3 1/2 stars
Definitely, Maybe (PG-13)
With his divorce pending, Will (Ryan Reynolds) tells his daughter Maya (Abigail Breslin) the long, winding story of how he met and married her mother — a story, Maya hopes, whose retelling will motivate her parents to get back together. Isla Fisher, Rachel Weisz and Elizabeth Banks star as the potential spouses, with Derek Luke as Will’s pal and Kevin Kline as a pretentious college professor.
Big question: Can this romantic comedy set a pleasant, non-sappy mood, even if it seems like a blatant rip-off/extension of TV’s “How I Met Your Mother”?
Catch it: Very improbable, kinda corny and sweet as hell, “Definitely, Maybe” is a jackpot of blessed casting, featuring a collection of cinematic secret weapons such as Fisher, Luke and Breslin and the first assertive Reynolds performance ever.
Bottom line: Suddenly, unexpectedly, a Ryan Reynolds movie worth seeing.
– – –
THE REWIND
MATT’S PICKS FOR WHAT’S STILL PLAYING
4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days
3 1/2 stars
Great, but NOT for a date.
In Bruges
2 1/2 stars
Colin Farrell as an Irish tough guy? Brave casting!
Vince Vaughn’s Wild West Comedy Show
2 stars
Vaughn used to be funny.
Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins
1 star
Go away, Martin Lawrence.
The Hottie and the Nottie
No stars
And you thought Paris Hilton couldn’t sink lower.
– – –
QUICK PICKS
Jumper
1 1/2 stars
Who’s in it: Hayden Christensen, Jamie Bell, Samuel L. Jackson, Rachel Bilson
What it’s about: David Rice (Christensen) discovers he can teleport himself anywhere.
Worth watching? “A herky-jerky mess of a movie.”
– Tom Long, Detroit News
The Spiderwick Chronicles (PG)
3 stars
Who’s in it: Freddie Highmore, Mary-Louise Parker, Nick Nolte
What it’s about: Three children find themselves pulled into an alternate world full of fairies and other creatures.
Worth watching? “Much more than the same old bedtime stories, digitally gussied up.”
– Bob Strauss, L.A. Daily News
Diary of the Dead
2 stars
Who’s in it: Michelle Morgan, Josh Close
What it’s about: Film students try escape a growing attack of the undead.
Worth watching? “The continued degradation of a once enjoyable franchise.”
– Cary Darling, Ft. Worth Star-Telegram
