American Gangster (R, 157 minutes) Based on an article by Marc Jacobson (who also inspired 2001’s The Believer), this crime saga dramatizes the life of Manhattan drug kingpin Frank Lucas. Denzel Washington stars as the slick thug who builds an empire during the ’70s while battling a determined police detective (played by Russell Crowe). Ridley Scott (Alien, Gladiator, Black Hawk Down) does camera duty. Playing at Regal Seminole Square Cinema 4
August Rush (PG, 100 minutes) This musical drama comes premixed with elements of magical realism and chunks of Oliver Twist. Little Freddie Highmore (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) stars as an orphaned musical prodigy who believes music will lead him to his long-lost birth parents (Keri Russell and Jonathan Rhys Meyers). It’s all well and good and precious, at least until always-unwelcome Robin Williams shows up as a Fagin-like street musician. Not for cynics or those who shun corny, feel-good predictability. Opening Wednesday; check local listings
Bee Movie (PG, 100 minutes) Jerry Seinfeld not only voices the main character in this computer-animated fable, but penned the script about a disillusioned bee who doesn’t want to spend his life making honey. On a trip outside the hive, he meets and falls in love with (sort of) a New York florist (Renée Zellweger). Matthew Broderick, John Goodman, Chris Rock, Kathy Bates, Larry King, Ray Liotta, Oprah Winfrey and Sting (of course) are among the stars crowding up the credits block. Playing at Regal Seminole Square Cinema 4
Beowulf (PG-13, 113 minutes) From the director who brought you The Polar Express (bad thing) and the writer who gave you The Sandman comic book (good thing), comes this motion-capture CGI update of the quintessential good-versus-evil fable. Ray Winstone (Sexy Beast) voices our warrior hero, Crispin Glover (Wild at Heart) does Grendel duty and Angelina Jolie plays our monster’s disturbingly sexy mama. A bit on the rough side for kids. Playing at Carmike Cinema 6
Trailer for Beowulf. |
Dan in Real Life (PG-13, 95 minutes) Steve Carell almost entirely makes up for Evan Almighty with this sweet, entirely authentic romantic comedy. Carell plays the widowed father of three young girls who makes a living as an advice columnist—a job for which the permanently depressive Dan seems singularly unqualified. While on a family vacation/reunion in Rhode Island, Dan meets a lovely, smart, down-to-earth woman (Juliette Binochet). Unfortunately, she turns out to be the new girlfriend of Dan’s brother. A weekend of severe discomfort ensues. Not even the presence of Dane Cook can spoil this near-perfect blend of humor and emotion from writer/director Peter Hedges (Pieces of April). Playing at Regal Downtown Mall 6
The Darjeeling Limited (R, 91 minutes) Wes Anderson (Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums) reunites with a few old pals to write and direct this comedy about three estranged American brothers (Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, Jason Schwartzman) who reunite for a "spiritual quest" across India. Like all of Anderson’s film, this one is slow, stylized and painfully clever. An absolute must for fans. Playing at Regal Downtown Mall 6
Enchanted (PG, 108 minutes) Disney attempts to turn its old image on its ear with this partly animated parody about a fairy tale princess (Amy Adams, Junebug) who is magically exiled to modern-day Manhattan by an evil queen (Susan Sarandon). She meets a handsome lawyer (Patrick Dempsey, trading on his "McDreamy" rep), but is soon pursued by Prince Charming (James Marsden). Opening Wednesday; check local listings
Fred Claus (PG, 114 minutes) Tim Allen seems to be taking this holiday season off, so it’s up to Vince Vaughn to fill in the slot. Vaughn plays the bitter, black sheep brother of Santa Claus (Paul Giamatti), who is forced to move to the North Pole after his girlfriend kicks him out. Hijinks ensue as Fred parties with the elves, incites sibling rivalry and generally creates some North Pole anarchy. Playing at Regal Downtown Mall 6
 Timothy Olyphant clearly has the upper hand in Hitman. |
Hitman (NR) Filling this holiday’s lack of violent, videogame-inspired action flicks is this thriller about an unnamed assassin (Timothy Olyphant from "Deadwood") who finds himself ensnared in a political conspiracy and stuck between Interpol and the Russian military. Opening Wednesday; check local listings
Into the Wild (R, 140 minutes) Sean Penn directs this poetic, true-life biopic about Chris McCandless, a middle-class college grad who abandoned his possessions, renamed himself "Alexander Supertramp" and hitchhiked to Alaska to live a Thoreau-like existence in the wilderness. He starved to death after a few months. Emile Hirsch (The Girl Next Door) gives a strong performance and Penn avoids romanticizing the misguided rebel too awfully much. Playing at Vinegar Hill Theatre
Lions for Lambs (R, 88 minutes) Audiences don’t seem very interested in dramas that touch on America’s current War on Terror. But this one is directed by Robert Redford. In it, two young college students fighting in Afghanistan create a tie that binds an idealistic college professor (Redford), a charismatic NeoCon senator (Tom Cruise) and a probing TV journalist (Meryl Streep). The whole thing is meant as a criticism of failed government policies, but good writing and solid acting aside, it’s a bit hard to connect the dots. Playing at Carmike Cinema 6
Love in the Time of Cholera (R, 140 minutes) After much struggle and strife, Gabriel García Márquez’s much-celebrated novel comes to life in movie theaters. Javier Bardem stars as the Argentinian man who stalks his lady love (distinctly non-Argentine Giovanna Mezzogiorno) for 50 years after being rejected by her as a boy. Hector Elizondo, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Benjamin Bratt and John Leguizamo fill out the somewhat odd cast. Mike Newell (Four Weddings and a Funeral, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire) keeps things mostly on the melodramatic tip. Playing at Regal Downtown Mall 6
The Mist (R, 125 minutes) Writer/director Frank Darabont, who had pretty good luck adapting the Stephen King tales The Green Mile and The Shawshank Redemption finally tries his hand at a little of King’s horror catalogue. In this Lovecraftian tale of terror, a small band of citizens are holed up in a supermarket fighting for their lives while a freak storm unleashes a horde of bloodthirsty creatures in the parking lot outside. Opening Wednesday; check local listings
Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium (G, 93 minutes) Giving off a faint but forgivable whiff of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, this family fantasy proposes a fantastical toy store whose magical 243-year-old operator (Dustin Hoffman) is looking for a replacement. He finds it in the form of efficient, responsible Natalie Portman. Unfortunately, the store seems to have a mind of its own, and the new owner isn’t proving all that adept at keeping things in line. The directing debut of writer Zach Helm (Stranger Than Fiction). Playing at Carmike Cinema 6
Michael Clayton (R, 119 minutes) George Clooney toplines this hard-hitting legal drama about an in-house "fixer" at a top New York law firm. When one of the firm’s defense attorneys goes bonkers working on a questionable class action lawsuit, our titular character is called in to clean house. Naturally, our protagonist starts to uncover all sorts of dirty truths that could potentially sabotage the case. Will he do his job or do the right thing? Tom Wilkinson, Tilda Swinton and Sydney Pollack round out a topflight cast for screenwriter-turned-director Tony Gilroy (The Bourne Identity, The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Ultimatum). Playing at Carmike Cinema 6
Romance & Cigarettes (R, 105 minutes) After three years of delays, actor John Turturro is finally self-distributing his third outing as writer/director. Unfortunately, this experimental musical comedy-cum-raunchy romance about infidelity starring the likes of James Gandolfini, Susan Sarandon and Kate Winslet runs off the rails fairly quickly. Performing karaoke style, the actors give it a go; but the salty dialogue and retro song-and-dance numbers make for an odd combo. Playing at Regal Downtown Mall 6
Saw IV (R, 108 minutes) Not even death can keep a good killer down. Despite having passed away in the last Saw film, our conscientious serial killer Jigsaw is back from beyond the grave. While trying to sort out the remains of the last deadly game, two FBI agents fight to save a SWAT team commander stuck in a series of ingenious traps left behind by Jigsaw. Playing at Carmike Cinema 6
This Christmas (NR, 118 minutes) A who’s who of African-American actors (Regina King, Loretta Devine, Mekhi Phifer, Delroy Lindo, Idris Elba) crowds this ensemble cast dramedy centering around the Whitfield clan’s first holiday gathering in four years. Expect secret divorces, marriages, pregnancies, fights, a song or two and a badly cooked dinner—the usual. Opening Wednesday; check local listings
