Anastasia (1997)
[7] There’s a lot to like about the first animated feature produced by 20th Century Fox, even if the sum of the parts is a bit uneven. Anastasia draws upon Russian history and legend, centering around the youngest daughter or…
RoboCop 2 (1990)
[7] Directed by Irvin Kershner (The Empire Strikes Back) and written by comic book legend Frank Miller, you'd think that RoboCop 2 would be vastly better and more interesting than it is. But for just another inferior sequel, it's not…
I’ll Be Home for Christmas (1998)
[5] In this middling family-friendly holiday flick from Disney, young Jonathan Taylor Thomas (TV's Home Improvement, The Lion King) plays a swindling college student who gets stranded in the California desert glued into a Santa Claus outfit without money or…
Batman Returns (1992)
[8] Anything but 'more of the same', Tim Burton's sequel dives into the troubled psyches of its headlining trio -- Batman, Catwoman, and The Penguin. Michael Keaton's Batman still plays second fiddle to the villains, but what fascinating villains they…
The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)
[8] Jeff Goldblum and director Steven Spielberg return for the first Jurassic Park sequel. Goldblum's character first scoffs at John Hammond's (Richard Attenborough) request to catalog and study the flourishing dinosaurs at a second 'Site B' island. But when he…
Deep Blue Sea (1999)
[6] Scientists working at a remote ocean laboratory have grown giant sharks to harvest for a protein they believe could cure Alzheimer's disease. As they prove their theory and prepare to celebrate, though, the sharks turn on their captors and…
The Ghost and the Darkness (1996)
[8] Val Kilmer and Michael Douglas star in this true story adaptation about two man-eating lions who killed dozens of railroad workers in Tsavo, Kenya, in the late 1800s. Kilmer plays a bridge engineer who enlists Douglas, a world-famous big…
The People vs. Larry Flynt (1996)
[8] Director Milos Forman (Amadeus) tackles the life of Hustler magazine founder Larry Flynt with Woody Harrelson playing the infamous smut-peddler. The screenplay, another superb biography from Ed Wood screenwriters Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, focuses on Flynt's many legal…
Predator 2 (1990)
[7] Predator's screenwriting brothers, Jim and John Thomas, return for this sequel, transplanting the action from the Central American jungles to dystopian Los Angeles. 'Ah-nold' is replaced with Danny Glover (Lethal Weapon, The Color Purple) and Stephen Hopkins (A Nightmare…
The Exorcist III (1990)
[7] Any sequel to one of the great horror films of all time is bound to leave audiences at least somewhat disappointed. That said, The Exorcist III is a surprisingly better sequel than you might imagine -- especially after the…