A little slapstick, a little action, rich characters and a whopping serving of wit. All baked to near-perfection.

What remains is a great Vangelis score, astonishing production design, Hauer's career role -- and a movie that deserves its cult reputation despite an unloving heart. [11 Sept 1992]

What's most amazing is the finely nuanced performances these bits and bytes deliver.

Director Gillian Armstrong takes the delicate snow globe that is Little Women and gives it a bold new shake. [21 Dec 1994]

With the astonishingly assured newcomer Jason Schwartzman to bounce off of, Murray has his best comic foil since those feisty rodents in Groundhog Day and Caddyshack. [5 February 1999, Life, p.11E]

We are happy to report there is intelligent life in feature animation beyond planet Disney and the gaseous ball of foul language known as South Park.

A riotous and wee bit PG-racy computer-animated family fable, is the most thoroughly enjoyable cartoon feature since "Toy Story" burst out of its box.

A movie with this kind of haunting power comes along only once every decade or so. [20 February 1991, Life, p.11D]

Babe, a live-action fable about a valiant pig who conquers prejudice like a barnyard Jackie Robinson, is in a league of its own when it comes to enchantment.

When it comes to eloquently telling it like it is, Election puts the nation's political pundits to shame.

Retains the power to turn heads -- and stomachs.

Visual pyrotechnics and dark humor aside, Three Kings rules because it dares to dig for such truths, whether banal or significant.

a painful though sadly humorous portrait of sisterhood deftly written by Leigh's mom, Barbara Turner, and directed with just-right spareness by Ulu Grosbard. [08 Dec 1995]

It's a clever, multitiered affair built around the title rituals, frosted with delicious characterizations and tasty repartee. [11 March 1994, Life, p.4D]

The suspense becomes so unbearable that it's easy to overlook questions about whether anyone in such circumstances would continue filming.

Instead of ladling on the Scorsese sauce, Robert De Niro's Bronx accent is on semisweet nostalgia. He presents a domestic drama spiced with humor about a boy torn between his working-stiff dad (De Niro in fine regular-fella mode) and Chazz Palminteri's easy-money ways. De Niro doesn't let arty camera angles sub for good storytelling. And he draws memorable performances from two amazing young, new actors. [01 Oct 1993, p. 8D]

Isn't all that romantic and is only half as funny as it thinks it is.

This is entertainment worth thumping your chest over. [18 June 1999, Life, p.2E]

A film that wins on 'Courage' of its convictions. {12 July 1996, p. D1]

The kind of quirky, character-driven comedy they don't make much anymore.

Pacino cans the showboating bluster and gives a gently nuanced portrait of a simple man in decline.

It all feels about as spontaneous as a concrete blueprint.

Such pure, naked joy is utterly contagious.

After so much frenetic kicking and grunting, you may feel like you're in a stupor, too.

In the tautly terrific thriller In the Line of Fire , Clint Eastwood toys with his own grizzled-vet screen image like a frisky kitten with a yarn ball. [09 Jul 1993 Pg. 01.D]

Chances are, the more you love classic cinema, the more you will find Gods is your cup of tea.

Dramatically moving and good-naturedly humorous, it transmits a sharp picture of humanity that inspires both awe and laughter.

Epic in nearly every way, The Hurricane has the power to blow you away.