Warts and all, The Fighter is a completely entertaining and compelling character study. It may be just another 'underdog attempts to triumph with the help of a trusted girlfriend' fable, but thanks to the cast, it's a darn-good entry in a well-worn genre.

Who exactly does the title of David O. Russell's The Fighter refer to? There are so many possibilities to choose from. The obvious answer is "Irish" ...

Conviction tells a story about just one family's fight against injustice, but there are many others -- every time an innocent is imprisoned a family pays a steep price.

Welcome to the Rileys isn't world-beating cinema. But it's a beautifully understated story with deep emotion that will capture the receptive viewer with surprising force.

Conviction is as straightforward as storytelling gets in a movie. Will that be its undoing with critics?

Treme, like a well-cooked meal, it reveals its pleasures gradually -- not all in the first bite. This isn't a hot dog -- it's a gumbo, with layers of flavor to surprise, delight and move you.

Thomas Haden Church is one of those under-utilized treasures of cinema who only recently has started to get the kinds of roles he deserves.

I happened to catch three films in a row on Saturday at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival that all dealt with issues of family, particularly the idea of creating a family from people to whom you aren't necessarily related.

Trucker is a revelation in terms of the performance Michelle Monaghan gives. Give it a chance and you won't be sorry.

Melissa Leo is now an Academy Award-nominated actress. Ladies and gents, Melissa Leo, who has struggled to find decent roles in the past ten years now has an Oscar nomination.

Michelle Byrd and Melvin Van Peebles via Wireimage Terrence Howard, dressed in a dapper white hat opened the 2008 Gotham Independent Film Awards wit...

"Smart movies like Frozen River are an alternative" says Sony Pictures co-president Tom Bernard. "We never try to win the weekend... we try to win the war."

When I saw Frozen River, I discovered that when an actress who's also a friend appears on screen, it's doubly interesting because you're rooting for her, and you know she can be great.