Opening This Weekend
Changeling (limited)
Synopsis: Angelina Jolie stars in director Clint Eastwood's fact-based drama as Christine Collins, a working single mom in 1920s Los Angeles who returns home one day to find her son missing. Five months pass and the self-serving police department locates an 8-year-old boy in rural Illinois. The twist: Collins gets pilloried for saying the child is not hers. A radio reverend (John Malkovich) steps in to help find the real son. Amy Ryan co-stars in the film, scripted by Michael Straczynski (Babylon 5).
Rated: R
Mini review: She'll probably get an Oscar nomination for this performance, but Jolie sheds so many tears as the mourning mom that the slow-to-start saga gets soggy at times. Still, the camera adores Jolie, who hits deep notes as her everywoman crusader survives unbearable cruelty, civic corruption and nightmarish stints in a psych ward. Serviceable supporting performances are trumped by a stand-out turn from Jason Butler Harner as a sadistic creep. -- Hugh Hart
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*Photo courtesy Universal Pictures *
Synopsis: The traps continue in chapter five of the slasher saga, with serial killer Jigsaw making his maniacal presence known once again. Tobin Bell stars, with Julie Benz and Costas Mandylor. Saw franchise production designer David Hackl directs.
Rated: R
Photo courtesy Lionsgate
Synopsis: Gritty cop drama pits one detective against another after four policemen are killed during a drug bust. When NYPD boss (played by Jon Voight) names his son Ray (Edward Norton) as lead investigator, brother-in-law (Colin Farrell) and brother (Noah Emmerich) get entangled as clues point to a family-incriminating inside job. Gavin O'Connor (Miracle) directs.
Rated: R
Photo courtesy New Line
Synecdoche, New York (limited)
Synopsis: Oscar-winning writer Charlie Kaufman (Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind) directs Oscar-winning actor Phillip Seymour Hoffman (Capote) as a hapless small-town theater director beset by an illness that shuts down his autonomic functions one by one. After his wife and daughter leave, he receives a MacArthur Fellowship__ __"genius" grant and embarks on the artwork of a lifetime: to render a detailed re-creation of New York City. Samantha Morton, Michelle Williams and Catherine Keener co-star.
Rated: R
Photo courtesy Sony Pictures Classics
High School Musical: Senior Year
Synopsis: The perky kids from East High (Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale, Lucas Grabeel, Corbin Bleu and Monique Coleman) return for another go-round. With a basketball championship, prom dates and spring musical in the offing, singin' and dancin' can't be far behind. Choreographed, produced and directed by franchise veteran Kenny Ortega.
Rated: G
Photo courtesy Disney
Synopsis: Anne Hathaway plays a grief counselor working with five plane crash survivors. Once she becomes romantically involved with her most secretive patient (Patrick Wilson), the others start to disappear. Andre Braugher, David Morse and Clea DuVall co-star in the thriller, directed by Rodrigo Garcia (TV's Six Feet Under)
Rated: PG-13
Photo courtesy Sony/TriStar Pictures
Let the Right One In (limited)
Synopsis: Fragile 12-year-old Oskar, bullied by his classmates, befriends a new neighbor girl who only comes out at night. Before long, blood begins to spill and the kids' relationship turns complicated. Child actors Kåre Hedebrant and Lina Leandersson star for Swedish director Tomas Alfredson. Based on best-selling vampire novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist.
Rated: R
Mini-Review: Sporadically ghoulish, this film often teeters close to farce, but between flashes of violence lies an intriguingly touching adolescent love story. There's a tragic sweetness to * Let the Right One In*, which may leave bullied kids the world over hoping for their own personal vampires. -- Meghan Keane
Rating: 
Photo courtesy Magnet Releasing
Now Playing
Synopsis: Videogame-based revenge tale stars Mark Wahlberg as Max Payne, a ticked-off maverick cop with a dead family who butts bloody heads with a shadowy roster of lawbreakers and corrupt businessmen. Joining him is an assassin (Mila Kunis) who's looking for her sister's killers. Chris O'Donnell, Chris "Ludacris" Bridges and Beau Bridges co-star for Irish director John Moore (Behind Enemy Lines).
Rated: PG-13
Photo courtesy Fox
Feature: Max Payne Movie Tries to Beat Videogame Curse
Synopsis: Josh Brolin channels George W. Bush in the latest political bio-pic from Oliver Stone (Nixon, JFK). The movie follows Bush through his hard-drinking frat-boy period, the fateful meeting with wife-to-be Laura, his born-again conversion and, finally, his handling of the Iraq War. The ensemble cast includes Richard Dreyfuss as Dick Cheney along with Elizabeth Banks (Laura Bush), Toby Jones (Karl Rove), Scott Glenn (Donald Rumsfeld), Jeffrey Wright (Colin Powell), Thandie Newton (Condoleeza Rice), Ellen Burstyn (Barabara Bush) and James Cromwell (George Herbert Walker Bush).
__Rated: __PG-13
Photo courtesy Lionsgate
Synopsis: Set in the '60s civil rights era, this relationship drama centers on South Carolina beekeepers the Boatwright sisters (played by Queen Latifah, Alicia Keys and Sophie Okonedo). Their industrious lives are turned upside-down with the unexpected arrival of a runaway white girl (Dakota Fanning) and her best friend (Jennifer Hudson). Paul Bettany co-stars. Novelist Sue Monk Kidd adapted her own book with Bees co-writer/director Gina Prince-Bythewood (Love and Basketball).
Rated: PG-13
Photo courtesy Fox Searchlight
What Just Happened (limited)
Synopsis: Robert De Niro stars as a hard-schmoozing movie producer struggling to negotiate among ruthless studio executives, neurotic agents, vain movie stars and a control-freak director. All bets are off by the time he presents a high-stakes world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival. Barry Levinson (Wag the Dog) directs the satire, based on a memoir by real-life producer Art Linson. Robin Wright Penn, Catherine Keener, Stanley Tucci and John Turturro co-star, with cameos from Sean Penn and Bruce Willis as "The Actor."
Rated: R
Mini review: Though it hardly ranks with De Niro's strongest work, What Just Happened prompts a few dark laughs by thrashing the power brokers who run Hollywood. Best of show: Turturro, who plays an ulcer-ridden agent, and Willis, his glowering superstar client. -- Hugh Hart
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Photo courtesy Magnolia
Synopsis: A college-bound virgin (Josh Zuckerman) hits the road with his womanizing buddy and childhood best female friend to hook up with an internet fantasy babe. Along the way, they encounter a stolen car, jail time and an eccentric Amish farmer (Seth Green). The cast includes Amanda Crew, Josh Marsden and Clark Duke.
Rated: R
Photo courtesy Summit Entertainment
Synopsis: Ridley Scott's spy thriller casts Leonardo DiCaprio as a CIA agent. Tracking a terrorist in Jordan, he devises a high-risk plan resisted back home by a veteran bureaucrat (Russell Crowe) who may have a covert agenda of his own. Oscar-winning writer William Monahan (The Departed) adapted Washington Post columnist Davis Ignatius' novel.
Rated: R
Mini review: Scott's roving camera deftly conveys a jittery sense of well-earned paranoia. DiCaprio convinces as a reluctant killing machine, though he seems to have absorbed Crowe's southern drawl as the movie progresses. Crowe vanishes into his good-old-boy-with-a-heart-of-stone role but Mark Strong, who plays the suave Jordanian spymaster, steals the show. -- Hugh Hart
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Photo courtesy Warner Bros.
Synopsis: Time -- and generator power -- has almost run out for an underground metropolis devised to last 200 years. To the rescue: Young citizens Lina and Doon, played by Saoirse Ronan (Oscar-nominated for Atonement) and Harry Treadaway. They unearth a long-lost secret that could save the human race. Tim Robbins and Bill Murray co-star. Gil Kenan (Monster House) directs the movie, based on Jeanne DuPrau's young adult sci-fi novels.
Rated: PG
Photo courtesy Fox
Synopsis: When TV reporters follow a 911 call to an apartment building in downtown Los Angeles, they find themselves in lock-down with residents who haven't been seen or heard from since March 2008. The nightmare unfolds as Centers for Disease Control agents struggle to keep everyone inside. This remake of Spanish horror pic Rec features Dexter's Jennifer Carpenter, Steve Harris, Jay Hernandez and Johnathon Schaech.
Rated: R
Photo courtesy Sony
Happy-Go-Lucky (limited)
Synopsis: Ensemble comedy centers on Poppy, an upbeat London school teacher whose optimism is tested by a cynical driving instructor, a class bully, her bitter sister and an eccentric flamenco dancer. Star Sally Hawkins reunites for the third time with U.K. filmmaker Mike Leigh (Secrets and Lies, Vera Drake).
Rated: R
Mini review: Getting off to a rocky start, the story gains steam with each off-kilter vignette. Hawkins' relentlessly cheery demeanor as Poppy grows more effective as she weathers various tragic and comic situations, building toward one of the best defenses of the single life on celluloid. -- Meghan Keane
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Photo courtesy Miramax
Synopsis: True story of football great Ernie Davis, the first African-American to win the Heisman Trophy. Dennis Quaid portrays the hard-nosed coach and surrogate father who watches his star running back (played by Rob Brown) triumph over racism, only to encounter tough times after he's drafted by the NFL. Directed by Gary Fleder (Impostor).
Rated: PG
Photo courtesy Universal
RocknRolla (limited)
Synopsis: When a multimillon-dollar real estate scam falls apart, small-time hoodlums, old-school mobsters and Russian gangster billionaires all want in on the action. Set in London, the hyperviolent action piece stars Gerard Butler, Idris Elba, Thandie Newton, Tom Wilkinson, Jeremy Piven and Chris "Ludacris" Bridges. Guy Ritchie (Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, Snatch) directs.
Rated: R
*Photo courtesy Warner Bros. *
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist
Synopsis: Michael Cera stars in this alt-rock romantic comedy about a broken-hearted musician who gets roped into serving as a decoy boyfriend for a college-bound hottie (Kat Dennings) over the course of one club-hopping night in New York City. Peter Sollett (Raising Victor Vargas) directs.
Rated: PG-13
Review: Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist Strikes Sweet Chord
Cera charms with his usual baby-faced banter, but it's not enough to woo the film's music-loving antiheroine, played expertly by Dennings. Twenty-somethings who enjoyed classic teen films like Sixteen Candles and Can't Hardly Wait will likely find Nick and Norah appealing, in style and narrative, as director Sollett weaves a loving tribute to New York, replete with gorgeous shots of late-night cityscapes and celebrity cameos. -- Jenna Wortham
Synopsis: Fact-based story casts Greg Kinnear as Detroit college professor Robert Kearns, who invented the intermittent windshield wiper in 1967. When Ford stole his idea for its Mustang sports car, Kearns fought back in court. Lauren Graham and Dermot Mulroney co-star for director Marc Abraham (producer of Children of Men).
Rated: PG-13
Photo courtesy Universal
Synopsis: As a plague of blindness infects a metropolis, only one woman (Julianne Moore) escapes the epidemic. Searching for her ophthalmologist husband, she uncovers a spooky government round-up. Fernando Meirelles (City of God, The Constant Gardener) directs. The cast also includes Gael Garcia Bernal and Mark Ruffalo.
Rated: R
Photo courtesy Miramax
How to Lose Friends & Alienate People
Synopsis: Simon Pegg bumbles his way through celebrity culture as a boorish British writer hired by a swanky magazine to cover Manhattan's glitterati. Based on Toby Young's memoir about working at Vanity Fair magazine, the film co-stars Kirsten Dunst and Jeff Bridges.
Rated: R
Photo courtesy MGM
Religulous (limited)
Synopsis: Professional skeptic Bill Maher and director Larry Charles (Borat) hit the road to question true believers about their religions. In the documentary, Maher challenges evangelists, Jews, Muslims, alien worshippers and others to explain themselves.
Unrated
Photo courtesy Lionsgate
Synopsis: Pampered Chihuahua Chloe (voiced by Drew Barrymore) lives a life of luxury -- until a series of mishaps leads her to the streets of Mexico. George Lopez and Andy Garcia voice the male dogs, with human characters played by Jamie Lee Curtis and Piper Perabo. Raja Gosnell (Never Been Kissed) directs.
Rated: PG
Photo courtesy Disney
Appaloosa (limited)
Synopsis: Viggo Mortensen and Ed Harris play hired guns brought to a dusty frontier town to restore law and order. The villain: a ruthless, murderous landowner (played by Jeremy Irons). The love interest: a gritty widow (Renée Zellweger). Harris (Pollock) directs the Western, based on Robert B. Parker's novel.
Rated: R
Photo courtesy Warner Bros./New Line Cinema
Synopsis: Shia LaBeouf stars as a Chicago slacker who's thrown together with a single mom (Michelle Monaghan) when they start receiving commands on their cellphones ordering them to do things they don't understand. Disobeying orders comes with a high cost. The Steven Spielberg-produced techno-thriller reteams LaBoeuf with Disturbia director D.J. Caruso. Rosario Dawson and Billy Bob Thornton co-star.
Rated: PG-13
Review: Eagle Eye Taps Thrills in Surveillance Hell
LaBeouf turns in a persuasive performance in this clever, somewhat plausible cautionary tale about the dangers of surveillance technologies. Decent chemistry with Monaghan grounds the outlandish fight-or-flight scenario, while director Caruso puts his own spin on the action scenes, showing chaotic chases as herky-jerky smears of color.
Photo courtesy DreamWorks/Paramount
Synopsis: Adapted from a novel by Fight Club scribe Chuck Palahniuk, this twisted comedy casts Sam Rockwell as a sex addict/theme park employee who makes extra money by pretending to choke at high-end restaurants. Kelly Macdonald and Anjelica Huston co-star for first-time director Clark Gregg.
Rated: R
__Mini review: __ Rockwell rocks as Victor Mancini, a lovable liar who can't keep his hands off the ladies. Part David Duchovny, part Luke Wilson, his portrayal of a scruffy loser with a quick wit and a Jesus streak drives the film through its profane convolutions. Rockwell gets solid support from Huston, as Victor's dementia-addled mother, and Brad William Henke, who plays a supersized version of Seth Rogen; Macdonald shines as a complicated love interest. This low-budget comedy might be best seen on DVD, however -- some lines from the rapid-fire script went unheard in the theater due to viewers' uncontrollable laughter. * -- Lewis Wallace*
Photo courtesy Fox Searchlight
Synopsis: During World War II, four GIs in the all-black 92nd Buffalo Division get separated from their unit in Italy after one of them risks his life to save a boy. Spike Lee directs the nearly three-hour film, starring Derek Luke, Michael Ealy, Laz Alonso and Omar Benson Miller.
Rated: R
Photo courtesy Touchstone
Synopsis: Diane Lane plays a woman who escapes her philandering husband and antagonistic daughter to tend a remote inn on North Carolina's Outer Banks. There, she meets an equally world-weary doctor (Richard Gere). Sparks fly. Based on the novel by Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook), the romantic drama reunites Gere and Lane for a third time (Cotton Club, Unfaithful) with Broadway director George C. Wolfe at the helm.
Rated: PG-13
Photo courtesy Warner Bros. Pictures
The Lucky Ones (limited)
__Synopsis: __On leave from the Iraq War, three soldiers rent a van in New York and embark on a contentious cross-country road trip. Destination: Las Vegas. Tim Robbins, Rachel McAdams and Michael Peña star in the original story by director/co-writer Neil Burger (The Illusionist).
Rated: R
__Mini review: __ Robbins excels as the gruff family man but that's to be expected from the veteran character actor. The surprises come from Rachel McAdams, who holds her own as a wise-cracking toughie, and Peña, who defrosts from macho pride mode with low-key grace. Missing in action: the American landscape. The cinematography is only adequate where it could have been breathtaking. Extra points for a non-preachy approach to the impact of war on ordinary citizens.* -- Hugh Hart*
Photo courtesy DreamWorks/Paramount
Synopsis: He sees dead people. Ricky Gervais stars as misanthropic dentist Bertram Pincus, who dies for seven minutes, then gets revived to a new reality that includes really annoying ghosts. Frank (Greg Kinnear) promises to make the ghosts go away if Pincus stops his widow from marrying a very bad man. Téa Leoni co-stars in the comedy directed and co-written by Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull scribe David Koepp.
__Rated: __ PG-13
__Mini review: __Gervais slays with his portrayal of a socially inept dentist on a collision course with altruism. The Brit actor's ability to squeeze laughs out of awkward moments is truly freakish, and Ghost Town makes the most of the talents he honed in The Office and Extras. The evenly paced movie is alternately hilarious and heartwarming, and there's even better news: It benefits from a tight script and a stellar turn by Kristen Wiig as a ditzy doctor. -- Lewis Wallace
*Photo courtesy DreamWorks *
Synopsis: Igor, a hunchbacked lab assistant (voiced by John Cusack), invents a talking brain and wisecracking, reincarnated bunny. After his mad-scientist master croaks, Igor competes in the Evil Science Fair, where his wicked creations go wild. John Cleese, Steve Buscemi, Jay Leno and Molly Shannon co-star. Tony Leondis (Lilo & Stitch 2) directs the script by Chris McKenna (TV's American Dad).
__Rated: __ PG
Photo courtesy MGM
Synopsis: Samuel L. Jackson stars as a Los Angeles police officer who disapproves of his new neighbors, an interracial couple played by Patrick Wilson and Kerry Washington. His mission: Turn the lovebirds' California dream into a nightmare. Neil LaBute (Nurse Betty) directs.
Rated: PG-13
*Photo courtesy Sony Pictures/Screen Gems *
Synopsis: When Dustin (Jason Biggs) gets dumped by his dream girl Alexis (Kate Hudson), he enlists best friend Tank (Dane Cook) to pose as a date-from-hell to scare her back to him. Raunchy romantic comedy ensues. Alec Baldwin co-stars.
Rated: R
Photo courtesy Lionsgate
*Battle in Seattle *(limited)
Synopsis: Docudrama covers five days in 1999 when protesters disrupted a Seattle meeting of the World Trade Organization. The chaos is viewed from overlapping viewpoints of the mayor, a cop, his pregnant wife, a reporter and, of course, the activists. First-time Irish writer-director Stuart Townsend steers André Benjamin, Charlize Theron, Martin Henderson, Ray Liotta, Woody Harrelson and Michelle Rodriguez through the ensemble agit-prop.
__Rated: __ R
__Mini review: __Wall Street meltdown notwithstanding, economics rarely make for sexy drama. This handsomely shot critique of free trade is a game effort but its two-dimensional characters would have benefitted from a world-class villain to state the corporate case. -- Hugh Hart
*Photo courtesy Redwood Palms Pictures *
The Duchess (limited)
__Synopsis: __Keira Knightley stars as Georgiana the Duchess of Devonshire, the witty 18th-century fashionista who married into wealth and power only to becomes a trophy wife for her cold-fish husband (Ralph Fiennes). In this fact-based period piece, the Duke's mistress lives in the same castle, leading to heartbreak and scandal.
Rated: PG-13
*Photo courtesy Paramount Vantage *
Synopsis: The Coen brothers' screwball spy spoof follows Washington, D.C., bumblers as they cross paths in antic pursuit of infidelity, liposuction and a disc filled with worthless information. Ensemble cast includes George Clooney, John Malkovich, Frances McDormand, Brad Pitt and Tilda Swinton.
Rated: R
__Review: __Dim Bulbs Light Up Burn After Reading
Mercilessly funny farce gets big laughs from serious dramatic actors playing full throttle, finely observed dunderheads.
Photo courtesy Focus Features
__Synopsis: __In this Clash of the Method Acting Titans, Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino play gritty New York City detectives assigned to a murder that looks suspiciously like the handiwork of a killer they put away years earlier. Script by Russell Gewirtz (Inside Man) is directed by veteran filmmaker Jon Avnet (Fried Green Tomatoes). Curtis Jackson (aka 50 Cent), Carla Gugino and Brian Dennehy co-star.
Rated: R
Photo courtesy Overture Films
Previously Reviewed
Burn After Reading
__
The Dark Knight__
- Review: Joker Plays the Wild Card in Dazzling Dark Knight
- Dark Knight Director Shuns Digital Effects for the Real Thing
- The Dark Knight: 'Where Does He Get Those Wonderful Toys?'
Death Race
Hancock
Hellboy II: The Golden Army
- Review: *Hellboy II *Is Hell-Bent on Monstrous Visuals
- Hellboy's Mike Mignola Talks 'Language of Monsters'
__
Journey to the Center of the Earth__
Pineapple Express
Star Wars: The Clone Wars
- Review: Clone Wars Returns Star Wars to Its Youthful Roots
- 10 Reasons Why Clone Wars Beats Any Lucas Prequel
- I Sense a Disturbance in the *Star Wars *Canon
Wall-E
- Review: Charming *Wall-E *Sweeps Up Trash, Hearts
- Retro Futurism of Wall-E Recalls 2001, Blade Runner
Wanted
- Review: Angelina Jolie Speed-Races Through* Wanted'*s Sexy Violence
- Secrets of Wanted's Insane Onscreen Action
__
The X-Files: I Want to Believe__
