amNewYork's movie reviews

Polished crooks shine in Guy Ritchie's 'RocknRolla'

In " RocknRolla," director Guy Ritchie masters the art of making thugs funny. Not by rendering them dumb as rocks, but by giving them the golden, ironic touch of class and highbrow tastes.

'Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist' has got heart

At first glance, "Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist" may seem best suited for the tween set. But thanks to a discriminating soundtrack and mature performances from Michael Cera and Kat Dennings, this is a movie if not for all ages, then at least for anyone who enjoys seeing a couple of amiable hipsters-in-the-making fall in love.

'Rachel Getting Married' shows Anne Hathaway's acting range

For most of her career, Anne Hathaway has used her immensely demonstrative facial features to express depths of grace and good will. In "Rachel Getting Married," though, as a testament to her acting skills, Hathaway proves that her luminous face can also play petty and scarred.

'Eagle Eye': Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan just follow the script

If you're willing to suspend all disbelief and wear earplugs for a couple of hours, "Eagle Eye" is a sufficient if ridiculous thriller. Two strangers, Jerry ( Shia LaBeouf) and Rachel (Michelle Monaghan), are forced to become co-fugitives when they start receiving cell phone instructions from an anonymous woman.

'Choke' works, if you like bawdy

Sometimes you get the sense that "Fight Club" author Chuck Palahniuk chooses his subject matter by opening the DSM-IV and picking out psychoses with a blindfold.

'Lakeview Terrace'

Early in Neil LaBute's thriller " Lakeview Terrace," a tightly wound Los Angeles cop, Abel Turner ( Samuel L. Jackson), approaches the car of his new neighbor, a white-collar white guy named Chris Mattson (Patrick Wilson). Turner is amused to hear that Chris' wimpy hybrid is thumping with old-school hip-hop.

'The Dutchess' : Flawed but feminist

'Appaloosa' a mixed bag

Flash: They're baaack!

'Burn After Reading' goes for laughs

Coen brothers fans high off the magnificence of "No Country For Old Men" will probably be looking to the Coens' latest movie, hoping for more of the same. Or at least more of something brilliant. But "Burn After Reading," a decidedly light counterpoint to "No Country," while funny (occasionally even divinely funny), is not the same caliber as the Cormac McCarthy adaptation, or "Fargo" or "The Big Lebowski," for that matter. Somehow, its sum just isn't as good as its parts.

'The Women'

'Righteous Kill' is a letdown

For all the fuss that's been made about Robert De Niro and Al Pacino reuniting on the big screen, " Righteous Kill" is a letdown. But is that really a surprise? The appeal of a De Niro-Pacino billing has waned since the '90s, when their powerhouse status had yet to be diluted by more minor fare like "Two for the Money" (Pacino) or "Analyze This" and "Meet the Fockers" (De Niro). Future joint ventures are more than welcome, but their co-star attraction may very well have peaked with "Heat," in which they only appeared on-screen together for a short amount of time.

Everybody wants to be Italian

'Mister Foe' master of indecision

When Jamie Bell leaped, literally, into movies with "Billy Elliot," inspiring praise along the lines of "delightful" and "uplifting," one could hardly predict he'd turn into such an appealingly sullen actor. Bell's face, sallow and curiously proportioned, gives him a feral, rebel quality that he's parlayed into brooding roles in movies like "King Kong," "The Chumscrubber" and " Jumper." None of these roles has launched him into stardom, and neither will his titular role in " Mister Foe." But you have a feeling he'll get his time in the spotlight soon.

'The Pool' is a beautifully told story

At first glance, Chris Smith's feature film debut, "The Pool," seems about as divergent from his documentaries, "American Movie" and "The Yes Men," as a movie can get.

'Traitor' muddles along

Predictable, with a formulaic script, " Traitor" certainly doesn't break any molds.

A clumsy 'Hamlet 2'

"Hamlet 2," a darling at this year's Sundance Film Festival, is a considerable showcase for Steve Coogan.

'The Longshots'

If you wanted to make a parody of the sports movie genre, you might call it " The Longshots."

'The House Bunny'

The entire purpose of this late-summer comedy is to be a showcase for Anna Faris, star of the "Scary Movie" franchise.

'The Rocker'

' The Rocker," a comedy in which old-school rock meets new-school pop, gets off to a promising start with a familiar countdown: "1-2-3-4!"

'Clone Wars' holds its own

" That George Lucas just doesn't seem to learn from his mistakes.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona

" Between "Match Point" and " Vicky Cristina Barcelona," Woody Allen has yet to compellingly explore the more Bohemian aspects of people's love lives. Cerebrally obsessing about sex? That I can take from Allen. Lustful trysts in a photography darkroom? Awkward. Allen's characters are more at ease when they're barely comfortable in their own skin, not romping around in bosomy blouses and short shorts, ravishing men with barely a shred of neurotic decency.

'Henry Poole Is Here'

After purchasing a home in Los Angeles, Henry Poole ( Luke Wilson) moves in and awaits death.

'Tropic Thunder' is a winner

" Tropic Thunder" bursts with so many preciously funny moments, it¹s by far one of the funniest movies this year.

'Pineapple' is a lemon

The biggest enemy of "Pineapple Express" is its own trailers, which inflate expectations by flaunting the choicest morsels of humor from an otherwise lackluster story. It may seem ridiculous to expect much from a movie about two stoners on the run, but the slick, funny trailers certainly gave reason to hope -- especially with a cast that includes Seth Rogen and James Franco, former cohorts from the excellent "Freaks and Geeks."

'The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2'

If you've shopped at corporate retail lately, you may have noticed that little of the clothing actually looks new.

'Elegy' for a middle-aged man

2.5 stars "Elegy," based on the Philip Roth novel "The Dying Animal," is a stirring but glaringly imperfect drama about a man's passage from middle age into beyond. Ben Kingsley plays David Kepesh, a Columbia University professor who's having a hard time coping with the fact that he can no longer date younger women without raising eyebrows. When he falls for a student in one of his classes, Consuela ( Penelope Cruz), his love for her is surpassed only by his aversion to commitment (he's an outspoken opponent of marriage) and his fear of losing her to a younger man. Kepesh vents his neuroses to his good friend ( Dennis Hopper), a fellow professor and his womanizing cohort.

'Hell Ride'

' Hell Ride," a low-budget spaghetti-biker movie, may have historical significance for connoisseurs of Z-grade garbage.

Movie review

'The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor'

Fast-moving and mostly fun, but -- in the wake of 'Hellboy' and 'Raiders,' it's a touch too familiar.

Movie review

'Swing Vote'

PLOT An average Joe becomes the single deciding vote of a presidential election.

Frozen River

First-time director Courtney Hunt opens "Frozen River" with an extreme close-up of Melissa Leo's face, which looks like the before photo in a before/after makeover.

'X-Files' is pretty disappointing

'Step Brothers' is just funny enough

Nudie magazines, dog poop, words like "mangina" -- if these are a few of your favorite things, " Step Brothers" is the comedy for you. Crudely and consistently funny, if never quite gut-busting, the movie gets a surprising amount of mileage from the sight of two grown men indulging their inner, giggling 10-year-olds.

'Brideshead' revisited

One of the great English novels of the 20th century and one of the best-remembered mini-series of that genre's golden age, " Brideshead Revisited" is a story of ideas -- which makes it, to say the least, unfashionable.

‘Teen’ is straight out of central casting

As we all know by now, the only real Americans live between the Rockies and the western border of Pennsylvania, so in her efforts to capture the real lives of typical teens, director Nanette Burstein naturally went to Indiana.

Streep, Seyfried shine in a big, happy 'Mamma'

Whether or not you like the Broadway musical "Mamma Mia!" is a pretty good indication of whether or not you're going to dig its faithful movie version.

'Lou Reed's Berlin'

Lou Reed's 1973 album, "Berlin," a rock opera about two junkies in love, isn't really a lost masterpiece. Reed deliberately misplaced it. "Berlin" was such a resounding flop upon its release that Reed never performed it live - that is, until a five-night run at St. Ann's Warehouse in Brooklyn in 2006. The event featured a distinctly Reedian mix of collaborators: the sexually ambiguous singer-songwriter Antony Hegarty, the painter-filmmaker Julian Schnabel (who designed the sets), original "Berlin" guitarist Steve Hunter and the currently popular retro-soul singer Sharon Jones.

'Space Chimps'

'Space Chimps" sucks a whole lot of talented people into a wormhole of lousy. The film either needed to be a lot wittier to make up for the way it looks, or a lot better-looking to compensate for the funny it isn't.

'Felon'

Before the viewer has served 30 minutes of "Felon," hardworking family man Wade Porter (Stephen Dorff) has gone from putting the business end of baseball to an intruder's head, to a maximum-security prison and cell in solitary. It's a bit much to swallow, and so quickly, but once writer-

'Take'

The grieving parent is the role that separates the men from the boys, the women from the girls, and the real actors from the posers: The slightest emotional miscalculation, and the whole performance goes south.

'Dark Knight' is a stunner

"The Dark Knight" is so effectively macabre, tense and energetic, it's certainly one of this summer's most worthy popcorn flicks.

A hokey but likeable 'Hellboy"

Back in 2004, director Guillermo del Toro reconciled dark and silly, seedy and hokey with panache in "Hellboy." But "Hellboy II: The Golden Army," while a perfectly fine piece of summer entertainment, carries the silly and the hokey too far, almost into kiddie realm. It makes you a little afraid for "The Hobbit," which an overly busy Peter Jackson relinquished to Del Toro.

'Journey to the Center of the Earth'

(3 STARS) (PG)

Days and Clouds

The soul-crushing stresses of having to downgrade one's life by a couple of tax brackets is a theme that might ring all too true for some Americans these days: Selling off possessions -- a curio, a boat, a home -- that, previously, would have seemed inseparable from one's identity. Shame, despair, decline of self-worth. This is the kind of emotional terrain covered by the amiably calibrated, subtly scripted Italian film "Days and Clouds."

Review: 'August'

Class warfare and the fractured American dream are not the more obvious points of Howard Rodman's screenplay for "August," but they are certainly the elements that linger in the mind after the gods have had their way with the movie's protagonist, Tom Sterling (Josh Hartnett). The CEO of a startup e-company whose IPO goes straight up and pretty much straight down, Sterling is a classic of American business - the guy who produces nothing, but knows how to work a room, work the money and bluff his way to millions. His brother Joshua (Adam Scott), the brains of the outfit, has a wife, a baby and a mortgage; Tom has a series of one-night stands and a flair for overconfidence.

'Hancock': a superhero with a problem

The makers of "Hancock" began to wonder: What if a superhero existed in the real, imperfect world?

'Wackness' doesn't live up to its hype

"The Wackness" is set in Manhattan, 1994, and not a minute goes by where director/writer Jonathan Levine doesn't whack you over the head with reminders that it's Manhattan, 1994.

Gonzo: Hunter Thompson up close

"Gonzo" and its subject matter is something of a departure for documentarian Alex Gibney.

A slick, surprising 'Wanted'

"Wanted" follows through on all the verbs a blockbuster ought to follow through on: It thrills, it adrenalizes, it makes you laugh.

'Mistress' of all she surveyed

Directed by Catherine Breillat and starring the carnal incarnate Asia Argento, "The Last Mistress" is an absorbing, entertaining period drama.

'WALL-E'

I can admit it: "Wall-E," the new animated film from Pixar, had me a little misty-eyed. Lumpy in the throat, even. Smiling through tears like an audience member at an "Oprah" taping.

Review: 'Finding Amanda' with Matthew Broderick

The broad message of director Peter Tolan's "Finding Amanda" is that a network TV producer could occupy the same moral plateau as a Las Vegas prostitute. While the likely response will be "duh," Matthew Broderick is understatedly funny as Taylor Peters, a writer-producer whose disastrous half-hour sitcom is driving him back to the things he loves best - drinking and playing the horses. When his wife (Maura Tierney) kicks him out, he attempts to redeem himself by finding and rescuing Amanda (Brittany Snow), their niece, who is said to have joined the ranks of the depraved in Vegas.

'Trumbo'

Given Hollywood's congenital negligence toward writers, Dalton Trumbo is far more famous for having been on the House Un-American Activities Committee's blacklist than he would have been for all the scripts he wrote, co-wrote or adapted (among them, "Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo" "Kitty Foyle" and, under pseudonyms, "Roman Holiday" and "Spartacus"). You might say being persecuted by Congress was a good career move for the screenwriter and novelist ("Johnny Got His Gun").

'Brick Lane' worth a saunter

Despite a derivative, nuance-deprived story, "Brick Lane" can at least rely on a plot with intrinsic allure -- the unhappy housewife who starts a love affair in a quest for her own source of happiness. In this case, the love affair is contexualized by looming themes of home and cultural identity, abstracted from the originating novel by Monica Ali.

'Hulk' is not so incredible

Maybe it's his background. Or maybe it's because he's a large green man, but so far The Hulk has proven himself to be a difficult vehicle for Hollywood.

'Winnipeg' is a gem

In "My Winnipeg," director Guy Maddin perfectly distills that distinct strain of love/hate affection that can only be provoked by one's hometown.

'The Happening'

It's hard to discuss "The Happening" without giving too much away.

'Encounters at the end of the world'

One of the last grand philosophers of film, Werner Herzog can always be depended on for some mind-altering viewing.

'Chris & Don: A Love Story'

Given the threat gay people pose to lasting relationships, it's positively astounding what directors Guido Santi and Tina Mascara reveal in their affectionate nonfiction, "Chris and Don: A Love Story."

'Quid Pro Quo'

It sounds like one of David Cronenberg's yucky fantasies: A wheelchair-bound reporter explores a subculture of able-bodied people who yearn to be paralyzed, crippled, even limbless.

'You Don't Mess With the Zohan'

Adam Sandler's funniest movie in years.

'Kung Fu Panda'

The unlikeliest superhero: a tubby panda

When Did You Last See Your Father?

PLOT As a father lay dying, his son reviews their life together. (PG-13)

The Promotion

"The Promotion" falls into that wobbly category of comedies that are uncomfortably earnest, leaving you in a constantly stunted state of wondering whether the scene you just watched was supposed to be funny or serious.

Dreams With Sharp Teeth

If you're a fan of Harlan Ellison, then "Dreams With Sharp Teeth," a documentary about the notoriously outspoken science-fiction writer, will speak to you.

The Mother of Tears

'Sex' a welcome throwback

Four years after "Sex and the City" came to a close on HBO, the big-screen adaptation has finally arrived in all its pink-trimmed splendor.

'Savage Grace' savage but with little grace

Usually, when a movie plunges into such disturbing, lurid depths as "Savage Grace," it takes a compelling character to convince you his or her story was worth telling.

'Bigger, Stronger, Faster'

The performance-enhancing quality behind this muscular movie is director Chris Bell's willingness to go far beyond the call of duty.

'The Strangers'

The most gripping moments in "The Strangers" come early, when Kristen McKay and James Hoyt ( Liv Tyler and Scott Speedman) enter the secluded, woodsy cabin that will soon become their torture chamber.

'Stuck'

Think you're having a bad day? In this fact-based, black-on-black comedy from Stuart ("Re-Animator") Gordon, Tom ( Stephen Rea) has been evicted from a flophouse, jerked around by an employment agency, rousted by a Providence cop and given charity by a smiling vagrant.

'The Foot Fist Way'

More a resumé-builder than a bona fide feature, "The Foot Fist Way" has already served its purpose.

'Indiana Jones' creaks along

" Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" has all the right ingredients for a blockbuster that's sure to please the masses.

The Edge of Heaven

As tiresome as movies about fatefully intertwined lives can be, "The Edge of Heaven" manages to stave off the more annoying trappings of this sub-genre.

'The Children of Huang Shi'

A drama drawn in very broad strokes, Roger Spottiswoode's "The Children of Huang Shi" is based on a real-life adventure.

'War Inc.'

This John Cusack-driven exercise in scorched-earth political comedy is neither as dark nor as timely as intended, and certainly not as funny:

'What Happens in Vegas'

Not so long ago, the abomination in the desert called Las Vegas promoted itself as a family vacation destination.

Speed Racer revs up

"Speed Racer" is a maelstrom of poptastic color and action that sometimes exhilarates but more often discombobulates.

Too much 'Noise'

"Noise" is the kind of movie that isn't necessarily good, but hits so close to home that it's impossible not to develop a soft spot for it.

'Iron Man" is just about perfect

Ever since the announcement was made that Robert Downey Jr. would be starring in "Iron Man," skeptics have wondered whether the actor had the mettle to play the metal hero.

'Made of Honor'

Patrick Dempsey has a lot going for him, including an interestingly distracted quality, as if he can't stop thinking about his patients even when he's not playing a doctor.