Righteous Kill (2008) -vs- Heat (1995)
The Smackdown We’ve seen plenty of Robert De Niro and Al Pacino over the years, although not on the same screen for nearly 13 years until the weekend release of “Righteous Kill.” Was it worth the […]
Mark Sanchez
Hancock (2008) -vs- I am Legend (2007)
The Smackdown It’s summer and if Will Smith keeps to form, he’ll surely add a few more zeroes to his bank balance. It is beyond dispute: The last 14 movies featuring the Fresh Prince grossed […]
Get Smart (2008) -vs- Johnny English (2003)
 The Smackdown Summer is here with new versions of familiar entertainments: A new Batman, a new Hell Boy, and now another spy spoof. Every spy sendup owes something in spirit to Maxwell Smart. As the […]
You Don’t Mess with the Zohan (2008) -vs- Semi-Pro (2008)
The Smackdown Movie makers could take a hint from the guy putting anchovies on your pizza: A little goes a long way. That could mean fewer sequels, prequels and franchises that began life as comic […]
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) -vs- Live Free or Die Hard (2007)
 The Smackdown Movies — unlike real life — give us a taste of life as we’d like it: Dashing heroes, beautiful heroines. That idea bites the dust as the sequels and prequels and wrinkquels downgrade […]
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008) -vs- Knocked Up (2007)
 The Smackdown Goofy. Human. Hilarious with a large serving of sex. Using that recipe Judd Apatow produced or wrote a bucket of consistently engaging comedies the past ten years: Knocked Up, Freaks and Geeks, The […]
21 (2008) -vs- Lucky You (2007)
The Smackdown Movies offer the risky pleasure of transporting us someplace beyond our regular lives. Often they touch down in Las Vegas. It’s a neon backdrop for stories that are fun (Oceans 11), quirky and […]
No Country for Old Men (2007) -vs- Fargo (1996)
The Smackdown Win big, lose big. That’s the risk facing filmmakers seeking to do more than entertain. Joel and Ethan Coen take chances and the results are always interesting, sometimes great (Blood Simple, Raising Arizona, […]
There Will Be Blood (2007) -vs- Gangs of New York (2002)
The Smackdown It’s easy to admire virtue and nobility. Possessing either can be difficult. Maybe that’s why our movies seem to feature five Norman Bates and ten Gordon Gekkos for every George Bailey or Atticus Finch. […]
27 Dresses (2008) -vs- The Wedding Planner (2001)
The Smackdown Since a lot of romantic comedies have a wedding somewhere in the film, the reasoning must go, why not have an entire movie about them? From “The Wedding Singer” to “Wedding Crashers” to […]