One of Pixar’s most charming achievements.

The intersex movement is about living fully without fear, shame or trauma, to live life on one’s own terms, and the brightness and vigor that Cohen applies to the tone follows the energy of the activists themselves.

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

Iowa-native Gurira has had roles in TV’s “Treme” and “The Walking Dead,” but Mother of George should be the birth of a brilliant film career.

With an incredible eye for nature, both its landscape and its particulars, and a wonderful script, Ballard has crafted a movie that dignifies the lowly goose and tells a remarkable story about family at the same time. [13 Sep 1996, p.3E]

In recording the timeless traditions of Jewry, he created a new one: the identity crisis that rides on the back of laughter.

The success of the three, separately screened films -- the first set in 1974, the second in 1980 and the concluding segment in 1983 -- depends not on their specifics, but on their ability to sustain an atmosphere that's appropriate to the dark but haunting story.

About the only shocking thing about Personal Shopper is its perverse lack of thrills.

As an exercise in craft, it's surprisingly successful, thanks to the strong cast and the vivid depiction of a modern leader's security apparatus. But as a political statement or personal drama, The Ghost Writer is nearly invisible.

The vocal performances are spot-on, with Murray a standout as the slyly manipulative but ultimately courageous Baloo.

Only an artist at the midpoint between the maypole and maturity could concoct a comedy as potent as While We’re Young.

At once a fascinating character study and a scathing indictment of the role of the medical-pharmaceutical complex in exacerbating the AIDS crisis, the fact-based Dallas Buyers Club is one of the best films of the year.

One of the best films of the year.

In a movie of murky surfaces and deep loneliness, the redemptive surprise of A Single Man is how it becomes a clear endorsement of the Buddy System.

The Messenger is the debut film of writer and director Oren Moverman, but it's worldly wise, with two well-rounded characters.

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

Mostly the movie is about process and perspective. Through the documentary lens, Richter's enigmatic paintings speak to us.

Ruby in Paradise is a fine, quietly moving look at a young woman's voyage of discovery. It is most memorable for the feature-film debut of Ashley Judd in the title role, but the rest of the cast is excellent, as well, and Gregory Nunez (Gal Young 'Un) directs from his own script with heartfelt clarity. [26 Nov 1993, p.3F]

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).

Gleeson is great as the troubled, conscientious priest, but until an abruptly shocking finale, his fatalism turns the ticking clock into a congested hourglass.

Just when this black-and-white, microbudget movie seems poised to spring an indictment of the Dickensian social order, it ends, but in a redemptive ray of color.

Duvall is a powerful actor, and this folksy fable could have been a career-capping feat, but the movie is toothless and slow.

The Immigrant is not unlike a Prohibition-era “Taxi Driver,” with Cotillard as the apprentice hooker, Phoenix as the sweet-talking pimp and Jeremy Renner (playing the theater’s magician, Orlando) as the would-be savior.

Despite the melancholy background of Scandinavia, the repressive work ethic, the class struggle, this is a beautiful love story. [14 Aug 1992, p.3G]

The film is hard to watch, but its timeliness is impossible to ignore. Still, a case could be made that Bigelow dwells on the violence a bit too obsessively.

One of the pleasures of Edge of Seventeen is it makes you nostalgic for high school yet so relieved it’s over.

Logan isn’t the typical superhero flick. It’s more like a Western, with Jackman turning in a performance that’s reminiscent of Clint Eastwood in his Man With No Name days.

An artfully observant and unexpectedly moving documentary.

Thankfully, all of the voice actors from the original return, including Kristen Wiig, Jonah Hill and Craig Ferguson, and keep lightening the mood.

While Career Girls has an overall somber tone, it is sparked by Leigh's humor and the actresses' - particularly Hannah's - verbal quickness... While the film may not be very satisfying to viewers, it is intriguing to watch Leigh's work and to see the women's characters develop. [22 Aug. 1997, p.6E]

James Franco is fascinatingly weird as Wiseau, and brother Dave Franco complements him perfectly as a regular guy who has little choice but to go with his flow.

Cunningham's answers to pointed questions about romantic love and religious faith are so open-hearted, we understand that he's bigger than just New York.

Broken Embraces is stylish and sly, an engaging exercise that gives us less than meets the eye.

A sophisticated comedy about New Yorkers who might easily be mistaken for characters in a Woody Allen movie.

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.

The film is so masterfully controlled, we feel like we’ve eavesdropped on something like life.

Despite accusations of nearly succumbing to spotlighting beefs over beats, the film comes off as an honest representation of a great group that's not to be forgotten.

A rebuke to the genteel period costume dramas that have long reigned as arthouse staples. Working from a screenplay by Alice Birch, director William Oldroyd turns the genre on its head, penetrating the pretty exteriors that conceal wild and dangerous emotions.

When a place and its people are this stylish, we can't help but be drawn to them.

Surrender, earthlings. It’s the Guardians’ world and you’ll be happy to live in it.

With a child’s perspective on war, Lore deserves comparisons with “Empire of the Sun” and “Hope and Glory,” and with a feisty female protagonist it stands virtually alone.

This true story does a great service by honoring the memory of 22 brave men and women and by dramatizing the internal debates within the French population. But in staying true to life, it sacrifices some of the pacing and clarity of a conventional thriller.

These wars being fought in our name may be dirty, but this courageous film reminds us that as long as we have a free press, they don’t have to be secret.

A Monster Calls is the rare film that addresses the mysteries of childhood without succumbing to schmaltz.

Beautifully but simply wrought by director Cindy Meehl, this deft documentary is a poignant reappraisal of what it means to be human.

Has been criticized as endorsing or condoning violence, but that assessment is unfair and inaccurate. If terrorism is to be eliminated, it must be understood, not oversimplified.

We can quibble about the punitive punchline of John Gatins' script, but keeping complexity aloft for so long makes Flight a miraculous feat.

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.

The debut creation of director Ritesh Batra, it’s a lovely little film from a place where the little things linger.

Reitman's movie is triumphant and actually deserves being mentioned in the same breath with those great comedies of 50 years ago. [07 May 1993, p.3G]

The film confirms it's hard to do brain surgery on a battlefield. But it doesn't take a brain surgeon to think it could go deeper.

Soul Power is both a funk-tastic time capsule and a timeless celebration of the human spirit.

Since the movie never really gets very far beneath the skin of these immensely talented people, their battles and her final victory seldom rise above the level of moderately entertaining melodrama. [11 Jun 1993, p.3G]

Almost as good as the first film, it has James Stewart in one of his earliest roles. [02 Aug 2005, p.E1]

Gibney is as dramatic a storyteller as the Hollywood directors with whom he competes for our attention, and he employs a big bag of tricks.

As they build up steam, two powerful actors keep us wondering whether this train is bound for war or peace.

Margin Call has a spectacular cast, and the 24-hour cycle of events gives the movie the compressed dramatic effect of a fine play.

Gadot proves she is worthy of Wonder Woman’s tiara, but the superhero deserves a great film, not one that’s just better than the others.

A movie that will be discovered, embraced and shared with friends like a favorite record album.

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

The fact-based Stronger is an inspiring tale of reconciliation and reinvention that sidesteps sentimentality to get to emotional truth.

Of course, there's a kind of reverse snobbery in touting cheap movies over polished ones. But if Not Quite Hollywood is not quite convincing, it is quite entertaining.

Sorry, partisans, but there’s nothing obvious about Obvious Child.

Jenison, who had never painted a thing in his life, does indeed produce a beautiful work, but we should never forget that Penn and Teller are professional bamboozlers, and their attempt to re-frame the definition of genius might be nothing but smoke and mirrors.

Naysayers will no doubt argue that mother! is an incomprehensible mess. But as sheer visceral filmmaking, it’s a must-see. If you’re looking for meaning, read a book.

The central question of Trees Lounge is whether Tommy will ever get wise to himself. The movie does not exactly provide an answer to the question, but Buscemi poses it in an entertaining, insightful and humane way. [24 Oct 1996, p.4G]

Like psychoanalysis, A Dangerous Method takes its time as it circles an opening to unexplored depths. To reward our patience, Cronenberg gives us some honey-hued eye candy and rich dialogue, but if you're seeking instant gratification, I prescribe "Shame."

This wonderfully wry, painfully funny comedy about a middle-aged boy and his mother is Albert Brooks' most accessible movie. [17 Jan 1997, p.03E]

Might be mistaken for a mere soap opera. But it's actually an emotional symphony.

A provocative mood piece. Nichols, who had an art-house hit in 2011 with “Take Shelter,” has a gift for creating characters of unusual depth, and for eliciting performances of emotional resonance. With Mud, he seems to be edging closer to the mainstream, but his skills are as sharp as ever.

Gilroy vividly evokes both the LA exteriors and newsroom interiors, and the action sequences are fraught with tension.

Anderson hasn’t just delivered his best film in years — he’s also managed to capture the zeitgeist in his own unique way.

The ingredients are in place for a potent finale, but “Catching Fire” is watered down.

As an homage to an influential director, Submarine blows "Super 8" out of the water.

Marguerite is a shining star, a film that will set you laughing and thinking in equal measure.

The Lovers is the rare film that acknowledges that romance isn’t limited to people in their 20s and 30s. It’s also a smart, quirky comedy that moviegoers of any age should find eminently appealing.

Like "The Squid and the Whale," this character study pushes the definition of comedy to the breaking point, and unlike the far less successful "Margot at the Wedding," it leaves us faintly smiling after the workout.

This Swedish sensation is a magic trick that jolts the murder-mystery genre back to life.

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.

Rango is iconic like a spaghetti Western, smart like a '70s conspiracy thriller and lively like a Coen brothers comedy.

Although this Swedish vehicle is thoughtfully engineered and has some vivid streaks of color, it could use a jump start to escape the vanilla ice.

While the rich people who violated a dead antagonist's wishes seem sleazy (especially when they refuse to be interviewed), transporting world-class artwork five miles to a bigger facility where more people can enjoy it hardly seems like the end of civilization as we know it.

An exciting cloak-and-dagger thriller.

Perhaps the spookiest thing in this slyly scary movie is the word-for-word way that Patrick's followers regurgitate his pablum.

He’s like a globe-trotting Richard Linklater. And with Winterbottom’s first-ever sequel, his “Trip” films now rival Linklater’s “Before” series in charting how a twosome evolves over time. Plus, they’re bloody hilarious.

The most exhilarating film of the year is also the most exhausting.

It’s an old-fashioned tale of an individual overcoming the odds — only in this case, that individual happens to be a horse.

After we hear the hit parade that poured from rural Alabama and meet the men who led it to the top of the charts, we realize that Muscle Shoals could call itself Hitsville, USA.

As a realistic horror movie, Misery is effective. If you like Stephen King books, you will probably like Misery. However, I kept hoping that Reiner and Goldman would do more with the material. [30 Nov 1990, p.3F]

It's an original that plays as if it were based on a novel.

THIS is one tough movie....When its uncompromising final scene has faded, we are emotionally shattered, left with some inkling of how the citizens of Salem, Mass., must have felt 300 years ago, after a reign of self-righteous, hysterical, scapegoating terror had swept through their claustrophobic town, sending a significant portion of its tiny population to the gallows, or worse. [20 Sept 1996, p.3E]

Bernie could easily have gone horribly wrong. But Black and Linklater finesse this tricky material with as much virtuosity as Bernie brings to that broccoli.

Kristen Wiig is the best sketch comic alive, and Bridesmaids should finally make her a movie star.

Not many films address motherhood with as much irreverence and insight as Tully.

The troupe's first film in more than a decade, is a more aggressively absurd antidote to what it calls "a hard, cynical world." Happily, it works.

A gripping account of a pivotal moment in the early days of World War II, grounded by an Oscar-worthy performance by Oldman.

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

Don’t be put off by the need to read subtitles. Rarely has a film more eloquently captured the universality of human experience.