Amityville Horror, The (2005)

Horror Rated R

After a boatload of sequels to the 1979 original, there was really no way of wringing more blood out of this horror franchise other than to start back at the beginning with a remake. Ryan Reynolds stifles the wisecracks as the husband and stepfather who succumbs to the demons of his new haunted mansion. The

The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)

Action/Adventure Rated PG-13

“I didn’t know movies could get this big.”

Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid (2004)

Action/Adventure Rated PG-13

As a gruff riverboat captain leading an ill-fated expedition in the jungles of Borneo, bit actor Johnny Messner tries to channel the campy lunacy of Jon Voight from the original Anaconda. His voice is so low and gritty that it sounds dubbed, he flexes his muscles when he shakes hands and he even wrestles a

Million Dollar Baby (2004)

Drama Rated PG-13

Best Picture honors were awarded to Clint Eastwood’s sports drama, about an aging trainer (Eastwood) and an aspiring female boxer (Hilary Swank), but the movie is mostly a tribute to his work ethic. “If I’m too old for this, then I got nothing,” Swank’s fighter says early in her training. Interesting if pedestrian efforts such

Analyze That (2002)

Comedy Rated R

Like its underachieving predecessor, Analyze That is just funny enough to make you realize how much funnier it should be. Billy Crystal’s shrink and Robert De Niro’s conflicted mob boss are reunited, but this time for contrived shenanigans rather than counseling sessions. If you like your laughs to feel prescribed rather than inspired, the doctor

Minority Report (2002)

Action/Adventure Rated PG-13

Steven Spielberg’s thrilling Minority Report – about a “precrime” law-enforcement officer (Tom Cruise) framed for a future murder – is worth seeing for its vision of the future alone, in which the Gap is manned by hologram salespeople who can instantaneously access your purchase history by scanning your eyeballs. At a time when we debated

Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004)

Comedy Rated PG-13

Co-writer and star Will Ferrell gets his own playground with this portrait of a 1970s news anchor, and he delivers what may be his definitive pompous dimwit. It’s often hysterical, if still a one-note role compared to his tragic clown in Old School. Burgundy is more of a living one-liner. With hilarious support from Steve

Princess Diaries, The (2001)

Family Rated G

A clunky, obvious modern fairy tale about a high-school klutz (Anne Hathaway) who finds out her grandmother (Julie Andrews) is the queen of a fictional European country – and that she technically is a princess. Many parents expressed gratitude that the movie is clean and innocent – too bad it’s not good as well.

Be Cool (2005)

Comedy Rated PG-13

The irony undermining this sequel to Get Shorty, both of which are based on Elmore Leonard novels, is that you can’t be cool on demand. You either are or you aren’t. Of the ensemble cast to this cartoonish crime flick, set amid the L.A. music business, only returning star John Travolta, The Rock and Cedric

Quiet American, The (2002)

Drama Rated R

This adaptation of Graham Greene’s novel about a British journalist in 1952 Vietnam can’t quite shake its source material. Chunks of the book are borrowed for voice-over narration, mostly out of narrative necessity rather than as part of some grand thematic plan. On the plus side are strong turns by the Oscar-nominated Michael Caine as