The "Da Vinci Code" was adequate but forgettable. "Angels & Demons" was godawful. Inferno is somewhere in between - watchable but by no means worth the money and effort necessary to see it theatrically.

Overwrought and disjointed, Ewan McGregor’s directorial debut is surprisingly faithful to aspects of the text but the overall presentation is conventional and disappointing.

Lazily written and indifferently filmed, this sendup of action/spy movies rarely works as a satire and becomes downright unbearable when it attempts to do things like character/relationship building.

Unfortunately, as with too many films being made with the international market in mind, Jack Reacher: Never Go Back is a jumble of overhyped action scenes, trite dialogue, painfully bad “character development”, and awful writing.

The thing that makes The Accountant unique, however, and elevates it above the garden variety action-thriller, is that the title character’s “superpowers” result from his autism.

The performances are universally strong - not that one would expect anything else considering the quality of the cast.

Are you a Kevin Hart fan? Then drop everything and rush to see this movie. Are you not a Kevin Hart fan? Then move along, there’s nothing here to see…

When I say that Parker is a master manipulator, that’s meant as a compliment of the highest order. He gets us into this story and puts us unequivocally behind Nat.

As a B-movie whodunnit designed for fast consumption by popcorn munching crowds of inattentive viewers, it’s solidly entertaining. But as a complex, Hitchcockian (as in the obvious inspiration, Rear Window) thriller, it misses by a wide margin.

Take away Kristen Wiig, and Masterminds offers nothing. She is by far the best thing about the movie and easily outshines her SNL compatriots Kate McKinnon, Leslie Jones, and Jason Sudeikis.

A fresh and engaging storybook adventure that should appeal to viewers both inside and out of the core demographic.

Although engaging, Deepwater Horizon ultimately offers a mixed bag of an experience. The setup is considerably better than the payoff, front-loading the experience.

Unfortunately, although Blair Witch owes much to the spirit of "The Blair Witch Project," it’s an inferior production. This is as much a result of stylistic and narrative choices as it is a reflection of how the horror landscape has changed in the last 17 years.

If there’s a compelling reason to remake The Magnificent Seven, it can’t be found in the 2016 version, a loud, cluttered, and generally disappointing production.

For a director whose reputation is built on aggressively in-your-face subjects and styles, Snowden stands as a strangely inert outlier, a project that lacks passion although not perspective.

Bridget Jones’s Baby exceeds expectations and, as a result, makes us willing to forgive the delay in bringing the character back to theaters.

There’s more to this movie than offering fans an opportunity to wallow in the past. It gives the most complete portrait we’ve seen thus far of Nimoy, warts and all, as presented by the man who came the closest to knowing him.

Sully proves to be by turns engaging, exhilarating, and nail-biting.

It’s an attempt to wed philosophical science fiction concepts with bloody horror - a dubious endeavor that somehow works. The movie doesn’t seek to be a mindless gore-fest but neither does it show restraint when it comes to violence.

It’s a well-made, serious drama arriving in an era when those qualities rarely describe multiplex fare.

Traditional and uninspired, it does an adequate job of relating Duran’s story but falls short of providing an engaging cinematic experience.

From a purely narrative perspective, there’s nothing new here but like a new arrangement of a familiar tune, the slight changes make it fresh and enjoyable.

An amateurish effort that boasts direct-to-video characteristics, the latest version disappoints in almost every production aspect.

The problem with War Dogs isn’t the dark humor nor is it the cynically accurate deconstruction of military procurement and corruption. The lack of dynamism and depth in the characters is what hamstrings this production.

Anthropoid is engrossing but it isn’t happy. War movies, at least the best of them, seldom are.

The best animated feature (at least thus far) of 2016.

It gets props for kinetic energy, bursts of suspense, and a couple of bravura performances (Will Smith & Margot Robbie). But pretty much everything else is either mediocre or substandard and that makes it hard to champion this bloated and cheerless monstrosity.

Matt Ross’ screenplay occasionally stumbles (especially late in the proceedings) and the ending opts for a too-facile resolution but the director/writer offers moments of genuine power and pathos that make it easy to forgive the missteps.

Despite regurgitating elements from the founding trilogy, Jason Bourne represents the best the series has yet offered.

Nerve does a better job with its style and pacing than it does with its characters but, ultimately, Vee is likable enough for us to stay on the ride with her. For a late-summer throwaway, the film is surprisingly entertaining.

The plot, credited to Simon Pegg & Doug Jung, is pure Trek. Unfortunately, it’s also instantly forgettable.

A scathing satire of conspicuous consumption and a fashion-obsessed culture, Absolutely Fabulous - The Movie hits most of its targets and twists the knife but, as funny as the material sometimes is, the flimsy narrative and threadbare caricatures encounter difficulties trying to sustain a 90 minute motion picture.

Unfortunately, the film stumbles, offering too few legitimate scares and displaying an overreliance on traditional horror movie clichés.

It is, at best, an oversized, overbudgeted Saturday morning cartoon.

This is a mediocre horror/comedy that deserves neither high praise nor disparagement.

This isn’t "Miami Vice." In fact, the intent (perhaps intentional) is for the gritty, noir-tinged The Infiltrator to tilt in the opposite direction.

Like much of what transpires during the course of this production, it’s just crass.

The Secret Life of Pets is strong enough that parents won’t fall into a catatonic state while watching it with their offspring. Unlike top-notch animated fare, however, it’s questionable whether this can be considered “destination fare” for the single adult.

Unlike so many of the bloated, disappointing entries into the 2016 big budget sweepstakes, this is good escapist entertainment.

Contrasting The BFG to "E.T." does the new film a disservice, and it’s mediocre enough that it doesn’t need the comparison to emphasize its shortcomings. In recent years, Spielberg has become a hit-and-miss filmmaker and this is closer to a “miss” than a “hit.”

The film clearly wants to be more than just a run-of-the-mill horror-thriller but the allegorical aspects are half-baked and the attempts to mimic Kubrick’s "A Clockwork Orange" and "Eyes Wide Shut" feel more like campy satire than an homage.

Tarnishes the image of its predecessor but the original Independence Day wasn’t all that good to begin with.

The film’s problem is that, after chronicling Nancy’s nightmarish 12 hours on a tiny rock island, director Jaume Collet-Serra and screenwriter Anthony Jaswinski don’t know how to end things. Their choice of a resolution is preposterous and underwhelming.

Horror fans will be so bored by the first 90 minutes that they will have either walked out or fallen into a coma by the time the blood starts flowing.

With its canned, predictable action sequences and mirthless attempts at humor, it displays an ineptitude that is frankly shocking considering the talent involved.

Finding Dory is enjoyable in its own right, even if its powerful sense of déjà vu keeps it from approaching the pinnacle of the Disney/Pixar collaborations.

Warcraft provides the shell of a great fantasy adventure saga but never effectively goes beyond that. This is much more like the bad fantasy of the 1980s and 1990s than the better brand we have recently become accustomed to.

This time around, however, the magic has fizzled. Based solely on merit, Now You See Me 2 is a sequel that should never have been made.

The Conjuring 2 proves that, with a sufficient investment of time and energy, sequels don’t have to be unsatisfying cash-grabs.

Although this might have been considered cutting edge 20 or 30 years ago, it has been done so often in recent years that it feels a little tired.

I am by nature a cynic and am easily turned off by manufactured sentiment. I dislike "Terms of Endearment" intensely. That I was fully immersed in this world and invested in the characters’ lives is a testament to the movie’s strength.

The movie is frequently incomprehensible and, on those occasions when it makes sense, the viewer may wish it didn’t.

X-Men: Apocalypse is a competently made superhero action film but it’s not a game-changer and its brand of action seems a little too familiar.

Calling The Angry Birds Movie an “animated film” is giving it airs. It’s a cartoon. Deal with it.

The follow-up proves not only to be creatively bankrupt but a disappointment on all levels and thereby tarnishes the perception of its predecessor.

The film overflows with quips, irony, and physical gags while at the same time relating a noir-tinged story of seedy corruption set in the neon-saturated underbelly of the 1977 Los Angeles porn industry.

Unfortunately, despite a surfeit of talent in front of and behind the camera, the movie is unable to overcome a shaky narrative whose increasing preposterousness ensures it’s difficult to take seriously.

Is it A Bigger Splash or A Bigger Bore? Despite a strong cast, gorgeous cinematography, and a suffocating sense of sexual tension, this movie takes far too long to get off the ground.

Those who attend this movie expecting to see a superhero smack-down won’t be disappointed, but anyone partial to Captain America’s saga may feel shortchanged.

Green Room is a simple movie with a straightforward premise. The film works for two reasons: Stewart’s presence and Saulnier’s execution.

The level of quality is such that this does not deserve a theatrical distribution and will only find appeal among pre-teen kids or those who have been fans of the games since their inception more than a decade ago.

By cramming far too much material into 114 minutes, The Huntsman: Winter’s War feels rushed and incomplete. It doesn’t help that the screenplay is at times awful, forcing accomplished actors to recite excruciatingly bad dialogue while maintaining a straight face.

As a race-against-time, Jason Bourne-inspired adrenaline cocktail, Criminal offers a couple of hours of popcorn-munching entertainment.

Well-made and deserves recognition as one of the year’s best family offerings (thus far).

Demolition founders and its overt symbolism feels forced instead of organic. The production is uncomfortable and artificial, lacking internal logic and tonal consistency.

Emotionally, Linklater’s recreation of August 1980 is spot-on. Sure, there are a few anachronistic cheats (how many college-goers in 1980 had a VCR in their room?) but the tone is just about perfect.

Eye in the Sky reminded me of "United 93" - not necessarily in terms of the subject matter but because of the apolitical, clear-headed manner in which it approaches an act.

This is a sit com. An ‘80s-style sit-com. A bad ‘80s-style sit-com.

Once Batman v Superman hits its stride, most viewers will feel equal parts pummeled and immersed. Snyder is a master of the dark spectacle and he pours it on starting around the movie’s midpoint.... Still, although viewers may be riveted at times, the net experience isn’t much fun.

It’s a strange little movie - by turns fascinating and frustrating. Its strong thematic thrust is counterbalanced by an uneven and at times farcical narrative and the characters are more avatars than well-realized individuals.

Allegiant tries to cram too little story into too much time. This results in dead spots and uneven pacing.

This movie is so atrocious I kept waiting for Nick Cage to show up.

The problems with 10 Cloverfield Lane result from attempts to tie it, however tenuously, to the earlier movie. Take away the disappointing, disjointed, and anti-climactic final act, and this is an effective white-knuckle psychological thriller.

There’s a lot here for kids to like and nearly as much to keep parents from fidgeting.

The Wave’s centerpiece is a critical ten-minute span between when the rockslide occurs and the wave reaches civilization. Played out in real time, this is a period of sustained and effective tension. It’s real, raw, and ragged.

Whiskey Tango Foxtrot has surprisingly dull fangs.

As action-thrillers go, this one provides what the previews tease. Maybe that’s enough for an evening’s mindless, throw-away entertainment, but I can’t help but be disappointed that the filmmakers couldn’t have brought something more inventive to a genre that too often relies on worn-out tropes.

Like the real Eddie’s 1988 Olympic experience, however, the movie’s memory is likely to fade fast.

Triple Nine turns out to be a thoroughly entertaining (although violent) thriller.

Gods of Egypt is often sloppy and fails in many ways but the cheesy momentum is hard to resist.

Race, like "42," does a workmanlike job of bringing the lead character to life and explaining his historical importance, but it fails to transcend the genre.

If all it took was verisimilitude and atmosphere to define a movie, The Witch would earn a near-perfect rating. Unfortunately, despite a creepily effective setting and authentic setup, the movie suffers as a result of a frustratingly uneven screenplay.

Zoolander would have been better left as a stand-alone cult classic.

A horrifically bad romantic comedy that serves as a celebration of entitlement, consumerism, and shallow behavior.

Compared to Deadpool, "Guardians of the Galaxy" is a bastion of sobriety and good taste.

This new horror/romance mashup provides just enough flavor of Jane Austen’s classic to tease without satisfying.

The absence of a strong narrative is the film’s weakest aspect. The Coens are so absorbed by their mimicry that they don’t invest a lot of effort in the connective tissue.

Like most sequels, it pacifies its core demographic by offering “more of the same.” To that extent, it can be said to be successful.

One would be hard-pressed to consider The Perfect Storm “triumphant” or “uplifting” but both terms could be used to describe The Finest Hours.

The film’s contribution is the unique perspective it provides about what it meant to work in a death camp.

The storyline is generic apocalyptic science fiction and feels a lot like an uninspired fusion of "Independence Day" and the TV mini-series “V”.

The movie is imperfect and overlong but it’s never boring.

At times unremarkable, at times weird, and at times tedious. At worst, it can be said that Kaufman has made a discussion-worthy animated feature.

To be fair, The Forest boasts a promising premise but squanders most of its goodwill as a result of narrative shortcuts and contrivances, horror film clichés, and haphazard editing.

The story is quirky and offbeat but the dialogue and acting set Joy up as an engaging late-year repast.

Will Smith gives his all in a role that requires him to undergo a subtle physical transformation, adopt a credible Nigerian accent, and provide a controlled, modulated performance.

Unless you’re a fan of extreme sports photography, the 2015 Point Break lags behind its predecessor in most areas.

In a year when no fewer than five films have dealt with themes of man vs. nature and survival (including The Martian, Everest, In the Heart of the Sea, and A Walk in the Woods), The Revenant is by far the most brutal, challenging, and astounding of these.