WALL STREET
Gordon Gekko can’t be sold short in this flawed depiction of greed
Starring: Michael Douglas, Charlie Sheen, Daryl Hannah, Martin Sheen ♦ 3.5 stars
50/50
Half-baked therapist dramedy has a heart
Starring: Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Seth Rogen, Anna Kendrick ♦ 2.5 stars
THE ELECTRIC HORSEMAN
A pair of left-leaning megastars introduce Morning in America
Starring: Robert Redford, Jane Fonda, Willie Nelson ♦ 3.5 stars
PATTON
Defense of the institution is The Most Important Film Ever Made
Starring: George C. Scott, Karl Malden, Stephen Young ♦ 4 stars
GRAN TORINO
Clint still can draw a gun like no other in this pleasing tale of tolerance
Starring: Clint Eastwood, Bee Vang, Ahney Her, Christopher Carley ♦ 3.5 stars
BROADCAST NEWS
An ethical breach derails a relationship that never should’ve happened
Starring: William Hurt, Holly Hunter, Albert Brooks, Jack Nicholson ♦ 2.5 stars
A FEW GOOD MEN
“Patton” extension denounces old-schol military but enjoys the sexism
Starring: Tom Cruise, Jack Nicholson, Demi Moore, Kevin Pollak ♦ 4 stars
THE DOORS
An Oscar-snubbed performance so good, Jim Morrison doesn’t deserve it
Starring: Val Kilmer, Meg Ryan, Kyle MacLachlan, Kathleen Quinlan ♦ 3.5 stars
THE SECRET OF MY SUCCE$S
Underrated corporate-climbing caper thrives on winging it
Starring: Michael J. Fox, Helen Slater, Margaret Whitton ♦ 3 stars
THE GODFATHER
History’s most celebrated gangster film is a cleverly disguised tragedy
Starring: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall ♦ 4 stars
THE WRESTLER
Poignant story, but the cable TV guys are better at producing wrestling drama
Starring: Mickey Rourke, Marisa Tomei, Evan Rachel Wood ♦ 3.5 stars
THE READER
A young man finds himself in position to render a verdict on a nation’s guilt
Starring: Kate Winslet, Ralph Fiennes, David Kross, Bruno Ganz ♦ 3.5 stars
MILK
Splendid documentary material doesn’t pack a Hollywood punch
Starring: Sean Penn, James Franco, Josh Brolin, Emile Hirsch ♦ 3 stars
THE VISITOR
Different people live in different worlds, even when sharing an apartment
Starring: Richard Jenkins, Haaz Sleiman, Hiam Abbass, Danai Gurira ♦ 3 stars
THE CURIOUS CASE OF BENJAMIN BUTTON
Woe to be young again — this reverse-chronology epic might not age well
Starring: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Taraji P. Henson, Tilda Swinton ♦ 2.5 stars
FROZEN RIVER
A desperate family is on thin ice in this powerful portrayal of the poor
Starring: Melissa Leo, Misty Upham, Michael O’Keefe ♦ 4 stars
DOUBT
An unbreakable nun’s strongest suspicions are put to the test
Starring: Meryl Streep, Amy Adams, Philip Seymour Hoffman ♦ 3.5 stars
FROST/NIXON
It’s David vs. Goliath in the combative arena of ... TV interviewing
Starring: Frank Langella, Michael Sheen, Sam Rockwell, Kevin Bacon ♦ 2.5 stars
I’VE LOVED YOU SO LONG
Can this dazzling woman’s criminal background be for real?
Starring: Kristin Scott Thomas, Elsa Zylberstein, Serge Hazanavicius ♦ 4 stars
SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE
An orphan in India makes the most of his less-than-1-in-4 shot in life
Starring: Dev Patel, Anil Kapoor, Freida Pinto, Irrfan Khan ♦ 3.5 stars
THE BOY IN THE STRIPED PAJAMAS
A child near a concentration camp wonders about those ‘farmers’
Starring: Asa Butterfield, Jack Scanlon, David Thewlis ♦ 3.5 stars
CHANGELING
The mother of all actresses faces a horrifying search for son
Starring: Angelina Jolie, John Malkovich, Michael Kelly ♦ 4 stars
W.
It’s Bush satire vs. Bush fatigue in this tardy caricature
Starring: Josh Brolin, James Cromwell, Richard Dreyfuss ♦ 2.5 stars
RACHEL GETTING MARRIED
Sisters spar over their dueling psychological practices
Starring: Anne Hathaway, Rosemarie DeWitt, Debra Winger ♦ 4 stars
SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK
A theater director confronts life’s script
Starring: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener, Samantha Morton ♦ 3 stars
THE NAMESAKE
An Indian father finds a Russian author more powerful than his son does
Starring: Tabu, Kal Penn, Irrfan Khan, Jacinda Barrett, Sahira Nair ♦ 3 stars
WALL-E
What on Earth could happen to the human race?
Starring: Ben Burtt (voice), Elissa Knight (voice), Jeff Garlin (voice) ♦ 3 stars
THE 40 YEAR OLD VIRGIN
Collision of raunch vs. values delivers two of the most rewarding scenes in memory
Starring: Steve Carell, Catherine Keener, Seth Rogen, Kat Dennings ♦ 4 stars
THE COMPANY YOU KEEP
A newer cause hits close to home for a former ’70s radical
Starring: Robert Redford, Julie Christie, Shia LaBeouf ♦ 2.5 stars
RAIN MAN
Raymond Babbitt steals hearts, while brother Charlie steals the show
Starring: Tom Cruise, Dustin Hoffman, Valeria Golino, Jerry Molen ♦ 4 stars
BACK TO THE FUTURE
Time travel tale poses big question — do we really have the capacitor to change?
Starring: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Crispin Glover ♦ 4 stars
ULEE’S GOLD
Bee-lieve it: The healing of a broken family is as sweet as the Tupelo honey
Starring: Peter Fonda, Patricia Richardson, Christine Dunford ♦ 4 stars
HOUSE OF SAND AND FOG
Two people from opposite worlds can’t bear to lose their home
Starring: Jennifer Connelly, Ben Kingsley, Shohreh Aghdashloo ♦ 4 stars
ROUNDERS
Drop law school and a gorgeous girlfriend to play poker in Vegas. Sounds like a plan.
Starring: Matt Damon, Edward Norton, John Malkovich ♦ 3 stars
IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH
For one unit, getting home from Iraq is only half the battle
Starring: Tommy Lee Jones, Charlize Theron, Susan Sarandon ♦ 3 stars
NOTORIOUS
An American agent may care more about a mission than his beautiful contact
Starring: Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Claude Rains, Louis Calhern ♦ 4 stars
NORTH BY NORTHWEST
Whoever Kaplan is, he’s got nothing on Cary Grant
Starring: Cary Grant, Eva Marie Saint, James Mason ♦ 4 stars
THE CANDIDATE
Long before Barack Obama, this satire would get your vote
Starring: Robert Redford, Peter Boyle, Melvyn Douglas, Don Porter ♦ 4 stars
DIE HARD
One of cinema’s greatest villains meets one of its greatest heroes
Starring: Bruce Willis, Alan Rickman, Bonnie Bedelia ♦ 3.5 stars
CHINATOWN
The unforgettable 1970s noir of unfathomable decadence
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston ♦ 4 stars
GOOD WILL HUNTING
Society tries to push a genius whose deep scars haven’t healed
Starring: Robin Williams, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Minnie Driver ♦ 3.5 stars
THE QUEEN
God — and Blair — save the sovereign from a P.R. disaster
Starring: Helen Mirren, Michael Sheen, James Cromwell, Helen McCrory ♦ 3 stars
SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER
Tony Manero conquers at least one demon while exploring if it’s all Bay Ridge’s fault
Starring: John Travolta, Karen Lynn Gorney, Barry Miller ♦ 4 stars
MARIA FULL OF GRACE
A 17-year-old going on 37 needs every one of those years
Starring: Catalina Sandino Moreno, Yenny Paola Vega, Patricia Rae ♦ 4 stars
CASABLANCA
A triumph of love and sacrifice over romance and passion
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Claude Rains ♦ 4 stars
PULP FICTION
Truth is, this aspiring B movie is one of the funniest ever
Starring: John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis ♦ 4 stars
THE MALTESE FALCON
Famous noir vies to be the stuff legendary films are made of
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Sydney Greenstreet ♦ 3.5 stars
IRON MAN
A triumph of what a man can accomplish when he puts his mind to it
Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Jeff Bridges, Gwyneth Paltrow ♦ 3.5 stars
MARATHON MAN
A young Jewish man battles a Nazi in a farfetched endurance test
Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Laurence Olivier, Roy Scheider ♦ 2.5 stars
ROAD HOUSE
Opinions vary, but this is the best butt-kickin’ film ever made
Starring: Patrick Swayze, Ben Gazzara, Kelly Lynch, Sam Elliott ♦ 3.5 stars