A film of few words, “Conan the Barbarian” strays from the path of most action films as far as storytelling goes. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who would become notorious for delivering one- liners has only one or two opportunities in this film. But how can one possibly complain about an action/adventure film that doesn’t waste its time [...]

Festering somewhere in the chaos of “Sucker Punch” is an exotic narrative twisted into an epic adventure waiting to be born. But Zack Snyder has pulled his bun out of the oven way before he’s given it time to rise. A multi-layered rock fantasy that could find a permanent home on MTV2, Snyder’s premature brainchild [...]

“The Voyage of the Dawn Treader,” the third book in “The Chronicles of Narnia” series and the fifth chronologically speaking, is often cited as a favorite among fans of the C.S. Lewis fantasy books, which is a shame because the writers here have taken extensive liberties with the story. Although I’m one to frequently remind [...]

I just re-watched “At World’s End” and man, I recall liking it much more the first time, so my rating here reflects a balance of my two viewings. Here’s a review of my “revised” opinion. “At World’s End” or “At Wit’s End,” whatever you want to call it, the third installment in Disney’s theme-park-ride-turned-mega-movie-franchise has [...]

Nicolas Cage and director Jon Turteltaub found a certain magic with the “National Treasure” movies, so it’s not surprising that Disney turned to them again in hopes of turning another existing property in the form of the infamous “Fantasia” scene into a possible franchise starter. A story of ancient sorcery and modern action in present-day [...]

This is a repost (with some grammatical edits and few deletions) of my review from Aug. 24, 2009. Like every movie thus far in the Harry Potter series based on J.K Rowling’s novels, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” (book no. 6) cuts a lot of corners. Those who regard Rowling’s tome as a bible [...]

Despite its fourth director in five tries and even a new screenwriter, the Harry Potter franchise takes a huge step forward in “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” based off the fifth book in the young adult fantasy series by J.K Rowling. Whereas Harry’s character growth took a backseat in the Mike Newell-directed [...]

As a huge fan of the intelligence and beauty that Alfonso Cuarón brought to the third Harry Potter film based on J.K Rowling’s fantasy book series, I was saddened to hear that he backed out of the fourth, “Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire,” because of the quick year-and-a-half turnaround. Though director Mike Newell [...]

Producer Chris Columbus, who directed the first two films made of the Harry Potter series of fantasy books by J.K. Rowling, couldn’t have made a better choice than stepping away from the camera and giving the reigns to a seasoned director with a fresh perspective. It’s what makes “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” [...]

The first Harry Potter movie was kind of like a freak-out test for its creators: how much material do we use from the book? How loyal do we stay to it? How do we make this all come to life? “Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets,” the film version of the second book in [...]

Hey, Harry Potter fans! Look for an archive review for every Harry Potter film, one each day until the release of “Deathly Hallows, Pt. 1″! When a beloved book is given the big-screen treatment, there’s always the excitement factor of getting to see what was once only in your head come to life right before [...]

It only takes a few great cinematic elements to turn a helter-skelter sci-fi fantasy into a cult classic. Russell Mulcahy finds that edge in directing Gregory Widen’s story “Highlander.” Part of it is Christopher Lambert’s hardened hero Connor McLeod as well as Clancy Brown’s exceptionally psychotic performance as the Kurgan, but Mulcahy commands how we [...]

When Tim Burton and Disney present you a pretty little 3-D film with a tag on it that says “Watch Me,” you’re likely to indulge. The prospect of one of the finest fantasy directors (who’s a bit mad himself) creating the beloved and colorful world of Lewis Carroll’s classic children’s tales in the era of [...]

Crack open the mind of filmmaker Terry Gilliam and you’re likely to find something akin to the imagination world inside the mirror in his film “The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus.” Known for surrealism, candy-coated visuals and deliberately hacking at all that stands for common sense, Gilliam applies these trademarks to the kind of film where [...]