2046: Writer-director Wong Kar-wai has been careful not to call 2046 a sequel to his subversively erotic In the Mood for Love, even though it briefly reunites both its protagonists and the actors who played them Munich: Munich is about grief, vengeance, and questions about whether vengeance is appropriate and what remains on a man's conscience after taking a life. - Ray Pride Munich: The title of this film should have remained "Vengeance," because that really is what the film is about. From all sides of the experience, how does the pursuit, achievement and the reflection upon vengeance affect those involved? - David Poland King Kong: Simply put, the Academy Board of Governors are REQUIRED to give a special Oscar to Andy Sirkis, Christian Rivers, Eric Leighton, Kong, Peter Jackson and whoever else Wingnut thinks deserves to have their names engraved in the award for the creation of Kong, the single biggest move forward in movie effects since the Jurassic Park dinosaurs. Breakfast On Pluto: It’s hard to imagine almost any other top director finding himself interested in pushing himself to find the degree of humor, politics, sexual investigation and -- at bottom line -- tenderness that Jordan has found in this material. Brokeback Mountain: The real mystery has been Brokeback Mountain, endless touted as “a gay cowboy movie” that in reality is... Caché: In a single masterful stroke, Michael Haneke explains everything in his new movie, Caché, or, "Hidden." And the solution is a matter of something being hidden in plain sight. If you are impatient, more than unobservant, you might miss it. Capote: Both Hoffman and Keener are wonderful, but the big story here is Clifton Collins, Jr. You probably don't know the name. He did a lot of small roles before he broke through in Traffic, stealing every scene he was in from some very accomplisher veterans. Good Night, And Good Luck. In the end, the power of the story Good Luck, And Good Night. tells is too well known to be shocking… too well trod to be stimulating of too much fresh thinking… and too small to ever feel like an epic. But aren't we asking too much of George Clooney's little movie when it has to service more than its own artistry? I think so. A History Of Violence. A History of Violence is the kind of movie that rewards a second or even third look: an intelligent film, perfectly executed, by one of the best directors working in the English language today. Match Point: A very good yet extremely eccentric melodrama about social strivers and sexual hypocrisy, Woody Allen's Match Point transposes the fixations that usually nest in his wealth-centric Manhattan to the upper-crust of London, with intriguing results. North Country: Niki Caro clearly knows how to direct, but she is as self-indulgent here as she was economical in Whale Rider. Charlize Theron gives a solid performance, but no more strong that the underrated performances she gave before she won an Academy Award. The supporting cast is excellent, but they are often used as pawns of obviousness when convenient for a lazy screenwriting effort. The Squid & The Whale: Gratifyingly, there's no condescension: all the characters are richly etched, imperfect people, and the truths on display feel drawn from hard-won experience. The ending, like an ideally timed slap to the cheek, is perfect Transamerica: Just how misconceived is this film? The central character is a pre-operative transsexual who discovers the week before her operation (male to female) that she had a son as a man in her one tryst. Walk The Line: But what is at the core? James Mangold’s film doesn’t equivocate. He was a relentless man with a restless spirit who needed someone to hold him close and to tell him, in words or deed, that he was loved. - by David Poland Walk the Line: A second viewing will make it easier to talk about these lovely, loving, consummate, fiery, intelligent performances (including the musical moments) by Joaquin Phoenix and Reese Witherspoon. Walk the Line is a framework for two forceful personalities to meet and align: John and June, I mean, not Joaquin and Reese.- by Ray Pride