The new Wuthering Heightsis all gloomy moors and muck, but not much convincing passion.

The follow-up is a toothless, fleetingly funny revisit with some moments of greatness yet too much of the same old story to feel fresh.

Home could have fashioned a more original story, dug deeper into a theme of cultural understanding and jettisoned the toilet humor.

Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson may be the worst interns since Monica Lewinsky.

But the film's emotional core is father-son reconciliation, and Pete Postlethwaite is very sympathetic as Dad. [29 Dec 1993 Pg. 01.D]

It's the first film to include both a cameo appearance by Jesus and a full-frontal nude shot of Harvey Keitel dancing in a drugged stupor. [20 Nov 1992, Life, p.4D]

What do you have to smoke to understand this?

Even the nasty zingers here seem tiresomely windy. [16May1997 Pg 02.D]

Lovelace is a lackluster, skin-deep biopic.

Running With Scissors lacks the edge of Augusten Burroughs' best-selling memoir. The result is an inconsistent tragicomedy that attempts to be cut from the same darkly humorous cloth as "American Beauty," but fails.

Has a near-impossible mission: its title.

Starts out with promise but staggers under the weight of trying to take on too much. The tone is murky: The story attempts to blend adolescent angst with fantasy adventure, and the result is rather clunky.

Despite a terrific cast, Jack Reacher comes up empty-handed.

What emerges is a banal horror film and a tepid action-adventure.

While Mission: Impossible has found a popular way to reimagine an old show for modern times, Man is immersed in all things retro — from the ginchy fashion to a jazzy score — but for an action adventure, it’s a mostly tedious affair with fleeting moments of cool.

If you've seen "Mean Girls" or "Easy A," you've seen a far better version of The DUFF.

How Do You Know must have started with a good idea that got lost in the translation from concept to screen.

Final is a bad-line hoot-a-rama. Gere after aiding an Hispanic criminal: ''If Pepe is safe, then we are all safe.'' Basinger on her marriage: ''We share an apartment - emphasis on apart.'' But every joke needs a punchline. Alas, the finale of Final Analysis - the worst case of Vertigo sickness since Mel Brooks' High Anxiety - is just punch-drunk. [7 Feb 1992, p.5D]

By any reckoning, director Paul McGuigan and writer Mark Mills seem mighty ground down trying to buck these medieval odds.

We'd all like to live in an Italian movie. So says a character in Nine, and it's probably the best line in this musical misfire.

Hillbilly Elegy is a well-acted study of a white working-class family reaching for the American dream over three generations, though its disconnected story is what’s unfortunately lamentable.

Because Sarandon is such a good actress, she makes the movie watchable, and there are a couple of laughs to be had.

As a chronicle of the collapse of a marriage, the film is choppy, contrived and cloying.

The conclusion is a sweet bit of frosting on an otherwise unremarkable confection.

There's virtually nothing new in the dull Paranormal Activity 4 except for a modification in the method of documenting the spooky shenanigans.

Didn't work this time, David. Maybe next season.

For those in the audience, it's best to just sit back, drink in its virtual dazzle and not ask questions. The story is beside the point in this sleek-looking reboot. It's all about the whiz-bang special effects and the return of Jeff Bridges - always the coolest guy in any space, cyber or otherwise.

The Magnificent Seven is like a long-fused stick of dynamite: It takes forever to get interesting but does at least unleash an explosive finale.

Despite gripping chase sequences and a few awe-inspiring fiery explosions, gaping holes in the convoluted plot make Shooter heavier on style than substance.

What makes it slightly better than the others is an affable, low-key chemistry between James Marsden and Michelle Monaghan as star-crossed lovers.

The very rich are different from you and me. And much worse. That's basically the message of the disappointingly banal Nanny Diaries, a film that is even more lightweight and clichéd than the fluff that was the best-selling book.

Anyone who has ever had an annoying neighbor will see their worst nightmares fulfilled in the overheated but entertaining Lakeview Terrace.

It's good to see Polley back on screen, after her successful turn behind the camera directing 2006's "Away From Her." She brings a measure of intelligence to the one-dimensional role.

But Game really isn't a performer's movie. And the climactic contest (in which the Americans amazingly eked out a 1-0 win against England, considered by many to be the world's finest team at the time) is only serviceably staged.

As this year's literary adaptations go, Horses comes a lot closer to being a truly bad movie than "The Perfect Storm" did, yet it would be hard to argue that the two are not the year's most disappointing in terms of trampled hopes.

It's the crude humor that trips up the movie.

Jack Reacher: Never Go Back is a major step backward with an A-list actor in a C-grade military thriller.

Diverting enough if you want to see plenty of fast-paced action sequences, some heart-stopping chase scenes and plenty of things blow up.

The movie is sure to appeal to fans of the show. But when quality family films, such as "Holes" and "Bend It Like Beckham," are also in theaters, why waste your time on this drivel? The answer, of course, is the kids will insist on it.

Isn't much, it's just lively enough to placate its limited audience to make it an easy choice over "Scooby-Doo's" stale Alpo.

Considering the controversy and chaos Sony Pictures Studios is undergoing because of it, The Interview fails to live up to the hype, floundering as a rowdy comedy as it grows duller by the minute.

Nichols usually can lure A-list casts to even C-grade projects, and this is no exception.

So stunningly photographed that the blood that spurts early and often in this grisly period piece is extra-vivid red. But that hardly makes the Prohibition-era story of a trio of bootlegging brothers feel authentic.

There's no creepiness here - only creeping ennui, as the movie slips away. [24 Mar 1994, p.4D]

As spent screen series go, Star Trek: Nemesis is even more suggestive of a 65th class reunion mixer where only eight surviving members show up -- and there's nothing to drink.

This Hellboy leans more into super-gory horror comedy than its predecessors, trading nuance for ripped-off limbs and boasting as much subtlety as a stone fist to the face.

2-1/4 hours of MTV-produced tough love, with a dance break and pool party to relieve -- momentarily -- a series of motivational rants from lead Samuel L. Jackson.

A little of this will go a long way.

One hesitates to call David Cronenberg's movie of David Henry Hwang's Tony-winning play conventional or tame, but certainly it is zestless given a filmmaker whose last three outings have been "The Fly," "Dead Ringers" and "Naked Lunch." [01 Oct 1993]

Rob Reiner's self-congratulatory Ghosts of Mississippi portrays Medgar Evers' slaying from the viewpoint of a white guy and can't even do a capable job of that. [20 Dec 1996]

Never works as a gum-snapper concert movie and does provide a glimpse into instant stardom in the Twitter generation.

Though the blending of archival footage into a faux documentary is occasionally clever, ultimately it's banal and unconvincing.

Put to the sequel litmus test, queasily spectacular Vengeance would only rate a footnote without a strong original to exploit - or a protracted telephone-terrorist subplot to steal from Dirty Harry 1. [19May1995 Pg.01.D]

Just be the most wildly derivative animated movie in ages.

Though the premise is clever -- everything comes to life at night in New York City's Natural History Museum -- this movie doesn't make the best comic use of the concept.

It isn't really dull (only dulled), and the leads are remarkable; one could, in fact, lavish a lot more praise if this labor of love weren't burdened by the year's dopiest movie wrap-up. [23 Nov 1990]

There are some laughs, Murphy is appealing and the ancient theme of love conquering all is beguiling. But America's mean-spiritedness lingers after its pastel-pretty ending.

Plausibility aside, the key to making the scenario work is comedy. Much can be forgiven if it delivers enough laughs. That's the main problem here. It's short on clever humor and big on convention and formula.

The D Train is long on high-concept comedy, then runs out of steam and becomes a forced and far-fetched drama.

A ceramic gnome by any other name is still a kitschy little figure.

Peter Pan is the boy who wouldn't grow up, and Hook is the movie that grows unbearable once a grown-up Peter arrives in Neverland with a merciless 90 minutes to go. [11 Dec. 1991, p.1D]

Those who adore horror movies so much that they crave Count Chocula cereal may be amused. The rest can skip this walk on the Darkside. [07 May 1990, p.4D]

Even at its best, the movie plays like a clip reel.

Though the picture falls apart whenever the two leads aren't on screen together, you can argue that That isn't that inferior to its predecessor.

It's just too soon after those silly talking dinosaurs to put up with any movie about a talking horse.

It plays more like a "21 Jump Street," full of pretty people and a thumping soundtrack but offering little in the way of something to say.

Nancy Drew is 16, dresses like she's 12 and acts like she's about 45. And therein lies the problem with this adaptation of the beloved book series. The movie can't quite decide how old it wants to be -- or who it's for.

Transforms Charles Dickens into a Chuck. Ground Chuck, unfortunately. [30 January 1998, p. 7D]

It's all fast and furious up to its draggy finale, and yes, it could spark a sequel. Prepare yourself for coming dread in 18 months: "A Man Together."

One thing it doesn't do is offer a revealing look at the mercurial entrepreneur. The movie that bears his name settles on a blandly superficial treatment of a deeply complex man.

After "Monsters, Inc.," this movie may be a bit of a letdown, but there are some scenes that will delight elementary-school-age children and older preschoolers -- notably the gross-out moments.

Jenny Wingfield's script is ripe enough to include icky man-in-the-moon allusions; mom Tess Harper's pregnancy seems tacked-on; and the climax is pat melodramatic sap. But Sam Waterston (as dad) has his moments. [04 Oct 1991, p.6D]

Higher Learning: John Singleton's ambitious potpourri of on-campus tensions - date rape, black power, white supremacy - all too quickly lapses into pandering preachiness. [17 Feb 1995, p.4D]

Not so admirably, the film feels at times like a giant commercial for Universal Studios.

The movie, which has a rusty photographic veneer, is monotonous and drags toward the end.

While Kristen Wiig fully commits to her bizarre, mentally ill character in Welcome to Me, the result still feels more like an extended sketch than a movie.

The civilized running time and breezy editing between scattershot plot threads keep the attention in a superficial way, and it would be misstating the case to deny that the movie has some chuckles (the kind that don't linger).

The more real Friday gets, the better it is. [26 Apr 1995]

Slight and only sporadically amusing.

The potency of the acting is also undercut by leaden pacing and a sense of claustrophobia.

Forced, formulaic and never believable. It's a particularly unholy combination.

It's a 2 1/2-hour slog, with tonal inconsistencies and monotonous, drawn-out action sequences. Scenes alternate between frenetic and tedious.

Movies of this genre don't often engage fresh concepts, but you have to give Wong major points for dreaming up "tan-line flambé."

Tower Heist feigns being an "Ocean's 11" for schmucks, but plays like a retread of "48 Hours."

Only the Lonely comes close enough to being halfway watchable that some may call it a Candy triumph. [24 May 1991, p.7D]

The predictable story feels as if it were written by a computer program labeled "sequel."

Long on visual dazzle but short on warmth, and the humor is excessively raunchy for a family film.

To paraphrase Devo: Whip It, not so good.

There are some scattered laughs but it's not particularly funny, and American Pickle is generally all over the place, aiming to be an abstract comedy about family and religion but losing its way trying to also poke fun at modern culture.

Overproduced and essentially charmless.

It’s a rather impressive feat to bury Tom Holland’s considerable charisma, though that is one of the few aspects where his new film “Uncharted” actually succeeds.

Alas, this all-star ensemble comedy that trumpets (too loudly) that it's a "Hangover" on hemorrhoid cream musters enough laughs to be passable, if not memorable. And that's thanks to Morgan Freeman's showmanship.

Hopkins' Hannibal is no longer mysterious, Clarice is no longer vulnerable, and the overextended Florence scenes dash any hopes of early momentum, even if Giancarlo Giannini is perfect as the cop.

L'Engle's source material is a sneakily deep novel for youngsters, and Jennifer Lee and Jeff Stockwell's screenplay doesn't do nearly enough with those themes of death, loss and parents letting their children down. Instead, theirs is a patchwork adaptation with weak character development, a lack of narrative groove and a haphazard finish.

The new "Matrix" tries to reprogram a beloved piece of cinema. However, it’s quite a few fixes short of a full upgrade.

This is 90 minutes of gags of the lowest order, yet Poirier occasionally injects them with more energy than anything in "Heartbreakers."

Destined to be on DVD by the time 2004 reaches the 50-yard line, Ten is more stale than it is ungodly.

A blanket indictment like this has to be either satirically trenchant or a roundhouse punch to the gut. Tom Matthews' script takes a mushy middle ground, and the result seems less mad than just a bit addled or hacked off. [07Nov1997 Pg08.D]