Here are selected capsule reviews of movies in current release. Information is based on the most up-to-date theater schedules available and subject to change.
Aliens of the Deep (star)(star)1/2
Following 2003’s “Ghosts of the Abyss,” director James Cameron journeys deeper into the ocean, exploring the earth’s volatile crust with NASA scientists. All in all, it’s a fascinating, kid-friendly journey, minus clunky dialogue and on-screen hypothesizing about what Europa’s aliens might look like (predictably, like luminescent aqua-aliens from “The Abyss”). G. 47.–R.E.
Alone in the Dark (star)
This video game-inspired bit of nonsense features Christian Slater as a paranormal investigator/artifact hunter who gets caught up in a ridiculous plot involving monsters, ancient evil and Tara Reid as a curator, of all things. Very thin plot and character development exist as an excuse for abundant gunplay and the occasional evisceration. Volume and special effects do not excellence make. R. 1:36.–K.W.
Are We There Yet? (star)(star)
Ice Cube shows his kid-friendly side in “Are We There Yet?” and he and the movie, though nothing special, are fitfully amusing. Playing a Portland Lothario who falls for a young divorced mom (Nia Long) and has to woo her two little kids on a long distance SUV ride to Vancouver, Ice Cube and the kids connect. PG. 1:31.–M.W.
Assault on Precinct 13 (star)(star)(star)
This gritty, stylish thriller — about a snowbound Detroit police station attacked by rogue cops–takes John Carpenter’s 1976 cult classic, adds a top cast (Ethan Hawke and Laurence Fishburne as besieged cop and con, Gabriel Byrne, Brian Dennehy, John Leguizamo) and updates it smartly and excitingly. The premise may be outlandish, but director Jean-Francois Richet’s film rips and roars. R. 1:49.–M.W.
The Aviator (star)(star)(star)(star)
Martin Scorsese’s flamboyant, brilliantly crafted bio-drama on Howard Hughes, visionary airplane tycoon, unbuttoned movie mogul and one of the great, wild American figures. With star Leonardo DiCaprio as Hughes and Cate Blanchett as Kate Hepburn, the film misses some rich possibilities but it’s still the year’s best: seething with life, gorgeously designed and thrillingly articulated. PG-13. 2:46.–M.W.
Bad Education (star)(star)1/2
Spain’s cinematic toreador Pedro Almodovar returns with a deeply personal, sharply realized film shrouded in film noir conventions and the recent Catholic Church sex abuse scandals. While Almodovar’s direction remains as potent as ever, there’s an emotional distance in “Bad Education” that star Gael Garcia Bernal can’t quite overcome. NC-17. 1:49.–R.E.
The Chorus (Les Choristes) (star)(star)(star)
France’s biggest box-office hit last year, this remake of Jean Dreville and Noel-Noel’s 1947 “A Cage of Nightingales” by newcomer Christophe Barratier is a beautifully shot, shamelessly corny and enjoyably old-fashioned “Cinema Paradiso”-style film about a failed musician/composer (Gerard Jugnot, excellent) who kindles lasting musical passions in a post-WWII boys school choir. In French with English subtitles. No MPAA rating (family with parental discretion advised for language). 1:36.–M.W.
Coach Carter (star)(star)(star)
A descendant of “Stand By Me” and even “To Sir, With Love,” this true-life tale tells of provocative high school coach Ken Carter (ferociously played by Samuel L. Jackson) and his tough-love recipe for athletic success and scholarship. Taking a team of losers, he makes them into champions, on the basketball court and in the classroom. PG-13. 2:17.–S.S.
Fascination (star)(star)
In “Fascination”–a shameless new romantic thriller set on the Miami coastline and in the depths of Movie Cliche Land, Jacqueline Bisset plays Maureen Doherty, a beauteous rich wife whose businessman husband Patrick (James Naughton) dies while ocean-diving. Patrick’s worshipful son Scott (Adam Garcia) has a shock of “Hamlet” proportions when Maureen returns from a pleasure cruise with a new lover. R. 1:42.–M.W.
Hide and Seek (star)(star)(star)
Robert De Niro shows his acting chops in “Hide and Seek” as the troubled father of traumatized little Emily (Dakota Fanning), who has an evil, violent imaginary friend. Starting out like an ordinary psychological thriller, with a hint of the supernatural, “Hide and Seek” gradually turns eerier, more unexpected. It scared me. With Famke Janssen, Elisabeth Shue and Dylan Baker. R. 1:41.–M.W.
Hotel Rwanda (star)(star)(star)1/2
Don Cheadle gives a phenomenal performance as Paul Rusesabagina, a quiet, meticulous hotel manager who, in the face of the 1994 massacres, became a real-life hero and unlikely savior. Director-co-writer Terry George’s film is a calm, riveting ground-zero look at a terrible slice of history. But Cheadle, backed by Sophie Okonedo and Nick Nolte, is superb, humbling in his humanity. PG-13. 2:01.–M.W.
House of Flying Daggers (Shimian Maifu) (star)(star)(star)(star)
Zhang Yimou’s follow-up to “Hero” is a swift, lavish Chinese period martial arts epic, done with staggering physical excitement and visual splendor: a love-triangle drama embedded in a Hong Kong-style action movie, complete with battles in bamboo forests, soaring sword-slashing duelists and a fairy-tale air of gorgeous adventure. With Takeshi Kaneshiro, Andy Lau and Zhang Ziyi. In Mandarin with English subtitles. PG-13. 1:59.–M.W.
In Good Company (star)(star)(star)1/2
This funny, meaningful look at men and male workplace culture sets its site on Globecom, a multinational conglomerate that sees fit to anoint young gun Carter (Topher Grace) as the head of its latest acquisition’s advertising department, leaving in the dust ad sales dinosaur Dan (Dennis Quaid, at his surest and most easygoing). Dan teaches Carter a thing or two and satisfying synergy bashing abounds. PG-13. 2:11.–A.B.
In the Realms of the Unreal: The Mysterious Life and Art of Henry Darger (star)(star)
There are two problems with Jessica Yu’s “In the Realms of the Unreal”: The film changes the paintings’ color, and apart from the compositions in brief shots, not one is by Henry Darger. But, Darger’s story is the thing here. For those who don’t mind cliches about outsider artists, this film will tickle an interest in his pathology even as it exploits his art. No MPAA rating. 1:22.–A.A.
Kinsey (star)(star)(star)1/2
This hip, highly partisan movie biography on Dr. Alfred C. Kinsey (Liam Neeson) and his trail-blazing, furiously controversial sex researches, is a surprisingly entertaining picture: a historically savvy movie about the perils of studying sex in a sexually uptight culture. Wittily written, with a fine cast headed by Laura Linney as wife Clara, Peter Sarsgaard and Chris O’Donnell. R. 1:58.–M.W.
Meet the Fockers (star)(star)
Gaylord Focker (Ben Stiller) is back, this time bringing together his future in-laws (Robert De Niro and Blythe Danner) and his aggressively Yiddishkeit and overtly sexual parents (Dustin Hoffman and Barbra Streisand). It’s all repeat performances and rehashed gags for director Jay Roach, who with the hilarious original, set us up for a big fall. PG-13. 1:56.–A.B.
The Merchant of Venice (star)(star)(star)
A richly atmospheric, mostly traditional version of William Shakespeare’s poetic and troubling classic, about a loan borrowed from Shylock, the usurer who demands “a pound of flesh” if not repaid on time. Al Pacino gets by as Shylock, shrewdly employed by director Michael Radford more as a mournful image than eloquent speaker, and Jeremy Irons (Antonio) and Lynn Collins (Portia) are both superb. R. 2:07.–S.S.
Million Dollar Baby (star)(star)(star)(star)
Clint Eastwood admirably returns as both director-producer after last year’s classic “Mystic River”–for a tough, pungent boxing drama with a delayed-action wallop. One of Eastwood’s best, it starts out like another “Rocky”-style Cinderella story, but turns dark, savage and heart-breaking in its final act. With Hilary Swank (as the contender) and Morgan Freeman. PG-13. 2:12.–M.W.
The Phantom of the Opera (star)(star)
This immensely successful musical finally comes to the screen and, for once, the shortcomings can’t be blamed on the moviemakers. Director Joel Schumacher retains much of the sweep, panorama, Grand Guignol horror-movie antics of the original. Alas, unavoidably, he also retains Lloyd Webber’s sugary tunes and the story’s vapid mix of monster movie and creepy, repressed sexuality. PG-13. 2:21.–S.S.
Racing Stripes (star)(star)1/2
In this endearing but predictable celebrity–and joke–packed talking animal pic, a zebra with an identity crisis (voiced by Frankie Muniz) dreams of racing at the Kentucky Open, a widower and former prize trainer struggles to find his way back to the track and his daughter just wants to ride. PG. 1:34.–A.B.
A Very Long Engagement (Un Long Dimanche de Fiancailles) (star)(star)(star)(star)
Reuniting Jean-Pierre Jeunet and Audrey Tautou, the director-star combo of “Amelie,” this lush adaptation of Sebastien Japrisot’s WWI novel about determined Mathilde’s (Tautou) hunt for her supposedly executed soldier-lover is a lavish spectacle with an all-star French cast. In French with English subtitles. R. 2:13.–M.W.
The Wedding Date (star)1/2
This formula-bound romantic comedy about a big fat British wedding, with Debra Messing as the manic half-sister of a London bride (Amy Adams) and Dermot Mulroney as Messing’s phony boyfriendis like a big expensive party that goes sour as soon as you arrive. PG-13. 1:30.–M.W.
White Noise (star)1/2
In this straight-faced supernatural shocker, Keaton plays a bereaved architect who tumbles into the world of Electronic Voice Phenomena or EVP. The movie plays like a message from the dead: a communique from some inert world of lifeless cliches, empty flashy style, wooden characters and moribund shtick. PG-13. 1:41.–M.W.
