Although the movie features strong performances and contains some individually potent scenes, the film’s style keeps the viewer at arm’s length, limiting the story’s overall power and emotional resonance.

The result is sometimes enchanting, but, more often than not, it's frustrating, because the disparate elements of the plot never quite gel.

Because Wonder wants to attract viewers of all ages and seeks to provide a “positive” experience, it glosses over the darker aspects that a story of this sort should address. In doing so, it at times feels dishonest and the Pollyanna-ish ending borders on cloying.

The message is laudable and Luca’s heart is in the right place but its sledgehammer tactics make parts of the movie feel more like a homily than summer entertainment.

The tone and pacing of Dead Man Down have a distinctly European flavor, which may explain why American viewers, used to having background and exposition pared down and cleanly delivered, may feel adrift at the outset.

It’s an enjoyable enough parfait but far from a theatrical destination.

John Wick Chapter 4 has its high points, including a well-earned ending, but it’s characterized by an exhaustive repetitiveness that diminishes what was so good and unique about the first two installments of the series. The time has come to put John Wick to rest.

How to Eat Fried Worms belongs to a vanishing breed - live action family films.

It's not bad enough to walk out on but neither is it good enough to walk into.

The Crazies is imperfect but it's made with a degree of assurance that will limit fidgeting and keep most horror-lovers involved for a majority of its running length.

It takes the usual chases, explosions, and shoot-outs, and places them in plot that involves all sorts of computerized and electronic gadgetry. Often, as is the case here, not much attention is paid to whether the "science" is technologically feasible, but if something looks and sounds neat, why not use it?

There's a little bit of "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang" in Shoot 'Em Up, although this production isn't as smart or as slick.

The movie develops in two pieces - one dealing with the quest for the hidden riches and once concentrating on the relationship between father and daughter. The latter works; the former doesn't.

Agreeable enough motion picture, but not one that leaves any sort of lasting impression.

Although an intriguing way to deconstruct and reassemble a story familiar to most people who have taken high school English, Ophelia doesn’t live up to its promise perhaps because the lead character, even after having been “expanded,” is still rather flat.

The Last Exorcism is one of those rare films where the marketing campaign is more interesting than the film it publicizes.

Like the candy from which it gets its name, Jawbreaker is fun at the start, but can turn into a chore to complete.

It may work for those in search of a good cry but as a story of a damaged woman to touch the soul, it misses the mark.

Some of the characters are interesting, but their situations are not.

An excellent movie… if you're a seven-year old girl. That's less a negative evaluation than it is a statement of fact. This isn't a "family film;" it's a "children's film."

Although Hanks' film starts out strong, it finishes on shaky ground... A serio-comedy/fantasy whose light dramatic arc can't support the awkward and unnecessarily melodramatic ending.

The wheels fall off toward the end but, until that point, Illiadis does an excellent job of generating and maintaining an intense sense of dread.

The plot is so thin that it's not really worth thinking about, but director Antoine Fuqua and cinematographer Peter Lyons Collister have put so much effort into the feel and appearance of the movie that it held my attention.

Scrooge is basically a harmless, fitfully enjoyable version of the timeless classic, and worth a look for those who have had their fill of the more serious adaptations.

This movie isn't a disaster, but, all things considered, there's little reason to make it a high priority for theatrical viewing.

Stay is interesting, but it's hard to recommend to anyone but the small cadre of David Lynch devotees who will inhale anything with a whiff of similarity to their favorite auteur's scent.

When it doesn’t work, it’s because it tries too hard to provoke laughter with clichéd jokes and subpar physical comedy.

Although some of the production's technical aspects remain impressive, the dramatic elements come across as trite and many of the musical numbers are dated. Clocking in at more than three hours, The Great Ziegfeld at times tries the modern viewer's patience.

Too often, the film is more like a soundtrack with visuals than a well constructed, fully developed motion picture.

The problem with The Crossing Guard is not the premise or core theme, but the manner in which director Sean Penn breathes life into the story. This film is horribly unfocused.

The final production is so jammed with subplots and secondary characters that it often feels like the Cliffs Notes version of a complex novel.

A silly script and uneven pacing.

There's plenty going on but never any real magic.

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

There are times when it is bitingly funny and times when its bloodiness can cause a wince and a shudder - but director Stuart Gordon is not adept at blending the two extremes into a cohesive whole.

The film, although deeply flawed, is at times compelling, even if it seems as if a reel is missing.

The film contains enough quiet, reflective moments for us to become aware how preposterous the central conceit is, and that keeps us at arm's length.

The romantic comedy doesn't have much, but it has Kidman.

Many of the jokes are either obvious or have been exposed through pre-release marketing material. I kept waiting for the clever or insightful moment that never arrives. The bar is set pretty low for Minions.

They had 28 years, and this is the best they could come up with?

Roach and screenwriter Tony McNamara sought a different perspective for the material. The result is more dramatic, less over-the-top, and proves to be tonally uneven. The humor is muted and less overtly vicious, but the more serious approach doesn’t quite succeed.

As a whole, Valentin is a moderately entertaining motion picture, but the lack of a satisfying sense of closure dims its appeal.

Distilled to its essence, The Girl in the Spider’s Web is a generic espionage/crime thriller. Although briskly paced, the plot is far from airtight and demands a deus ex machina to reach its climax.

The result is mixed: the affable, family-friendly motion picture is lively enough to engage young viewers but will prove something of a challenge for anyone who has gone through puberty.

Most of the time, it's just repetitive.

As an introduction to the story for someone with no previous exposure to Oliver Twist, Polanski's movie is adequate.

It’s competently made and sporadically compelling but not likely to pique the interest of anyone unfamiliar with the main character.

Perhaps the most curious and counterproductive aspect of The Fifth Estate, the so-called "Wikileaks movie," is the decision by director Bill Condon and screenwriter Josh Singer to establish the film as a thriller.

The film's two big flaws are readily apparent: a clunky screenplay and the miscasting of the lead character.

Carrey is forced to confine his antics to the needs of Liar Liar's unimaginative screenplay, and the results are mixed.

It’s all in good fun, if a little shallow.

The Client is an example of what happens when a production team does the best they can possibly do with a routine script.

Fast-paced and often witty, but ultimately vapid.

The film comes across like a soap opera and there are too many characters and storylines for any one of them to grab the heart and imagination. The film isn't painful but it is disappointing.

Young is very good in her part, making Eva a strong, flawed character whose depth helps to counterbalance the shallowness of everyone else. On the whole, however, The Damned wasn’t able to achieve what I was hoping from it and, rather than being an overlooked gem, it’s instead simply “overlooked.”

Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues could easily be called Anchorman 2: More of the Same.

A standard-order noir murder mystery with a confused, contrived last act, Anon is more notable for how it sees the future than what it sees going on there.

The actors can't be faulted for any of Lovelace's missteps.

Unfortunately, while certain aspects of Girl 6 are handled with flair, the film's dramatic scope too often isn't compelling enough for subject matter of such rich and varied possibilities.

The heist-inspired elements aren't well thought through and it becomes a question of which is harder to swallow: the mechanics of the story or the idea that a couple of sixtysomethings can kick this much ass.

Guilt Trip is cinematic comfort food for road trip fans who aren't given indigestion by Streisand.

The movie is still incredibly silly but in a more boisterous way, like a comic book come to life.

To an extent, Snakes on a Plane reminds me of "Eight Legged Freaks." It has the same kind of off-the-wall, don't-take-it-seriously comedic horror sensibility.

From the sluggish introduction to the chaotic heist scenes (which happen quickly and haphazardly), the first 45 minutes of Ambulance struggle to find any sort of rhythm. Once the protracted ambulance chase begins, the film is on firmer footing and viewers will recognize aspects of the familiar Speed template, but the movie never achieves anything more substantive than being impressive eye candy. After a while, it becomes more exhausting than exhilarating.

The movie drags at times, evidence that the too-generous 160-minute running time adversely affects pacing without resulting in a better-defined, deeper storyline.

The final 15 minutes are so awful that it's difficult to believe that the bulk of the film is actually decent.

By-the-numbers, generic plots no longer work and that, unfortunately, is what Seventh Son delivers. Impressive set design and visuals, excessive CGI, and a loud score from Marco Beltrami can't fully compensate for bland character development and a predictable narrative that rushes along on a linear trajectory.

Although Paul Blart is by no means great cinema, there is amusement to be uncovered as we watch Kevin James bumble his way through actions oh-so-similar to those navigated with more blood, sweat, profanity, and dead bodies than Willis. Too bad there's no "Yippekayay...."

The story is overly familiar and the characters are all types, but Cohen's cinematic techniques make The Fast and the Furious watchable.

As a shallow tale of conscienceless bloodshed and revenge, Last Man Standing is reasonably effective. But as an updated version of the far better-realized Yojimbo, it's an unqualified failure. Last Man Standing is a surface picture -- it looks good, sounds good, and moves quickly -- but there's no depth whatsoever.

Director Guillermo del Toro’s unique visual style is on display but the story is predictable, the characters are flat, and the supernatural elements are red herrings. To paraphrase a character, this isn’t so much a ghost story as it is a “story with ghosts.”

The last 60 minutes offer adventure as rousing as anything provided in either of the previous installments. Unfortunately, that doesn't account for the other 108 minutes of this gorged, self-indulgent, and uneven production.

Sadly, passion and romance are two ingredients missing from this melodrama, which does an excellent job of re-creating the Depression-era circus business.

Unfortunately, it's almost impossible to make it through the entirety of Ant-Man's two hours without thinking of "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids" as least once, and I'm not sure that's an association the filmmakers were courting.

The premise is intriguing and the cast is top-notch but, taken as a whole, The Adam Project comes up short. As a way to fill an unpretentious couple of hours, it’s fine (especially as part of a bigger streaming package), but as a destination film, it’s a disappointment.

The star and the more overwrought aspects of the plot are mainstream but the philosophical implications will not appeal to those who prefer easily digestible cinematic portions. It's also true that the more deeply one considers the movie's themes and structure, the less sense it makes.

One of those plot-by-numbers sit-com movies that tries hard (perhaps too hard) to reproduce the elements that made the earlier film successful.

One of the great frustrations associated with Fast Food Nation is the way it drops subplots.

Comparisons to the original Bad Lieutenant are unnecessary; Port of Call New Orleans can stand - and fall - on its own merits, inconsistent though they may be.

A Single Man tells us about love, isolation, and sorrow, but never makes us feel any of those things.

The one thing that never falters during the course of the film is Jude Law's volcanic performance. Reminiscent of Tom Hardy's turn in Bronson, this is the kind of portrayal that garners notice and raves.

Those who have learned to enjoy the duo on MTV (for whatever reason) will welcome this as a holiday treat. Everyone else will have a better time if they stay away.

This isn’t Sheridan at his best and, although it may provide Jolie with some exposure outside of voice work and Disney properties, it’s not going to resurrect her career as an action star or a serious actress.

The film has too much surface beauty not to earn it a recommendation, but Days of Heaven satisfies only on a sensory level.

Although the satire is biting and the tone is irreverent, Drop Dead Gorgeous lacks the killer script and top notch performances necessary to make this a wholly successful production.

The film is unquestionably more accessible than Horse Girl, but for all of its parodic elements and unpredictability, it nevertheless feels unpolished and unfinished.

It's the Judd Apatow syndrome and there are times when the blend of romance and raunchiness threatens to curdle. In the end, however, the "love conquers all" mentality wins out.

True Things is solidly made but there’s just not enough substance underlining the characters or their story for it to be memorable.

The easiest way to summarize my reaction to X-Men: First Class is with a shrug.

Filmed in black-and-white with an eerie score by Neil Young, and using contemporary dialogue and mannerisms, Jarmusch's picture has a dream-like quality.

The problem with this movie is that Wallace has attempted to squeeze a 500-page book into a 130-minute motion picture, something that can't be done without major sacrifices.

This is the one Godzilla movie in which the title character plays second fiddle to the humans. While the film's moral and ethical situations are interesting, they are not as compelling as the film's adherents would have us believe, and their resolutions are simplistic.

Marking the directorial debut of Andy Serkis, it’s competently made but not exceptional.

The film will likely find a receptive audience among those who enjoy blood-soaked B movies. It has enough gory elements to enhance the overpowering mood.

In 2025, Superman feels a lot like many of the other superhero movies out there - fun, frisky, and forgettable.

It's not startling or frightening enough.

This balls-to-the-walls action/adventure makes the average James Bond film look like something by Eric Rohmer. It’s high rent Steven Segal - fights, explosions, and more fights, but with a flair.

First-time director Ari Aster hits a home run when it comes to an overall sense of impending doom. Sadly, Aster’s story isn’t as waterproof as his stylistic aptitude.