Half Nelson (2006)

Half Nelson (2006)

[5] Ryan Gosling stars as an inner-city junior high teacher with a drug habit. When one of his students finds him in a crack-induced stupor on the bathroom floor, the two strike up an unlikely relationship. Gosling and the girl…
Monster-in-Law (2005)

Monster-in-Law (2005)

[6] Jennifer Lopez and Jane Fonda square off in this by-the-numbers rom-com. Lopez is in love with Michael Vartan's character, and Fonda's character naturally doesn't think Lopez is good enough for her baby boy. If you've ever seen any movie…
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008)

Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (2008)

[8] Frances McDormand and Amy Adams star in this ebullient female bonding flick set in the early 1930s, about a recently fired governess (McDormand) who ingratiates herself into the employment of a ditzy actress (Adams). This film, particularly in its first half,…
Blind Dating (2006)

Blind Dating (2006)

[6] Chris Pine stars as a young blind man trying to enter the dating world. His brother (American Pie's Eddie Kaye Thomas) steers him in plenty of wrong, comedic directions before Pine realizes he's attracted to the young Indian receptionist…
Iron Man (2008)

Iron Man (2008)

[7] The superhero film movement happened in spurts dating all the way back to Richard Donner's 1978 film Superman: The Movie, but with Iron Man, Marvel Studios declared the genre was here to stay. Iron Man lays groundwork for a greater…
Insomnia (2002)

Insomnia (2002)

[7] In this remake of a Swedish film, an L.A. detective and his partner get loaned out to a town in Alaska where night never falls for half the year. While they're hunting a killer, the detective accidentally kills his…
Zombieland (2009)

Zombieland (2009)

[7] A zombie apocalypse road trip movie with amusement park overtones? Oh, hell yeah. With its strong character humor and plenty of sight gags, Zombieland is a joyously exploitative horror comedy that deflects any serious criticism. Jesse Eisenberg and Woody…
Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)

Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)

[6] SPOILER REVIEW. The Next Generation crew go out on a relatively low note, but not a whimper. Aside from the wedding of Riker and Troi early in the film, Nemesis is an uncharacteristically dark entry in the franchise. The…
Revolutionary Road (2008)

Revolutionary Road (2008)

[7] Revolutionary Road explores the dark side of marriage, where husband and wife suffocate in the confines of traditional gender roles and start lashing out at one another. Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet (together again for the first time since…
The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009)

The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009)

[6] This screwy comedy about top secret military psychics is based (to questionable extent) on truth. While the ramifications of the subject matter is provocative, the film wisely overlooks them to revel in the absurdity of it all. By its…