Leonard Maltin

In Hollywood terms, the "summer" movie season used to begin on Memorial Day weekend; this year, it begins today, May 4, with the release of Marvel's The Avengers. (If even a few of the other blockbusters turn out as well as this one, I'll be very happy.) This is also...

The cinematic pickings remain relatively slim this spring, but there are always isolated bright spots here and there. Any month when I can spotlight work by The Dardenne brothers of Belgium, the Duplass brothers of the U.S., and such provocative filmmakers as Morgan Spurlock and David Cronenberg can't be all...

The Oscars may be history, but I'm happy to report that this year's Documentary award winner and three of its Foreign Language Film nominees are now playing in theaters (along with the winner in that category, the extraordinary Iranian film A Separation, which I highlighted...

By Leonard Maltin

After the mad rush of December releases, the early months of the new year are usually fallow--except for films that opened briefly in 2011 in order to qualify for the Academy Awards, like our first two selections, Albert Nobbs and Coriolanus. Now that they're actually playing on...

By Leonard Maltin

Traditionally, January releases are nothing to shout about, since most moviegoers are still busy catching up with the Big Guns of December, some of them having crept into theaters just under the year-end wire to qualify for Academy Awards. This translates into good news, however, since...

If you're a discerning moviegoer who lives in a community with a specialty theater (or art house, as we used to call them), you may have seen some of the titles on my list. But there are some smaller, more offbeat pictures, that fly under the radar of even...

If you're a discerning moviegoer who lives in a community with a specialty theater (or art house, as we used to call them), you may have seen some of the titles on my list. But there are some smaller, more offbeat pictures, that fly under the radar of even...

It takes the better part of a year to survive the continuous stream of mediocre movies (and worse) so we can finally get to "the good stuff." Now that we have a bounty of first-rate movies to choose from, we have to insulate ourselves from the awards-season hype that touts...

Finally, there are worthwhile films playing on theater screens, including some mainstream fare that's bidding for Oscar attention.

In addition to the five films below, there are other standouts from this year's releases that have made their way to DVD and Movies on Demand, including the must-see documentary...

The early fall has not proven to be a prime time for movies, so far, with quantity outpacing quality by a country mile. But if you search the nooks and crannies of independent theaters, DVD releases, and Movies On Demand you can still satisfy your hunger for original and provocative...

Labor Day weekend marks the end of summer, and a traditionally fallow period for good movies as studios and distributors dump a lot of crummy movies onto the marketplace--figuring that people are distracted with winding down from vacations and getting their kids off to school. Vera Farmiga's

By Leonard Maltin

As we come to the last month of summer movie season, discerning filmgoers can still find satisfying alternatives to blockbusters-of-the-week. Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris continues to charm audiences from coast to coast, while such provocative documentaries as Buck, Project...

By Leonard Maltin

Stupid Movie Season continues apace, but there are alternatives for any smart moviegoer who wants to make the effort. If you still haven't seen Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris, Michael Winterbottom's The Trip, or Don McGlynn's Rejoice and Shout, you...

By Leonard Maltin

I'm no snob when it comes to movies, but I've come to dread the onslaught of summer blockbusters--a feeling not dispelled by the arrival of the dreary Pirates of the Caribbean and the dreadful Hangover Part II. If you feel the same...

With the arrival of Thor and those Pirates of the Caribbean, summer movie season is upon us, even though the calendar says it's still spring. I have nothing against popcorn movies, so long as they're good; I get upset when they're successful just because they show up. If...

By Leonard Maltin

With so much mediocrity on display at the multiplex, it's cause for celebration when terrific new movies from two world-class filmmakers--Denmark's Susanne Bier and our own Tom McCarthy--find their way to theaters across the U.S. The fact that neither one of the films is easy to describe...

By Leonard Maltin

The Oscars are history for another year, but they continue to be part of the conversation when it comes to foreign-language films released in the U.S. In a more perfect world, Vincent Cassel--now familiar to millions of Americans because of his role as Natalie Portman's ballet...

January and February are typically a fallow time for decent new movies--except, of course, for the considerable spillover from the late-December release of Oscar hopefuls. The best indie and foreign films now playing in theaters are the same ones I highlighted last month: Mike Leigh's wonderful ensemble piece

By Leonard Maltin

It's that time when we all try to check out the late-December releases that snuck in just under the wire to qualify for critics' awards and the Oscars, though in truth they are January releases. Mike Leigh's latest gem, Another Year, is but one example.

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How do you sum up a decade in just ten movies? That's easy: you can't. Not when the first ten years of a new millennium saw the flowering of such established talents as Clint Eastwood, The Coen Brothers, Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, Mike Leigh, Guy Maddin, Quentin Tarantino,...