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Another Dr. Seuss film disaster

(NEWSER) - The Lorax may have a sound environmental message, but it's lost in a subpar movie that warps Dr. Seuss' original sentiment. One critic found the movie so vile he was inspired to write a Seuss-esque poem of his own:

• "There’s no fun in The Lorax, no joy in its theme / It’s as boring as sales tax / I’m ready to ream," writes Kyle Smith in the New York Post . "The Lorax stands small as a hectoring runt / Even Al Gore’s ax was never so blunt." As for the songs: "You’ll forget them before this young March hits the ides / I have heard better tunes on Clay Aiken’s B-sides."

Critics split on 'sweet,' 'stale' kids' movie

(NEWSER) - Diary of a Wimpy Kid is like your average middle schooler—loved by some, hated by others. Reviews, in short, are mixed. Here’s what critics are saying:

• “It is so hard to do a movie like this well,” but Diary of a Wimpy Kid pulls it off, raves Roger Ebert in the Chicago Sun-Times . “It's nimble, bright and funny. It doesn't dumb down. It doesn’t patronize.” It even deserves mention alongside the glorious A Christmas Story.

Biopic The Last Station is 'lusty, roaring' tour-de-force

(NEWSER) - Critics are hopping aboard at The Last Station, a lively drama about Leo Tolstoy's final days starring Christopher Plummer and Helen Mirren. Here’s what they’re saying:

• “The arrival of a movie with as much intelligence and artistry as The Last Station should also be accompanied by the sound of trumpets,” writes an ebullient Rex Reed for The New York Observer . “ This movie is passionate, profound and unforgettable.”

Well-made movie will entertain kids, critics agree

(NEWSER) - The young girls who love the “American Girl” series are pretty much guaranteed to love Kit Kittredge: An American Girl, critics agree. Rex Reed of the New York Observer calls it “a brisk, beautifully conceived period piece that spells entertainment with a capital E,” though he admits it’s “so sweet and sanitized it makes me feel almost guilty for liking it.” More»

Return to fantasy kingdom is darker, crisper

(NEWSER) - The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian returns to the fantasyland 1,300 years after The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and all is not well in the kingdom. The "darker, more conventional, and more crisply made" follow-up features "more clashing swords than all the Robin Hood movies put together," Todd McCarthy writes in Variety. More»