Even horror neophytes won't be spooked by a film that looks as if it were shot with a smartphone and an Itty Bitty Booklight.

Insightful gems are unearthed throughout the flawed but engrossing Salinger,a much-anticipated documentary about the author of The Catcher in the Rye.

Portentous and dull, the film features one of the worst over-the-top performances by Dennis Hopper, who plays an abusive father.

A movie that has neither dramatic focus nor a single memorable performance, aside from one or two that are memorable for the wrong reasons?

Action star Chow Yun-Fat's latest is as thin as the buzz cut he sports in Bulletproof Monk.

Tries and winds up with a pleasant, if forgettable, romp of a film.

Ten minutes into the picture, you're searching the screen for life-support machines.

Grief and suicide seem unlikely subjects for a comedy. But Shrink tries gamely to mine edgy humor from the darkest places. Sometimes it works. Other times, its Hollywood-centric focus feels like a re-heated cinemash of "The Wackness," "Crash" and "The Player."

Whatever knockabout Gallic charm the original might have had - and, starring Gerard Depardieu, it must have had some - has been sucked out of Three Fugitives. What's left is a vacuum-packed factory product with a few arresting touches, including some surprisingly violent slapstick and a sullen young heroine who looks like a preschool Isabelle Adjani.

Insidious: Chapter 2 appears to be the sum of the unusable parts from James Wan's recent haunted house feature "The Conjuring."

The original Pitch Perfect worked so well because it was about the friendship of the Bellas amid the wonderfully weird world of singing dorks who didn't get the memo that they weren’t cool. That's now long gone, and what’s left is just way off-key.

Vile, violent and less hip than it thinks it is.

Either you will weep uncontrollably during the final 10 minutes or so of this bittersweet fable...or the urge to gag will be overwhelming.

Ernest Goes to Jail is no yuk-a-minute - it's more a yuk-a-half-hour. [06 Apr 1990, p.4D]

Double the Van Damme equals double the dopiness in the August dog-days exploitation pic Double Impact. And though it falls somewhat short of being double the pleasure/double the fun, the film is made for one of those round-the-clock theaters with Doublemint gum stuck to the floor. [09 Aug 1991, p.5D]

Broken Toys is beyond repair [18 Dec 1992, p.6D]

The sci-fi film's reported $175 million budget must have gone largely into loopy production design, wild costumes, outlandish hairstyles and colorful make-up. It certainly didn't go into developing a coherent script or coaching believable performances.

Homefront is what "Breaking Bad" may have resembled had Sylvester Stallone written the TV show.

Whether we're talking this go-round, the original or the second sequel the finale seems to promise, I'd rather try standing drunk on a see-saw (though maybe not over dirty syringes) than see Saw.

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

At least director Dwight Little (Free Willy 2) gives us enough B-movie speed to keep Orchid from becoming a fountain of aging.

More often the film succumbs to clichés, grows convoluted and outlandish, and winds up dead on arrival.

The movie's opening half-hour is merely dull, but the final hour is brain-damaging. [11 Dec 1998]

There's no buildup (hence, no suspense) and no combustion between the leads. Dillon and Young are both better than their reps, and Dearden orchestrated the sizzle between Michael Douglas and Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction. Something must have gone terribly awry here. [26 Apr 1991, p.4D]

The story, an updated version of the 1951 classic about a portentous extraterrestrial visit, feels musty and derivative, and not only because it's a remake.

There's so little action or suspense that this Cell isn't too likely to multiply itself into a sequel.

The ensemble cast, struggling with wanly written characters, hits more clunkers than high notes.

The story is corny and predictable, but Carlyle's subtle, nuanced performance saves the movie from drowning in sentimentality.

It's been a long time since a movie wasted this much talent.

It's dogged by awkward dialogue, a ridiculous plot and lackluster performances, especially by the leads.

Although it's a quintessential popcorn movie, Wolverine is not mindless. Hood and Jackman bring depth to a comic-book tale of anti-heroes with anger issues.

At times Dracula Untold flirts with dullness so much that it might as well just stick a stake in the heart of Bram Stoker's legacy.

For a movie that touts the importance of humanity, Green Lantern is a strangely lifeless spectacle.

A wisp of ghost story that promises insight but is strictly soft focus.

The Change-Up should have fired on all cylinders. What went wrong here?

Nathan Fillion is the movie's brightest spot as Hermes, re-envisioned as a UPS manager. He makes a quip about how the best TV series always get canceled, in a nod to Firefly, the iconic sci-fi show in which he starred.

This senior-class Cabaret is just a TV after-school special with a better soundtrack. [05 Mar 1993]

Fame offers slick entertainment with some exuberance, but it's devoid of soul or heart.

If you can't find a more scintillating brand of dirty to enjoy during your own nights (Helena or Hoboken), you're not trying very hard.

As a gritty thriller, Dead Man Down doesn't stand out among its bullet-riddled brethren.

An Innocent Man is no White Heat, and Selleck is no James Cagney. But this kind of fast-paced entertainment is almost top of the world, ma. [06 Oct 1989, p.5D]

It doesn't take a world-class navigator to figure out that any movie with Martin Short in the straight role and Kurt Russell in the funny role is already way off course. Captain Ron is about as amusing as an anchor dropped on your foot. [21 Sep 1992, p.5D]

Disappointingly limp. [16 Oct 1992, p.7D]

There's nothing worse than a boring behemoth.

Some of the car gadgetry, Kato's specialty, looks cool...The Green Hornet is otherwise colorless, numbing and sluggishly paced.

Has less substance and depth than its title.

Feels like a bad sitcom.

Ostensibly meant to be light entertainment. If light is synonymous with preposterous, frenetic and noisy, it qualifies.

It's tough to make it through Nights in Rodanthe without wincing at its sticky-sweet sentimentality.

Predicating an escapist romantic comedy on a realistic tragedy requires a nimble touch at the helm. Perhaps if Life had been made by, say, James Brooks, it would have worked.

It's an unrelentingly brutal movie set in an unusually scenic locale — the coastal city of Valparaiso, Chile.

The movie is devoid of laughs, except for a mildly funny segment when one of the chipmunks inhales helium. And since this is aimed at the under-10 set, it includes the requisite flatulence joke and a spit take or two.

Like a politician who waters down his message to gain favor with the masses rather than truly serving his constituency, Man of the Year seems determined to play it safe on all counts.

Costner, allegedly smitten with his client, had more chemistry with the Warren Commission in JFK. [25 Nov 1992, p.1D]

This overly sentimental, unduly earnest journey based on Richard McGuire's graphic novel is more gimmick than substance, one overflowing with moments and characters that proves ultimately unfulfilling.

In this second round of so-so kung-foolery, three brothers once again strain credibility and make sushi out of new foes. [06 May 1994, p.5D]

Does a decent job living up to a legendary predecessor. Original star Ellen Burstyn returns in the latest film, which also goes all in exploring every parent’s deepest fears, but while it tries admirably, “Believer” is nowhere near as profoundly scary as William Friedkin’s genre-defining chiller.

The last name Blart may be the funniest thing in the movie, so that's a hint as to just how bad this shopping-center saga can be.

Whatever reason Denzel Washington may have had for deigning to grace a melodrama as scummy as Virtuosity, the actor has wound up with something that is even worse than 1991's Ricochet in his otherwise creditable filmography. [4 Aug 1995, p.4D]

As forewarned, so avoid.

The only redeeming feature about The Gunman is its exotic locations.

You know something is wrong when a preschooler's unwitting ad-libs are funnier than anything seasoned comedy writers can come up with. Kids say the darnedest things. Too bad the grown-ups don't.

For a movie with a star wrestler at the center of it, Legendary doesn't pack much of a punch.

Proudly stupid, silly and gory.

The movie-calendar equivalent of last July's "Six Days, Seven Nights," this star-powered romance overcomes a shaky start to outpace that passable confection by several runaway laps.

There's nothing wrong in the setup: It worked fine in films like "Adventures in Babysitting" and "Uncle Buck." But director David Gordon Green populates the movie with so many soap opera asides it's hard to keep count.

Where 1991's "Thelma & Louise" was funny and action-filled, Tammy's story is thin, cringe-inducing and, worst of all for a comedy, not funny. Jokes land with a thud and the pacing is leaden.

This misguided chick flick jumps through a lot of hoops just to state the obvious: "Life goes on, enjoy the time you have."

Freddy's Dead is fan fare, with little to offer those who aren't already Freddy freaks. [16 Sept 1991, p.5D]

Johnny Depp’s drunken Captain Jack Sparrow stumbles into yet another seafaring adventure, which has its rocky moments but also offers an engaging tale with family legacies, above-average swashbuckling and a fantastic new villain courtesy of Javier Bardem

The movie version is simply a poor adaptation, trading the vibrancy and refreshing spirit of the original show for all-too-familiar teen-movie angst, with an out of place leading man.

It reminds the generations who witnessed Jackson’s ascension in real time of the extent of his singularity and educates younger audiences about the magnitude of his talent and scope.

The story doesn't clarify why the dragons hibernated for hundreds of years, nor why they awakened. Clearly, however, the filmmakers might have benefited from more sleep before penning the script.

Essentially Cars in midair.

So the cliches are as thick as a vat of honey. And the love story proves just as syrupy. But for those who lap up this sappy vision of romance, it contains all the key ingredients.

The movie grows progressively more routine in quarter-hour increments, eventually collapsing under the weight of its own insignificance.

The transition from Hanna-Barbera animation to manic-barbaric live action falls flatter than a granite slab, from the first of many deadly stone-age wordplays - "Steven Spielrock Presents" - to the gross-out shots of dirty tootsies. [27 May 1994 Pg. 01.D]

The contrived insult comedy here feels old, borrowed and blue.

The film's only bright notes are Fred Gwynne's flavorful performance as a bucolic neighbor, his Herman Munster basso in full throttle, and the lovely Maine settings. If Pet Sematary could have boasted more authentic details in telling its devastating story, it might have been a classic instead of just another pet peeve. [25 Apr 1989, p.9D]

The new version has a few jolts, some occasionally effective smoke-and-mirrors photography and a lead (7th Heaven's Jessica Biel) who could teach a grad course on walking provocatively in blue jeans.

The trouble with indulging Taking Lives is that it's taking your time.

Has a riddick-ulous sci-fi plot, overblown and numbing video game-style special effects and a going-through-the-motions lead performance by Vin Diesel.

Director/co-writer/co-producer Nora Ephron is best known for the magical Sleepless in Seattle. Michael is mirthless in the Midwest. [24 Dec 1996 Pg.03.D]

Terminator used to be a sci-fi franchise defined by its cool time-travel concept and even better special effects. Unfortunately, it's "Hasta la vista, baby," to those good old days.

The movie shoots for the moon with an intriguing dual-role conceit but wildly misses the mark. Hackneyed dialogue, a thin and silly plot fumbling the ambition of the concept, and a mixed bag of visual effects all leave this one just for the Smith completists.

It's a pleasant enough fantastical adventure, but it does feel naggingly derivative.

Stereotypical, banally written bloodbath.

Offers up the absolute bare necessities of a sequel.

Appallingly mean-spirited.

Besides displaying a tin ear for dialogue, King stoops to such conventions as having the sleepwalkers vulnerable to just one thing - cat scratches. [13 Apr 1992, p.6D]

Balls of Fury makes "Dodgeball" look like high art. It'll be tough to crack a smile, let alone laugh, during this uninspired and sophomoric satire of sports movies.

No disinfectant could clean up this misbegotten, Americanized remake of "Les Visiteurs."

Though probably well-intentioned, Radio comes off as manipulative of its audience and exploitative of the mentally challenged.

Pulpy, fairly speedy but just the same old urban thing by its wrap-up.

A deadly dull and overly familiar movie about summoning ghosts that draws upon nearly every horror movie cliché.

Not only is it an unfunny movie shrilly told, it probably is the most ill-timed and appallingly insulting movie in recent memory.

A predictable espionage thriller undercut further by loose ends left dangling, November Man is worth seeing only for Pierce Brosnan's dynamic lead performance.

A flimsy, occasionally spooky demon tale.