Ride With the Devil (1999)

Drama Rated R

Ang Lee’s unfairly maligned Civil War drama, with Tobey Maguire and Skeet Ulrich as Southern bushwhackers defending their homeland from Northern attackers. Sure, it’s slow, but the landscapes often are as beautiful as those of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and the conflicting allegiances – ironically, one of the heroes’ riding partners is a former slave,

Bad News Bears (2005)

Comedy Rated PG-13

Billy Bob Thornton takes over for Walter Matthau from the 1976 original film as the shiftless coach of an inept youth baseball team, but he’s not into not being into it. That’s odd, for the actor’s commitment to crude sluggishness is what made Bad Santa such a success. Bad News Bears clearly means to capitalize

Ring, The (2002)

Horror Rated PG-13

Borrowing its concept from 1998’s Ringu, a hit in its native Japan, The Ring follows a journalist (Naomi Watts) investigating a videotape that supposedly kills anyone who watches it. The movie’s narrative is a bit patchy at times, but there are enough genuine scares to keep your teeth clenched. And the malevolently open-ended finale, like

Death to Smoochy (2002)

Comedy Rated R

This misguided spoof of the ruthless world of children’s television programming is one of those wild Hollywood misfires, a movie of spectacular potential that makes an even more spectacular failure. The film traces an ongoing battle between two rival kid-show hosts – the disgraced, corrupt Rainbow Randolph (Robin Williams) and his squeaky-clean replacement, Smoochy the

Ringer, The (2005)

Comedy Rated PG-13

The Ringer, in which Johnny Knoxville plays a failed actor who tries to fix the Special Olympics by posing as one of the athletes, skillfully handles its subject by turning the tables on its characters. Much like The 40-Year-Old Virgin, which gave more dignity to its title nerd than the womanizers who surround him, this

Duplex (2003)

Comedy Rated PG-13

This wicked little black comedy is a study in the niceties of sharing personal space, and the greed with which we pursue property to get more of it. Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore play a pair of seemingly harmless New York yuppies who inherit an aging tenant (Eileen Essel) in a rent-controlled apartment when they

Ring Two, The (2005)

Horror Rated PG-13

The Ring left its sequel a great setup, but The Ring Two quickly abandon’s the cursed videotape premise of the original – as well as the true original, Japan’s Ringu – in favor of a demonic possession plot. This time the avenging ghost of the tape tracks down the reporter from the first film (Naomi

The Fast and the Furious (2001)

Action/Adventure Rated PG-13

Another movie geared toward 14-year-old boys, but at least it seems to be made by adults.

Road to Perdition (2002)

Drama Rated R

An accomplished, if distant, period drama, as well as director Sam Mendes’ follow-up to American Beauty. With its hushed performances, stately visuals and lush production design, this tale of a Prohibition-era hit man (Tom Hanks) struggling to connect with his 12-year-old son (Tyler Hoechlin) puts its hands on its hips and dares you to call

Hot Chick, The (2002)

Comedy Rated PG-13

Rob Schneider is the poor man’s guilty pleasure – if Adam Sandler can’t feed your appetite for inspired idiocy, then idiocy plays too prominent a part in your life. Nevertheless, The Hot Chick has some funny bits as it follows a snobby cheerleader (Rachel McAdams) who wakes up in Schneider’s body – his first bout