Sin City is always moving on to the next thing, and despite surprisingly good work from its large cast (especially Rourke and Owen, who are both outstanding), the picture feels synthetic and artificial.

Otomo's vision is as dark as his palette is vivid. [15 Nov 1991, p.G17]

This is Eastwood's "Brokeback Mountain," chased by a healthy serving of "J.F.K."- style paranoia and conspiracies (Oliver Stone is going to love this movie.) But because so much of what the film says about Hoover remains speculative and unproven, J. Edgar can't fully cross all its Ts.

Gripping family drama keeps Swimming Upstream from going under.

Scott embraces the lightness of the material instead of trying to give it unnecessary weight, and even if he's far from the ideal filmmaker to choreograph bits of slapstick, A Good Year is never less than visually ravishing.

Simply put, it's the heartwarming story of a boy and his slingshot. [25 June 1993, p.G5]

It's a very busy movie, designed to appeal to short attention spans, and it leaves you feeling full, but not satisfied, because it's missing the most important ingredient of all: genuine magic.

Though the film would benefit from further cuts, Machuca still manages to convey the frailty of convictions and the difficulties of growing up -- be it a child or a nation.

The plot in Angels in the Outfield plods some, enough to make younger kids fidget. Once the premise is established, the movie relies on a noisome reporter threatening to expose the celestial help to add suspense. The humor is aimed squarely at kiddies and is of the nerdy-guy-sits-on-a-tray-of-nachos variety. [15 July 1994, p.G4]

Half-way through Uncle Buck, however, the plot abandons reality and is content to settle into the realm of cheap yuks. The film suffers accordingly and becomes so much like the unnatural potato chips and pretzel food snacks that our hero is fond of noshing. Uncle Buck tastes great, yes. But it sure doesn't fill you up. [16 Aug 1989, p.D6]

The film's earnestness makes up for its high corn factor.

Writer/director John A. Davis (Jimmy Neutron) is a wizard at transforming the most mundane setting -- the front yard, for crying out loud -- into another world.

For a low-brow, psycho-on-the-loose-in-paradise thriller, A Perfect Getaway is surprisingly entertaining.

Forget all that accuracy business and just enjoy the movie for what it is: a large-scale, passably engrossing tale of valiant knights doing valiant deeds.

Maybe it's a measure of the numbing awfulness of romantic comedies in general lately, but Definitely, Maybe isn't nearly so bad as you might fear; it's actually fairly pleasant, a bit too off-color to be a family film but enjoyable just the same.

Provides the rare pleasure of a blossoming romance between two people older than Kate Hudson or Ryan Reynolds.

An unknown commodity to anyone who doesn't follow telenovelas, Becker is sure to be a big star and has already signed on for two sequels. Apart from being scorching hot, he's enormously sympathetic in dramatic scenes.

An ambitious, powerful, somber picture, but it never quite moves you the way it should.

Lightness' greatest contribution will be to send people to Kundera's book. As a film, it is thoughtful and well-meaning but long and uneven. The filmmakers' love for their subject recalls a line from Kundera's book: "His love for Tereza was beautiful, but it was also tiring." That's what sitting through Lightness is like. [26 Feb 1988, p.C1]

The movie is "Twister" on the high seas, a spectacular-looking, spectacularly hollow tale about foolhardy men vs. imperious nature.

The first half of Oleanna, David Mamet's film of his own award-winning play about sexual harassment, is carefully calculated to annoy the hell out of you -- which it does. But after a tedious beginning, Oleanna begins to turn the screws. By the end, you find yourself taking pleasure from a brutal beating, and it leaves you rattled, downright disturbed. [11 Nov 1994, p.G4]

The movie is long and sad, but it also seems small. You get the feeling that, like the lives of its protagonists, it could have been more. [11 Jan 1992, p.E1]

Cloak and Dagger does have its charms. It also has its tense moments, and an unforced sentimentality that helps it end on just the right note. And it's nicely performed. [10 Aug 1985, p.6]

A mess, but a fascinating one.

When it was first shown at the 2001 Toronto Film Festival just days before Sept. 11, this movie seemed darkly, grimly comic. Today, though, it often just seems grim.

Allen's most amiable, breeziest comedy in years.

The film has a rather charming way of convincing you that there are times to shrug off the caviar and champagne and go for a fulfilling bowl of spaghetti.

Newell never gets the movie to soar as fairy tale, which is quite clearly what it means to be. And so this fantasy is at its best when it's down and dirty. And that's odd. [17 Sep 1993, p.G4]