Mad Hot Ballroom (2005)

"These kids may be too small for sports and may not be headed to college on academic scholarships. But for once, they've proven to the world and to themselves that they matter."

Magnolia (1999)

"How did Paul Thomas Anderson attain the pinnacle of self-indulgence so quickly?"

Maléna (2000)

"Should never have come over the water."

A Man Apart (2003)

"A Man Apart tries to mingle action elements with emotion but fails."

Man of the Year (2006)

"[Laura Linney] shines out of this unappealing murk like a sunflower planted in a coal mine."

Man on the Moon (1999)

"Even if you never knew or cared much about Kaufman, you may be drawn into his world through this fictionalized biography."

Man On Wire (2008)

"Director James Marsh approaches this subject with a childlike sense of wonder in his documentary, delighting in the skulduggery behind the event."

The Man Who Wasn't There (2001)

"It's hard to care about characters with this level of detachment."

March of the Penguins (2005)

"I decided long ago that I needed no further proof that animals have souls. But if I did need some, I could find it in March of the Penguins."

Maria Full of Grace (2004)

"Here the picture took me somewhere I'd never been."

Married Life (2008)

"The acting is well-done and well-balanced, and Peter Deming's cinematography -- part golden, part somber -- suggests the dark side of postwar prosperity, which Americans had begun to contemplate by 1949."

Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)

"The filmmakers rock us with each volley of cannon fire, storm-driven wave and grisly moment of hand-to-hand combat. They've made a thrilling traditional nautical picture from untraditional books."

Match Point (2005)

"If Hollywood had a Comeback Player of the Year award, Woody Allen would get every vote for 2005."

The Matrix Revolutions (2003)

"The first Matrix stood alone brilliantly. The second carried on the story intriguingly but left gaps the third needed to fill. Instead, Revolutions raises questions without answering any."

Mean Girls (2004)

"Beyond the philosophizing, Mean Girls is a standard collection of low comic jokes ... and a vindication / revenge fantasy directed at moviegoers who are still sad the popular kids didn't like them back in the day."

Meet the Robinsons (2007)

"Most of Meet the Robinsons plays like a movie made by ADD adults for ADD children."

Memento (2001)

"Pearce ... dominates the picture through his feral performance."

Men in Black II (2002)

"A useless horror comedy for 2002."

The Messenger (2009)

"The best war movies don't preach against war: They remind us of the costs for soldiers and families and ask us to consider whether those costs are worth paying."

Miami Vice (2006)

"If you really must see Miami Vice (and you mustn't), buy a ticket to something better, then slip into Vice at the 95-minute mark and watch the last third of the movie."

A Midsummer Night's Dream (1999)

"Sunny, fast and funny!"

Milk (2008)

"Whatever you think of gay people (or politicians), you may find the movie compelling viewing."

Millions (2005)

"Boyle confuses whimsy with gas."

Minority Report (2002)

"Spielberg remains under Stanley Kubrick's directorial spell, but Report has almost none of the mawkishness that crippled the last fourth of A.I."

Miss Congeniality (2000)

"Assures us that a silk purse can be made from a sow's ear, but that's never true for a bad script."