question: Its languid pace and willfully understated narrative may test the patience of some viewers, but Bradley Rust Gray's gentle direction and a gripping performance from Zoe Kazan lend The Exploding Girl an appealing, melancholy beauty.

numbered reviews: 1. Restless audiences may itch for more plot, for the kind of fiery dramatics that typify young love in the movies, but hold the explosives: There's tender drama, too, in the possibilities of a hand-hold.
2. "The Exploding Girl" can be grouped with those dreaded "mumblecore" movies in which young people talk endlessly about their romantic entanglements and attend terrible parties.
3. The Exploding Girl is a film about the deceptiveness of surfaces, and it takes place in a small town that you eventually realize with a start is actually New York City.
4. At least director Bradley Rust Grey contains all this diverting dithering in 80 minutes -- even without an explosion, there's intrigue in watching a short fuse burn.
5. ...a mildly watchable showcase for Kazan's undeniably impressive performance.
6. Bradley Rust Gray's film of a young college student (Zoe Kazan) home for the summer is a portrait in interlude.
7. Kazan has a power of her own that is as strong as or stronger than the film's style, and she can carry a scene all by herself, even if the camera is merely watching her walk down the street.
8. Kazan has a gift for letting you see her think, even when she's perfectly still; the film's title refers to the ferocious trauma happening between Ivy's ears and her silent struggle to keep it in check.
9. This is a mature story about the lives of two young people (and one voice) that kept my attention from start to finish.
10. ...a lovely, languorous film that does much with little and leaves you feeling like you've witnessed some minor miracle.


question: Utterly predictable and wholly of its time, but warm, sincere, and difficult to resist, due in large part to Pat Morita and Ralph Macchio's relaxed chemistry.

numbered reviews: 1. A legitimate crowd pleaser.
2. A terrific underdog story
3. The Karate Kid exhibits warmth and friendly, predictable humor, its greatest assets.
4. The Karate Kid belongs so irredemiably to its time that you can't feel anything other than affection toward it.
5. Wax on, wax off, wax nostalgic.
6. The movie birthed three sequels and features the sweet relationship between Macchio and Morita.
7. An OK underdog story that did not deserve any sequels.
8. A warm-heartened riff on the tried-and-true Rocky formula, and one of the better cinematic icons of the 1980s.
9. It's primitive, predatory stuff.
10. Tells the engaging story of a handyman at a housing complex who teaches martial arts to a boy yearning for mastery of self.


question: This is a compelling documentary, even for those who aren't fans of rap.

numbered reviews: 1. It will grip even viewers who aren't interested in rap, as it cuts to the heart of American society in an unnerving way.
2. Unfortunately this film will not satisfy if you are looking to discover the missing link, but if you are simply interested in humor and some 'interesting' footage, to say the least, you will not be disappointed.
3. Most of the information has already appeared in one forum or another and, no matter how Broomfield dresses it up, it tends to speculation, conspiracy theories or, at best, circumstantial evidence.
4. Broomfield's style of journalism is hardly journalism at all, and even those with an avid interest in the subject will grow impatient.
5. Bristles with the sort of passion and bold purpose so often lacking in contemporary nonfiction filmmaking.
6. Even if you have no interest in the gang-infested, East-vs.-West Coast rap wars, this modern mob music drama never fails to fascinate.
7. Daringly perceptive, taut, piercing and feisty, Biggie and Tupac is undeniably subversive and involving in its bold presentation.
8. Broomfield is energized by Volletta Wallace's maternal fury, her fearlessness, and because of that, his film crackles.
9. A brave and incendiary if sometimes haphazardly constructed documentary... by no means a perfect film, but, bristling with contradiction and confrontation, it certainly is alive and -- like its subjects' too-early demise -- worthy of investigation.
10. While Broomfield's film doesn't capture the effect of these tragic deaths on hip-hop culture, it succeeds as a powerful look at a failure of our justice system.


question: Bryan Singer's reverent and visually decadent adaptation gives the Man of Steel welcome emotional complexity. The result: a satisfying stick-to-your-ribs adaptation.

numbered reviews:
1. It's straight-faced, square-jawed stuff, but that's apt enough for the boldest, simplest superhero concept of all.
2. Director Bryan Singer nimbly navigates the tricky balance between the old-school purists and 21st century sensibility, with existential questions: does the world need Superman? Does he need us?
3. It's got all the heart and soul that's been missing from every other superhero movie that isn't about the X-Men.
4. A case of "good, sometimes very good, but definitely not great," which is kind of a small-yet-nagging disappointment, considering the talent and passion that went into the thing.
5. It's a thinky blockbuster, yes, though there is plenty of deft humor and breathtaking visuals and nods to the earlier films, too. And when the story calls for action, Singer delivers it.
6. [It's] a summer popcorn movie, no question, but it looks great, has laughs and thrills, and even a few moments of genuine drama.
7. He remembered the cape, the spandex, the shiny boots and the big red S on his chest, but wait. . . . Where's the personality?
8. Brandon Routh has no problem filling out the Superman suit (quite nicely), but he can't quite fill the shoes.
9. Try to ignore the parallels Singer draws between Christ and Superman...go ahead, I dare ya.
10. ...the most effective and flat-out entertaining installment in this ongoing series.