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The reputation of this Ingeniously plotted and shot spy thriller has suffered from early invidious comparisons to the almost uninterrupted string of espionage masterpieces directed by Hitchcock that stars,with Strangers on a Train and ends with The Birds or,.by some estimations, Marnie. Psul Newman and Julie Andrews shine as the leads and the character actors add color; the settings are intriguing (and sometimes gorgeous); and exciting, often suspenseful set piece abound. Indeed, about 40% in, the film contains a fight involving Star Newman, a female ally and an East German Stasis antagonist that to date has perhaps never been surpassed.

For grisly, realistic fight-to-the-death struggle.

A Complete Unknowns" is organized not simply around the elusive nature of Bob Dylan's identity, as some reviewers have claimed, but as a dramatization of artistic self-creation and re-creation. It first focusses on country boy Robert Zimmerman's creation of inventive folk singer-songwriter Bob Dylan and then on Dylan's transformation from the folk singer-songwriter of the likes of "Blowing in the Wind" into the landmark folk-rock singer-songwriter of songs "Like a Rolling Stone." The protagonist's personal, amorous and professional development is done making ingenious use of Dylan music. For example, Dylan's falling out with Joan Baez is enriched via use of a duet performance by the two of "It Ain't Me Babe" and the folk artist's 1965 break with more traditional folk and the board of directors of the Newport Folk Festival is enriched by use of "I Ain't Gonna Work on Maggie's Farm No More." The film's audience, alas, may be limited by the extent of popular familiarity with Dylan's work, indeed appreciation of his genius. However, for many of those familiar with the artist the acuity and power of the movie will be great. Timothee Chalamet's performance is astonishing.

In this neo-noir transnational epic, four First World criminals seek - from Boston, Oarus, etc ) refuge from law enforcement in Latin America (mostly remote Venezuela., where they are reduced to a taking a bottom-of-the-ladder, life-is-cheap job delivering high explosives over treacherous mountain and jungle roads. The atmosphere is mesmerizing, the tension nerve racking, Friedkin considered it his finest film, and was personally devastated by its financial and critical failure (as stated by Friedkin himself in the 1999 documentary series The Directors). As adrenalin thriller, "Sorcerer" may not be quite the "Jaws" level kick that "The French Connection" is, but it's a richer, more variously and original exciting -- and more meaningful -- film.