There’s a feeling you get, sort of like a low-grade fever, when a film franchise is starting to run down. It’s had three or four sequels, it’s going through the motions, there’s no more fresh terrain ...

Box-office receipts of foreign-language films being the ultimate arbiter, your average American movie-goer is generally loath to read his movies. Think about it: "Yippie-ki-yay" just wouldn't have the ...