A dismal misfire that attempts to make black comedy out of the adventures of war correspondents and the dirty business of international politics.

One isn't quite ready to forgive the miscasting of Gere, however, who is about as convincing a Kabbalistic scholar as Madonna.

The film is slow and somber during the windup but pretty scary in the follow-through.

Often funny, darker than you'd expect, and firmly grounded in Franken's extensive experience of the 12-Step worldview.

Affleck's gloomy, one-note performance exacerbates the problem, but the stellar supporting cast helps compensate.

Daniel Sullivan's earnest adaptation of Jon Robin Baitz's play is worth seeing for Ron Rifkin's performance alone.

A sweet-natured ode to rave culture saddled with a ridiculously clichéd plot line.

Parker's adaptation is meticulous, unsentimental, beautifully acted-- but nearly two and a half hours worth of dying babies, rain-spattered streets, ragged children and filthy, bug-infested rooms is a bit oppressive.

Though generally sympathetic, the film manages (without stooping to clichéd moralizing) to suggest that being Ron Jeremy isn't the non-stop paradise his fans imagine.

An almost unrelenting barrage of gore, Dead Alive is also a constant assault on the funnybone, a film in which the graphic blood-spilling is taken so far over the top that it becomes hilarious instead of disgusting.

Narrated by NAACP Chairman Julian Bond, the film's form is measured, but its message is incendiary.

Dull, derivative horror anthology.

And while it was always clear that Lucas cared more about special effects than acting, here his lack of interest has produced phenomenally wooden performances from newcomers and veterans alike: Only the imperious Christopher Lee, as baleful Count Dooku, emerges unscathed.

Ellis' slight film has its charms, and the backstory he concocted to lead into the original 18-minute short is effective. But the film lags badly in the middle.

What the film lacks in artistry it makes up for in commitment.

Though the effects work of Giannetto De Rossi is generally excellent and certainly stomach-churning, most of Zombie is slow and unintentionally funny. Fulci's work has its champions, but his films are mostly dim-witted and hold little interest for anyone other than hard-core gore fans.

It's the kind of film Hollywood doesn't make any more, and a pleasant retro diversion.

Seriously sexy stuff from -- surprise -- the former-Soviet Union.

Only die-hard and undemanding Chan fans need apply.

Sentimental and predictable, Meily's sweet-natured feature-film debut was hugely popular in the Philippines; its day-to-day details will be exotic to non-Filipino audiences but the characters' dilemmas are couched in the universal language of sitcom complications and fortuitous resolutions.

The supporting cast is a riot of stock exotic characters, verging on the offensively stereotypical.

It's filled with great footage of what must have been a wild time behind the Iron Curtain, and the music itself speaks volumes.

At best, Batman Forever is mildly diverting, brainless fun that feels like a long trailer for a better film.

Simultaneously gorgeous and forgettable, sentimental and prurient.

The good news is that Battle for Terra's moments of unbalance ultimately right themselves into a surprisingly earnest, engaging film.

Beautiful photography from Kovacs and an excellent acting job by Stallone.

All in all, Fritz is best observed as a cultural artifact, with its success allowing Bakshi to follow it up with more heartfelt projects such as Heavy Traffic (1973) and Coonskin (1975).

Boasting an inventive concept, with a nicely nuanced performance from Breaking Away's Christopher, Fade To Black is a creepy little film that, perhaps, doesn't go quite far enough.