ReelViews for PG-13 movies

To think of uber-producer Jerry Bruckheimer and action director Michael Bay is to be reminded of popcorn-and-eye candy trifles like The Rock and Armageddon - movies where flashy special effects and lobotomized scripts are arguably assets. The pair...

For high school kids with college aspirations, the SATs have always been the enemy. Most juniors and seniors try to improve their scores by studying or taking classes focused on SAT preparation. But not the sextet of characters inhabiting Brian R...

Most of us, even some who were part of the "in crowd," think of ourselves as having been outsiders during high school. It's the nature of adolescence. Movies like Stephen Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower capture the awkwardness, the lonel...

Most of us living in the United States have never heard of “Peterloo” so Mike Leigh’s recreation of the events leading up to the infamous August 16, 1819 massacre represents a history lesson as well as an effectively crafted (albeit too ...

I have never been a fan of Andrew Lloyd Webber's phenomenally popular stage musical version of The Phantom of the Opera, so it will probably come as no surprise that the film adaptation, which is faithful to its inspiration, left me feeling underwh...

Some will argue that a film, being essentially a means of entertainment, can do little to change a national consciousness. Others, citing the power of the medium, will claim that motion pictures possess this rare and extraordinary ability. These ...

Part mystery investigation, part mismatched buddy film, and part condemnation of inhumane attitudes in 1950s Ireland and 1980s Washington, Philomena falls into the category of "too unbelievable to be fiction." Faithfully based on the true story tol...

The older he has gotten, the more offbeat his films have become. Now, to be clear, Wes Anderson has never been a conventional filmmaker. His movies have always appealed more to niche audiences than mainstream ones. (My favorite of his oeuvre, ...

For Malcolm Washington, The Piano Lesson was something of a family affair. For his directorial debut, the filmmaker recruited his brother, John David Washington, to play the lead, while his father, Denzel, produced. The screenplay, which Malcolm c...

When it comes to the final hour, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, delivers the goods. The last 60 minutes offer adventure as rousing as anything provided in either of the previous installments, Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black...