The first half is wildly fun, especially as it puts characters in the uncomfortable position of being at a party that goes awry shortly after the countdown. But what starts off as a quirky teen comedy with hints of sci-fi catastrophe turns into a messy romp that loses its intrigue.

Already working with a shakily thin script, Jákl weighs his movie down with an overly self-serious aesthetic, to the point that even the target audience might find the two-hour runtime a tough sit.

The film is heavy-handed in its attempt to be subtle and even Brody’s score can’t save the day, but Clean has its moments.

While A Different Man attempts to be a thought-provoking work some of the time, it’s not as deep or as profound as it aims to be.

Ultimately, the film is far too placid and noncommittal to earn its more moving climax. It's hard to really care about these characters when their stream of decisions seems either improperly motivated or else frustratingly selfish.

With predictable twists and one grating character, the Lionsgate movie tries to do something different from others like it, but it can't quite reach the heights that its main characters aren't (and should be) afraid of.

While a few of the actors give decent performances, it is not enough to overcome the stilted writing.

Atlas is like an artificial sci-fi movie that walks and talks like the real thing, but just isn't.

Written and directed by Mike Cahill, Bliss has strong ideas about economic inequality and it ambitiously works to pull off being a sci-fi thriller that is layered with social commentary. However, the film falls short of delivering something more compelling and complex, primarily because it's trying to do too much at once.

The lack of specificity around the situation and the underbaked character development reduces Azrael to being nothing more than a horror with an interesting premise.

What they cannot ignore is that the film is otherwise still lacking. For all the epithets one could throw out about Wuthering Heights, the most surprising may be that it is an abject snooze, and that its nonchalance about color-specific casting reveals a filmmaker completely insensitive to the implications of race in the late 18th century.

Like many of Netflix's original movies, Kate feels like another release that had potential to be good, but falls well short of the mark.

Dear Evan Hansen might be well-meaning, but it completely misses the mark. It’s not the worst movie out this year, but it’s not a musical one might be inclined to rush to the theater to see, either.

The Seven Faces Of Jane is an experiment that just does not deliver the right results.

Earwig and the Witch has all the parts needed to be a fun and memorable film, but seems to lack the manual for how to bring it all together.

Shell is funny and nice to look at it, but it lacks the depth or the darkness that it needs.

Flora & Ulysses has all of the right ingredients, but falls short of bringing them all together, leaving the film an uncharismatic and empty shell.

The best we can hope for is that Summer of 69 will open the door for more contemporary conversations in coming-of-age movies that aren't afraid to have more fun.

It’s fraught with frenetic energy and delightfully charming performances, but Blithe Spirit is not as funny or absurd as it sets out to be.

There are some things that Into the Deep does well, but it is ultimately too slight to really commit to any of its interesting ideas. By the time the violence between the three characters ends, one just wishes their conflict had included a bit more flair.

Though Meester puts on a solid performance atop an intriguing plot, The Weekend Away doesn't supply enough thrills to make it an entertaining watch.

In Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga, Ferrell's typical schtick is on full display, but wears incredibly thin in this overlong comedy.

Anaconda aims to be Bowfinger for a new generation but ends up feeling as insipid as the film it is loosely based on. Its target audience is people nostalgic for the salad days of studio blockbusters, who are righteously frustrated with executives for cashing in on material they don't understand.

If Ready or Not was a chess match, Here I Come is tic-tac-toe.

Altogether Underwater is a middling movie that spans multiple genres, from sci-fi and thriller to action and horror, and can't seem to focus on any specific one.

The concept is no doubt thought-provoking and, occasionally, even creative. But it’s hard to get behind the journey the AIs go on when it’s so detached, the film itself attempting to be a gripping narrative conveying heartfelt emotions that just don’t land.

This particular narrative is a sound idea but for a documentary instead.

Not all movies need to be action-packed, and that was never Mermaid's goal, despite what its opening, horror-themed mermaid encounter might have led one to believe. However, for a film that sets out to take viewers into the mind of a broken man clinging to his last shot at change, Mermaid does not pack the emotional punch that is needed to hook the audience all the way through.