Like most unintended second installments, this one is superfluous – a remix of moments, scenes, and images from its predecessor infused with the need to make everything bigger and louder.

The result is sappy, saccharine, and predictable to the point where it's almost painful.

Nevertheless, given Washington's presence and the promise of a virtual reality action story, Virtuosity has some appeal -- provided, of course, the viewers aren't selective.

Contains multiple ax murders, lesbianism, incest, a hanging, and a storm at sea -- yet, despite all of this seemingly enticing material, it's a bore.

There are problems with De Palma's version, especially in its portrayal of the key relationship between Carrie and her mother, but it's a more engaging and insightful portrayal than Kimberly Peirce's too-slick remake.

Offers slim pickings for viewers, regardless of whether they're fans of Woody Allen or not. And I'm sure the French will love it.

In the end, however, it’s all a rather hollow experience (as is too often the case with existential horror).

Being fascinating and unique, two qualities unquestionably in evidence here, don’t automatically deserve praise and, because of the film’s high quotient of tediousness, I find it impossible to recommend to any but the most devoted of experimental art film lovers. It works very well, however, as a cure for insomnia.

Undercover Blues is silly enough to deserve some credit, and for those who see it, there will at least be a few laughs. This empty-headed comedy revels in its own admitted idiocy. It's debatable whether anyone would want to pay money for this picture, but when it gets to cable, it will be worth a look for those who are in the right mood. After all, there's always a place for mindless entertainment, even if that place is on television.

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.

Mad Money is a comedy caper where the caper's not interesting and the comedy's not funny.

21 doesn't spin a good enough yarn.

Pretty pictures - thats what The Fall has to offer.

It's disposable entertainment at its most extreme.

Yes, the film is interesting, but it doesn't work.

The opening sequence/prologue is gripping but that’s the only aspect of Twisters that works on its intended level. I was not blown away.

The problem here isn't as much the talent in front of the camera as it is the weak and hackneyed script. Vampire in Brooklyn is in need of an infusion (or should that be transfusion?) of originality and creativity -- two qualities that are blatantly absent.

Samaritan isn’t terrible but neither is it especially good. It’s a B-grade comic book movie that looks, sounds, and plays like a B-grade comic book movie.

Tammy is a road trip movie and, like many road trip movies, it embraces a meandering, aimless tone. It's often said for films of this sort that it's the journey that matters, not the destination. Unfortunately, in this case, neither is worth the price of admission.

I suppose there are reasons to see That Darn Cat, but only if you're under twelve and desperate, or accompanying someone in that category.

A kinetic, visually dazzling thriller that's actually a notch above many of its predecessors - albeit only a small notch.

At a guess, I'd say that Goosebumps will satisfy its core audience - fans of R.L. Stine's popular children's books - and bore pretty much everyone else.

Red Dragon is done in a painfully mechanical, by-the-book manner. Scenes are assembled to move the plot from point A to point B. There's no atmosphere. No tension. Flat performances. All of these problems are rightfully laid at the feet of the man in charge.

With each death, the film becomes less interesting. By the end, it's just a routine slasher flick with a too-predictable final "twist."

Despite a strong opening and riveting first 45 minutes, The Maze Runner devolves into one of the weakest post-apocalyptic Young Adult movies to reach theaters in recent years.

It has impeccable production values but feels like a "Masterpiece Theater" production of a Harlequin romance novel.

It has an interesting subtext. I'm referring to the way the lives and friendships of these four individuals crumble in the wake of their accident.

The best segments of the film occur early, as the setting is established with a dose of "Friday Night Lights" normalcy followed by an invasion that recalls "Independence Day."

It's only possible to have the time of your life once, and, for this franchise, that was in 1987.

Die-hard fans are advised to wait for the video. Everyone else would be better off pretending that this movie doesn't exist. In the long run, you'll have a higher opinion of everyone involved.

Despite a promising premise and effective "Shyamalan twist", this low-budget horror film still underwhelms. "The Sixth Sense" writer/director is his own worst enemy in the choices he makes bringing The Visit to the screen.

Entirely inoffensive, so it makes for perfect family fare -– but only if the children are young enough to be indiscriminating about what they're seeing.

Too much in Nacho Libre doesn't work to enable me to recommend it to anyone except a card-carrying member of the Jack Black fan club.

Saying bad things about Never Been Kissed, an unapologetic crowd-pleaser, makes me feel like the Grinch stealing Christmas, but there are some things that can't be ignored.

It's tough to make a good tearjerker - one need look no further than this misfire to understand why.

The seeds of a nice little white-knuckle thriller are evident but they never germinate properly. The end result is profoundly disappointing and can’t be saved by the few individual moments that do work.

Watching Live and Let Die isn't a complete waste of time, but there's no overriding reason why anyone should go out of their way to see it unless they're a die-hard Bond fan or are curious about Roger Moore's first turn in the role.

A little like watching an episode of the TV show of which Adam Sandler is an alum: "Saturday Night Live." Zohan feels like an extended collection of skits tied together by a flimsy umbrella story.

For nearly two hours, the movie plods along, offering little beyond hackneyed dialogue that can’t be gleaned from a quick read-through of Marley’s Wikipedia entry.

Unfortunately, for all its button-pushing, the movie's biggest offense is that it is often tedious and meandering and it takes at least 30 minutes too long to cross the finish line.

Although the production is sporadically amusing, it feels like a 20-minute short that was expanded to feature length to its considerable detriment.

With its cheesy special effects and blasphemously imbecilic storyline, one wonders whether the celluloid version of Ghost Rider will find an audience.

The movie's central flaw: it's not funny enough to be worth the price of admission.

The acting is a big part of Baghead's problem. Three of the four protagonists are played by performers who do little to distinguish themselves.

Affleck is at his best playing wisecracking supporting roles (like in the recent Air, which Affleck also directed) and at his worst as an action hero. He sleepwalks his way through Hypnotic, doing little to rouse the audience from its own slumber while failing to generate any sparks with his co-star, Alice Braga.

Starts out as an effective little horror movie before devolving into an incoherent mess during its final 30 minutes.

Iron Will's presentation of family values and reliance upon formulas are distinctive. The film has enough action to keep it from becoming boring, but there are too many flaws for this to be considered anything more grand than adequate entertainment.

The only time Sparkle evidences energy is during the song performances, of which there are too few. The half-baked melodrama provides an unappealing and overlong buffer between them that fails to justify the nearly two-hour running time.

Various subplots are given short shrift and the whole thing feels more like a Cliff's Notes version of a longer piece than an actual finished motion picture.

Coscarelli's screenplay introduces an abundance of intriguing concepts but never goes very far with any of them. The characters are paper thin and the special effects are laughably bad.

On a purely narrative level, Winter's Tale missteps early and often. Its earnestness is its downfall, resulting in opportunities for unintentional humor.

A profoundly unsatisfying experience - and that doesn't consider the derivative nature of the plot and a lackluster performance by the lead actor.

Although Sinister 2 continues the story begun in Scott Derrickson's creepily effective "Sinister," it feels more like an unnecessary retread than an organic extension of the original.

Although the second installment is effective at moving the story forward rather than re-treading familiar ground, it enters a patch of quicksand from which it is unprepared to escape. Disney is adept at doing many things but offering a sobering and intelligent examination of genocide is not among them.

Sean Connery is perfect for the King Arthur role. Too bad he isn't given more to do than stand around looking regal.

Insurgent is more clumsy than bad, but it disappoints because it wastes the world-building of Divergent, which set the stage for something more momentous than what the sequel delivers.

This is a charmless, lifeless affair that had me leaving the theater in a mood more appropriate to a funeral than a wedding.

Inept storytelling is one of Lords of Dogtown's great frustrations.

This sloppy mess also pales in comparison to the better-paced, taut "Olympus Has Fallen," which represents 2013's better White House invasion story.

There's some potential in this storyline, but the movie doesn't do much with it besides giving Martin Short an opportunity to put on the fat suit.

The film has energy but isn't well paced. Nothing about it quite gels.

Laws of Attraction is a standard-issue romantic comedy that's missing a key ingredient: the attraction.

The Emoji Movie proves unable to provide even a modicum of content capable of capturing or retaining the attention of an adult. Nap time.

I suppose it’s possible to argue that The Darkest Minds can be enjoyed for what it is. Unfortunately, that “what” refers to something incomplete.

Eternals, despite trying to be a departure from the superhero generic norm, misses wide of the mark and ends up being a major lapse.

Lack of focus is ultimately the undoing of sophomore feature director Yann Demange – despite crafting several compelling stand-alone sequences, he is unable to stitch everything together into a compelling whole.

At least What Women Want could be identified as an enjoyable rom-com with a dose of female empowerment. One would have to be charitable to use “romantic”, “comedy”, or “enjoyable” for this new iteration.

Domino is a lackluster, hard-to-swallow police procedural with soap opera-ish subplots and flat characters.

The Meg takes itself far too seriously. The only amusing elements are Jason Statham’s occasional one-liners coupled with his exasperated expressions.

The sloppiness of the ending doesn't only damage The Black Dahlia, it sinks the project.

If movies were rated solely on the basis of style, The Quick and the Dead would score highly indeed. With its dazzling photography, inventive camera angles, and throbbing bass score, the film is an experience for the eyes and ears. Director Sam Raimi and cinematographer Dante Spinotti have woven a beautifully elaborate tapestry: colorful and evocative -- and depressingly two-dimensional.

Turns out to be hopelessly mediocre -- a poorly scripted, preachy fable that forgets about unfolding a coherent, believable story in its zeal to spread propaganda.

One note portrayals, skin deep characters, and a glacial pace all combine to prevent The Quarry from succeeding either as a slow-burn thriller or a message-oriented drama.

A high-concept, low-brow romantic comedy that overstays its welcome by at least a half-hour and can’t decide whether it wants to buy into or satirize the incomprehensibly popular European singing contest.

Wheeler is extremely secure in filming the sex scenes - they are inarguably erotic - but she has trouble with serious drama. Overall, that makes Better Than Chocolate a mixed bag with a wavering focus. In many ways, it's like the majority of heterosexual romances -- not unpleasant or unwatchable, but nothing special.

By playing things too safe, it loses the power and spontaneity that gave Creed its energy and drive.

Watching Untogether, it’s easy to wish Forrest had elected to focus exclusively on Andrea and leave Tara as a background supporting character.

It’s disposable action entertainment – a throw-away title that’s not bad enough to turn off but not good enough to seek out.

The end result, while it provides moments of kinetic entertainment, is too repetitive and uneven to be satisfying.

If nothing else, Entourage (the movie) can be considered a faithful follow-up to Entourage (the TV program). That's good news for anyone who enjoyed the series up to the end and not-so-good news for those who lost interest along the way or never were interested in the first place.

The movie offers limited entertainment for those who enjoy this sort of fare but it’s impossible to recommend as anything more than a throw-away at-home selection when all the better streaming titles have been watched.

As far as the actors are concerned, Liam Neeson seems to be having fun hamming it up as the villain - a role he rarely gets to play.

Beneath its aw-shucks, wants-to-be-liked exterior, this is a bankrupt motion picture. It's cloying, artificial, and not the least bit romantic.

The movie does an effective job with all the expected horror movie tropes – things that go bump in the night, shadows that don’t move the way they should, images in mirrors, etc. – but the basic narrative loses its way around the time that Amanda Seyfried is sent packing.

A tepid affair, distinguished by bland character development, uninspired and insipid dialogue, and a nonexistent plot.

The film has two highlights -- a profanity-laced monologue by Peter Falk about boxing and the one-on-one confrontation between Monroe and Chambers in the ring.

Two fundamental problems afflict Sex Tape (aside from the fact that it's not consistently funny): a shocking ignorance about the state of modern technology and a mistaken belief that the subject matter is inherently edgy.

While it’s possible to conceive a compelling story constructed out of the strands forming Joy Ride’s threadbare cloak, that narrative would require a better screenplay and a series of grounded, less ostentatious performances.

A fast-food type of movie - it looks good in the commercials and is easy to sit through, but it doesn't offer much in the way of satisfaction.

This is a joyless experience made all the sadder because most viewers still remember the naughty delights delivered by "American Pie."

Unfortunately, although there’s an opportunity here to do something compelling, that opportunity is largely wasted. Perfunctory characterization, lackluster acting, an inability to sustain tension, and an incoherent ending waste most of the goodwill resulting from the premise.

If the legend of Dracula has become tired through overuse, there is certainly nothing in this iteration to grant the old Count a new lease on life.

While I admired the lead performances, the journey of The Drama remains unfulfilling. When I see a movie like this, I want to connect with the characters and believe their circumstances. I got some of the former but practically none of the latter.

For those whose only requirements for horror movies are that they avoid the excesses of blood/gore/violence prevalent in R-rated fare and incorporate a few good jump-scares, Night Swim checks the requisite boxes. For those looking for a more complete experience, however, the movie struggles even to achieve the level where it would be considered worthwhile as a streaming option.

It’s past time to let the dinosaurs take a nice, long vacation. That way, when they come back, maybe we can once again be excited about them. “Excitement” is not something Rebirth delivers with relish or consistency.

As scattershot and uneven as it is unnecessary, it fails to effectively build on the foundation laid in Afterlife while at the same time relegating the “old timers” into oddly-integrated super-cameo appearances.

There are moments when The Relic is almost enjoyable, albeit in a visceral sort of way. Unfortunately, when all is said and done, this horror/science fiction amalgamation seems like nothing more ambitious than a bad reworking of elements from Aliens, Species, Jaws, and Predator.

Smokin' Aces is Tarantino lite - a vague and unsuccessful attempt to bring together a bunch of offbeat, unrelated characters in a situation where a bloody resolution is inescapable.