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. Hot Tub Time Machine, which wants nothing more than to be a screwball farce, succeeds beyond any expectations suggested by the title and extends John Cusack's remarkable run.
2. If the title makes you want to see the movie, you'll get what you're hoping for.
3. A handful of good one-liners means Hot Tub Time Machine has its moments; it's the rest of the movie that's the problem.
4. A chlorinated, R-rated Back to the Future, Hot Tub Time Machine accomplishes what Snakes on a Plane did not: It offers a merrily idiotic movie to go with its willfully idiotic title.
5. This is a lot of fun. Cusack's funniest film in many years.
6. This raunchy, 80s-soaked comedy is every bit as funny as a movie called "Hot Tub Time Machine" should be. Which is to say, quite a bit.
7. Hot Tub Time Machine isn't a good movie, but like a bubbling bath it keeps pounding at us until our resistance wears down.
8. balances middle-age angst with adolescent idiocy and embraces the ridiculous while playing it absolutely straight
9. Hot Tub Time Machine has enough genuinely funny moments to make it worth checking out.
10. What could be a platform for retro fun, inventive plotting, and outrageous humor instead becomes mired in tired time travel clichés, trite '80s shtick, and lazy comedy.
What is the consensus?
****
Answer: Its flagrantly silly script -- and immensely likable cast -- make up for most of its flaws.


Problem: 1. It's probably a hoot for fans of the show. It definitely captures the atmosphere, but it doesn't work as a great cop-buddy picture. I laughed, but lost interest in the story.
2. Seriously short on laughs.
3. That scraping sound you hear is postmodernism hitting the bottom of the barrel.
4. Mildly amusing and true to the spirit of both the show and its host decade.
5. Though there are a few chuckles to be had - mostly thanks to Vaughn's hilariously over-the-top performance - the film is curiously lacking in the guffaws department.
6. Stiller and Wilson, it seems, took the script... and tore it into confetti.
7. [M]ight as well be called Owen Wilson and Ben Stiller Do Their Schtick in Funny 70s Clothes...
8. All things being equal, Starsky and Hutch still manages to be an enjoyable ride, even though it lacks the energy, urgency, and consistency needed to make it great.
9. Stiller and Wilson provide plenty of laughs, but do I really need another reminder of just how lame the '70s really were?
10. It's a good thing they're The Man, too. Because they're working with such a creaky, inconsistently funny script
What is the consensus?
****
Answer:
It's uneven and occasionally somewhat aimless, but Starsky & Hutch benefits from Stiller and Wilson's chemistry and a surprisingly warm-hearted script.