Chingford Life

Undefeated is an emotional ride. But in addition to the universal human elements, which alone are worth the price of admission, Undefeated’s just a well-made sports drama

Neveldine and Taylor haven't tamped down their style at all for the 3D or even the film's plot, which leans heavy on mystical history, a surrogate father-son relationship and Johnny Blaze wanting rid of this demon when the audience wants exactly the opposite. The film's tone takes none of this seriously, and Cage cuts loose with such campy abandon when he's supposed to be tormented that even Johnny Blaze seems to get this is going nowhere

Everything is about instant gratification and every issue becomes a war-worthy debate. Times like these require charming escapism, and The Secret World of Arrietty fills the bill with a wonderful protagonist, respect towards its younger viewers, and some truly stunning hand-drawn animation.

More silly than chauvinistic, This Means War can’t decide if it’s an action-thriller with a little romance mixed in, or a formulaic rom-com with one or two memorable action set pieces. Thanks to its constant wavering and lack of clear-cut direction, it whiffs completely on both potential premises

I wish that director Brad Peyton’s Journey 2: The Mysterious Island had been an amazing adventure film. I also wish that it was so remarkably terrible that it managed to become entertaining. Instead, the movie is set firmly in the middle, neither good nor bad, but also instantly forgettable

The Vow, even though it's a story about a woman struggling to regain her memory of her entire marriage, isn't interested in anything creative or rich with potential. It's a straight shot down the middle of ooey-gooey romance territory, and as likable as Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum are, their presence is small comfort in a movie with so little else going on.

Leaving the audience in the dark for the sake of a central mystery that never gets interesting, Safe House is less a thriller than an experiment in confusion, trying to rile up the audience by stranding them in scenes they don't understand, over and over until the climax mercifully sets us free.

As a stepping-out film for Daniel Radcliffe The Woman in Black isn’t very effective, but as a whole it’s an effective and creepy ghost story. It may not elicit screams from everyone that goes to see it, but it is guaranteed to send chills down the spine of even the bravest viewer.

It's not like Big Miracle is aiming for anything much bigger than childish insights, and the movie's meager laughs probably would only appeal to kids, even though the plot takes you through a labyrinth of bureaucratic interests and the entire concept of a "media blitz." It's ultimately too naive for the tricky grown-up issues it tackles, but not smart or sweet enough to get away with it.

With CGI effects that range from passable to glaring, and a found footage gimmick that eventual hurts more than it helps, Chronicle isn't a low-budget genre masterwork like Attack the Block, but it's also a whole lot better than many of the more traditional superhero movies we've seen. Lean and goal-oriented, with more than a few fresh ideas as well as an innate understanding of the hero's journey storytelling

As the subject of nearly twenty best-selling Janet Evanovich novels, Stephanie Plum obviously has many positive qualities that make her extremely readable, but this adaptation of One For The Money doesn’t take any time to show us those redeeming characteristics. The first time we meet her, the car she can’t afford is being repossessed

The fact that Pablo F. Fenjves’ script went through so many hands without the logical fallacies being pointed out and fixed is nothing short of astonishing. I’m sure Man on a Ledge sounded interesting when it was first pitched, but the result is garbage.

The Grey has already been labeled "the Liam Neeson wolf-punching movie" when it's trying to be much more than that, a meditation on manhood and survival even against horrifyingly long odds. The wolves are there, and Neeson is indeed fighting against them, but Carnahan is clearly more interested in bringing out the film's spiritual and emotional side

With some added depth, perhaps an extra twenty minutes to explore the other side and better 3D, Underworld: Awakening could have been head and shoulders better than the other entries in the series. Instead, it’s just marginally better

Wearing its heart and ideals on its sleeve, Red Tails is hard not to root for, but impossible to love all the same. It's bursting with promising young talent on the screen, but behind the camera Hemingway and Lucas are incapable of eking out a story from what ought to be fascinating and revelatory history. The 332nd Fighter Group has long deserved its moment in the spotlight, but they also deserve a movie better than this one.