Get Rich or Die Tryin (2005)

Drama Rated R

If you’re building a rags-to-riches gangster-rap drama around a real rags-to-riches gangster rapper, it might be a good idea to showcase the music that is supposed to distinguish him from every other boy in the hood that the movies have given us since, well, 1991’s Boyz N the Hood. Get Rich, loosely based on the

House of Sand and Fog (2003)

Drama Rated R

This adaptation of the Andre Dubus III novel works itself up into a lather over a story – namely the conflict between a former addict (Jennifer Connelly) who loses her house for not paying taxes and an Iranian immigrant (Ben Kingsley) who buys it – that’s better suited to an episode of “The People’s Court.”

State and Main (2000)

Comedy Rated R

Writer-director David Mamet’s satire – in which a film crew converges on a small New England town – thinks it’s taking a big bite out of Hollywood, but even a talented cast (Philip Seymour Hoffman, William H. Macy, Alec Baldwin, Sarah Jessica Parker) can’t disguise the fact that most of the jokes are obvious nibbles.

Ladies Man, The (2000)

Comedy Rated R

This is a big-screen version of the “Saturday Night Live” sketch starring Tim Meadows. Really, what else do you need to know?

Thrill Ride: The Science of Fun (1997)

Documentary Rated NR

Thrill Ride botches its one interesting subject – amusement park roller coasters – before moving on to an extremely tedious examination of “ride films,” which combine motion simulation and moviemaking. Despite some predictably stimulating first-person shots, most of the technology on display is sadly dated.

Monsieur Ibrahim (2003)

Drama Rated R

A pleasant little coming-of-age movie buoyed by a lively performance from Omar Sharif, Monsieur Ibrahim charts the relationship between a Jewish boy (Pierre Boulanger) and a Muslim shop owner in 1960s Paris. Sharif brings his usual gravity to the screen, but there is a lightness to Ibrahim as well. For most of its running time

Uptown Girls (2003)

Drama Rated PG-13

How much you like Uptown Girls will depend on how much you like the main characters: A New York City heiress (Brittany Murphy) who becomes the nanny for a world-weary 8-year-old (Dakota Fanning) when her inheritance dries up. Considering I found the former to be a squeaky flake and the latter to be a predictably

Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters (2007)

Comedy Rated R

“…conjures up the surreal adolescent daydreams of stuffy high-school classrooms. You might as well be watching the doodling in some kid’s otherwise unused notebook come to life.

Butterfly Effect, The (2004)

Thriller Rated R

You’ve got to hand it to a movie brazen enough to kill both animals and babies in bids for audience sympathy. The Butterfly Effect – in which Ashton Kutcher plays a student who can return to his childhood, alter an event and then awaken to a new future – relies on beatings, infanticide, the murder

Disturbia (2007)

Thriller Rated PG-13

“The preposterousness of Disturbia increases at an alarming rate … until you finally start losing track of all of your objections.