Intricately plotted without being contrived and exhilarating in its eccentricity.

Beauty is about two-thirds the serious-edged romp it would like to be, which still leaves a lot of room for tony fun.

Among the many things it does well — from hilariously quotable lines to catchy, albeit obscene, songs — the mockumentary Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping has found the best use for the poop emoji yet.

Indeed, Eve's milieu is fresh and specific enough to make even Jackson subordinate to Kasi Lemmons, the writer (and sometimes actress) who dreamed up this story for her directorial debut. [07Nov1997 Pg08.D]

This time, he (Ang Lee) has Kevin Kline, Joan Allen and Sigourney Weaver trudging through ice both emotional and literal -- an omnipresent metaphor but not one unduly sledgehammered. [26 September 1997, pg. 1 D}

Feig blends a keen sense of physical comedy and exquisite timing with all the requisite spy-flick tropes, from the trippy and stylish opening credits to surprisingly violent, bone-breaking action scenes that he refrains from playing for laughs.

A junior chick flick. But unlike many of its more mature counterparts, it is emotionally affecting, avoiding the manipulation and formulaic camaraderie that often spoil the genre.

The Overlook Hotel is still plenty creepy, as is the crusty naked ghost lady in Room 217. But the adaptation of Stephen King's Doctor Sleep is more likely to keep you awake at night with the fresher stuff than the retreads.

Alas, what you've heard about Sofia Coppola (as Michael's daughter) is true; she swallows words and speaks “valley girl.'' What a difference Winona Ryder would have made. [24 Dec 1990, Life, p.1D]

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.

This very funny spoof of telenovelas and classic Mexican westerns is decidedly offbeat and absurdly daffy.

As an aging wheelman-for-hire on an underdog racing team, Pitt brings plenty of personality – and vroom-vroom steeliness – to the on-the-track thrills of the crowd-pleasing if mildly predictable F1.

Scarlett Johansson is ideally cast as a rapidly evolving kick-ass hero in Lucy, a stylish action thriller that is equal parts dazzling and ludicrous.

It’s another complete and uncanny transformation for Theron, who dazzles as anchor Megyn Kelly in the all-star drama Bombshell.

A sense of family, the one you have and the one you make, strongly pervades every inch of the world that The Good Dinosaur inhabits.

The dialogue is fast-paced and full of pop-culture references. It all makes for an entertaining blend of buddy-cop action and irreverent teen-comedy satire.

The thin story, which sometimes feels like a series of one-liners strung together, is wisely kept short. But the gags are funny and the characters endearing.

While it's the most ambitious of the three films, it's not as mesmerizing as 2008's "The Dark Knight." The plot is occasionally murky, its archvillain lacks charismatic menace, and the last hour is belabored.

Girls isn't fabulous, but you do feel its characters really have connected.

Damon and Affleck lead a starry action vehicle – including Golden Globe winner Teyana Taylor – that, even with some plot issues and an overbearing intensity, is way better than most straight-to-Netflix potboilers.

Blast feels positively timely if not downright positive about the human race's ability to endure. Forget radiation. Fraser and folks actually survive three decades-plus of Perry Como music. [12 February 1999, Life, p.8E]

Between Jackson's opining and De Niro's hopeless alibis when he messes up, Jackie is good for a bundle of bloody ho-ho-hos.

The side story about Muslim extremists is a little ham-handed for a film that otherwise exercises such restraint.

Despite pockmarking racial humor, this is an appealing Fred MacMurray-Barbara Stanwyck companion piece to Double Indemnity and Douglas Sirk's There's Always Tomorrow. [29 Sep 1995, p.3D]

The milieu here is unforgiving, which makes fighting for basic rights important. You get a sense of why Bob Dylan -- who performs on this soundtrack -- wanted to bolt this frigid part of the map.

While the tension is sometimes muted, this is more than a procedural round of spy games. The deliberately paced but riveting film is made all the better because of Hoffman's breathtakingly nuanced portrayal.

If feuds, drunken outbursts and thoughtless bed-hopping sound like fun, then A Christmas Tale is a hoot. Some wry humor runs through the course of the overly long saga. But there's not enough dark wit to mitigate the tedium and pretentiousness.

Furious 7 offers edge-of-the-seat excitement with outlandish action sequences, inventive stunts, hilarious cartoonish moments and even some touching emotion.