Wilson isn’t a bad film, but it could have used less melodrama and a lot more insight.

The four leading actresses give memorable portrayals, all worth watching. The message, of the universal necessity of love and human kindness, is certainly important. But as a total movie experience, Fried Green Tomatoes gives way to sentimentality and calculated tear-jerking. [28 Jan 1992, p.4D]

There are audiences for movies that amuse us, and arouse us, and scare us, but the career of Todd Solondz ("Storytelling") raises the question: Is there an audience for movies that make us feel icky?

X-Men: First Class is a mutant movie, half fun and half fearsome. For those who have developed an immunity to fanboy hype, the contradictory traits may seem to weaken rather than strengthen this beast, but readers of the "X-Men" comics will hail an origin story as satisfying as "Thor."

THUNDERHEART, a murder mystery set amid the American Indian movement on Sioux reservations in the 1970s, has its heart in the right place. But except for a few scenes, the thunder is missing. [7 Apr 1992, p.2D]

Reilly is very funny as the sarcastic mentor, and director Paul Weitz strikes a loopy tone in the scenes at the freak encampment.

I found Davies' rehashed experiences to range from boring to depressing, and felt that the two devices mentioned above were not sufficient to raise it to the level where art transcends experience. [29 Sep 1989, p.3F]

As a testament to traditions that are usually kept hidden from Hollywood, Holy Rollers is a mitzvah. But as a thriller, it's bubkes.

There are enough F-bombs, a couple of chopped-off appendages and a flash of gratuitous male nudity to earn an R rating. But fans of producer Judd Apatow would expect nothing less.

This loony 'toon is dizzy with wonderments, especially in 3-D. The spindly-limbed character design owes more to Charles Addams' family than to Walt Disney's kingdom, while the story and settings evoke James Bond on laughing gas.

It's possible to make a successful comedy about stalking, or virtually any other subject. But you probably need a lighter touch than young director Ben Stiller (Reality Bites) exhibits in this occasionally funny, sometimes grim movie. [14 June 1996, p.3E]

If you're interested in a drama about a few days in the life of an American abroad, you may find Cairo Time engaging. But for some viewers, it all may be just too subtle.

Successful in small doses, but the full regimen needed more testing.

Collateral Beauty is based on a premise so preposterous that the film shouldn’t work. But the illusion of credibility is sustained just well enough to keep things from falling apart.

Fishburne gets the last word, however, in the midst of more flip-flops than a lake full of frogs, and while much of the movie is shoot-'em-up and fast action, the work of the actors and of Duke give it a nice cohesion. [18 Apr 1992, p.4D]

Unfortunately, producers (including James) went for the easy layup, showing so much on-court action instead of trying to hustle for insights about sports and society.

Hill fans - and I'm one - should find Last Man Standing intriguing, but it's certainly not among his top four or five works. [20 Sep 1996, p.3E]

Although the characters don’t lapse into stereotypes, neither are they sufficiently funny or fierce to engage us in the issues they raise.

The excellent animation makes up for a so-so plot, but it really doesn't matter. "The Squeakquel" is for kids.

What's most conspicuously missing from this ensemble is some input from the advertisers who subsidize Wintour's tyranny, and the readers who are seduced into buying her beautiful four-pound paperweights.

Without Limits is best when it's on the track. When it goes off the track, it sometimes does just that. [13 Oct 1998, p.E3]

For all its professionalism, I found it as cold as the ice rink at Rockefeller Center.

A generally entertaining Western with some striking images, Young Guns II is significantly better than the original Young Guns. [02 Aug 1990, p.4E]

Gets boring for adults, but kids will enjoy it. [03 Jan 1999, p.C10]

Director Dereck Joubert gleans a valuable thread that connects us to these endangered creatures.

The thread connecting the ambitious girl to the acclaimed woman is enough to make us wish for a sequel titled "Chanel No. 2."

Gunn exhorts the audience to embrace the quirky, the messy, the flawed, to strive for connection, not precision in this world and beyond. It’s a resonant message at the center of all the din.

Unfortunately, as the characters change, Harris cannot keep up with them, and as the film becomes more and more melodramatic, it becomes less exciting. A good movie, but Harris had potential for a great one and let it get away. [02 Apr 1993, p.3G]