This isn't vintage De Niro but at least there's more substance here than in a lot of his other recent projects. Michelle Pfeiffer, who flirted with this sort of a role 25 years ago in "Married to the Mob," is enjoying something of a renaissance after working only sparingly for more than a decade.

A rare remake in that it's sufficiently different in the details to make it of interest to those familiar to the earlier endeavor.

There are no humans in the film and their only participation was doing voiceover work. Of all the recent Disney recreations, that makes The Lion King the most curious.

The Equalizer 2 represents a solid follow-up to "The Equalizer" and an effectively understated entry into the 2018 summer movie sweepstakes.

Like a rom-com that spends the first half getting the characters together before showing the ugliness that sometimes happens when “happily ever after” becomes impossible, Blackberry depicts the unraveling that occurred at the back end. It’s a fascinating motion picture that gives life to Paul Harvey’s famous phrase: “Now for the rest of the story…”

Tomas Alfredson's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy may be the best possible movie version of the story, but it illustrates that the big screen is not the ideal medium for a tale of this complexity.

Many of the characters might have longer, more fully fleshed-out arcs. But what Prince-Bythewood provides is more than enough for a rousing motion picture filled with well-choreographed battle scenes effectively folded into stories of human interest.

A curious mix of smarts and schmaltz.

Although the storyline is predictable, the intelligent dialogue and top-drawer acting more than make up for the possible deficiency.

The comedy in The Sure Thing is genial and unforced. Most of it develops organically out of the characters and their situations. It doesn't grate and it doesn't interfere with the evolution of the central relationship, and it's effective enough to provoke the occasional laugh or smile.

One of the better offerings to be found in a year that has seen a drop-off in the quality of animated films.

For Your Consideration will not go down as one of Guest's crown jewels, but it's nevertheless engaging.

Broken Arrow is "Speed" gone nuclear. Yet, despite all the explosions, violence, special effects, and other choreographed excesses, this film doesn't have quite the same impact. It's fun, to be sure, and the wild ride doesn't let up for a moment, but the level of tension isn't quite as high.

This is as surprising a romantic comedy as I have seen in some time.

A Game of Shadows is a stronger, better realized movie that builds upon the strengths of the original and jettisons some of the weaknesses.

The film is far from perfect - the soundtrack occasionally chooses the wrong songs, there are times when the acting (especially by the supporting players) falters, and there are scenes (most of them throw-ways) that don't work. Aside from jump-starting so many promising motion picture careers (including Crowe, Heckerling, and members of the cast), Fast Times will always be remembered for one thing: showing respect for and insight into the members of its core audience, something that was as rare in the 1980s as it is today.

The movie's realistic portrayal of the ingredients that can lead to bullying and other forms of unkindness inflicted on outsiders by those in power, speaks strongly to viewers watching in the 21st century.

Works uncommonly well because of the effective manner in which it blends together its various elements: the WW2 prison camp setting, the courtroom aspects, and the issues of honor, racism, and redemption.

Rise of the Guardians is enjoyable as a stand-alone adventure - not groundbreaking animation but a solidly entertaining 90 minutes for older children and adults.

The Black Phone is as solid a horror film as has come out post-pandemic and brings back memories of when “horror” meant more than an assembled sequence of shocks and blood-soaked clichés.

Although aspects of the overall storyline wallow in familiarity, the sharpness of the writing, the precision of Giamatti’s portrayal, and the well-honed relationships among the principals make the movie better than one might assume from a one or two-sentence summation.

A rich, multi- layered portrait of a director from Hollywood's Golden Age whose own life was as interesting as any of his movies.

For those with the patience to sit through this kind of unhurried motion picture, Time Out offers a compelling character study of an individual under the kind of strain we can all relate to.

This film offers a compelling scenario of what could have happened. And Burger's look back through the recent mists of time is certainly no less likely or fascinating that Oliver Stone's in "JFK."

Land is both a tribute to the triumph of the human spirit and an examination of the difficulties of setting aside modern conveniences for primitive survival. It also represents an announcement by Wright that her first feature foray behind the camera is unlikely to be her last.

Although Gladiator II is an engaging diversion, it never feels like the epic one expects nor does it truly escape the shadow cast by the earlier chapter.

Kauf, whose Stakeout was a lighter blend of the same kind of elements at work here, knows just how to play the material to keep it enjoyable. That's not an easy task, considering that the main characters are pretty reprehensible and the basic plotline is about covering up the accidental murder of a cop. Nevertheless, in part because of a series of good performances and in part because Kauf approaches things with confidence, the results are positive. Gang Related may not be Pulp Fiction, but it's not a bad foray into tangential territory.

Luhrmann’s movie achieves its goals of highlighting Elvis’ music while providing a capable, if imperfect, abstract of his life. For fans of the icon and his music, it hits enough sweet spots to be worthy of a theatrical viewing.