James makes for a charismatic hero, and former “Saturday Night Live” star Sudeikis is a revelation as the steadfast Snyder.

Where to Invade Next isn’t his funniest documentary, but it may be his most poignant.

Smart, sexy and outrageous, Deadpool delivers.

Based on a true story, The Lady in the Van is a well-acted but somewhat wearying exercise in British whimsy.

The zombie scenes are startling, but only PG-13 horrifying. That will probably be just fine with most Jane Austen fans.

Unfortunately, Hail, Caesar! comes across as far less than the sum of its parts.

Daringly unsentimental, 45 Years makes a persuasive case that marriage demands not only patience, but guts.

In a small role as a self-absorbed film producer, Mark Wahlberg is touchingly effective.

With spot-on vocal performances from Thewlis, Leigh and Tom Noonan, the film is nothing less than mesmerizing — and must viewing for serious cinephiles.

As cop comedies go, Ride Along 2 gets the job done.

Boldly original, The Revenant puts everything else playing at the multiplexes in the shade.

The Forest is flawed on so many levels. It’s a tiresome bore, and the story is filtered through white characters when an Asian lead could have carried the movie just fine.

If you’re looking for a film that’s just about guaranteed to make you feel good, you’d be well advised to drop by Daddy’s Home.

At its heart, Carol deals with the rules that society imposes on individuals, and the courage necessary to throw those rules out the window.

Working from a self-penned screenplay, Tarantino has come up with one of the wordiest Westerns on record, and even some of his most diehard fans may grimace at the film’s occasionally slow pace. But The Hateful Eight more than compensates through its intriguing characters, ominous atmosphere and palpable suspense.

The Big Short is the film that “The Wolf of Wall Street” wanted to be.

Only when the camera is on Vikander does the film transcend its artifice. In one of the year’s best performances, she imbues Gerda with such poignancy and grace that Redmayne all but fades into the background.

A mention must be given to John Cena, who also appeared in “Trainwreck,” for his comedic talents. Here, he’s a stone-faced drug dealer with a supermarket of goods.

Perhaps the greatest triumph of Star Wars: The Force Awakens is that it justifies the enormous hype. Working from a screenplay that he co-wrote with Michael Arndt and Lawrence Kasdan, director J.J. Abrams (“Star Trek”) brings fresh energy to the franchise while adhering to the storytelling values that made it matter in the first place.

Macbeth takes liberties with the particulars of the Shakespeare play, but is fascinatingly true to its spirit.

An oddly uninvolving adventure story.

Chi-Raq is a mess — tonally inconsistent, overbearing in its earnestness and badly in need of editing. But it’s also director Spike Lee’s most passionate film since “25th Hour” (2002).

Perhaps the larger issue is that we just expect better from the company that gave us so much more originality and smarts in movies such as “WALL-E,” “Toy Story” and “Inside Out.” Enjoy it for what it is.

Working from his own screenplay, director Brian Helgeland clearly has a feel for the Krays’ criminal milieu, but it’s not long before repetition sets in. There’s only so much brutality that even the most bloodthirsty audience can tolerate.

Often, extending a film franchise signifies a lack of imagination. But Creed is a knockout.

If you think they don’t make movies like they used to, Brooklyn is glorious proof to the contrary.

An exciting, involving finale, streamlining the complicated end game of Collins’ story without shortchanging the climactic action.

In addition to starring, Jolie Pitt wrote and directed By the Sea. She has given herself relatively little dialogue, but stuck her husband with lines like “Stop acting like this!” and “You resist happiness!”

Keaton, who deserved an Oscar for his performance in “Birdman,” brings to Robinson a bracing blend of humor and authority. Ruffalo is the essence of the newsman who just won’t quit, and McAdams is just as effective as his more low-key colleague.

As shaky as the situation it depicts.

Most. Depressing. Christmas. Movie. Ever.

Morgan’s writing is occasionally pedestrian, but the sweep of the story, the performances and Gavron’s vision make up for it.

The efforts to stay true to the spirit of Schulz are worth a happy dance for kids and adults alike.

Spectre isn’t bad — just slightly disappointing.

With visual and psychological precision, Abrahamson brilliantly evokes the experience of living outside of everyday reality. And he does so without resorting to either creepiness or sentimentality.

Provocative, intelligent but just a bit underwhelming, Our Brand Is Crisis — inspired by a 2005 documentary of the same name — plays as if the filmmakers started out with Oscar aspirations but ultimately weren’t up to the challenge.

With such a strong cast, the film has the right ingredients but it doesn’t quite make a perfect meal.

As original and risk-taking as its subject, Steve Jobs will make you think differently about an American icon.

Page is outstanding as a young woman who has finally found happiness, only to see it cruelly slipping away.

As the deeply principled Donovan, Hanks deftly balances earnestness and humor. And Rylance’s spirited performance is almost certain to yield an Oscar nomination.

Working from a screenplay by Jason Fuchs, director Joe Wright seems overwhelmed by the material, and he fails to make us care about any of the characters.

Aside from art-house fare, American movies of recent decades have tended to ignore even the most urgent social problems. Despite its lapses into melodrama, 99 Homes is a thought-provoking exception.

There’s less a sense of hitting plot points than of capturing life on the fly, and Mendelsohn and Reynolds ride that vibe brilliantly.

A gorgeous film that could inspire a whole new crop of astronauts.

Working from a script co-written with Christopher Browne, director Robert Zemeckis (“Forrest Gump”) pulls off a fabulous trick of his own: delivering a mainstream entertainment that has, at its heart, a poetic sensibility.

In a way, Stonewall is proof that the gay community has fully made the transition to the mainstream. It’s now subject to the kind of Hollywood nonsense that was previously reserved for heterosexuals.

These days, it’s tough to find a comedy that even aspires to sophistication. The Intern entertainingly fills that slot.

Oyelowo and Mara achieve terrific chemistry. Perhaps they’ll work together again — in a better film.

Best appreciated as a movie about being obsessed — a character trait that’s certainly not limited to chess masters.

An ideal showcase for Tomlin, who brings to the film a winning blend of contrariness and effervescence.

Mistress America doesn’t quite achieve the magic of “Frances Ha.” But it’s a fresh take on the comic possibilities of friendship among the young.

Films often fail to capture the turmoil of being a teenager — but not this one.

An offbeat and fascinating film.

What really sets The Man From U.N.C.L.E. apart is its refusal to pander to short attention spans. This is a movie whose charm sneaks up on you, like a spy in the night.

Credit goes to smart casting of unknowns in the leads, who click uniformly; a packed script that manages not to feel overly long and social commentary that is timeless.

Although the story of Sin-Dee and Alexandra might have benefited from a bit more structure, it’s a window into a world of which many people are unaware — but a world that has its share of dreamers.

Quite a few filmgoers lament the shortage of movies for adults. Ricki and the Flash goes against that trend with rock ’n’ roll attitude.

Phoenix is perfectly cast as the ethically problematic Abe, whose novel approach to lifting himself out of an existential funk lends the story its suspense.

Cruise is as watchable as ever, bringing to Hunt a blend of steeliness and vulnerability.

As the central character in “Polar Bear,” Ruffalo impressively explores the geography of a troubled mind, and makes the journey fascinating.

Fuqua is a proficient action director, and the boxing scenes deliver plenty of whomp. But the music-saturated scenes involving the media, the law and a turncoat friend played by Curtis (“50 Cent”) Jackson are trying to appeal to fans of “Empire,” not “Raging Bull.”

Long before you’ve gotten a nickel’s worth of entertainment out of this dumb, unfunny flick, you’ll be wishing for the flashing sign that says “Game over.”

This debut film is fun, and everyone involved can proudly declare, “Honey, I shrunk the Marvel Cinematic Universe.”

Amy Schumer is so scary-good in Trainwreck that it almost seems risky to speak her name.

Lovely to look at, and Vikander does nothing to derail her inevitable ascension to the A-list. But as a story, it evokes a word that no battlefield nurse would ever apply to her experiences: sterile.

This meta movie even has fun with faulty translations between French and English. To paraphrase Gemma as she conjugates verbs on the treadmill, “J’ai adorée.”

Minions is product, pure and simple. Little kids will love it, but grown-ups will feel like they’re being held hostage in a Fisher-Price test laboratory.

With stingy portions and plenty of filler, Magic Mike XXL is the worst sausage party ever.

This mash-up movie is like a greatest-hits collection for obsessive collectors. On its own terms, Terminator Genisys makes virtually no sense.

A must-see — and one of the best films of the year.

When the movie morphs from a story of mutual healing into a crime-fighting caper, it goes off track.

One man’s mirth is another man’s poison, this critic can only consult his belly as the barometer. On a gut level, Ted 2 is a funny film.

Dope is funny, slick and sharp.

In the end, children will enjoy Inside Out for the fun colors (each emotion is conveniently color-coded) and entertaining adventure, and will end the movie cheering. Grown-ups are more likely to watch with their own emotions on their sleeves and wind up sniffling.

Saint Laurent was a truly mythic figure. It’s a shame that Bonello’s film doesn’t do him justice.

The documentary Live from New York is a separate thing. It doesn’t try to be wild and crazy, and it can’t be comprehensive. Like a land shark, it’s an uncomfortable hybrid that bites off more than it can chew.

But even without world-class smarts or amusing mutations, the next generation of “Jurassic” is an enjoyable ride.

Love & Mercy is artfully but unobtrusively directed by Bill Pohlad.

With the overlong, limp and lazy Spy, Feig has lost his mojo.

On that vicarious-pleasure level, the movie version delivers. Yet for anyone with a sense of irony or social justice, it’s also frustratingly soft around the edges, with no real sense of the drugs-and-violence underside of show business or the spiritual cost of failure.

The setting and offbeat tone may remind some viewers of another recent comedy, but whereas “The Descendants” was a substantive meal, Aloha is a pu pu platter.

At once funny and poignant — and not just for moviegoers of a certain age.

Be forewarned: The 100-Year-Old Man is edgier than its title would lead you to believe. Bad guys are bludgeoned, blown up and even crushed by an elephant, and the two duffers take a lassez-faire attitude toward disposing of them.

The special effects and especially the 3-D are top-notch.

It doesn’t help that the characters caught up in this fact-based melodrama aren’t particularly engaging. Or that Téchiné doesn’t seem to have much of a feel for the material.

We need to have a dialogue about the wages of war in the remote-control era. But it’s hard to spark a good dialogue with movies whose dialogue is so bad.

Disney’s gimmick of naming movies for its theme-park attractions crashes and burns in Tomorrowland, a here-and-now caper that will confuse children, bore adults and offend anyone who’s ever taken a science class.

In the context of confounded expectations, director Maxime Giroux may have intended the what’s-next ending to be ironic.

Second verse, not as good as the first.

This is analog filmmaking at its most daring.

It’s Belgian actor Schoenaerts who will leave the target audience atwitter. Seemingly incapable of cracking a smile, he fits securely in the stoic-farmer tradition that stretches from John Wayne in “The Quiet Man” to Russell Crowe in “The Water Diviner.”

While Black is painfully effective as the dork who drops slangy kudos on his new BFF, Marsden is a revelation.

This showcase for Wiig is sufficiently absurd to make real-world parallels laughable.

The trailers for the Reese Witherspoon-Sofia Vergara comedy Hot Pursuit hint at a movie that’s unfunny, insufferable and obvious. You can’t say you weren’t warned.

This undramatic and flat peek “inside” the sewing rooms of Christian Dior holds little in the way of entertainment.

Brilliant performances aside, Clouds of Sils Maria is overlong and much too self-indulgently an “art film.” It might have benefited from being just a bit more grounded.

Age of Ultron has self-aware laughs, grandiose themes and the best effects that money can buy. But at this point, it will take true vision to plot the umpteen sequels without getting trapped in a time loop.

With a stellar cast and seductive look, Ex Machina is a sleek contraption for capturing our imagination.