Marion Cotillard

More a visual-aural poem about Piaf than a definitive bio-epic of Piaf's complex life story.

True-crime story or romantic myth-making? This was the question I brought in to Michael Mann's Public Enemies...and, though seemingly an either-or proposition, the question still on my mind when I walked out.

The simplest way to sum up the greatness of Inception is to identify it as a new classic of science-fiction cinema (and, for that matter, the heist genre).

The Nolans consider the issues of the day...explore the role of legendary heroes (from Robin Hood to Batman and Robin) in galvanizing the public, and labor mightily to ensure that how their Batman ends dovetails with 2005’s Batman Begins.

Has significant blemishes that don't quite come out in the wash...but the picture persists on the strength of its committed performances.

Cotillard's heartbreakingly raw work carries the day, as she fleshes out both Sandra's suffering and emotional endurance on a journey of discovery that the latter, not the former, defines her.

Despite its style points, fails to resonate on a higher octave than its low hum of dark doings, leaping around, and fisticuffs.