off their clothes.

Sometimes the film feels as if it's trying too hard to include every possible horror a teenager could sample.

Amusingly raunchy.

A surfeit of farce and fast-talking makes up for a lack of plot.

The movie is at its most chilling, oddly enough, when one or another chase isn't going on. The real fun begins when Ryan becomes desperate and goes for help to his old pals in intelligence. This is prime Clancy material -- high-tech surveillance, computerized image enhancement, Intelligence with a capital "I." [5 June 1992, p.G5]

Serenity shows what might have happened if Han Solo had been the focus of the original "Star Wars" instead of whiny Jedi wannabe Luke Skywalker.

Kitano's most enjoyable, flat-out fun movie, provided you can stomach the violence.

A crackling good adventure, a visually sumptuous effort.

This film, directed by Curb Your Enthusiasm's Robert Weide, makes an entertaining companion piece to his book.

Like most movies about the Middle East conflict, Omar is ultimately about the futility of violence and how it feeds on itself.

There is considerable fun in discovering the hows and whys the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise came together, and each member has at least one moment in the spotlight, including the esteemed helmsman Sulu.

Roberts inhabits the character with a gravity and poignancy that she had never even hinted at before.

This bleak, oh-so-dark comedy is one of the best movies you almost didn't get to see.

Social concerns aside, Mighty Joe Young is a Disney film at heart, and director Ron Underwood keeps the emphasis on crisp action sequences, setting up a thrilling chase down Hollywood Boulevard and a finish at the park that is almost guaranteed to turn eyes misty. [25 Dec 1998, p.11G]