WSJ.com: Film Review

Carrey, Disney Play Scrooge in 'Carol'

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:38:22 EST

Disney's 3-D animated version of "A Christmas Carol" is a calamity, writes Joe Morgenstern. This sad excuse for family entertainment tries to enshrine a classic while defacing it.

'This Is It': One Last Thriller

Fri, 30 Oct 2009 11:02:36 EDT

Michael Jackson's moves still dazzle in the film, but you sense that at the center of it all was a man trying to conserve what was left of himself.

'Amelia': Off Course

Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:36:46 EDT

Despite star Hilary Swank and director Mira Nair, "Amelia" is a bad movie that happened to good people. Plus, the horror, shock and awe of Lars von Trier's "Antichrist."

'Wild Things' Delights

Fri, 16 Oct 2009 12:31:19 EDT

Director Spike Jonze makes great risks pay off in his film version of Maurice Sendak's beloved classic, writes Joe Morgenstern.

Highest 'Education'

Fri, 09 Oct 2009 14:54:22 EDT

Actress Carey Mulligan shines in the elegant English tale "An Education," a movie that goes beyond the conventions of the coming-of-age genre, writes Joe Morgenstern.

'More Than a Game' Got Game

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 14:27:02 EDT

He wasn't always the steady, charismatic player who dominates the NBA today. A look at how LeBron of Akron became King James.

Terrorism as an Aesthetic

Thu, 01 Oct 2009 21:21:53 EDT

A new film based on Stefan Aust's "Baader-Meinhof" explores the motivations behind Germany's notorious terrorists.

Telluride Peaks: Teens, Toughs, Tolstoy

Thu, 17 Sep 2009 20:07:22 EDT

Joe Morgenstern offers a report on the Telluride Film Festival. Among the films is "An Education," the best of the bunch for its original coming-of-age tale.

'Steve' Is All About Inanity

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 10:59:50 EDT

Sandra Bullock is socially inept in the ineptly made "All About Steve." Plus, the immigrant drama "Amreeka" and the Mike Judge comedy "Extract."

'Woodstock' Is One Boring Trip, Man

Thu, 03 Sep 2009 20:01:04 EDT

Ang Lee's "Taking Woodstock" revisits the 1969 concert but finds no drama there; Vogue documentary "The September Issue" is old news.

'Basterds' Has Sound, Fury, Bafflement

Tue, 25 Aug 2009 12:12:18 EDT

In "Inglourious Basterds," all the trademark Tarantino flourishes are here but they don't add up to much.

Bad Timing for 'Traveler's Wife'

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 11:01:25 EDT

In "The Time Traveler's Wife," the situation is hopeless—and so is the dialogue.

'Julie & Julia' Is Two Half Loaves

Fri, 07 Aug 2009 00:19:17 EDT

Meryl Streep gives us a scrumptious comic performance as chef Julia Child. Too bad we have to share. Plus: reviews of “G.I. Joe” and “Cold Souls.”

Love Cools in 'Summer'

Thu, 23 Jul 2009 20:30:53 EDT

Marc Webb’s “(500) Days of Summer” is a bright bauble that ultimately feels synthetic and derivative, says Joe Morgenstern.

'Button' Bends Time Into Grand Fable

Thu, 05 Feb 2009 09:35:13 EST

"Benjamin Button" is a one-of-a-kind meditation on mortality, time's inexorable passage and the fleeting sweetness of love, writes Joe Morgenstern.

Rourke Reigns as Failed 'Wrestler'

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:11:47 EST

Mickey Rourke is suddenly back in full force with a phenomenal performance that takes pain as a starting point and quickly transcends it.

'Gran Torino' Is Perfect for Eastwood

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:11:33 EST

Clint Eastwood snarls, glowers, mutters, growls and grins his way through the performance of a lifetime in "Gran Torino."

'Australia' Is Grandly Over Top

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:10:59 EST

"Australia" has outsize ambitions and is all over the map -- but what a gorgeous map it is. In its heart of hearts, the epic is an old-fashioned Western and all the more enjoyable for it.

'Slumdog' Finds Rare Riches in Poor Boy's Tale

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:10:02 EST

In these worsening times for feature films, timidity and mediocrity often vie for bottom honors at the multiplex. "Slumdog Millionaire" breaks through to the top.

'Changeling' Feels False

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:10:16 EST

In "Changeling," connections are scrambled between the filmmaking and the period, between Jolie and Malkovich, and the characters they play.

Sally Hawkins Delights As 'Happy-Go-Lucky' Heroine

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:11:17 EST

The action thriller "Body of Lies" strives to paint a genuine portrait of two CIA operatives in conflict, but it remains abstract and unaffecting.

Hathaway Plays Terrific Wedding Devil in 'Rachel'

Wed, 04 Feb 2009 18:10:48 EST

"Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist" is an imperfect, sometimes familiar but always exuberant comedy with romantic resonance.

Coens Mine Gym, CIA for Thin Farce

Mon, 15 Sep 2008 21:31:00 EDT

"Burn After Reading" could just as well have been called "Forget After Seeing," writes Joe Morgenstern.

Telluride Thrills

Fri, 05 Sep 2008 15:05:00 EDT

Indian dazzler "Slumdog Millionaire" and French film "I Loved You So Long" were highlights at this year's Telluride Film Festival.

'Traitor' Betrays a Smart Premise

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 11:04:00 EDT

The promising premise in "Traitor" -- a Muslim-American and former covert agent for the U.S. is marked as a terrorist suspect -- devolves into a by-the-numbers espionage thriller.

In 'Hamlet 2,' Coogan Makes Failure Fun

Fri, 22 Aug 2008 10:23:00 EDT

In "Hamlet 2," a dazzling antidote to "High School Musical," Steve Coogan is endlessly resourceful, endlessly inventive, and makes failure endlessly entertaining.

'Vicky Cristina' Is Charming Allen Roundelay

Thu, 05 Feb 2009 09:32:24 EST

Woody Allen's beautiful if insubstantial "Vicky Cristina Barcelona" -- his most endearing film in years -- chronicles two American girls on a summer idyll in Barcelona. "Tropic Thunder" is a gleeful send-up of big-budget movies and big Hollywood egos.

Ledger Dazzles in Suffocatingly Dark 'Knight'

Thu, 05 Feb 2009 17:47:33 EST

"The Dark Knight" is an ambitious, lavish attempt to see if audiences will turn out for a comic-book epic that goes beyond darkness. Those that do may sustain lots more punishment than they signed up for.