This heartbreaking and essential look into the lives of those who put so much into educating other people's children ought to be seen by anyone concerned about the fate of the public school system, and the nation as a whole.

Director William Friedkin, with his scrupulous attention to detail, his determination to convey a sense of realism, achieves such startling effects that one comes away almost completely convinced of the possibility of demonic possession. His movie rushes headlong towards a blood-curling climax (the actual rite of exorcism), a series of scenes so powerful it leaves the audience limp and exhausted.

The picture sparkles with witty dialogue, titilates with droll situations, stirs the heart with its story of the metamorphosis of a London guttersnipe in a fine lady, and its romantic intervals glow with warmth and charm that fascinates the audience.

Delpy and Hawke, who’ve invested this trilogy with the fine shadings of life lived, do extraordinary things with small moments.

It’s a pleasure, all too rare, to watch two splendid actors pitted against each other with equal force such as Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger in the exceptional murder mystery, In the Heat of the Night. Over the years I remember a few extraordinary cases of this kind - Spencer Tracy and Clark Gable in “San Francisco.” Alec Guinness and Jack Hawkins in “The Prisoner,” Richard Burton and Peter O’Toole in “Becket.”

The vastly divergent paths of Assange and Manning make up the most fascinating aspects of this relentlessly compelling film.

A critic trots out the word "masterpiece" at his own peril, but there it is.

There isn't a dull moment in the picture.

An artistic triumph for the master of mystery.

As joyously energetic now as the day it arrived.

As tough-spirited as fans would hope for - and exciting and thought-provoking in a way few adventure dramas ever are.

Twisted, tortured, terrifying - and terrific.

A gorgeous, wonderfully inventive computer-animated comedy.

One of the most extraordinary films you’ll see this year.

Whether the movie will make you believe a shocking-orange stock car has a future with a lavender Carrera, it's more fun to follow than a televised freeway chase.

If he has overlooked your favorites, have faith: There’s plenty left in the trunk for that promised encore.

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest is the best film therapy one can recommend.

Gently unfolds into an epic, heartbreaking love story that's far greater than the sum of its parts.

Feuerzeig's film - everything a good documentary should be - is a story of family, friendship, art and fame, as seen through the prisms of exceptional beauty and deepest pain.

You can reexperience the humor and magic -- and the essence of Streisand -- in this William Wyler classic.

Star Wars is somewhat grounded by a malfunctioning script and hopelessly infantile dialogue, but from a technical standpoint, it is an absolutely breathtaking achievement.

Anyone planning to see The Empire Strikes Back should be warned right away that it is done as a two-hour chapter and ends in a cliffhanger, which is likely to leave an unsatisfied feeling, unlike “Star Wars,” which can be taken as a self-contained unit. This acknowledged, the movie nevertheless is a spectacular piece of work that carries the new “Star Wars” tradition forward.

Pixar’s latest animated film may lack the volume of out-loud laughs of the “Toy Story” series, but the fantasy set in Mexico doesn’t skimp on the tears. It’s as if the studio turned the touching first seven minutes of “Up” into a nearly two-hour feature film.

In the end, it's all about McDormand, who’s great at playing ordinary women in extraordinary circumstances.

A lovely film and another impressive calling card for Bayona, who can mix genres in an innovative way like his former producer, Guillermo del Toro. He's created a deeply emotional film about loss that will probably have you crying by film's end.

The film adaptation of Robert E. Griffith’s and Harold S. Prince’s stage production of “West Side Story” retains all the vibrant qualities of the original work while added brilliance and originality have been brought to the screen presentation.

The best thing the director has going for this one is the talented young actor playing Ricky Baker, as he constantly tries to emulate his tough "gangsta" heroes like Tupac Shakur. (He even names his dog "Tupac.")

Let other directors play with toy soldiers and computer effects. This is big-time, old-school filmmaking. Dunkirk isn’t overdone. It’s simply done epically...But it’s also human. It has room for small acts of heroism, of kindness, of forgiveness. And for a single, simple important, timeless message of resilience: Take what comes. Do what you can. Never surrender.

The cast is all top-notch. Harrelson can peel and eat scenery like a bunch of bananas, but he’s mostly in control here. Andy Serkis is beautifully intense as Caesar, and Steve Zahn a welcome addition as the scaredy-cat Bad Ape.

Wan's secret weapons are clearly Wilson and Farmiga, both such good actors they're able to sell the audience on everything the Warrens experience. The duo also does a great job selling the romantic bond between the Warrens, which helps you fall in love with them as much as you end up falling for the entire Hodgson family.

A brilliant, thrilling, vital transference of the play to the screen.

This amazing true story with remarkable performances by Dev Patel, Rooney Mara, Nicole Kidman and newcomer Sunny Pawar has, like the title would suggest, a blend of brute force and elegance.

The new movie truly passes the torch by making the next generation of Resistance heroes — Rey (Daisy Ridley), Finn (John Boyega), Poe (Oscar Isaac) and new addition, Rose (Kelly Marie Tran) — every bit as compelling as the old guard. Even more surprising, Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) evolves from the whiny brat in “The Force Awakens” to a three-dimensional menace.

The Gold Rush collars you, plays quickly upon your emotions and leaves you in that mood where you can't laugh without a sob tearing through, or sob without a laugh bubbling up from the depths of the understanding of laugh. [17 Aug 1925, p.79]

This movie will spark debate, even with an end title card that reminds audiences of the concept of dramatic license. But as a movie, and not a court document, it is extraordinary.

The Eagle Huntress is all at once an inspiring story for children of all ages to believe that they can do anything, a reflection of the unfairness of gender roles and a rare and unique look at a remote part of the world.

The Glass Castle is a family portrait that at its heart is a father-daughter movie, anchored by two outstanding actors.

Acclaimed filmmaker Ken Loach is a master at capturing the day-to-day of British life, and this film, which won the coveted Palm D'Or award at the Cannes Film Festival, is no exception. That said, it may be easier for some to decipher the heavy British accents than others.

Do androids dream of electric sheep? Maybe. But science fiction-loving cinephiles have definitely been dreaming of a movie like Blade Runner 2049 for years.

Taking Michael Lewis’ seminal book about the meltdown as source material, director Adam McKay channels his own anger into something rarely even attempted by Hollywood, let alone pulled off: a comedy about a tragedy.

Comparisons to the classic 1979 Oscar winner "Kramer vs. Kramer" are inevitable. But Gifted stands on its own because it feels more like reality than a Hollywood take on family crisis.

Steinfeld is brilliantly able to weave together a character who's both typical and yet surprising in her multidimensional emotions that Nadine slowly works through. She's not a cookie-cutter character.

The dialogue follows the quaint Welsh dialect of the book and the picture is as faithful a transcription of novel to screen as it is possible for a scenarist and director to achieve. The screen play, by Philip Dunne, retains all the honest vigor and tender charm of the book.

Amid all the high-speed action, this “Baby” is also spiked with humor. In large part that's thanks to Spacey and Foxx, as well as Jon Hamm, who makes the bank robber Buddy, one of his better movie roles. Having such strong actors also brings a gravitas to the story.

We get it, and DC finally should, too: Superhero movies can be fun. And Wonder Woman is a movie that'd send even the Suicide Squad home smiling.

Experimental in form, it's also open and appealing in its vision of romantic redemption, an avant-garde romp that's also a great date movie. [8 Mar 1996, p.40]

One of the most emotionally devastating movies of the decade.

The direction is excellent and Freed is to be congratulated on the production as a whole, as the story is presented in an original and enticing manner.

Out of Africa is still an absolute knockout. It provides such an enchanting glimpse of the paradise that Dinesen tragically lost that audiences will completely understand her other grand passion for Africa itself.

It’s not just “Impossible,” it’s irresistible.

In the final analysis, the best thing one can say for Lee is that he takes risks, like all true artists. For unlike most of today's film makers, he's not afraid to really challenge a movie audience to do some serious thinking.

A fascinating whirl of politics and palace intrigue.

Even those who've long noted Polley's intelligence on screen will be amazed by the perception she displays as a filmmaker.

Polanski’s direction is smooth and the film itself happily understated. The tension created is practically unbearable.

Working from his own original screenplay, Crowe builds a story line full of unexpected twists and digressions.

A caustic, funny, low-budget treat, shot on digital video.

Clever, compelling, funny and unpredictable, and it has a lollapa-looza of an ending.

As wide-ranging, and yet as sharply focused, as Mikal Gilmore's book.

Yet another film from Iran that has the leisurely pace, sly humor and incontrovertible wisdom of a Sufi parable.

While it won't rival the Harry Potter movies as a cultural milestone, the luminous, irresistible Stardust is no less industrious at scavenging myths and legends and making something altogether new from the familiar pickings.

Delirious in its excess, but never less than ferociously intelligent and operatically emotional, Underground represents one of those rare, exhilarating moments when an outsize artistic vision is fueled by an apparently unlimited budget. Not to be missed.

This extraordinary film refracts truth through the prism of memory, until what you get is a tragedy of Shakespearean dimensions, full of sacrifice and betrayal.

The story itself is a smooth little gem.

The pleasure of Ever After is that it never takes itself seriously. [31Jul1998, Pg. 47]

Ale's community is like a band of pirates - collegial, bickering, larcenous and supportive - and his life within it is both heartening and heartbreaking.

Straightforward and immensely powerful, the movie offers a blunt assessment of the war from soldiers currently fighting it, and their perspective is not pretty.

Sensational...as authentic as news footage, and far more intimate.

A simple story that resonates deeply, largely thanks to the actors' ability to invest it with inner life.

Shrek 2 delivers more fun than there is slime in a green ogre's swamp. Much of that is thanks to Antonio ­Banderas, who runs away with Shrek 2 on little cat feet.

Stamp, whose ability to make Wilson simultaneously coarse and charismatic is irresistibly entertaining.

If there's a soft spot in your heart for the sword-&-sandal epic -- and from the star rating above, I think you can guess where I stand -- then you'll swoon with giddy delight over Gladiator.

What keeps the film from becoming obnoxiously redundant is the conviviality of the comedians. These are funny people even when they're not telling the joke.

An amazingly self-assured movie, it percolates with themes and ideas, all held together by the gift of the bull's parts.

Perversely funny.

Built from a perfect story-telling collaboration.

Pegg and Wright are armed with an endlessly impressive arsenal of attention grabbers, from witty editing tricks to a wry soundtrack and a joke-packed script that demands multiple viewings.

The memories recalled here aren't epic tales, just moments that make life worth living. Like seeing a good movie. [12 May 1999, p.44]

Works on every level. The humor and language are as crude as an R rating allows, but Carell and Apatow's script is so hip, funny and - yes - innocent that it's never offensive.

A pleasure, chock full of creatively choreographed fight scenes.

Arguably Lumet's best film in 20 years.

Written, acted and directed so intelligently that it stands out from the pack, and is guaranteed to give you the warm glow of holiday movies past -- the kind that celebrated faith in human potential and the value of hard work.

The power of the arts to transcend cultural differences is presumably what moves the German to spare Szpilman, and, perhaps, is the key to Polanski's salvation as well.

Locks in on its self-destructive subjects so precisely, it's almost unbearable to watch.

Every once in a while, a performance pops out of a Hollywood movie that is so brilliant and unique to the matching of actor to role that it's impossible to imagine anyone else achieving it.

Given the near total absence of intellectually ambitious American movies today, a critic's first impulse after seeing Francis Ford Coppola's reedited Apocalypse Now may be to treat it as the new, improved version he says it is and proclaim it a masterpiece - if not in 1979, then now. But it's not that simple: Apocalypse Now Redux is not a new movie, and neither is it necessarily improved.

Exhibiting the same sort of patience as his sensible hero, Philibert has created an extraordinarily humane portrait of a partnership between one adult and his very fortunate charges.

Irma Vep is a glorious mishmash, like the medium it celebrates.

The performances are all terrific, but Gene Hackman is close to a career best as the family patriarch Royal, the most useless man you can't help loving.

A slick, fast-paced production with first-rate performances and an emotional punch you won't soon forget.

The movie is an actors' paradise, and absolutely no one disappoints.

Represents the year's biggest gamble - and it delivers the year's biggest and most ambitious fantasy.

It's not as clever, or as consistently funny, or as well-cast as "Shakespeare in Love," but Richard Eyre's Stage Beauty is the most fun I've had with the Bard since that 1998 Oscar winner.

Riveting update of George Bizet's "Carmen."

Darkly hilarious.

It's a slice of life, with all the trimmings, and one of the strongest films of the year.

28 Weeks Later has a stronger story line, equally fine performances, greater tension, enough gore to satisfy the most hard-core zombie fan, and a narrative pace that flings us from the opening scenes to the very last image.

A two-hour, one-joke comedy that never gets old, Stuck on You is the most mature, consistently funny and satisfyingly sweet movie in the rollicking careers of brother filmmakers Bobby and Peter Farrelly.

Except for Hempf, every character is under incredible duress, and the performances are exceptional. With his first feature, an Oscar nominee for foreign-language film, von Donnersmarck has certainly left his mark.