While juvenile and full of incredibly hilarious moments of irreverent, grotesque, and slapstick comedy, this strange love story squanders the talent in front of the camera and many opportunities to make a coherent, worthwhile point. Despite a funny cast and witty writing, several scenes are painfully incompetent and remarkably stupid.

Grade: C.

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Russell Crowe leads a phenomenal cast in this Oscar-winning biopic about Nobel laureate John Forbes Nash and his lifelong struggle with schizophrenia. Jennifer Connelly, as his wife, gives a career-defining performance. Ron Howard’s direction of this great script brings the audience into the mind of this troubled genius.

Grade: A+.

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Khaled Hosseini’s best-selling novel comes to life in this beautiful work of art that stars Khalid Abdalla as a young Afghan man who returns to his homeland to find the son of his childhood friend. With lots of historical insight, this picture delivers rare perspective on an interesting culture.

Grade: A.

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This coming-of-age adventure, based on a true story, features good performances by a cadre of talented young actors, in a story about young men who crew the school ship Albatross. Jeff Daniels does a solid job as the ship’s captain, working with a script written by a survivor.

Grade: B+.

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Mel Gibson directs this epic story of a small Mayan village that comes under attack and its members captured for sacrifice. The story is tight and focused, the sets gorgeous and authentic, and the acting quite believable. Gibson’s unexpectedly solid efforts here bring the enigmatic Mayans to vivid, spectacular life.

Grade: A-.

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Clive Owen, Julianne Moore, and Michael Caine star in this dystopian story set in a postapocalyptic London after the human race loses its ability to reproduce. The vision of a crumbled civilization and the attempts of the government to contain the growing chaos is brought to life with frightening realism.

Grade: A.

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Sonny Rollins joins varying groups of musicians, including his quartet and, later in the album, the Modern Jazz Quartet, on this early album that features a number of standards, as well as originals. This wonderfully listenable set is just good straight ahead jazz and the solo work is top-notch.

Grade: A-.

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Forest Whitaker earns his Oscar for Best Actor with his portrayal of Idi Amin, the infamous dictator of Uganda known for brutal repression and human rights abuses. James McAvoy costars as a young Scottish doctor who befriends him. Whitaker captures the menacing figure perfectly, working with a wonderful supporting cast.

Grade: A-.

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This spoof on all modern police action flicks is unbelievably fun, always completely deadpan, and ridiculously hilarious. Nicholas Angel is an outstanding London police officer who gets transferred to a small village for making his colleagues look incompetent. The action sequences are amazing, the humor irreverent, and the story entertaining.

Grade: A.

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A classic novel by Gabriel García Márquez is adapted into a film by a director that doesn’t seem to get it. The cast is talented enough and the cinematography and set design are absolutely gorgeous. Unfortunately, the makeup and costuming aren’t and lots of poignant moments seem clunky and distracted.

Grade: C+.

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