For EllenSundanceSo Yong Kim takes what could have been routine story elements and transforms them into something deeply sad and touching in "For Ellen."Robert Koehler1/22/2012 10:42pm PT
Nobody WalksSundanceBoosted by a fine cast and co-writer Lena Dunham's wit, Ry Russo-Young's "Nobody Walks" captures the fallout of an open-minded Los Angeles family shaken up by the arrival of a sexy outsider. Peter Debruge1/22/2012 7:30pm PT
Lay the FavoriteSundanceFrivolous fun at best, archly affected tedium at worst, "Lay the Favorite" delivers a disappointing hand.Justin Chang1/22/2012 3:27pm PT
The First TimeSundanceThis competently crafted teen romance proves perilously short on substance, insight and novelty.Dennis Harvey1/22/2012 8:03am PT
ArbitrageSundanceA smart, high-toned Wall Street drama that should pay dividends for the right distrib.Peter Debruge1/22/2012 8:01am PT
Robot & FrankSundanceJack Schreier's smart helming debut is a marginally futuristic, emotionally genuine yarn.John Anderson1/22/2012 7:58am PT
Keep the Lights OnSundanceIra Sachs mines his own memories to sensitive if somewhat muted effect in this gay relationship drama.Justin Chang1/22/2012 7:35am PT
ComplianceSundanceThis stealth psychological horror film grimly assesses the human capacity for sheeplike naivete under duress.Justin Chang1/21/2012 5:53pm PT
Marina Abramovic The Artist Is PresentSundancePerformance artist Marina Abramovic's four-decade career receives its mainstream platform in "The Artist is Present."Robert Koehler1/21/2012 5:41pm PT
Red LightsSundanceThis otherwise slick pic could require reshoots to restore it to something commercial crowds are willing to take seriously.Peter Debruge1/21/2012 2:26pm PT
Filly BrownSundance"Filly Brown" tells a familiar saga of a no-nonsense Latina rapper and her struggles at home and in the biz.Robert Koehler1/21/2012 2:05pm PT
EthelSundanceDirector Rory Kennedy is a good daughter, which is precisely why "Ethel" is such a stiff film.John Anderson1/21/2012 1:33pm PT
I Am Not a HipsterSundanceWriter-helmer Destin Daniel Cretton makes a well-crafted feature debut with this slender slice of life about a depressed indie rock up-and-comer's hectic week.Dennis Harvey1/21/2012 9:42am PT
Celeste & Jesse ForeverSundanceGlibly amusing and fitfully perceptive comedy follows a wife and husband determined to stay best friends following their weirdly amicable split.Justin Chang1/21/2012 9:26am PT
Simon KillerSundanceAntonio Campos' second feature is an unsettling broken-psyche study starring Brady Corbet as a sort of modern-day Ripley, amoral and disengaged enough from the feelings of others to become a potentially fatal liability in any relationship.Peter Debruge1/21/2012 8:51am PT
Middle of NowhereSundanceSolidly acted but aloof and slow as molasses, "Middle of Nowhere" seems neither here nor there.Rob Nelson1/21/2012 8:44am PT
Tim and Eric's Billion Dollar MovieSundanceProving less is definitely more, cult comics Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim torture their purposefully inept, shortform sketch work into feature length with "Tim and Eric's Billion Dollar Movie," to diminishing returns.John Anderson1/21/2012 12:15am PT
Beasts of the Southern WildSundanceBenh Zeitlin's stunning debut finds its dandelion-haired heroine fighting rising tides and fantastic creatures in a mythic battle against modernity.Peter Debruge1/20/2012 10:30pm PT
West of MemphisSundanceFollowing on the heels of the celebrated "Paradise Lost" trilogy, Amy Berg's clear, captivating, indignant film about the West Memphis Three carves out its own significant place in criminal-justice cinema.John Anderson1/20/2012 10:24pm PT
Searching for Sugar ManSundanceA winning musical detective story about a failed, forgotten early '70s rocker who became a huge success halfway across the world while presumed dead for decades.Dennis Harvey1/20/2012 2:10pm PT
As Luck Would Have ItNew Int'l. Release"As Luck Would Have It" reps an entertaining but unsubtle satire on the moral confusions of a marketing/media-driven world. .Jonathan Holland1/20/2012 12:07pm PT
Underworld AwakeningNew U.S. ReleaseThe latest chapter of the popular vamp franchise extends the mythos and sustains the excitement of its predecessors.Joe Leydon1/20/2012 10:27am PT
Hello I Must Be GoingSundanceWriter Sarah Koskoff and director Todd Louiso deliver a slight, solipsistic portrait of emotional recovery starring likable and woefully underused character actress Melanie Lynskey.Peter Debruge1/20/2012 2:48am PT
The Viral FactorNew Int'l. ReleaseGlobetrotting, gun toting, car chases, explosions: Dante Lam's "The Viral Factor" has all the action-junkie goods and then some, including the most jaw-dropping scenes of plummeting in recent Hong Kong stunt choreography.Maggie Lee1/20/2012 12:04am PT
The Queen of VersaillesSundanceAn often hilarious, mostly infuriating chronicle of the rise and fall of one of America's most obscenely wealthy families, this timely and involving documentary elicits both sympathy and schadenfreude.Justin Chang1/19/2012 11:52pm PT
Wish You Were HereSundanceWith a storyline that coils around and around itself until viewers may have trouble breathing, "Wish You Were Here" is the incandescent feature debut of helmer Kieran Darcy-Smith, and a rare kind of showcase for leads Joel Edgerton ("Warrior") and co-writer Felicity Price.John Anderson1/19/2012 11:26pm PT
16-LoveNew U.S. ReleaseTween-targeted indie sports drama focuses on a driven junior tennis champ whose sidelining injury gives her a chance to experience normal teenage life for the first time.Dennis Harvey1/19/2012 10:22am PT
Red TailsNew U.S. ReleaseExec producer George Lucas spent 23 years developing "Red Tails," a glossed-up B picture about the exploits of the Tuskegee Airmen in World War II, but even without the long delay the project took to reach the screen, the result would have felt old-fashioned.Peter Debruge1/18/2012 7:00pm PT
ScaleneNew U.S. ReleaseTaking its cue from the uneven-sided triangle after which it is named, "Scalene" presents three disparate accounts of a central event, the rape of a college girl by the mentally handicapped 26-year-old she was hired to tend. Ronnie Scheib1/18/2012 6:54pm PT
BolPalm SpringsAn authoritarian father's iron grip on his family leads to inevitably tragic consequences in Pakistani writer-director Shoaib Mansoor's ripe, hot-button melodrama, "Bol."Robert Koehler1/18/2012 6:28pm PT
Watching TV With the Red ChineseNew Int'l. ReleaseThe Gotham adventures of three exchange students from mainland China are told from the vantage point of the neighbor who befriends them in "Watching TV With the Red Chinese." Ronnie Scheib1/18/2012 6:16pm PT
Welcome to the NorthNew Int'l. ReleaseThe quirky postal workers of "Welcome to the South" reverse direction, arriving with more quirk yet less zing in helmer Luca Miniero's follow-up, "Welcome to the North."Jay Weissberg1/18/2012 5:57pm PT
If I Were YouPalm SpringsA woman's discovery of her husband's infidelity triggers a series of increasingly unlikely responses in writer-director Joan Carr-Wiggin's chatty, slight "If I Were You."Robert Koehler1/18/2012 5:57pm PT
Journey 2: The Mysterious IslandNew U.S. ReleaseAs simple and direct as its abbreviated title, "Journey 2: The Mysterious Island" is a fun though rarely funny family adventure whose lively special effects compensate somewhat for actors who largely sleepwalk through their roles.Russell Edwards1/17/2012 6:00pm PT
The GreyNew U.S. ReleaseAudiences primed by trailers and TV spots to anticipate a straight-up man-vs.-nature action-thriller -- something like Liam Neeson in "Tangles With Wolves" -- may find "The Grey" to be at once more and less than what they expect. Joe Leydon1/17/2012 3:00pm PT
The Perfect StrangerPalm SpringsDistinguished mainly by its lovely lensing of the Spanish countryside, "The Perfect Stranger" is a pleasant but feeble fish-out-of-water dramedy that never finds a confident groove or delivers a single surprise.Justin Chang1/16/2012 7:06pm PT
Back to Your ArmsPalm SpringsCold War intrigue prior to the erection of the Berlin Wall injects the occasionally engaging "Back to Your Arms" with a tension that's nevertheless different from what you'd expect in a standard spy movie.Robert Koehler1/16/2012 6:08pm PT
Arranged HappinessPalm SpringsThe tricky business of finding a suitable husband in Kashmir is observed from an outsider's perspective in "Arranged Happiness," an eye-opening cultural study that's a bit too self-involved for its own good.Justin Chang1/16/2012 5:58pm PT
The Girls in the BandPalm SpringsThe hidden history of women in jazz is treated with a fan's enthusiasm and musical depth in Judy Chaikin's lovingly rendered "The Girls in the Band." Plentiful screen time for three generations of femme jazzers, led by energetic and witty gals from the golden age of big band and swing who unlock a treasure trove of memories, make this a real crowdpleaser (it won the Palm Springs fest's documentary audience award). A lock for widespread fest travels and ancillary sales, the pic may prompt a rewrite of jazz history.Robert Koehler1/16/2012 4:04pm PT
The EntrepreneurRome Film FestivalGray may be the new black for fashion, but it's a dull color scheme for helmer Giuliano Montaldo's "The Entrepreneur."Jay Weissberg1/16/2012 3:37pm PT