Overall, A Goofy Movie is an incoherent mess that jumps from one unlikely, brainless, crash-bang situation to another, with each element of a protracted father-son bonding story increasingly out of synch with the others.

As weird as it sounds.

In this new Conjuring, every scene of demonic possession, every demonic hallucination, and every underworld visit and visitation land with unsettling impact. These are, in a sense, action scenes, and they’re creepy, chilling and very well done.

So this is a good comedy, as bad as it can be and still be good, but good.

There is a great deal of movie-backlot sleight of hand that looks fine while you’re watching, but when you think about it comes off as mostly façade. In that way, at least, Rodriguez successfully links form to content.

Yes, Charli is playing a version of herself, but she does it well.

Tonal inconsistency is the iceberg that sinks The Pretty One. The film is a mashup of wacky comedy, romance and sorrowful elements that would tax a more seasoned filmmaker than first-time writer-director Jenée LaMarque.

Hollywood warhorse Norman Taurog directed Elvis eight times and had a knack for dragging decent performances from the boy. [03 Aug 1997, p.34]

At 116 minutes, Five Feet Apart is too much of a just-OK thing. All the same, I want to see Haley Lu Richardson’s next movie.

Lyne has always gone the extra step, and Deep Water shows that he hasn’t lost his touch.

An ambitious attempt at cinematic poetry, and how much they have succeeded depends on how well you can sort out its surrealistic meanings.

Smith deserves a 21st century reassessment, but you won’t find it here.

Reynolds often seems lost for material, whether it’s the restrictions of the PG rating, or deficiencies created by the four screenwriters. By the halfway mark Pikachu might as well be in an “Alvin and the Chipmunks” sequel, resorting to bodily function jokes.

As the film meanders, the powerful moments barely outnumber the ridiculous. And another excellent performance from McAdams isn't quite good enough to mask the distractions.

A dynamic story, sprinkled with some interesting ideas about the preciousness of culture and how societies might rebuild themselves.

Australia shows all the signs of having been a labor of love for director Baz Luhrmann. One problem: It's his love, and the audience's labor.

The moments of action are interspersed with lengthy plot developments that are hard to follow.

O has one advantage over "Othello" -- since it's a new movie, not a classic, it has the power to surprise.

Its gently delivered theme and friendly images of nature (no lions eating antelopes here), this is a fine thing for families and school groups.

A silly, cross-cultural shoot-'em-up -- the sort of movie that will work for those with some time to kill (no pun intended).

Builds up comic force in its first half. But then it blows it, leaving the audience feeling unsatisfied.

An entertaining film that's true to its world.

Working on a microbudget, director Eddie O'Flaherty coaches solid performances from his small cast and makes the most of the handful of up-close, well-choreographed fight montages.

The Dark Half is another retelling of the Jekyll and Hyde story, but King and Romero fail to work out the premise of the story. [23 Apr 1993, p.C3]

Dead-on hilarious.

At its warmhearted center, Beauty Shop is a workshop in how to walk around like Oprah with a feeling of confidence and entitlement.

It's as if there's a barrier between the viewer and the story that never comes down.

Gainsbourg is always going through a little more than she cares to tell the audience about, but the connection her character makes with Samba — real, complicated and not typical — is one of the movie’s highlights.