Knocked Up could be one of the summer of 2007's sleeper hits. It certainly deserves the distinction.

A curious mix of the campy and the intelligent, of high concept and low psychology. In spite of these contradictions, or perhaps because of them, it works. This is a tense and engaging thriller.

Bug is creepy and hard to dismiss, but it's not a lot of fun and its weaknesses leave a bitter aftertaste.

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.

Angel-A is an intriguing film, but more of an interesting failure than an offbeat success.

Manages to mix in a few good gags with the requisite gore.

Four words say all that needs to be said about Shrek the Third: more of the same.

This isn't a perfect motion picture but, in the midst of summer's vapid pursuit of spectacle, a movie that provides real heart and emotion is a rare find.

The movie is populated by dislikeable individuals doing unpleasant things but isn't redeemed by the vein of viciously black comedy that made "The War of the Roses" and "Bad Santa" such devilish pleasures.

"28 Days Later," while not terribly original, was suspenseful and involving. 28 Weeks Later is neither. The characters aren't as sympathetic or interesting.

The compelling and interesting aspect of Lucky You is not so much the compulsion that drives the main character but the way in which he interacts with those around him. The movie isn't a downer, but neither does it end with all loose ends nicely tied off. In this case, redemption does not equate with salvation.

A tender movie about a poignant and difficult subject.

Spider-Man and the first sequel were breezy adventures - easy and fun to sit through. Spider-Man 3 is a chore. The effective moments require a lot patience to uncover and some of what has to be shifted to get to them is not worth the effort. People love trilogies because it's said that good things come in threes, but this series would have looked better and felt more satisfying had the filmmakers stopped at two.

A pleasant dramatic comedy that overcomes its tonal inconsistencies by presenting an engaging lead character with whom its virtually impossible not to empathize.

The result is a mature and challenging motion picture, and something that will stick with viewers after the screen has gone dark.

There are stretches when it becomes tedious and insufferably self important. There's even a late scene in which the movie turns preachy.

The ineptitude of the movie's drama is matched only by the failure of its humor.

This isn't a bad movie; it's watchable but the direction in which the filmmakers choose to take it results in a vague sense of dissatisfaction.

A little too long and suffers from a sagging midsection when the level of exposition becomes laborious, but the spectacularly entertaining final 30 minutes compensates for a lot of flaws.

For the most part, this movie hits the right notes and gives its audience a dose of white-knuckle tension.

Gruesomely engaging.

Enjoyable for a movie in which pretty much nothing happens.

A movie so inane that it fails to rise to the level of "good trash."

A nice little mystery thriller that takes a wrong turn on the way to its climax and morphs into a slasher movie.

The kind of movie where it's necessary to put aside pretensions and enjoy the product on its terms, with all the sexiness, violence, gore, and camp as part of the parcel. This is three-plus hours of gleeful-but-guilty escapism.

As a movie, The Hoax isn't a fraud but it's not the real deal, either.

It's hard to say what is more responsible for the film's utter failure: Hopkins direction, the editing, or the screenplay. The result is such a muddle that one assumes each aspect deserves part of the blame.

Black Book possesses a taut, exciting script that throws surprises at the viewer on a regular basis.