The Comfort of Strangers is a sinister movie, not scary in the sense of a horror film but eerie enough to haunt the deep recesses of your mind long after the operatic music and the lush Italian settings have faded. [02 Apr 1991]

Central to the effectiveness of the film is the performance of Sally Field as Betty. She is magnificent. No star is more proficient at portraying the American woman beset by woes not of her own making. In her unadorned face are reflected the compassion, the sense of betrayal, the suffering, the maternal love and the gumption to escape her bondage. [07 Jan 1991]

What's off about this latest De Palma work is that the movie can't be taken seriously. The characters are straight out of a comic strip and proceed through some cartoon-like situations. And so, viewed in this way, it becomes an enjoyable romp. [17 Dec 1990]

With Tom Selleck, Steve Guttenberg and Ted Danson as the Three Men, you can forgive the artifice. All three have affable, winning personalities - not a hint of darkness in any of them. And it's refreshing to see a buddy movie without blazing Uzis and crashing cars. [19 Nov 1990]

The wrong version of Welcome Home, Roxy Carmichael must have been released, because this sloppy-looking film never should have been allowed into theaters. [11 Oct 1990]

As director, producer and star, Eastwood has made his most ambitious film, traveling to England and Zimbabwe and working with raging rivers and charging elephants. He has added immeasurably to his stature in all three capacities. [12 Sep 1990]

But the movie falls flat with pat situations and predictable action sequences. And in this the summer of mega-action hits, a filmmaker has to devise something different and totally brash to woo audiences...The dialogue suffers from terminal silliness. [19 July 1990]

RoboCop 2 offers yet another argument against the issuance of sequels. [21 June 1990]

A sure sign that a movie is doomed from the start is when it opens with a printed quote from President Bush's September 1989 so-called "war" on Colombian drug lords, and the screening audience giggles. Fire Birds tumbles to the very depths of lousy filmmaking on that note. [21 May 1990]

Crazy People is the inspired work of writer Mitch Markowitz ("Good Morning, Vietnam") who started as director but was replaced by Tony Bill. Markowitz's script is bright and original, suffering only in the late portions when the plot has to be tidied up. [11 Apr 1990]

John Frankenheimer is an old hand at directing this kind of macho confrontation, and he masterfully builds the tension. The bone-chilling terrain (actually Canada) adds immeasurably to the film's effectiveness. [20 Mar 1990]

A Shock to the System marks a promising entry into feature films for Jan Egleson, who has directed prestige films for public television. He skillfully plays the murderous events against the normality of New York high rises and peaceful suburbia. [02 Apr 1990]

Since the men are Anthony Quinn and Kevin Costner and their mutual love is a stunning newcomer, Madeleine Stowe, the film rises above formula. [13 Feb 1990]

Figgis' uneven pacing and reliance on blood and guts makes this a difficult movie to watch. Still, his handling of the clash between the two cops makes Internal Affairs somewhat compelling but far less interesting than his Stormy Monday. And his ending for Internal Affairs is a cop-out and predictable. [03 Jan 1990]

The Little Mermaid is magic and joy for everyone, and teaches us all to never lose sight of dreams and hope. [06 Nov 1989]

It is a slick, well-made film, graced by the stirring performance of Paul Newman, but it offers little that is new about that crucial chapter in the world's history. [30 Oct 1989]

The Package manages a degree of believability, thanks in large part to Hackman's customary professionalism. Probably no other star could convey such credibility. [24 Aug 1989]

Great Balls of Fire is fun to watch, especially Quaid's gymnastics and clownish grimaces. But the movie lacks authenticity; it seems to be laughing at itself and at the era it purports to chronicle. [29 June 1989]

The special effects are terrific and the idea, based on a story by Charles Band and Kenneth J. Hall, is clever and could be downright scary. But the pacing is soooooooooooo slow you can fast-forward by five minutes and still be on the same scene and practically the same word. [30 Aug 1989]

The bad news is that Pink Cadillac treads on old ground and never really takes off. [24 May 1989]

The battle of the heads in "How to Get Ahead in Advertising" is curious, bizarre and at times distasteful. The plot becomes almost existential, but the ending is a cop-out. [21 Nov 1989]

In portraits bursting with the magic and eccentricities of the same Southern literary tradition that gave us William Faulkner, Harper Lee and Tennesee Williams, Henley has created memorable and rich characters. These are real people, not Hollywood plastics.

The movie is stupid and silly no matter how you look at it. It takes a stab at some sort of backward humor about feminism and male chauvinism. But it's merely pretentious and not very funny. [18 Apr 1989]

Oliver and Company is the most fully realized animated film from the Disney Co. since 101 Dalmatians. It is inspired entertainment in all departments: characters, animation, comedy, plot and voices. [28 Nov 1988]

Child's Play is more than just an odyssey of revenge; it is a chiller that will make you think twice about cuddling those ugly little Cabbage Patch kids or visiting Barbie's townhouse. [21 Nov 1988]

The performances are triumphant. Bust out all the adjectives for Tom Hanks; following his "Big" splash, he is unquestionably the front-runner in the 1988 Academy Award race. Sally Field displays an unexpected comedy flair, as well as the earnestness for which she is noted. Equally effective is Rydell, better known as a director ("On Golden Pond"). [4 Oct 1988]

Clara's Heart is a warm movie with many lessons to tell, if one is willing to listen. Its force is aided by Goldberg's performance and a noteworthy movie debut of Neil Patrick Harris as David. [17 Oct 1988]

Stand and Deliver is a kind of thinking man's Rocky: melodramatic, full of street-level emotion, with a knockout of an ending that may even convince you that good can occasionally triumph against implausible odds. [07 Apr 1988]