“This is a true story. Only the facts have been changed.” So opens “The Big Year,” a comedy from David Frankel, director of “Marley & Me” and “The Devil Wears Prada.” If only the tone of the story had been changed as well.

In today’s fiscally challenging times, personal film projects are risky. And, yet, the present creates the perfect timing for films that focus less on big budgets and more so on craftsmanship. Audience segmentation keeps breaking down into cultural microcosms, which means tailoring films for the people who will love your film most makes a great deal of sense. Especially if it’s a quality project like “The Way.”

Romantic comedies tend to be formulaic by nature. This creates a palpable level of reassurance for the audience. They also tend to be very forgettable for the same reason. “What’s Your Number?” fills in the blanks like any bland Kate Hudson/Matthew McConaughey blah-fest that has come before it.

What if Judd Apatow (“40 Year Old Virgin,” “Knocked Up”) could turn the tables and produce a film about women behaving badly? What if he could cast some of the funniest female comedians acting out the most absurd situations? And, what if the movie told the real story of how women truly feel each time another announces an engagement? This film would be “Bridesmaids” and it delivers on all of the above.

The 2011 Los Angeles Film Festival (LAFF) got off to a great start this year with Nicolas Winding Refn’s thrilling noir film “Drive,” which recently earned him Best Director at Cannes. With the city of L.A. serving almost as an extra supporting character in the film, “Drive” was a perfect choice for this festival, and it’s surprising that it was not chosen as the festival’s opening night gala film (which instead was Richard Linklater’s “Bernie”). Especially since part of the film’s opening sequence takes place right outside of the downtown L.A. venue where LAFF is being held. Either way, “Drive” has certainly made an impact at the festival.

                                                                                        Steven Soderbergh’s “Contagion” captures the credible fear that an airborne virus could wipe out thousands, if not millions, of people. So, where are the thrills, the chases and the heart-stopping revelations that usually accompany this doomsday scenario? And why can’t Soderbergh, an Oscar winner himself for the 2000 film “Traffic,” find the screen time to showcase all the Oscar nominees – and winners – in his cast? Blink, and you’ll miss John Hawkes of “Winter’s Bone” fame. And if you show up 15 minutes late you might not even realize Gwyneth Paltrow played a critical role in the film.

“Win Win,” the new dramedy written and directed by Thomas McCarthy (“The Visitor,” “The Station Agent”) and starring award-winning thespian Paul Giamatti, has heart, brains and courage. The beautifully crafted story focuses on different men all going through personal storms, as each does whatever he can to reclaim a home of his own.

Oscar®-nominated filmmaker Morgan Spurlock (“Supersize Me”) delivers a hilarious satire that explores the business side of movie making--and the role of product placement in particular--in his latest film "POM Wonderful Presents: The Greatest Movie Ever Sold."

Formula One racing is an adrenaline-fused international sport with massive popularity, and nobody has dominated F1 like Ayrton Senna, the subject of director Asif Kapadia’s documentary “Senna.” Kapadia expertly navigates the flashy, technically intricate sport—and Senna’s life—and has come away with an engrossing and exciting film.

Oozing with comic-book lore, America’s UFO heartland and all things Speilberg/Lucas, the new comedy-adventure, “Paul,” celebrates the gods of geekdom. And while this alien venture is somewhat of a spoof on the science-fiction genre, it ultimately becomes a love-letter to classic sci-fi of the 1970s and 80s – most notably “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” and “E.T.: The Extra-Terrestrial.”

 Director Michel Leclerc delivers a whimsically comical film with "The Names of Love" that never misses an opportunity to poke fun or even jab at highly controversial social issues that often elicit strong emotional reactions. But in the hands of Leclerc, those emotions are pleasure and mirth.

It’s not hard to have certain expectations heading into Jon Favreau’s “Cowboys and Aliens.” After all, when you have Indiana Jones and James Bond as a part of the cast, and Favreau, the man who brought Iron Man to the big screen, not even a funky sci-fi/western concept should be able to derail these cinematic stalwarts. And while the train doesn’t run off the tracks, the movie never really takes us anywhere more exciting than the ho-hum New Mexico town where the movie takes place.

A bartender might describe “Source Code” using the following recipe:

Mix 1 shot “24”

Add 1 shot “Groundhog Day.”

Add 1 dash of “Avatar.”

Shake until mixed thoroughly.

It all ends for Harry Potter and company in the final film of J. K. Rowling’s mega-successful literary series with the mythologically-dense and emotional “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2.” Comprised of heavy action, and calling upon just about every character and magical item introduced during the franchise, “DH2” has a palpable intensity lacking in the wandering “DH1” that should satisfy the Potter faithful.

Welcome back, Matthew McConaughey.

The actor once considered the Next Big Thing after “A Time to Kill” has devolved into Most Likely to Go Shirtless During a Lame Romantic Comedy. But “The Lincoln Lawyer” lets McConaughey reboot his screen persona with a vengeance.

                                                                                              “It’s like ‘Nine to Five,’ but with men.” That’s what the pitch meeting may have been for “Horrible Bosses,” the new comedy starring Jason Bateman (Nick), Charlie Day (Dale) and Jason Sudeikis (Kurt).

Zack Snyder made his own Kryptonite en route to his “Superman” reboot. “Sucker Punch,” co-written and directed by the hastily dubbed wunderkind, is a pretentious mess on a grand scale. It’s the kind of movie you’ll wish came with a volume control button and, even better, an “off” switch.

Adolescent coming of age films never seem to go away, and often times can run the risk of being quite banal. However, when one comes along that avoids the usual pitfalls and clichés, the results can be highly effective. This is true with “Terri,” the story of an overweight misfit teen just trying his best to get by. Director Azazel Jacobs brought his funny, awkward, and surprisingly heartfelt film to this year’s Los Angeles Film Festival and it hits theaters Friday, July 1st.

                                                                                       Andrew Rossi’s documentary "Page One: Inside the New York Times" is an inspiring look at why the New York Times continues to stand supreme in a technological world where other newspapers crumble and lay helpless at her feet.

                                                                            Written and directed by Bernard Rose, "Mr. Nice" is the remarkable biopic about a legendary pothead and polymath, but although a nice story, it fails to deliver the thrills that such a story promises. 

A few days into this year’s L.A. Film Festival (LAFF), it seemed as though nothing would reach the level of buzz surrounding Nicolas Winding Refn’s “Drive.” That all changed after the screening of UK director Joe Cornish’s debut film “Attack the Block.” It was without a doubt the most fun film that played at the festival, and would later go on to be given the Audience Award for Best Narrative Feature.

Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon deliver a relentless verbal sparring match that may be funny at first blush, but lacks the substance needed to engage for 111 minutes over the course of “The Trip,” directed by Michael Winterbottom.

It is hard to discuss Kat Coiro’s film “Life Happens,” which screened at the Los Angeles Film Festival (LAFF), without mentioning the recent edgy female comedy hit “Bridesmaids.” Though direct comparisons would not be fair, they are both at the beginning of a new wave of comedy films geared towards women that follow a group of female lead characters. And while this development definitely offers a fresh perspective of new female voices in cinema, in the case of “Life Happens,” it just makes you kind of wish they had something more to say than this.

At first glance, you may walk away from “The Adjustment Bureau” thinking you’ve just watched an entertaining piece of cinema. Yet, spend five minutes thinking about what you’ve just witnessed and the casual convenience and implausibility of several plot points starts falling apart faster than Charlie Sheen’s career.

With the exception of Christopher Nolan’s interpretation of Batman, recent renditions of characters within the DC Comics universe, as opposed to Marvel's, have not fared well on the silver screen. This time, it's hero Hal Jordan’s (Ryan Reynolds) time to shine in “Green Lantern,” but sadly, like most of his DC-inked brethren that came before him, he falls far from doing so.

Even though "True Grit” is a smart, compelling western in an era sorely lacking for the genre, why does the Coen brothers’ latest film still feel like a letdown--albeit a very minor one?

Terrence Malick’s fifth feature film and the 2011 Cannes Film Festival Palm d'Or winner, "Tree of Life," is a breathtaking cinematic experience — part coming of age story, part longing for lost innocence and part spiritual contemplation.

In “Biutiful,” director Alejandro González Iñárritu ("Babel," "21 Grams," "Amores Perros") asks one question: How does a man respond when faced with his own imminent mortality?

“Blue Valentine,” directed by Derek Cianfrance, presents a candid look at love, the act of falling out of love, and the torment of trying to keep it all together.

"L'amour Fou" is at once an artistic and historical document, and a passionate and dolorous romance that chronicles the 50-year relationship between Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé.

"L'amour Fou"begins with Saint Laurent’s 2002 press conference in which he announces his retirement. The film then quickly jumps to 1958 when Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé first meet. From there "L'amour Fou" tells how Saint Laurent re-dressed the modern woman, how Berge managed the business and how together they brought new life to the then dying world of fashion. But behind their public lives was a private life as turbulent as it was lavish and as tormented as it was sucessful, all sustained by an unwavering love.