Movie Review | featured news

This week at the movies, we've got a fairy tale finale (Shrek Forever After, starring the voices of Mike Myers and Cameron Diaz) and a clueless commando (MacGruber, starring Will Forte and Kristen Wiig). What do the critics have to say? Everyone's favorite ogre returns this week in the fourth installment of the Shrek franchise, but is there enough fairy tale magic left after Shrek the Third? And while Saturday Night Live has produced some of America's best comedic talents over the past few decades, films based on SNL sketches haven't fared as well. Will MacGruber be one of the...

This week at the movies brings just one wide release: Iron Man 2, the hotly-anticipated superhero romp starring Robert Downey Jr., Don Cheadle, and Scarlett Johansson. What do the critics have to say? As with many blockbuster sequels, Iron Man 2 is bigger, louder, and filled with more characters than its predecessor. Critics say that doesn't mean it's better, but it's still got enough firepower to kick off the summer in fine style -- and the always-delightful presence of Robert Downey Jr. ensures that Iron Man 2 stays on track.

The balcony is closed. This is the last season of "At the Movies," the long-running syndicated review show made into a hit in the 1980s by dueling Chicago critics Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert.

Elizabeth Taylor caught a private screening of Michael Jackson's "This Is It" last week -- and calls it "brilliant." The longtime pal of Jackson, who died in June from an apparent drug overdose, wrote on Twitter Monday: "I was honored with the great privilege of seeing 'This Is It' last week. I was sworn to secrecy, but now I can let you know about it. It is the single most brilliant piece of filmmaking I have ever seen.

While it may not be the definitive concert film (or the insightful backstage look) some will hope for, Michael Jackson's This Is It packs more than enough entertainment value to live up to its ambitious title.

This week at the movies brings only one wide release: Couples Retreat, starring Vince Vaughn and Kristen Bell in a comedy about a group of friends in marriage counseling in a tropical locale. What do the critics have to say? Couples Retreat contains some of the funniest actors in the business, and is set in a lush island paradise. Sounds like the recipe for a good time, right? Unfortunately, the critics say Couples Retreat is essentially a series of gags sorely in need of some over-arching comic discipline. Jason Bateman and Kristen Bell star as a couple whose relationship is...

This week at the movies, we've got an alien nation (District 9, starring Jason Cope and Sharlto Copley); a high school musical (Bandslam, starring Gaelan Connell and Vanessa Hudgens); a goldfish/human hybrid (Ponyo, with voice work by Cate Blanchett and Noah Cyrus); an ill-timed love affair (The Time Traveler's Wife, starring Rachel McAdams and Eric Bana), and some renegade salesmen ...

Rapturous reviews and a colossal marketing campaign sent “Up” into the box office stratosphere over the weekend.

....and it wasn't me . It was Geoff Boucher over at the LA TIMES Hero Complex where he blogged about it.