Summer Movie Scorecard 2016

Critics Consensus: Kevin Hart and Dwayne Johnson make for well-matched comic foils, helping Central Intelligence overcome a script that coasts on their considerable chemistry.

Synopsis: Bullied as a teen for being overweight, Bob Stone shows up to his high school reunion looking fit and muscular. While there, he finds Calvin... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Amy Ryan, Danielle Nicolet

Critics Consensus: Café Society's lovely visuals and charming performances round out a lightweight late-period Allen comedy whose genuine pleasures offset its amiable predictability.

Synopsis: Looking for an exciting career, young Bobby Dorfman leaves New York for the glitz and glamour of 1930s Hollywood. After landing a job with his... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Kristen Stewart, Steve Carell, Blake Lively

Directed By: Woody Allen

Critics Consensus: Our Kind of Traitor relies on solid writing and acting rather than action to deliver its spy-movie thrills -- and thankfully has the pedigree to pull it off on both fronts.

Synopsis: A money launderer (Stellan Skarsgard) for Russian gangsters asks a couple vacationing in Marrakech, Morocco, to deliver incriminating evidence to an MI6 agent (Damian Lewis).

Starring: Ewan McGregor, Stellan Skarsgård, Damian Lewis, Naomie Harris

Directed By: Susanna White

Critics Consensus: Ghostbusters does an impressive job of standing on its own as a freewheeling, marvelously cast supernatural comedy -- even if it can't help but pale somewhat in comparison with the classic original.

Synopsis: Paranormal researcher Abby Yates and physicist Erin Gilbert are trying to prove that ghosts exist in modern society. When strange apparitions appear in Manhattan, Gilbert... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Leslie Jones, Kate McKinnon

Directed By: Paul Feig

Critics Consensus: Fast-paced, funny, and blessed with a talented voice cast, The Secret Life of Pets offers a beautifully animated, cheerfully undemanding family-friendly diversion.

Synopsis: Max (Louis C.K.) is a spoiled terrier who enjoys a comfortable life in a New York building until his owner adopts Duke, a giant and... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Louis C.K., Eric Stonestreet, Kevin Hart, Ellie Kemper

Directed By: Chris Renaud

Critics Consensus: The BFG minimizes the darker elements of Roald Dahl's classic in favor of a resolutely good-natured, visually stunning, and largely successful family-friendly adventure.

Synopsis: Ten-year-old Sophie is in for the adventure of a lifetime when she meets the Big Friendly Giant. Naturally scared at first, the young girl soon... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Mark Rylance, Ruby Barnhill, Penelope Wilton, Jemaine Clement

Directed By: Steven Spielberg

Critics Consensus: Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping updates the rock mockumentary for the 21st century mainstream -- and hits many of its low-hanging targets with side-splitting impact.

Synopsis: Childhood friends Conner (Andy Samberg), Owen (Jorma Taccone) and Lawrence (Akiva Schaffer) found fame and fortune after forming the hip-hop group the Style Boyz. Owen... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Andy Samberg, Jorma Taccone, Akiva Schaffer, Sarah Silverman

Directed By: Akiva Schaffer, Jorma Taccone

Critics Consensus: Lean and solidly crafted, The Shallows transcends tired shark-attack tropes with nasty thrills and a powerful performance from Blake Lively.

Synopsis: Still reeling from the loss of her mother, medical student Nancy Adams (Blake Lively) travels to a secluded beach for some much-needed solace. Despite the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Blake Lively, Óscar Jaenada, Brett Cullen, Sedona Legge

Directed By: Jaume Collet-Serra

Critics Consensus: Lights Out makes skillful use of sturdy genre tropes -- and some terrific performances -- for an unsettling, fright-filled experience that delivers superior chills without skimping on story.

Synopsis: When Rebecca (Teresa Palmer) left home, she thought that her childhood fears were behind her. As a young girl growing up, she was never really... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Teresa Palmer, Gabriel Bateman, Alexander DiPersia, Billy Burke

Directed By: David F. Sandberg

Critics Consensus: Captain Fantastic's thought-provoking themes -- and an absorbing starring turn from Viggo Mortensen -- add up to an above-average family drama with unexpected twists.

Synopsis: Ben Cash (Viggo Mortensen), his wife Leslie and their six children live deep in the wilderness of Washington state. Isolated from society, Ben and Leslie... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Frank Langella, George MacKay, Samantha Isler

Directed By: Matt Ross