THE MATRIX RELOADED (Warner Bros) Directors: The Wachowski Brothers. Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Laurence Fishburne. (R)

Take One: Sequel to the massively influential Matrix boasts more kung fu, bigger effects and a landmark, quarter-hour chase scene.

Take Two: One pointless character after another, impressive but thrill-less action and transparently bankrupt philosophical gibberish are compounded by a four-minute excursion into sleaze, with group dirty dancing and an extended sex scene.

Final Take: Weighty arguments about The Matrix as Gnostic allegory or Christian parable notwithstanding, this is one glaringly empty spectacle.

X2: X-MEN UNITED (20th Century Fox) Director: Bryan Singer. Patrick Stewart, Hugh Jackman, Ian McKellen. (PG-13)

Take One: Darker sequel to X-Men adds a Catholic superhero to a huge ensemble cast in its ongoing sci-fi adventure tale about a brewing war between humans and super-powered mutants.

Take Two: The violence is regrettably rough in one scene, and blue-skinned femme fatale Mystique is nearly naked in body paint and silicone prosthetics.

Final Take: With the above caveats, X2 is a well-made follow-up to X-Men that will appeal to mature action-adventure fans.

DADDY DAY CARE (Sony) Director: Steve Carr. Eddie Murphy, Jeff Garlin, Anjelica Huston. (PG)

Take One: Eddie Murphy's most family-friendly film yet is a cross between Mr. Mom and Kindergarten Cop, with Murphy as an out-of-work exec overwhelmed after naÔvely opening a day care service.

Take Two: Get past the predictable diaper/toilet gags and the weak humor, and you may or may not mind the incompetent-adult-male stereotypes or the indulgent celebration of undisciplined kids running amok.

Final Take: The movie's nominal pro-family/parenthood theme suffers for lack of perspective regarding discipline, responsibility, respect for authority and acceptable behavior.

THE LIZZIE MCGUIRE MOVIE (Disney) Director: Jim Fall. Hilary Duff, Adam Lamberg, Alex Borstein. (PG)

Take One: Squeaky-clean family fare with Disney's TV-sitcom 'tweenybopper heroine on a class trip to Rome, where she meets a hunky Euro pop star and agrees to impersonate his look alike stage partner.

Take Two: Lizzie spends her whole trip pretending to be sick so she can run around behind the teacher's back cavorting with said pop star; in the grand climax she gets to play Britney Spears to a screaming crowd.

Final Take: Some parents may gladly embrace a family film with no off-color content, but the stunningly false resolution and pop-princess glamorization left a bad taste in my mouth.

BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM (Fox Searchlight) Director: Guinder Chadha. Parminder Nagra, Keira Knightley, Jonathan Rhys-Myers. (PG-13)

Take One: Think Greek Wedding with soccer and saris, The Rookie with young female athletes and disapproving dad in a turban.

Take Two: Formulaic plot is overpadded with sitcom misunderstandings, and there's too much lying to parents and sneaking around, too much locker-room footage and tiresome gay-themed subplots.

Final Take: Modest entertainment is undone by the above drawbacks. They should have focused more on the soccer.