G.I. Jane (1997)
Demi Moore's committed physicality provides suitable grit to political games of first woman pushing to become Navy SEAL. Training regime is visualized with punishing intensity, until plot unravels with increasingly glossy military theatrics and undefined characters.
Game Night (2018)
Engaging players and stylish presentation set up comic potential that goes rapidly off the rails, belief in situation snapped and jeopardy missing. Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams lead competitive friends with enough jokes to ease running time at capable zip.
Gamshijadeul (Cold Eyes) (2013)
Dynamic staging and fluid visuals combine with involving characters as spirited Han Hyo-joo joins Sol Kyung-gu's specialist surveillance team to track down suitably brutal criminal Jung Woo-sung. Steamy urban backdrop heightens gritty tension and melodrama.
Gangster Squad (2013)
Burnished with seductive hues and gleaming recreations of 1940s Los Angeles, character concerns remain less convincing amid blistering gunplay and violence. Josh Brolin leads unconventional unit intent on bringing down vicious Sean Penn. Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone remain peripheral.
Les gardiennes (The Guardians) (2017)
Reserved approach and painterly style accentuate physical and emotional struggles of women left to manage rural French farm while horrors of war decimate the men. Stoic matriarch Nathalie Baye provides powerful focus as social and industrial change forever scars the land.
Gaslight (1940)
With an atmosphere as rich and enveloping as the London fog, sinister Anton Walbrook drives fragile Diana Wynyard to the edge of sanity and murder. Lush design, expressive lighting and a terrific Richard Addinsell score ratchet up the tension and mystery.
The Gentle Sex (1943)
Fascinating as social history, gently involving as drama, seven women join ATS and prove worth for war effort as truck drivers and operating anti-aircraft guns. Despite florid, ironic narration, affecting cast engender close sense of camaraderie and plain style favours naturalism.
Geostorm (2017)
After maverick scientist Gerard Butler pioneers multinational, climate controlling satellites to save world, fanatical patriots seek to destroy countries for own power. Bludgeoning effects match nonsensical story dynamics, initially engaging, ultimately wearying.
Gerald's Game (2017)
Finely structured, a sex game gone wrong leaves a wife handcuffed to a bed while a wild dog pounces on her dead husband. Uniformly well-acted, especially a gutsy Carla Gugino, the psychological layers and resolution are powerful. The physical monster less convincing.
The Ghost And Mrs Muir (1947)
Delicate, sharply written romance, with strong Gene Tierney and Edna Best performances anchoring the emotion, and punctuated with smart lines and humor. Bernard Herrmann supplies the true soul, a score of yearning, passion and loss that sings with pure emotion.
The Ghost Goes West (1935)
Light, nimble tale which leans heavily on Robert Donat's charm as both the Scottish clan descendant with a cursed castle and the seductive ancestor doomed to haunt the hallways even when the home is moved across the Atlantic. Delicately humorous diversion.
The Ghost Ship (1943)
Layered with ominous mystery, the corrosive mind of increasingly unhinged captain Richard Dix leads a new officer to doubt recent crew deaths are accidental. Sharp characterization adds edge, while moody visuals aid the tension and culminate with a savage finale.
The Ghost Train (1941)
Enjoyment very much depends on accepting creaky plotting of the original play and exhausting in-your-face theatrics of Arthur Askey. Diverse passengers stranded at a country station face the haunted locomotive with a mix of wartime thrills and comedy.
Ghostbusters Afterlife (2021)
Fluid visuals and open vistas set up intriguing extension of comedy franchise, establishing new generation while leaning on nostalgic reverberations, as Mckenna Grace discovers grandfather's supernatural secrets. Amiable sequences, yet curious lack of creative energy.
The Giant Mechanical Man (2012)
A likeable cast makes the plot familiarity forgivable, as drifting Jenna Fischer and street performer Chris Messina overcome artificial obstacles to discover independence and romance. Gentle laughs and drama, insubstantial and fleetingly enjoyable.
The Gift (2015)
Controlled visuals frame carefully built characters and relationships with a narrative construction that gradually burrows beneath the surface of the past. Confident Jason Bateman and brittle Rebecca Hall face ominous Joel Edgerton. Performances sell dark surprises.
Gijeok (Miracle: Letters To The President) (2021)
Endearing humor of rural community and need for railway stop provides foundation for unwinding emotion as tentative Park Jeong-min's relationship with taciturn father Lee Sung-min and supportive sister Lee Soo-kyung is revealed. Moving, rewarding conclusion.
Girl In The Picture (2022)
Compulsively dark and twisted, death of a desperate woman and a kidnapping lead down rabbit hole of years long abuse and cruelty. Unflashy presentation, final identity to a lost soul redeems individual crusades, despite overwhelming sense of despair.
The Girl In The Spider's Web (2018)
Polished visuals provide surface energy yet anonymous interest as blandly vengeful Claire Foy faces disturbed sister Sylvia Hoeks and dangerous computer code. Robust Roque Baños score even as characters flounder amid bleakly generic set pieces.
Girl Most Likely (2012)
Maintaining interest through sheer personality of leads, self-consciously quirky portrait of family dysfunction and personal fulfilment sees flailing Kristen Wiig forced back home with fantasist mother Annette Bening. Fleeting moments of observed humanity amid forced character arcs.
A Girl Must Live (1939)
Opening features Margaret Lockwood, Renée Houston and Lilli Palmer introducing themselves to camera. This slight comedy maintains a light, knowing wink throughout, featuring energetic dancing and a fun behind-the-scenes feel, even as the central romantic narrative creaks to a happy ending.
The Girl Next Door (1953)
Bright and colorful visuals allied to nimble choreography provide energetic respite from otherwise routine comedy and grinding story machinations. June Haver and Dan Dailey coast through unsurprising romance while songs rarely aspire beyond the pleasant. Animation is quirky extra.
The Girl Next Door (2004)
Redeemed by supporting cast, especially playfully menacing Timothy Olyphant, and a smart compliment of songs and score, previous films weigh heavily as frustrated Emile Hirsch finds spirited new neighbor Elisha Cuthbert is a porn star. Innocently sleazy.
The Girl On The Train (2016)
Boldly unhinged and lost in alcoholic anguish, Emily Blunt gradually makes sense of her lost life while uncovering truth of Haley Bennett's disappearance and ex-husband's hold over Rebecca Ferguson. Edgy narrative design eventually dissipates tension.
The Girl With All The Gifts (2016)
An efficiently spun zombie apocalypse tale, centering on a second-generation young girl who could be savior or destroyer of the human species. The cast is strong, the nature consumed future world persuasive, the flesh rippers unrelenting. Absorbing rather than thrilling.
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011)
Realized with a sure visual grip and gleeful brutality, disgraced reporter Daniel Craig hires damaged, vengeful hacker Rooney Mara to uncover historic, violent secrets of powerful Swedish family. Social themes consumed by atmosphere and bland reveals.
Gisooljadeul (The Con Artists) (2014)
Self-assured charmer and safe-cracker Kim Woo-Bin is forced to work for menacing gangster Kim Young-Chul in heist of millions from Incheon customs. Polished visuals keep action brisk, though ensemble comedy is strained and uneven rhythms dilute multiple twists of predictable story.
The Glass Castle (2017)
Brie Larson pierces vital, confused struggle to forge adult life away fantasist parents, even if story plays safe for Naomi Watts and Woody Harrelson. Polished production misses intoxicating extremes, so resolution lacks in father's purported charisma and final empathy.
The Glass Onion (2022)
Elongated, shaggy whodunnit amps up eccentricities as intuitive Daniel Craig joins star influencers invited to megalomaniac innovator Edward Norton's Greek Island, where murder, betrayal and sun-bleached twists await. Flagging narrative buoyed with flashback reveals and playfully caustic view of modern wealth.
Gloria (1980)
Gritty New York locations provide tense backdrop as unrepentant Gena Rowlands goes on the run with 6-year old when the mob kills his family. Messy melodrama and gangster face offs make for riveting action, plausibility on hold through powerhouse and humane star turn.
Godzilla King Of The Monsters (2019)
Stuffed with burnished imagery, pummeled with crushing audio, a punishing series of monster fights and destruction in the name of nature preservation. A thin narrative links scientists making stupid decisions. Bear McCreary's score is terrific.
Godzilla vs. Kong (2021)
No doubting immaculate technical skill of glossily conceived visuals, and carnage of monster destruction remains mindlessly watchable, yet flimsy plot mechanics and human characters remain instantly forgettable. A touch of wit and awareness would help anonymous storytelling.
Golden Gate (1994)
Spanning three decades of post WW2 racism against Asians, conflicted FBI agent Matt Dillon seeks redemption with love for resilient Joan Chen. Awkward narrative shifts and bland style subdue thematic ambitions as well as effective performances and production values.
The Golden Salamander (1950)
Despite an authentic Tunisian location shoot, the romantic thriller never finds its tone and drifts through plot mechanics. Anouk Aimée provides some emotion and a final fight some grit, yet a true creative spark remains missing.
Gone Baby Gone (2007)
Gritty, sharp and twisted, both in terms of narrative and emotions, the search for a missing child leads to questions of morality and care as stock characters gradually reveal greater depth. Unfussy production values and style, a dark tale with solid performances.
Gone To Earth (1950)
Sumptuous visuals, a rich combination of lighting, design and evocative settings, are allied to a textured sound and musical landscape - immersive and intoxicating. Characters drift through the Shropshire countryside, mechanics in melodrama rather than raw emotion.
Good Neighbor Sam (1964)
Building comic momentum through social and marital farce, frustrated marketing exec Jack Lemmon has to pose as spontaneous Romy Schneider's husband, while maintaining married life with Dorothy Provine. Fizzles during concluding stretch, though maintains solid laugh count.
The Good Nurse (2022)
Made more cruelly disturbing by true story origins, vulnerable nurse Jessica Chastain comes to rely on friendship with considerate colleague Eddie Redmayne, until his empathy unravels to reveal a serial killer. Clinical visuals and performances maintain bleakly effective atmosphere.
Good Sam (1948)
Genial store manager Gary Cooper exasperates cheerfully suffering wife Ann Sheridan by his financial and emotional generosity to outsiders. Languid touch balances uncluttered comedy and social satire with affectionately absurd characters and patchily effective results.
Good Time Girl (1948)
Jean Kent provides a tartly sympathetic heroine in a society dominated by abusive, lecherous men who send her spiraling into crime and murder. Simultaneously a cautionary tale, a social issue movie and an over-wrought, violent melodrama. Uneven if not boring.
Goodfellas (1990)
Suffused with dark comic bite and savage bouts of violence, a wild ride through edgy Ray Liotta's life with the New York mob before eventually turning informant. Twisted loyalties and family values told with blistering energy that matches fierce Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci.
Goodnight Mommy (2022)
Two young brothers visit strict Naomi Watts, who is recovering from cosmetic surgery, and start to doubt if she's actually their mother. Cruelly inventive plotting is slickly produced, yet curiously lacking in energy and wit, never quite taking a needed icy grip.
Gorky Park (1983)
Gripping, Moscow-set detective thriller creates suitably gritty atmosphere in which to play out whirlpool of political and personal intrigue, as bitter William Hurt's murder investigation leads to frustrated romance with caustic Joanna Pacula. Persuasive detail aids taut pacing.
Le Goût des merveilles (The Sense Of Wonder) (2015)
Anchored by conflicted, compassionate Virginie Efira, whose struggles with family and farm after husband's death are softened by disarming stranger Benjamin Lavernhe, whimsical drama remains diverting rather than compelling. Attractive production supplies light emotion.
Grace Is Gone (2007)
Quiet, reflective take on coping with grief and family loss with a gripping, fragile John Cusack unable to tell his young daughters of their army mother's death. Unfussy style accentuates rawness, road with cathartic emotion of final scenes well earned.
Gran Torino (2008)
Racism, family and redemption provide character strands to belligerent Clint Eastwood's eventual protection of neighbors and community from violent gang. Controlled, sparse style accentuates relationships, playing on Eastwood persona with wry humor. Highly entertaining and polished.
Grandma (2015)
Powered by Lily Tomlin's caustic, ill-tempered, emotionally wounded lead turn, an incisive look at family and romantic dynamics built around an open discussion of abortion. The episodic structure carefully builds humor and sense of loss, small in scale, big in heart.
The Gray Man (2022)
Exhaustingly bland actioner encompasses set pieces that never cohere into involving narrative or develop character investment. Both visually expensive and cheaply staged, appealing cast seem to be in different films. Spy confusion at least improves after deflating open.
The Great Escape (1963)
Memorably driven by Elmer Bernstein's powerful themes, starry cast embody indomitable spirit of Allied POW escape through tunnels and across Europe. Solidly handled, bittersweet final section remains gripping and Steve McQueen's motorbike charisma shines.
The Great Race (1965)
Deliriously mounted on an extravagant scale, pure Tony Curtis, devious Jack Lemmon and contrary Natalie Wood race from New York to Paris in a string of spectacular and often very funny, slapstick set pieces. Henry Mancini provides joyous score, energy is infectious.
The Great Train Robbery (1978)
Jerry Goldsmith's playful, memorable score provides an energy and cohesion even when stolid filmmaking veers in tone. Manipulative Sean Connery leads light-fingered Donald Sutherland and seductive Lesley-Ann Down to steal gold. Lush, burnished visuals.
The Greatest Showman (2017)
Barnum legend rather than historical fact provides a flimsy plot, yet sumptuous production values, rousing songs and rooted performances deliver strong emotions. With its sense of wonder, family and social acceptance, a genuine modern day audience pleaser.
Green Book (2018)
Solid, sentimental drama of friendship and shifting prejudices, as Mahershala Ali's African American pianist hires street smart Italian American Viggo Mortensen to drive him through the Deep South in 1962. Leisurely paced, racism is confronted with heart and a persuasive cast.
Green For Danger (1946)
Curious murder mystery thriller comedy that despite implausabilities ratchets up the tension. It also benefits tremendously from the introduction of Alastair Sim's idiosyncratic, conceited detective and features an atmospheric rural hospital setting during the Blitz.
Greenland (2020)
Grounded, intense view follows gruff engineer Gerard Butler's race for survival in face of impending global doomsday from a comet striking earth. Technically polished, urgently paced, disaster movie convention eventually holds sway. Morena Baccarin provides humanity amid dark souls.
Gremlins (1984)
The collision of comedy and horror, of fairytale lore and Hollywood narratives, delivers a viciously fun ride, propelled by snappy visuals, smart effects and a terrific score by Jerry Goldsmith. The meandering story is shot through with satiric touches that still have claws.
El guardián invisible (The Invisible Guardian) (2017)
Sleek visuals, evocative locations and a pregnant atmosphere seek to elevate the story beyond its procedural backbone. The infusion of mythical beliefs doesn't really provide additional depth, but Fernando Velázquez's score is as potent as ever.
The Guardian (2006)
Muscular action initially enlivens standard heroics with damaged US Coast Guard swimmer Kevin Costner training recruits including equally damaged Ashton Kutcher. Solid production skills maintain involvement, even if final reach for myth runs out of steam.
The Guernsey Literary And Potato Peel Pie Society (2018)
Though it drags midway, an affectionate look at the importance of books and pain of prejudice, where subsidiary plots and characters are more engaging than the central romance. An open, vulnerable Lily James leads a sympathetic cast.
The Guilty (2021)
Told with suitable intensity, a virtual monologue from conflicted cop Jake Gyllenhaal on 911 duty who attempts to save an abducted woman via phone. Solid production values and persuasive, agonized star performance, yet story ends on exhausted emotional fumes.
Gunpowder Milkshake (2021)
Thematically and narratively confused and disjointed, cast potential is sadly misplaced with an emphasis on self-conscious style, cartoon violence and bright art direction that sucks the life out the action. Karen Gillan is the assassin reclaiming a feminist family.
Gyeonghowon (Bodyguard) (2020)
Unremarkable thriller with loan enforcer Kang Seok-chul finding redemption when reluctantly protecting Yoo Ye-bin, heiress to company that violent Cheol Woong wants to take over. Routine narrative line lacks character twists, though final act fights are suitably crunching.
The Gymnast (2006)
Discouraged Dreya Weber drifts through the routine of life, until the chance to perform aerial acrobatics awakens previous gymnastic dreams ruined by injury. Nothing remarkable in terms of character empowerment or romantic development, but convincingly made and performed.
Gypsy (2015)
Blistering turn from Imelda Staunton, as driven stage mother living out frustrated vaudeville dreams through daughters, provides the emotional ballast for classic Styne-Sondheim musical to shine. Fine cast, basic film of West End production, witty, emotional telling.