50/50 (2011)

Drama Rated R

Deeply affecting and admirably even-keeled, the cancer drama 50/50 avoids both bitter disconsolation and false inspiration to come up with something that’s honest, clear-eyed and, well, a lot like being there. This authenticity probably comes from the fact that screenwriter Will Reiser based the story on his own life-threatening bout with cancer – though it’s

Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)

Action/Adventure Rated PG-13

“…isn’t much of a story, yet as a vehicle for the monstrosity-minded imagination of writer-director Guillermo del Toro it offers an endless array of bizarre visual riches.

Journey to the Center of the Earth (2008)

Action/Adventure Rated PG

“There is a fundamental reason why 3-D technology doesn’t work…

Meet Dave (2008)

Comedy Rated PG

"It’s about time this guy realized he doesn’t need those Norbit prosthetics."

Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (2008)

Family Rated PG

“I find it endearing that the Madagascar movies spend most of their time chronicling failure.

Get Smart (2008)

Comedy Rated PG-13

“Wait until you see the look of chagrin on Carell’s face when he holds a shoe phone to his ear.

Kit Kittredge: An American Girl (2008)

Family Rated G

“Why do so many family films think their young audiences are imbecilic?

Love Guru, The (2008)

Comedy Rated PG-13

“…a gigantic egg, but no one looks more pleased with it than Myers.

Man With the Golden Arm, The (1955)

Drama Rated NR

Frank Sinatra plays Frankie Machine, a card dealer and recovering heroin addict who is returning to his old neighborhood after a stint in rehab. Sinatra’s “cold turkey” scenes – the usual shivering and moaning – aren’t as impressive as his smooth inhabiting of a hep cat with a heart, not an arm, of gold. Frankie

Persepolis (2007)

Drama Rated PG-13

An extraordinary adaptation of Marjane Satrapi’s graphic novel about a young Iranian woman coming of age in the 1970s and ’80s. Although Satrapi experienced the Iranian Revolution, the resulting Islamic fundamentalist government and a stint in Vienna to escape all the turmoil, Persepolis eschews outright politicizing and stands as a personal story first and foremost.