America's oldest Catholic newspaper
Official newspaper of the Archdiocese of Boston

Movie Reviews by the U.S. Bishops'
Office for Film & Broadcasting

The Internship

NEW YORK (CNS) -- Director Shawn Levy's comedy "The Internship" (Fox) has a topical premise along with two likable stars. Humor and inventiveness, on the other hand, are in short supply.

Frances Ha

NEW YORK (CNS) -- In the 1990s, comedian Jerry Seinfeld made a hit -- and a fortune -- with an eponymous TV series which was, he claimed, "about nothing." Along comes its cinematic sister, "Frances Ha" (IFC), the tale of a feckless 27-year-old who's waiting for her life to happen.

Now You See Me

NEW YORK (CNS) -- Professional magicians are caught up in a high-stakes game of cat and mouse -- or white rabbit and doves, perhaps -- in "Now You See Me" (Summit), an entertaining caper movie.

After Earth

NEW YORK (CNS) -- You can't go home again. So, at least, the title of a 1940 novel by Thomas Wolfe admonishes us. That's a bit of advice the characters in the grueling sci-fi adventure "After Earth" (Columbia) -- not to mention the real-life folks behind this plodding project -- would have done well to heed.

The Reluctant Fundamentalist

NEW YORK (CNS) -- Are terrorists born or made? And which is worse: a jihadist just following the precepts of the Koran, or a Wall Street corporate raider, reaping misery as he follows orders, cuts jobs and increases profits?

Epic

NEW YORK (CNS) -- Though some perilous interludes and the onscreen -- albeit mild -- demise of at least one prominent character might make it too scary for the littlest members of the family, director Chris Wedge's pleasant 3-D animated fantasy "Epic" (Fox) provides appropriate viewing for just about everyone else.

Fast & Furious 6

NEW YORK (CNS) -- The title-shifting franchise that now gives us "Fast & Furious 6" (Universal) may be unreliable where the use of definite articles and the representation of conjunctions are concerned. But its underlying recipe is far more predictable.

The Hangover Part III

NEW YORK (CNS) -- On its surface a defanged and declawed version of the first two installments, "The Hangover Part III" (Warner Bros.) has no sex, no alcohol or drug abuse and almost no nudity, albeit that last element is eventually -- perhaps inevitably -- included via a closing-credits sight gag.

Mud

NEW YORK (CNS) -- Set in rural Arkansas, along the banks of the Mississippi, writer-director Jeff Nichols' leisurely coming of age story "Mud" (Lionsgate/Roadside) owes an obvious debt to Mark Twain's classic tale "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn."