As for that murder scene, it's undoubtedly the part of the film that will get people talking the most. Clearly and meticulously taking its cues from the widely circulated photos of the crime scene, it is dramatic, it is attention-getting and it is memorable. It is, in other words, everything that the rest of Lizzie is not.

Delivers a rare perfect ending to a perfectly likeable trilogy.

In Quiz Lady, the sum total is a heartfelt but uneven shrug that probably should have been better than it is.

The problem is that there's nothing of substance to hold together those occasionally fun moments of often-grotesque absurdity.

Stone is generally given to deep thinking -- eternal fates are on the line. Not only does that lend the riveting and intense Savages a certain gravity, but it's also what separates his film from, say, your favorite Guy Ritchie movie. Here, we find an appealing depth amid the appalling violence.

While Cruise is more than adequate in a part that demands "Top Gun"-style histrionics rather than subtle characterization, the drawbacks of this movie are ultimately overwhelming. After all, entertainment made too difficult is no longer particularly entertaining. [24 May 1996, p.L21]

With beautiful, artful images serving to break up the monotony of the film's wealth of talking heads, Surviving Progress is at times as visually striking as it is persuasive.

Burger's film would have been better had he ended it about three minutes earlier than he does -- a move that would have given his movie at least a dash of profundity.

A bronto-sized slice of big-screen entertainment buoyed by dazzling visual effects and intense action, and a film that plays like part adventure movie, part monster movie and part thrill ride.

It's a fun one to talk about -- if only for the opportunity to shake your head in amused disbelief at what you just saw.

Ends up being a reasonably gripping story of political intrigue, international corruption and one woman's determined fight for justice.

Once Learning to Drive gets up to speed it hums along nicely.

Annaud's picture does an exquisite job of conveying the many-layered ironies of its material, creating a mood of odd reserve and self-reflection even as it stages the couple's trysts with both force and delicacy. [29 Jan 1993, p.L21]

All of Demme's headliners are quite adequate, with Davis - a wonderful comedienne as well as a dramatic actress of stature - emerging as the film's principal delight. They make The Ref a briskly enjoyable affair that would have been even better if it had retained more of its diabolical edge. [18 Mar 1994, p.L24]

Yes, Apatow's film has its peaks and valleys -- just the way life does -- but it stands alone nicely on its own, a satisfying comedic riff on life and all of its absurdities.

But the way [Stone] elevates things in Cruella, taking what is a mediocre, fairly formulaic script and making it sing — making us eager for the next scene, just to see what she’s going to do — isn’t something a lot of people can do, and it’s thrilling to watch.

It's an uplifting, even enchanting, smile-inducer.

One of the most pleasant surprises of this year's jam-packed holiday release schedule, and easily the season's must-see family film.

Not, in other words, a happy story. It is not a story of redemption or healing or finding happiness amid the despair. It is about reaping what one sows. But, damn, those performances. Damn, that dialog. Damn, that's good stuff.

Alas, in Cronenberg's hands, it just comes across as cold and lifeless and exhausting.

Plotwise, though, Brewer's Footloose is anything but loose. In fact, it's rigidly loyal to the original, to the point of slavishness.

While the result is an often fast-moving and very Damon-y Jason Bourne, it doesn't at all feel as original or as well crafted as the series once did.

This period gangster yarn...is neither in the front rank nor the slag heap of Altman's oeuvre. Rather, it's an atypically accessible attempt at mainstream entertainment that contains both satisfying and off-putting elements. [16 Aug 1996, p.L24]

An oddly inert and even old-fashioned yarn, one that sleepwalks for long stretches, defusing much of the drama of what is an undeniably fascinating true-crime story.

There's an overly episodic feel to it all, as Curtis and company seem happy merely to float along from gag to gag.

What we end up with is an arm's-length film that feels more haunted than haunting -- and one that audiences will want to forget rather than remember.

Ends up being the kind of movie we don't see a whole lot anymore: an emotionally grounded and quietly meaningful crowd-pleaser that functions as a lovely antidote to the recently ended summer blockbuster season.

Once it gets past its lull-prone first half, Neighbors 2 tries to inject a little heart into the proceedings -- which was the secret weapon of the original -- but even those end up feeling stale and phoned-in.