Towering Inferno, The (1974)

Action/Adventure Rated PG

Partly an extravaganza of fireballs, partly a modern interpretation of the biblical Tower of Babel and partly a coming together of one of cinema’s most random casts (Fred Astaire rubs shoulders with O.J. Simpson), The Towering Inferno has the can’t-look-away quality of a car wreck. To celebrate the completion of the world’s tallest skyscraper in

Gridiron Gang (2006)

Drama Rated PG-13

As probation officer Sean Porter, who in real life gave a group of incarcerated juvenile offenders a second chance by creating a football team for them, Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson performs so many corny inspirational speeches that his mouth might as well transform into a triumphant horn. We’re supposed to give in to this shamelessness

The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Family Rated G

“A head trip of a family film.”

Black Dahlia, The (2006)

Thriller Rated R

For a director who made a movie called Femme Fatale, Brian De Palma sure has a tough time negotiating the film-noir genre. Many of De Palma’s pictures could be called noirs, but none are as steeped in the tradition of hard-bitten detectives, double-crossing dames and thick mysteries as The Black Dahlia, based on James Ellroy’s

Wolfman, The (2010)

Horror Rated R

“I never would have guessed that I would say this, but The Wolfman could have benefited from less Del Toro and more CGI.

Everyone’s Hero (2006)

Family Rated G

This kids’ baseball movie has so much inspirational blather it makes you want to shove a bat down your throat, yet the computer-animation artists behind it hit enough dazzling and witty visual notes to keep you from self-inflicted injury. A lot of the charm comes from the setting – 1930s New York City, where a

Woman is a Woman, A (1961)

Musical Rated NR

“…an homage to/butchering of classic Hollywood musical tropes.”

This Film is Not Yet Rated (2006)

Documentary Rated R

This Film Is Not Yet Rated, an expose of the ridiculous movie rating system run by the Motion Picture Association of America, is a much-needed muckraking documentary that rakes the wrong muck. It’s not that director Kirby Dick’s arguments – that the MPAA ratings board favors studio movies over independent ones, that it is much

Aquamarine (2006)

Family Rated PG

It is no coincidence that the mermaid heroine of Aquamarine looks like a Barbie doll, for this is a sparkly endorsement of what can best be described as Barbie culture – that cruel world, governed by image-conscious magazines such as Teen Vogue, in which self-respect comes via a makeover. Two quirky best friends (Emma Roberts

Blade II (2002)

Horror Rated R

Thanks to the surprise success of the 1998 original, based on the Marvel comic book series about a half-human/half-vampire superhero (Wesley Snipes), this sequel boasts bigger sets, snazzier special effects and a “name” director in Mexico’s Guillermo del Toro (Mimic, The Devil’s Backbone). Unfortunately, it shares its predecessor’s relentless fascination with blood and guts. Unless