Two rival fraternities compete for the allegiance of a street dancer from Los Angeles in Stomp the Yard. "Stepping" is the latest dance, and Yard has plenty of pep in its step, thanks to appealing performers like Columbus Short and Meagan Good. But critics say that while Stomp contains impressive musical and dance numbers, it loses its momentum during the intervening soap opera-style subplots.

You wouldn't expect it from a Yimou Zhang movie, but Curse of the Golden Flower is something not to be over-thought, but simply watched. Critics say the film goes to great lengths to visually mesmerize the audience, with enormous sets lavished in gold and silk, jade and brocade, and exquisitely bloody swordfights. But the story is melodramatic, bordering on something from a daytime soap opera.

Like a Hollywood remake of a Larry Clark movie, Alpha Dog is a glossy yet unflinching look into a violent and hedonistic teenage community. Bruce Willis and Sharon Stone play scene-chewing figures of authority, but critics say it's Justin Timberlake who's noteworthy, and the relationship his and Anton Yelchin's character develop is the emotional tether that holds Alpha Dog together. The scribes say that while some of the techniques director Nick Cassavettes employs are a bit over the top, he's able to draw good performances out of the cast.