Search for Spar

Filters:
Sort by:
Absolution

Liam Neeson has enjoyed two careers as an actor. For many years, he was regarded as a “highbrow” thespian – one who preferred serious, artistic productions. Then, beginning with 2009’s Taken, he opted for the higher paychecks that acco...

Run Time: 1:52
U.S. Release Date: 2024-11-01
MPAA Rating: "R" (Violence, Profanity)
Genre: Thriller
Director: Hans Petter Moland
Cast: Liam Neeson, Ron Perlman, Frankie Shaw, ...
Buried

Let me start out by saying that Buried isn't a lot of fun, but it is raw and compelling. In the same way it's impossible to turn away from a grisly accident, taking your eyes away from Ryan Reynolds' hypnotizing performance is not an option. Ther...

Run Time: 1:34
U.S. Release Date: 2010-09-24
MPAA Rating: "R" (Profanity)
Genre: THRILLER
Director: Rodrigo Cortés
Cast: Ryan Reynolds
Dear John

Dear John delivers pretty much what one would expect from an adaptation of a Nicholas Sparks novel: a high-profile downer of a Harlequin romance. There's a market for this sort of movie, which lays it on thick and does everything possible to make ...

Run Time: 1:45
U.S. Release Date: 2010-02-05
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Sexual Content, Violence)
Genre: DRAMA/ROMANCE
Director: Lasse Hallström
Cast: Channing Tatum, Amanda Seyfried, Richard Jenkins, ...
Greenland

Watching Greenland, I was reminded of how long it has been since a major studio has released an “old-school” disaster movie like this one. Perhaps the film might have worked better had it come out a year ago but this is an extraordinarily ...

Run Time: 1:59
U.S. Release Date: 2020-12-18
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Disaster Sequences, Profanity, Violence)
Genre: Action/Adventure
Director: Ric Roman Waugh
Cast: Gerard Butler, Morena Baccarin, Roger Dale Floyd, ...
Greenland 2: Migration

It’s a given that many modern blockbusters will have sequels – they arrive in theaters with a "franchise-in-waiting" tag already attached. Greenland, the 2020 comet-meets-Earth disaster movie, was not an instant candidate for this illustrious ...

Run Time: 1:37
U.S. Release Date: 2026-01-09
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Violence, Bloody Images)
Genre: Adventure
Director: Ric Roman Waugh
Cast: Gerard Butler, Morena Baccarin, Roman Griffin Davis
Irreversible

Since one of the duties of a film critic is to provide readers with enough ammunition for them to make an informed decision about whether a movie is likely to match their tastes, I must begin with a stern warning. Irreversible is the kind of film ...

Run Time: 1:39
U.S. Release Date: 2003-03-07
MPAA Rating: "NR" (Violence, Profanity, Sexual Situations, Nudity)
Genre: THRILLER/DRAMA
Director: Gaspar Noé
Cast: Vincent Cassel, Albert Dupontel, Monica Bellucci, ...
Kodachrome

Kodachrome is proof of the concept that solid direction and superlative acting can transform even a mediocre script into something worth watching. At its heart, Kodachrome is a middling road picture – a film whose every plot point is predict...

Run Time: 1:40
U.S. Release Date: 2018-04-20
MPAA Rating: "NR" (Profanity, Sexual Content, Adult Themes)
Genre: Drama
Director: Mark Raso
Cast: Jason Sudeikis, Ed Harris, Elizabeth Olsen, ...
Longest Ride, The

As a romance, a drama, or even a sports movie, The Longest Ride never reaches a satisfying destination. With its confused, sometimes-contradictory themes and scattershot love story aspirations, the film never gains traction on the shifting sands of i...

Run Time: 2:05
U.S. Release Date: 2015-04-10
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Sexual Content, Profanity, Partial Nudity)
Genre: Drama/Romance
Director: George Tillman Jr.
Cast: Alan Alda, Britt Robertson, Scott Eastwood, ...
Lucky One, The

A single phrase might be all that's necessary to review The Lucky One: "A Nicholas Sparks movie." Sure, Scott Hicks (Shine) is the director and Will Fetters (Remember Me) gets a screenplay credit, but the average movie-goer who settles into a theat...

Run Time: 1:41
U.S. Release Date: 2012-04-20
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Sexual Content, Profanity)
Genre: ROMANCE/DRAMA
Director: Scott Hicks
Cast: Zac Efron, Taylor Schilling, Blythe Danner, ...
Message in a Bottle

For anyone who wept hopelessly at the tragic romance of The English Patient, Message in a Bottle is the movie you have been waiting for. In addition to being a beautifully-photographed motion picture with a solid (albeit melodramatic) storyline an...

Run Time: 2:10
U.S. Release Date: 1999-02-12
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Sexual Situations, Profanity)
Genre: DRAMA/ROMANCE
Director: Louis Mandoki
Cast: Kevin Costner, Robin Wright Penn, Paul Newman, ...