Don't Land On Planet 51

Animated Star Wars feature doesn't quite replicate the feel of the real thing

(NEWSER) - Star Wars: The Clone Wars fills a gap in the saga's chronology, and although the animated feature may give devoted Lucasfilm fans their fix before the TV series launches this fall, the oddly lifeless movie "isn't the Star Wars we've known and loved, Todd McCarthy writes in Variety. More»

Critics agree The Simpsons Movie is funny, but could have been more daring

(NEWSER) - Critics are overwhelmingly pleased by The Simpsons Movie, even if they agree it doesn't push the envelope further than usual. By all accounts, rapid-fire sight gags and one-liners keep diehards and casual fans alike in giggles. Even naysayers, like the LA Times, don't argue it's not funny, just that it doesn't go far enough: "It doesn't take the gloves off." More»

Paul Rudd stars in Jesse Peretz comedy

(NEWSER) - Our Idiot Brother is the story of a sweet-natured fool who depends on his three sisters to get his life back on track. It’s good for a smile, if not big laughs:

• In the New York Times , AO Scott calls it a “thin, unconvincing movie made likable by the charm and skill of its cast and by a script peppered with wit and insight.” The humor, however, comes from “obvious, picked-over places.”

JJ Abrams directs Kyle Chandler, Elle Fanning in sci-fi flick

(NEWSER) - Super 8 is a fun summer blockbuster about kids, monsters, and filmmaking—but don’t expect a classic.

• Director JJ Abrams is “clever and sincere,” notes AO Scott in the New York Times , “but still, at least on the big screen, more student than master. Like his previous features, Super 8 is an enticing package without much inside.”
• Claudia Puig applauds the film in USA Today . “Super 8 packs the emotional punch of vintage Steven Spielberg with the spectacular effects and sense of mystery at which writer/director J.J. Abrams excels.

Film critic had entered it more than 100 times

(NEWSER) - Roger Ebert has entered 107 of the New Yorker 's 281 cartoon caption contests, and this week, he finally won. The film critic opined two years ago on his blog that he had "done more writing for free for the New Yorker in the last five years than for anybody in the previous 40 years," and wondered why he had never even been a finalist. To celebrate Ebert's long-awaited triumph, New Yorker cartoon editor Robert Mankoff runs the winning caption as well as some of his favorites of Ebert's past submissions. More»