The Dark Knight (PG-13, 140 minutes) Just as Batman (Christian Bale) makes real headway cleaning up Gotham’s streets, with help from a top cop (Gary Oldman) and an aggressive D.A. (Aaron Eckhart), some joker calling himself the Joker (Heath Ledger) decides to mastermind a terrifying criminal rampage. Out comes the heavy artillery–and the moviegoers who don’t usually bother with this superhero silliness but are morbidly curious about the late Ledger’s final full performance. Read C-VILLE’s full review here. Playing at Regal Seminole Square 4
The Fall (R, 117 minutes) A hobbled stuntman and a precocious youngster dream up a dazzling tale, realized in a film shot across 24 countries. Playing at Vinegar Hill Theatre
Fly Me to the Moon 3-D (G, 85 minutes) In special 3-D animation, a group of teenaged houseflies (or houseflies the equivalent age of human teenagers, whatever that is) stows away on Apollo 11. Voice talents include Ed Begley Jr., Tim Curry, Kelly Ripa and Christopher Lloyd. Opening Friday
Hancock (PG-13, 92 minutes) Will Smith stars as the world’s only superhero. Unfortunately, his random acts of heroism, resulting in lots of collateral damage, mean he’s extremely unpopular. Drunk, bitter and mostly invulnerable, our hero tries to turn his life around after saving a public relations man (Jason Bateman) with a plan. Action, drama and a little comedy combine in this rather original take on comic book mythology. Playing at Regal Downtown Mall 6
Hellboy II: The Golden Army (PG-13, runtime TBA) Hellboy (Ron Perlman) and his evil-smashing cohorts are back. This time, the mythical world of elves and fairies is considering a rebellion against humanity in a bid to rule the Earth. Guess it’s up to one reformed demon, a pyrokinetic and a fishman to save the day. Thankfully, writer/director Guillermo del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth) is back in charge of this fantasy-heavy comic book adaptation. Read C-VILLE’s full review here. Playing at Regal Downtown Mall 6
Henry Poole is Here (PG, 101 minutes) Luke Wilson is a seriously (but, you know, funnily) depressed man trying to disappear into the L.A. suburbs. Yet he’s intrigued by the hot divorcee next door (Radha Mitchell), and confused by the people wanting to make pilgrimages to his new home as if it were a sacred site. Opening Friday
Journey to the Center of the Earth (PG, 92 minutes) For better or worse, Jules Verne’s seminal adventure novel gets saddled with Brendan Fraser and a digital 3-D update. Juvenile and gimmicky in the extreme, this simple recreation of about five amusement park rides (runaway mine cart, water slide, etc.) still manages to be entertaining in a zippy, Saturday matinee kind of way. It ain’t high art, but kids will enjoy all the things popping out of the screen. Playing at Carmike Cinema 6
Mamma Mia! (PG-13, 108 minutes) On a cute Greek island where she runs a little hotel, a single mom (Meryl Streep) prepares to give her daughter (Amanda Seyfried) away to marriage. Wedding guests include mom’s former bandmates (Julie Walters and Christine Baranski) and the three men who might be her daughter’s dad (Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skarsgaard). Romantic mayhem and many ABBA songs ensue. Playing at Regal Downtown Mall 6
Mirrors (R) Some evil paranormal entity terrorizes an ex-cop (Kiefer Sutherland) and his family by creepily maneuvering their reflections. It’s like that face-peeling scene from Poltergeist got its own whole movie. Opening Friday
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (PG-13, 154 minutes) Brendan Fraser, again enjoying himself as a low-rent Indiana Jones, travels the world in search of adventure, with the wife (Maria Bello) and son (Luke Ford) and brother-in-law (John Hannah) in tow. He finds Jet Li as a resurrected Han emperor who wants to make us all his slaves. That should do, adventure-wise. Playing at Carmike Cinema 6
Pineapple Express (R, 105 minutes) A stoner (Seth Rogen, shocker) and his dealer (James Franco) run afoul of crooked cops and drug lords and run for their lives. No surprise that Rogen co-scripted and Judd Apatow produced; what makes this action comedy especially intriguing, though, is the director, David Gordon Green, who last gave us Snow Angels—not at all an action-com. Read C-VILLE’s full review here. Playing at Regal Seminole Square 4
Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants 2 (PG-13, 117 minutes) The chick-flick adaptations of Ann Brashares’ bestsellers continue apace: One summer, four friends, the pair of jeans they share, and much bittersweet buddy comedy. Playing at Regal Downtown Mall 6
Space Chimps (G, 81 minutes) At least you know from its title what this movie is about. Chimpanzee astronauts, including one descended from the original chimp on whom outer space was first tested, travel through a black hole to a planet whose despotic leader they’ve been ordered to oust. The cast includes Andy Samberg, Jeff Daniels, Stanley Tucci, Cheryl Hines and cartoon voice-over maestro Patrick Warburton. Playing at Regal Downtown Mall 6
Star Wars: The Clone Wars (PG) This animated 3-D feature, set between the third and fourth episodes of George Lucas’ sci-fi saga, presumably concerns many light-saber-intensive battles between Jedi Knights and dark-sided separatists form the Galactic Republic, and between their respective armies of clones and droids. Opening Friday
Step Brothers (R, 95 minutes) Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly and their Talladega Nights director Adam McKay regroup for a tale of two pampered, sheltered pals who become feisty when their single parents (Mary Steenburgen and Richard Jenkins) get married. You know you love it. Read C-VILLE’s full review here. Playing at Carmike Cinema 6
Swing Vote (PG-13, 100 minutes) And the deciding vote for our nation’s history comes down to…Kevin Costner? Read C-VILLE’s full review here. Playing at Regal Downtown Mall 6
Tropic Thunder (R, 107 minutes) Ben Stiller (co-scripting and directing), Jack Black and Robert Downey Jr. portray a group of pampered, quirkily egotistical actors making a megabudget movie about the Vietnam war. Nick Nolte plays the screenwriter who decides to put them in a real war. Boo-yah! Opening Wednesday
WALL-E (G, 97 minutes) Animation giant Pixar returns with another sure-fire winner. This one’s a sci-fi tale set in the far future. Seems mankind has squandered the Earth’s resources with its rabid consumer addictions. The big blue marble has been abandoned as a junkheap to be tended over by a handful of waste allocation robots (among them, our titular hero). One day, after hundreds of years on the job, WALL-E meets a sleek robot named EVE and goes on a quest across the galaxy to find her—and unwittingly save Earth in the process. The animation is incredible, and damn if that boxy little robot isn’t the cutest thing ever. Read C-VILLE’s full review here. Playing at Carmike Cinema 6
The X-Files: I Want to Believe (PG-13) Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny at last apparently submit to their destinies as the portrayers of special agents Scully and Mulder, together investigating a possibly paranormal or conspiratorial something or other, complete details of which are perhaps known only to director and series creator Chris Carter. Playing at Carmike Cinema 6
