Family Business has star power going for it, and all three names above the title get the job done. [15 Dec 1989, p.E1]

The film, with Newman's riveting performance, is an exceptional portrait of an oddball politician who is equal parts scoundrel and folk hero, wielding power with a quirky, almost cantankerous charm, while also pulling strings in a loyal and powerful Southern political machine. [13 Dec 1989, p.E1]

She-Devil is a witty picture that's not afraid to stoop for a punch line. [8 Dec 1989, p.E1]

Although the movie goes too far, you can hardly get enough of its delicious atmosphere - and of Turner, in particular, who has never looked better on the big screen. [8 Dec 1989]

It's about what you'd expect _ a collection of gags, some good, some bad, with the bare suggestion of a story to hang it all on. Chevy Chase, as usual, is a lot better than he has to be and lifts the picture to the point that it's intermittently fun and fairly painless. [1 Dec 1989, p.E1]

Some of the best bits of the original movie are replayed here but lose their punch the second time around - the horse manure bit, the skate board sequence. Maybe people who never saw the first movie will get a big kick out of them. [22 Nov 1989, p.E1]

Jarmusch's presence as a director is always felt, from moment to moment, in ways that are small but never random. Even establishing shots -- exteriors of buildings -- suggest his sardonic, quietly despairing vision. With Mystery Train, Jarmusch comes of age. [21 Dec 1989, p.E1]

The anger, the mischief, the humor and the intelligence that flash in Day-Lewis' eyes make Christy Brown the most memorable film figure of the year. The Oscar does not necessarily reflect the pinnacle of success for an actor, but Day-Lewis certainly deserves that honor. [20 Dec 1989, p.E1]

Best of the Best is the wrong title. Worst of the worst would be more like it for this movie. [Nov 13 1989, p.F4]

Yes, it's got painful and funny moments, but by the time it's all over, I was worn out coping with all Dad's manifold transformations. [28 Oct 1989, p.C3]

[Branagh] shows an understanding of the medium worthy of a veteran, and an intuitive grasp of how to make Henry V not only comprehensible, but compelling for contemporary audiences. [13 Dec 1989]

The picture looks like it cost about 3 cents to make, but it packs a nice punch, with tense moments, unexpected turns and a hot performance by Joanne Whalley-Kilmer. [30 Oct 1989, p.F3]

Automatic weapons versus shot-guns. Silly stuff, but it held my attention. [21 Oct 1989, p.C3]

Although the film ends with a facile, romantic comment by Oppenheimer, the unnerving momentum of all that has gone before will remain to haunt the imagination of the viewers. [20 Oct 1989, p.D2]

Look Who's Talking plays baby-picture cute almost beyond the limits of the tolerable, but it has enough spark and intelligence to be a very likable, occasionally riotous romantic comedy. [13 Oct 1989, p.E1]

Michael can't be killed, and so a ''Halloween'' picture can never really end. It can only stop. And since it can stop anywhere, it may as well stop sooner than later. This one stops later, and by the time it does it's hard to care. [17 Oct 1989, p.E4]

All over this movie there are cliches that are just plain embarrassing, and unsettling moments in which it's obvious Kloves is writing about stuff he doesn't know a thing about. [13 Oct 1989, p.E1]

In spite of its downbeat subjects, Drugstore Cowboy becomes a satisfying drama of redemption. [27 Oct 1989]

No documentary could explain the enigma of Thelonious Monk, the eccentric genius who reshaped the language of jazz in the 1940s with music that was so original it still mystifies and delights. [13 Oct 1989, p.E9]

The film leaves us staggering with a strange, almost unbearable embrace of childish innocence and treacherous spite. It is powerfully depressing. [02 Mar 1990, p.E1]

Let It Ride has atmosphere, plus a good setting, appealing actors - and a bad script. [19 Aug 1989]

Both Mastrantonio and Harris are terrific, never missing a beat, always convincing, even when playing the most extreme emotions. [9 Aug 1989, Daily Datebook, p.E1]

The kind of picture to whip out the clichés for: Surprisingly original. Delightful. Brilliant. Funny as all heck. When 1989 is through, sex, lies, and videotape may well be remembered as the best film of the year. [11 Aug 1989, Daily Datebook, p.E1]

The new film Parenthood is a challenging, funny, affecting and mostly rewarding effort - like parenthood itself. It makes good use of a large ensemble cast led by Steve Martin as a man striving to be a good dad. [2 Aug 1989, p.E1]

In UHF we get 90 minutes of Al Yankovic, and that's 85 minutes too much. The problem isn't that he's weird, but that he isn't weird at all. The premises for his gags are commonplace and predictable, and his follow-throughs lack imagination. He seems incapable of spinning more than one tired joke from each set-up. [21 Jul 1989, p.E1]

The kind of little film you can get cozy with, laugh at in odd places even when nobody else is laughing - and yet people will not turn around to glower at you because they understand. [12 July 1989, Daily Datebook, p.E1]

Has more originality, nitty-gritty humor, spirit and spunk than all the summer blockbuster retreads combined. Underneath the jousting and jiving, there's a sharp, uncompromising look at the anatomy of a race riot in the movie. [30 June 1989, Daily Notebook, p.E3]

It's a rare, beautifully made movie that offers you another world. [23 June 1989, Daily Datebook, p.E1]