Narnia Still Casts a Spell

Kids' movie about bringing books to life struggles to bring book to life

(NEWSER) - When it comes to the kids-lit adaptation Inkheart, fans are probably better off sticking to the book, say critics. Brendan Fraser stars as a father with the power to bring characters off the page to life, but the special-effects-driven movie fails to capture the "dark whimsy" of the best-selling original, Sheri Linden writes in the Los Angeles Times. More»

It's a kids' fantasy that 'doesn't wimp out,' says Ebert

(NEWSER) - Critics by and large are enchanted with The Spiderwick Chronicles. It's "a well-crafted family thriller that is truly scary and doesn't wimp out," writes Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times. The fantasy, based on the best-selling books, follows twins (played by Freddie Highmore) and their sister (In America's Sarah Bolger) as the recipients of a forbidden book that might save the world. More»

Dull plotting, acting undermine high-concept thriller

(NEWSER) - The concept for Jumper seems promising: An awkward teenage boy who discovers he has the power to instantly teleport himself to anywhere on the globe is targeted for elimination by religious fanatics. And in some respects the film delivers on that promise. "The jumping effect is faultlessly executed," writes Empire's Olly Richards, adding that the movie "packs some cracking action" into its relatively short 88-minute running time. More»

But Nicolas Cage seems to get it: critics

(NEWSER) - Critics agree: Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance is ridiculous. But they're divided over whether the silliness of the sequel, once again starring Nicolas Cage as the devilish superhero, is funny or just bad.

• In the Merced Sun-Star , Roger Moore calls the movie "a profoundly silly mash-up of comic book and quasi-religious 'prophecy' about a motorcyclist who sold his soul to the devil." It beats the original: "This time around, Cage and everybody else on board are in on the joke," and that makes it "almost a great bad movie."

Movie reviews: Rachel McAdams, Channing Tatum can't save amnesia romance

(NEWSER) - In The Vow, Rachel McAdams plays a woman who must learn to love her husband again after amnesia wipes her memory. It's no surprise it was released ahead of Valentine's Day: It's pure mushiness, critics say.

• In the New York Daily News , Elizabeth Weitzman calls the film a "down-the-middle, by-the-numbers fantasy, in which no one is too quirky or interesting or challenging in any way." Still, "there’s no shortage of viewers ready to embrace an old-fashioned, guilty-pleasure romance."