Problem: 1. Yi Yi is a rare work of beauty, a thoughtful, touching, compelling study of humanity that demands to be seen.
2. There's no question it's a soap opera, but a most charming and involving one.
3. The final moments left me thunderstruck, as deeply moved as I've ever been by a film. Yi Yi accumulates moments of truth and insight until it glows with importance.
4. 'With numerous plotlines that move from middle-aged longing and teen romance to cutthroat business, Yang has created a deeply moving examination of a home in turmoil.'
5. One of the best films of the year, Edward Yang's Yi Yi combines a diagnosis of modern times with seemingly old-fashioned 'literary' storytelling - scene by scene it's slow, character-focused and dense with realistic detail, while the sprawling, coincidenc
6. This one is a masterpiece, despite being as inexplicable as a great work of music sometimes is.
7. Blending the Coen Brothers' karmic rubicon with Robert Altman's ensemble heart, "Yi Yi" scratches the identifiable itch to reach out for what we've loved, set free and had come back, perhaps still not meant to be: jobs, lovers, freedoms, opportunities.
8. One of the best films of the decade, Yi Yi, Edward Yang's most accessible (and very last) film is a fluent, charming and precise family portrait that celebrates ordinary life with all its joys and chaos.
9. A heartfelt and involving family drama to which even the most subtitle-wary moviegoer could relate.
10. Every beat and every image and every cut and every note feels like a part of a whole. It is a total movie.
What is the consensus?
****
Answer: In its depiction of one family, Yi Yi accurately and expertly captures the themes and details, as well as the beauty, of everyday life.


Problem: 1. Playing For Keeps unfolds like a metaphorical deconstruction of his charms: a meandering, formulaic look at a former sports star confronted by an uncertain future as he continues to exploit the superficial things the world still seems to want from him.
2. Smarmy. Dopey. Sloppy. Lazy. Creepy. Tone-deaf. Predictable. Embarrassing. Lousy.
3. Like undercooked leftovers, it makes you wish they had spent a little more time getting some heat into it.
4. It won't be up for any Oscars, nor will it score points for originality, but it's harmless enough fare for its target audience.
5. Another day at the Romantic Comedy Factory: '...Pull me down a Gerard Butler and a Jessica Biel, will ya?'
6. Ho-hum sports romcom lacks both laughs and chemistry.
7. It could be just the kind of pleasant surprise that leaves your inner cynic at a momentary loss for words.
8. I'll long be haunted by Dennis Quaid's manic performance as a palm-greasing dad who seems to be under the influence of bath salts ...
9. Playing for Keeps takes place in a tonally incoherent universe, constantly shifting between rom-com farce and mawkish family drama.
10. As the old saying goes, 'Well, that's two hours of my life I'll never get back.' Time is precious. Don't waste yours on a film like this. (Full Content Review for Parents also available)
What is the consensus?
****
Answer: Witless, unfocused, and arguably misogynistic, Playing for Keeps is a dispiriting, lowest-common-denominator Hollywood rom-com.


Problem: 1. Writer-director John Hoffman leaves no canine cliche unturned in his pandering script.
2. No, this isn't the stuff of a kiddie classic like Holes. But, to quote from another movie with a vocal four-legged protagonist, it'll do.
3. Just don't be surprised if very soon you find yourself scratching at the door to be let out.
4. Though the youngest viewers might enjoy it, compared to the classic flicks about boys and their dogs, it's the runt of the litter.
5. As children's film premises go, this is a cute one, but the execution is a failure.
6. A movie that just doesn't live up to its potential.
7. A swell flick for kid.
8. It's fun in a kiddie-flick sort of way.
9. You wish Good Boy! aspired to a less formulaic cleverness and sentimentality than shown here.
10. Beyond any real creative aspirations, Good Boy! is a movie for dog lovers.
What is the consensus?
****
Answer:
Good Boy! should appeal to kids. Adults, however, might consider it a dog.