The whole production is visually stunning, and there’s an illicit energy that comes from putting Gaga-as-Magdalene center stage.
The film is further confirmation that not every minor story from a subculture necessitates cinematic interpretation.
Illegal Tender is most interesting as a portrait of a young man understanding which walls he must break down and which ones he must uphold.
In the Valley of Elah is so obviously plotted it could have been scripted by the inflatable autopilot from Airplane!
First Snow is a fate-obsessive film that would nearly register as existential were it not so resolutely low-key.
It eventually falls back on attempting to elucidate the reasons behind its story’s invasion of the undead with answers neither compelling nor necessary.
This nostalgic paean to ’70s-era youthfulness and the short-lived fad of roller disco coasts by on an amiable soul-funk groove.
Unlike its many star basketball players, the film is both underachieving and self-hagiographic.
As the film grinds on, Samuel L. Jackson starts to look marooned and eventually seems to give up trying.
The cool stunts offer brief respites from the otherwise ugly mise-en-scène and soulless characters.
The Rookie: rated G for gooey godly wholesomeness. May cause drowsiness.