It’s difficult to say which group of people is targeted in “Maxed Out: Hard Times, Easy Credit and the Age of Predatory Lenders.”

As a filmgoer, there’s a strange comfort in sitting down and watching a David Fincher movie. You know what you’re going to get: creeped out.

Michael Moore’s latest film, “Sicko,” is a globe-trotting comedy with strong but disturbing underpinnings in that most basic of American strengths – troubleshooting.

It is fast-paced, looks great and features a winning lead performance. But “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” never takes flight as a story, largely due to the director’s insistence to cling to the movie’s surface strengths.

While reality TV has become a nighttime pastime and documentary-style filmmaking has flourished financially, there’s still a strong niche for tall tales in the hopeful hearts of many movie renters

It may sicken you to hear I was positively excited to see “Death of a President,” a so-called mockumentary about the Oct. 19, 2007, assassination of President George W. Bush

The most popular books in recent memory have been transfigured into various levels of film magic. As usual, you’ll have to direct your attention behind the camera to find what’s right – and wrong – with the first four offerings in the “Harry Potter” filmography, all based on J.K. Rowling’s remarkably detailed novels

On occasion, a film requires a second viewing. Less often, repeated viewings are necessary. Rarely, a film both warrants and, due to its beauty, beckons a regular return engagement.

This film is review-proof. This film is virtually unavailable.

“Casablanca,” though often referred to as timeless, is always approachable, embraceable and enjoyable. Steven Soderbergh’s 2006 black-and-white effort, “The Good German,” is the anti-”Casablanca.”

It is the beauty and the bane of movie watching. Much like Christmastime to a spoiled 7-year-old, my film expectations often outstrip the celluloid reality

A famous 30-something, she’s loved by some for her style and despised by others for her highfalutin family connections.

Much of a good film’s work is done before the director says, “Action!” In Bill Condon’s case, the work starts even earlier

There’s comfort in the familiar, and two new releases certainly follow the formula. Yet one seems sure of its little place and so delivers a diverting time, while the other aspires to more and ultimately expires because of it.

It’s strange how certain films of quality slip past us as we walk the new-release wall. I walked straight by one such movie once, twice, three times. It was on my fourth visit to the video store that I finally decided to give “Freedom Writers” a try.

Method acting involves the use of personal interests and experiences to create a realistic, engrossing performance.

We interrupt your regular programming for this special report: two strange, seemingly disparate films – films marked by violence and despair – demand close and immediate attention.

He’s a wannabe of the worst kind, and he wants to be remembered in the worst way.

Here’s a look at the form – and content – of two 2006 documentaries, one secular, the other spiritual.

It’s really frustrating to see wonderful ideas and images buried in an otherwise subpar production.

Two directors who’ve earned fame for their handling of mainstream subject matter have veered, with their most recent work, into the darker aspects of human behavior

Big-name stars and spectacular high-seas scenes should equal a swimmingly successful piece of celluloid.