Though it can get laborious, and produces the odd unintended chuckle, The Secret Garden is charming and sometimes chillingly authentic.

The film's spirit is one of unbridled bawdy slapstick, which misfires as often as it hits its targets, and its attitude towards women probably won't warm many hearts in the feminist community. In short, Penthouse readers will find what they're looking for in abundance wrapped in a typically bright, fast and furious Hong Kong package that is sometimes funny and occasionally even genuinely erotic.

Unfortunately, SINS OF DESIRE features a disproportionate amount of sex and not nearly enough thrills...If only the film's makers had realized the crime solving techniques and sexual exploration needn't be mutually exclusive. In SINS OF DESIRE, deducing always takes a back seat to seducing.

The results are mildly comical and occasionally poignant. HEART AND SOULS was Downey's first film after his Oscar-nominated performance in CHAPLIN, but he refrains, thankfully, from pulling a star turn. Instead, HEART AND SOULS remains largely an ensemble effort, with skilled performances by all five of the lead actors.

Though SEARCHING finally ties up its loose ends a little too neatly, what comes before that is a joy; an engrossing, witty story about far more than chess, directed with a flawless eye for detail and superbly performed by some of the best actors around--including young Mr. Pomeranc.

The action varies from a show-stopping train/bus wreck of Schwarzeneggerian proportions, to some more ironically staged pursuits which throw a welcome dash of "Tom and Jerry" into the mix.

A triumph of style over content. Like BLADE RUNNER, the film grafts a fiercely modernist feel onto characters and themes right out of a 1940s film noir--an impressive achievement that more than makes up for a ponderous storyline.

Although Myers is a brilliant comic, any potential he has as a romantic lead remains unfulfilled.

Although sporadically funny and not quite the disaster it was initially made out to be, this ROBIN HOOD robs gags from other films while giving the poor viewer far too few laughs.

Overall, this is a fuzzy, unfocused drama that bites off more than it can chew, or viewers can digest.

CONEHEADS represents a prime example of opportunistic commercial filmmaking, with plot and character sacrificed to an endless series of comic ideas that are never developed.

Amiably undemanding...Exhausted though the action-cop-buddy-comedy genre is, Another Stakeout manages to be fairly entertaining.

Shamelessly manipulative and heavyhanded, it may be an endurance test for those not absolutely entranced by large aquatic mammals.

Under direction that can only be described as scatterbrained by choreographer-turned-director Kenny Ortega (NEWSIES), HOCUS POCUS runs off in so many directions at once that it keeps tripping over itself behind a plot that doesn't make the slightest bit of sense.

The result is a finely tuned suspense thriller, though executives who have recently laid off trained killers may experience some discomfort.

Though Kiser makes the zombified Bernie equally funny, WEEKEND AT BERNIE'S II spends too little time with him, and too much getting bogged down by subplots: two mob pawns' bumbling attempts to steal Bernie's corpse; Hummel's tailing Larry and Richard through St. Thomas, only to be arrested time and time again; Larry's failed romance with an island native whose physician father is, conveniently, versed in black magic; and Richard's being poisoned by the voodoo queen.

Aimed squarely at little leaguers and their doting parents, Rookie of the Year is a modest fantasy that makes its comic fable appealing despite sporadic slapstick missteps.

SON-IN-LAW is like too much of Disney's profligate output, undemanding entertainment for undemanding people.

Branagh's use of trendy extended tracking and steadicam shots is sometimes distracting, but overall this is a jouyous romp whose forced jollity is only occasionally wearing.

This is a professional machine of a movie that compresses huge amounts of information into its two and a half hours of screen time. But it's so weighed down by detail, it fails to generate any real suspense.

Superbly acted, beautifully photographed, and resolutely warm and fuzzy, SLEEPLESS IN SEATTLE is a romantic treat.

Fishburne and Bassett are both extraordinary, and though the story is inevitably slanted to Tina's perspective, Fishburne makes Ike a complex and compelling presence.

This film doesn't know who its target audience is. Adults will find it plodding and predictable. Parents of small children should think twice about letting them see this film: the violence is cartoonish, but still brutal, and much of the dialog will be over their heads. Perhaps teenagers will enjoy it (perhaps they'll get some really neat ideas from it, too). John Hughes' vision of Dennis is much more menacing than Ketcham's fans and parents of small children might reasonably expect.

Hero claims to be a gentle, playful parody of the action/adventure genre, but comes off as a mercenary attempt to cash in on summer movie-going habits.

An exhilarating, sometimes terrifying monster of a movie that, once it gets you in its clutches, won't put you down again until the closing credits start to roll.

It's visually intoxicating, with its lavish ruffs and furbelows, stately homes and manicured gardens, jewels and silks and elaborately curled hair, but there's less to ORLANDO than meets the eye.

Cliffhanger offers us breathtaking mountain scenery, some occasionally gripping action sequences, and a lot of gags--mostly unintentional and mostly courtesy of Sylvester Stallone.

Though one wonders if Arau couldn't have found more visual parallels for Esquivel's narrative, overall the film is a witty, charming diversion that struck a chord with audiences.