A Guy Thing (star)(star)
This comedy about a nervous groom-to-be (Jason Lee) getting messily involved with the gorgeous cousin (Julia Stiles) of his finicky fiance (Selma Blair) bears some resemblance to “Meet the Parents.” Both are built around outrageously embarrassing and painful mishaps, many of which take place in bathrooms or involve mistaken perceptions of lewd conduct. The cast here is good, and there are funny moments, but Chris Koch (“Snow Day”) directs with a heavy hand. PG-13.
— Michael Wilmington
Kangaroo Jack (star) 1/2
Two pals (Jerry O’Connell, Anthony Anderson) are sent to Australia to deliver a lump of mob money to a mystery man. They tangle with a kangaroo after it jumps off with a jacket that has the money tucked into a pocket, and the mobsters eventually come looking for their loot. The film’s crude humor and violence will offend some; yet its pratfall-filled comedy will satisfy only the most indiscriminate teens. PG.
— Loren King
National Security (star)(star)
Playing security guards who stumble upon a smuggling ring, Martin Lawrence and Steve Zahn generate enough comic tension and mayhem to turn this mass of action-comedy cliches into a fairly amusing show. The movie’s cookie-cutter script hardly deserves the skill or electricity these actors bring to it. PG-13.
M.W.
Also in theaters
25th Hour (star)(star)(star)(star)
Director Spike Lee unforgettably captures the mixed state of dread, disgust and nostalgia experienced by a convicted drug dealer during his last day of freedom before beginning a seven-year prison term. R.
NARC (star)(star)(star)
Here’s a gritty cop movie for people who like gritty cop movies. It’s bloody, grimy, energetic and stylish. Jason Patric and Ray Liotta star. R.
The Hours (star)(star)(star)
The movie version of Michael Cunningham’s Pulitzer-Prize winning book has a cast that oozes class: Meryl Streep as the modern Mrs. Dalloway, Julianne Moore as Laura Brown and Nicole Kidman as author Virginia Woolf. PG.
Nicholas Nickleby (star)(star)(star)
Assembling the best British cast this side of “Gosford Park,” director Douglas McGrath tackles Charles Dickens’ sprawling coming of age novel. PG.
