America loves dysfunctional families, but haven't we seen enough middle-aged losers who haven't grown up?

Ifans is convincingly world-weary as the earl who prefers writing sonnets to the pageantry of court life. Anonymous aims to be epic but is closer to stately soap opera.

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

Though there are scenes in Always (both intimate and spectacular) I love, the film does seem a bit asking-for-it-weightless following an Indiana Jones sequel. Yet if, as I suspect, many reviewers elect to carve up Always, the film will pick up its devotees - now or down the road. [22 Dec. 1989, p.1D]

It's a run-of-the-mill cop thriller but also a gripping family drama. It is in the moments spent untangling the threads of troubled relationships that the movie is at its best.

The Sting-like ending with its crosses and double-crosses could have been better handled, but there are plenty of other payoffs in Hoodlum. [27Aug1995 Pg02.D]

Cadillac Man has a shabby transmission, but a decent wax job - or maybe it's the other way around. In any event, it's a vaguely amiss near-miss, despite the inspired teaming of Robin Williams and Tim Robbins. [18 May 1990, p.4D]

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

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

For a computer-animated movie about dancing penguins, it's surprisingly leaden. Not even the impressive voice talent can rev up this clumsy spectacle.

Crowe's performance is the best thing about the ambitious historical drama, which takes some artistic liberties.

Even by today's horror standards, Destination has some ghastly scenes. After seeing them, parents may want to reconsider letting their daughters try gymnastics or laser eye surgery.

Directed by Nia DaCosta (“Candyman”), Marvels throws a ton of plot at viewers that too often falls back to Marvel-y familiarity – world-saving stakes, villain with a light-up doodad – yet enjoyably soars when it centers on its core trio and dares to go gonzo.

The few genuinely comic moments and deviations from cutesy rom-com formula make you wish No Strings Attached had traveled a more distinctively offbeat path.

The surprisingly entertaining Young Guns isn't really so young. The cast is uniformly convincing, especially Estevez as a deranged Billy the Kid and Kiefer Sutherland, playing against type as the gang's calm center. [12 Aug 1988, p.7D]

Not only an intelligent, well-told and deftly acted story, it provides refreshing counter-programming in a season filled with noisy, uninspired sequels and mindless action movies.

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

Kimberly Elise gives the best performance as a beleaguered woman with an abusive boyfriend (Michael Ealy).

Director Stephen Herek does an admirable balancing job, though the movie slows whenever the animals solo onscreen. [27 Nov 1996 Pg.01.D]

This fun-loving genre-bender, inspired by "Smokey and the Bandit," opens languidly, then picks up the pace. Even in the midst of cars racing, it's funny and endearing.

The whole journey feels like a rich girl gone slumming. And for those of us along for the ride, it's a bit of a slog.

There's one reason to see Tim Burton's flawed, somewhat declawed but often amusing do-over of Planet of the Apes. The apes. What else?

It's fast, easy on the eyes, full of funny putdowns and cast well enough to have two memorable villains.

Wow, dudes. Pu-trid. (1989 February 20, p.4D)

Couldn't be murkier or less emotionally involving if it were "The Matrix 8," a natural observation because Keanu Reeves stars in both.

Edwards has a penchant for large spectacle movies with a big budget and a bigger message (see: “Godzilla,” “Rogue One”), and while this “Rebirth” isn’t exactly a thinking man’s “Jurassic,” there's enough B-movie craziness to keep it enjoyable.

The Hunt is definitely controversial, but it’s an equal-opportunity offender that forgoes partisanship to poke bloody, gory fun at everybody.

The romance, which commences rather gradually, is tender, but not graphic. Humor is interspersed throughout, but there also is sadness, handled seriously. Actually, it is as much a family saga as it is a romantic comedy.