The film is capably acted and somewhat inspiring.

While the third chapter is certainly entertaining — and quite explosive — it has definitely lost some steam.

The fact that Mackie puts the thing on his own mighty shoulders (with some help from talented castmates) and keeps it watchable is a minor miracle.

Despite a cast and production that seem to promise one of the year's first movies of any note, Cool never translates its promo-photo flashiness into authenticity on screen.

There can be too much of a goofily good thing.

Almost in spite of itself, Little Man manages to deliver big laughs. It's not enough to make it a consistently funny movie, but this one-trick pony from the Wayans brothers has flashes of humor and sincerity that almost save it from its disastrous ending.

While You, Me & Tuscany doesn’t add anything significantly new or innovative to the rom-com recipe – and certainly doesn’t blow up the thing like The Drama – it’s a breezy respite for those who dig the familiar in their escapist pleasure.

Vanessa Redgrave nimbly plays Coriolanus' mother, Volumnia, a blend of formidable stage mother and a puppeteering power behind the throne.

For grown-ups, however, Deadpool avoids enough pitfalls to both embrace and flambé the superhero genre while also finding time for romance, doling out equal handfuls of bullets, barbs and warm fuzzies.

Sporadically amusing but sometimes slogging.

The film is at its best when it focuses on the more specific conflicts of five people thrown together on Purge night.

The Two Jakes turns out to be a surprisingly rich movie - if you're willing to spend 138 minutes on what is essentially a psychological study. [10 Aug 1990]

Who knew such a seamy swim in the misogynistic swill of life could be so entertaining?

Uneven but also unflaggingly lively, the movie presents F. Murray Abraham as a corseted and bewigged Stalin in expository bits whose broadness recalls the Billy Wilder-scripted Soviet satires ("Ninotchka" and "One, Two, Three") without being as funny. [16 May 1997, Pg.02.D]

Unexpectedly, one of the better F-man outings. [11 Aug 1989, p.2D]

The film never makes total sense, but at its best (the first half-hour), it comes closer to solidly junky titillation than the hapless Final Analysis. [20 Mar 1992, Life, p.1D]

a painful though sadly humorous portrait of sisterhood deftly written by Leigh's mom, Barbara Turner, and directed with just-right spareness by Ulu Grosbard. [08 Dec 1995]

Flashily nihilistic Killers is easier to admire than love, but credit Stone for putting it on the line with a yarn tailor-made for his hopped-up vision of media-engendered white-trash immortality. [26 Aug 1994, p.1D]

You feel some of the strain in this immaculately shot, designed and costumed farce, but it's fast and the cast is lively, even though a lost-looking Broderick rarely gets to shoot his patented bewildered look.

Dark Territory is back to familiar territory, and the payoff is moronically comfy [17 July 1995, p.6D]

The film is funnier off court than sizzling on it, the preferred balance in a broad farce that's only in it for the laughs. Irrelevant to real life but performed with enough gusto to justify somebody's 91 minutes, it at least allows the actors to hold their heads up. Not with pride, but not with shame, either. [19 Apr 1996]

Fanning and Russell make this watchable family entertainment, if not necessarily at today's prices.

Enough is enough. Somebody should just stop remaking The Producers.

Of all unlikely possibilities, the team has finally made a movie that, for them, is on the tepid side.

Naked Lunch is so well-acted and so amusingly warped that it's a shoo-in to become a cult movie. [30 Dec 1991]

Rogue One is often undermined by its close ties to George Lucas’ original trilogy, and more emphasis is put on its central mission than its fresh-faced characters.

Isn't all that romantic and is only half as funny as it thinks it is.

Kiss is tasty-enough escape fare. Just don't expect anything more filling than Hershey's foiled variety. [10 Jul 1992, p.5D]

“Killing” clumsily flits between wry humor and serious drama for much of the runtime before finally finding its satirical bite.

While this decade-long look at the inner workings of the CIA is intriguing, the movie would have benefited by more character development and additional editing.

A hostage thriller, a campy satire of the 24/7 media culture and a takedown of Wall Street, though it never fully succeeds on any of those tracks.

When it focuses on the clash of cultures, laughs naturally flow. When it follows the familiar sports movie playbook too slavishly, it grows tedious.

But certainly this is a movie for fans of Willis-style action with a little James Bond and probable instant obsolescence thrown in.

As thrilling as the adventure sequences might be for kids, the better scenes take place on the high school campus.

With a screenplay by Emily Halpern and Sarah Haskins – who worked on the genius “Booksmart” – it has a fun energy, especially when the main characters are left to their own devices, but often pumps the brakes before it goes too overboard.

A curious but intriguing movie that leaves you bemused and more than a little confused.

Safe House has two powerful performances at its core, a hectic plot, a huge body count and a mild sense of déjà vu amid the pulse-quickening tension.

The affair may have raised eyebrows all over 18th century Paris, but it's not likely to elicit more than a shrug from 21st century moviegoers.

Tamer and what one could arguably call classier, this movie trades bromantic machismo and beefcake high jinks for female empowerment and character maturity, though still boasting hunky dudes and clothes being ripped off.

Country Strong feels powerfully familiar.

Geronimo: An American Legend offers both sides of the protracted battle between the U.S. Army and Chiricahua Apaches in 1885-86, which means that the film's most abject villains are Jason Patric's vacant performance and Matt Damon's droning voice-over. [10 Dec 1993, p.9D]

After laughing at crudely funny scenes in The Dictator, there's a cringing sensation of guilt.

An overlong guilty pleasure. [12 Oct 1990, Life, 4D]

The movie Weaver has to carry has so many nagging imperfections that Academy Award attention looks like a long shot.

The picture is all Lawrence and Zahn, whose dynamics get something going, though not enough (please!) to spark a buddy sequel.

A road movie that never really takes off.

Overall, this Dead is zippier than 1995's retake on "Village of the Damned" and somewhat less junky than the recent remake of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre."

For a thriller of its kind, it's a lively and slick summer escape.

Sleepover might appeal to 11- and 12-year-old fans of slumber parties, but it likely will leave their parents stifling a few dozen yawns.

A tautly paced, well-acted espionage thriller with the requisite explosions and action sequences. Still, it ends up leaving the viewer rather cold.

The tale of the resistance movement in Belorussia is undeniably inspiring and ideally suited for a cinematic rendering. But Defiance resists bold, passionate storytelling and delivers something rather conventional.

The documentary is enjoyable, though it could have been edited more tightly. The ending, in which three of the contest participants write and perform a catchy pop song, is buoyantly fun.

Lively, educational and intermittently amusing. The fun, however, grows strained and formulaic as the movie goes on.

Truth is, Idaho is nothing but set pieces; tossed into a mix whose meaning is almost certainly private. [27 Sept 1991]

The movie just gets by on heart and a conversation-stopping finale. [28 Jul 1995, p.5D]

It exists somewhere between serious character study and satirical fish-out-of-water story, never figuring out which it wants to be.

For its stunning iridescent look and infectious music, Rio is a refreshing adventure worth taking.

Older youngsters not threatened by PG-13 levels of intensity might pester Mom and Dad to let them see this cinematic fluff-head. For everyone else, it simply is what it is -- which, despite a budget that could feed Star Wars' Jabba the Hutt for life, isn't very much. [07Feb1997 Pg 04.D]

Despite its title, Prime is not a cut above. This romantic comedy's predictability and rather dull love story make it the cinematic equivalent of a slightly stale hamburger.

The music by Outkast is great, and the rowdy, randy en masse dance sequences are riveting. The story, however, is rather thin and lacks focus.

Seeing Noises Off the movie is better than waiting for it to arrive at the local dinner theater. But served in a setting devoid of spontaneity, Off just seems a little off. [20 March 1992, p.4D]

This is one of those movies in which a strong ending might have made all the difference...But the wrap-up is unsatisfying, with too many questions unanswered.

There isn't much Napoleonic grandeur in this Idaho-set high school comedy, which in spite of its most condescending instincts, does have its moments.

Though entertaining, Spurlock's lighthearted approach doesn't work as well here.

True Story is an intrinsically fascinating and occasionally riveting tale marred by unnecessary embellishments.

Capably made and certainly impresses by carrying its length, but it doesn't expand 60 years of World War II screen literature by very much.

This sweetly eccentric and low-key buddy picture/bromance bears little resemblance to more well-known examples of the genre, such as "Lethal Weapon" or "Pineapple Express."

Pacific Heights may not have a psychopath worthy of Psycho. But it has a timely moral: Never rush to buy in a sluggish housing market. [28 Sept 1990, p.9D]

There are plenty of strong performances, and LaBeouf does a nice job of becoming the tough-skinned pragmatist. Mulligan is as earnest as ever, and Susan Sarandon and, particularly, Frank Langella make strong cameos.

Easygoing and easy to take, the movie isn't much.

The breezy and sometime absurd Fading Gigolo is reminiscent of vintage Italian films and early Woody Allen movies.

Based on a popular children's book by Chris Van Allsburg and directed by that "Honey, I Shrunk the Kids" guy Joe Johnston, Jumanji is a calculated but very entertaining special effects extravaganza. [15Dec1995 Pg. 01.D]

Part of the appeal is the underlying theme of the torch being passed between generations. Think how disappointing it would have been had Dana become an insurance actuary instead of a surfing filmmaker.

The recent model for this kind of surreal jazz-riff comedy is Doug Liman's 1999 "Go," a neo-classic. But you know already from the director (Dude, Where's My Car?'s Danny Leiner) if this movie is for you. Leiner has cornered the recent market on low-rent farces.

It's a sweet and mildly funny movie that will entertain young audiences, but one aspect is utterly mystifying: The two main characters, father and son bovine creatures, have large, distracting udders.

The music is the uncontested highlight of El Cantante.

The starship Enterprise is back, piloted for the first time (from behind the camera, that is) by William Shatner. Though he doesn't exactly parallel-park Star Trek V: The Final Frontier into a meteor, the journey is (at best) an amiably lazy Sunday drive. [9 June 1989, p.4D]

Unfortunately, Leo is the only well-developed character in a handsomely mounted but tedious drama with an impressive international cast.

The events of those days would have been better covered in greater depth in a miniseries, rather than a 90-minute movie.

Those who were upset by the tragic ending of last year's "Pay It Forward" should be warned away.

A wide-eyed 4-year-old makes a fairly convincing case for the existence of an afterlife in Heaven is for Real. But it's Greg Kinnear — with his characteristic affability — that just about seals the deal.

A spotty comedy with a great cast and a catchy title that falls apart in the final third.

Directing seems to suit Luke, who also does some of his best work to date on screen.

The situations are mighty broad, but exuberance counts for something in the movie with perhaps the year's most double-edged title.

Unlike glossier renderings of twentysomething love, Eric Schaeffer's If Lucy Fell at least elicits the heartfelt goodwill of a messy homemade valentine. [8 March 1996]

It's an unconventional premise: that aliens live in harmony and humans are the warmonger invaders. But it's not that simple.

It's neither one of Allen's best, nor among his worst. It is also not likely to win audiences over with the passion that "Midnight in Paris" did.

Fans of the cult TV comedy Strangers with Candy may be happy to catch any sighting of the silly escapades of Amy Sedaris' middle-aged ex-con junkie. But purists will prefer the Comedy Central episodes to this uneven film.

And while not everything goes swimmingly, Halle Bailey splendidly buoys this "Mermaid" as the naive underwater youngster with dreams of exploring the surface.

With Todd Haynes' direction suggesting a Twilight Zone full court press, this uncommonly rigid movie is either bloodlessly objective or so subtly droll that the joke is beyond comprehension. But given that Haynes previously utilized a cast of Barbie dolls in the brazenly daring Superstar: The Karen Carpenter Story, it's tempting to give him the benefit of the doubt. [21 June 1995, p.7D]

It could have delved a little deeper to keep us wide-eyed and engaged.

Hostage is really about sleek Bruce - buff, bald and clean-shaven - as he goes to town on two sets of assailants.

Myers' sense of humor is interspersed throughout the engaging film, which consists of a host of wild stories, as well as vivid archival footage, talking heads and cleverly made re-enactments.

Amazingly, the film grows monotonous because Heller and Schmiderer can do nothing, via archival footage or even novel camera placements, to vary the program.

Disclosure should slickly satisfy people who like movies about advanced computers, topical themes, hardball attorney mind games, office politics, sex and sweet revenge. [9 Dec 1994, p.1D]

While the film is not nearly as evocative as Egoyan's 1997 masterpiece "The Sweet Hereafter" (also about children who died tragically), it is still an intrinsically fascinating story.

A stylish slasher of a movie, a monster flick that does its vampires right, if not their real-life counterparts.

It's an intriguing movie, and Thornton's performance is both fascinating and maddening.