By Carrie Rickey and Steven Rea - Philadelphia Inquirer
June 17, 2009 05:17 pm
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ADORATION 3 stars. Adam Egoyan’s puzzle-box of a psychological mystery centers on a troubled teen (Devin Bostick), his morose uncle (Scott Speedman) and an overinvolved teacher (Arsinee Khanjian) who encourages him to speculate on the death of his parents. 1 hr. 40 R (language, mature content) — Carrie Rickey
ALIEN TRESPASS 2 1/2 stars. A parody tribute to the vintage sci-fi tales of malevolent Martians and zombie E.T.s that invaded Earth (and the local moviehouse) in the days of Ike. But re-creating the camp and kitsch of a bygone era has its limits; you’re probably better off watching the real “It Came From Outer Space” than this mildly amusing replica. 1 hr. 30 PG (comic violence, mayhem, adult themes) — Steven Rea
AMERICAN VIOLET 3 stars. A single mother (Nicole Beharie) arrested on a drug charge turns down a plea bargain and risks her freedom to prove her innocence. Also starring Alfre Woodard. 1 hr. 42 PG-13 (racial epithets, profanity, violence, adult themes) — “S.R.
ANGELS & DEMONS 2 1/2 stars. Ron Howard’s trimmer followup to his bulky “The Da Vinci Code” is a ticking-bomb thriller tightly wrapped in a papal plot and cinched in the ribbons of religion and science. With Tom Hanks as the symbologist teamed with a fetching physicist (Ayelet Zurer) to save the Vatican. 2 hrs. 18 PG-13 (graphic, bloodcurdling and gutwrenching murders) — Carrie Rickey
ANVIL! THE STORY OF AVIL 3 1/2 stars. Sacha Gervasi’s absurd and affecting rockumentary follows stalwart Canadian heavy metal demi-gods Anvil as they struggle and strive to go on headbanging into their ’50s. A deeply moving portrait of artists who remain stubbornly, illogically committed to their music, even when it seems that no one is listening. 1 hr. 30 No MPAA rating (Profanity, brief nudity, sex toys used for musical purposes) — Dan DeLuca
THE BROTHERS BLOOM 2 stars. This retro-modern curiosity starring Mark Ruffalo and Adrien Brody as two grifter siblings is a scam wrapped in a sham — attractive looking, but hollow. 1 hr. 53 PG-13 (violence, profanity, discreet sexuality) — Carrie Rickey
THE CLASS 3 1/2 stars. Sobering, funny and finally enlightening portrait of the education tango as danced in one middle-school classroom in Paris’ melting-pot 20th arrondisement. In French with English subitles. 2 hrs. 09 PG-13 (profanity) — Carrie Rickey
DANCE FLICK 2 1/2 stars. The Wayans siblings pass the whoopee cushion to their spawn in this spoof of teen musicals that might be called “Step Up to Get Served at the Save the Last Dance High School Musical Roll Bounce.” 1 hr. 23 PG-13 (crude humor, sexual content) — Carrie Rickey
DRAG ME TO HELL 3 stars. Sam Raimi returns to the low-budget gore and gleefully twisted comedy of his “Evil Dead” days, with Alison Lohman starring as a loan officer who gets a curse put on her by an old hag late with her house payments. Finally, a horror movie about the mortgage crisis! 1 hr. 39 PG-13 (violence, gore, profanity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
DUPLICITY 2 1/2 stars. Clive Owen and Julia Roberts are corporate spies with money and romance on their minds in this riffy, overly intricate caper, from “Michael Clayton” writer/director Tony Gilroy. Swanky locales — from Dubai to Zurich — but little suspense. 2 hrs. 08 PG-13 (profanity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
EASY VIRTUE 2 stars. A close-to-insufferable souffle based on the 1925 Noel Coward play, with Jessica Biel as a glamorous and adventurous American meeting her stuffy new in-laws in the English countryside. With Kristin Scott Thomas, Colin Firth and Ben Barnes. 1 hr. 33 PG-13 (nudity, profanity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
ENLIGHTEN UP! 2 1/2 stars. Breezy documentary tasting the 31 flavors of yoga practice. Essentially “Yoga for Dummies” with a brief flash of spiritual light. 1 hr. 22 No MPAA rating (spiritual themes, casual sexual reference) — Carrie Rickey
EVERLASTING MOMENTS 4 stars. A portrait, incandescent and inspiring, of an accidental portraitist, a humble working-class woman named Maria Larsson who understood the transforming powers of photography. The film from Jan Troell takes place in Malmo, Sweden, at the turn of the 20th century and chronicles the life of the photographer who exalts what she sees, however humble. 2 hrs. 11 No MPAA rating (spousal abuse, sexual candor) — Carrie Rickey
EVERY LITTLE STEP 3 stars. Exuberant documentary revisits the genesis of “A Chorus Line,” the landmark show about the gestation and delivery of a Broadway musical, intercutting footage from the original production with the saga of some 3,000 dancers who auditioned for 19 spots in the 2006 revival. 1 hr. 35 PG-13 (profanity, sexual references) — Carrie Rickey
FAST & FURIOUS 2 1/2 stars. Vin Diesel returns for the fourth installment of the street racing franchise. The supercharged action film brings back the rest of the original cast: Paul Walker, Jordana Brewster and Michelle Rodriguez. Vroom, vroom. 1 hr. 40 PG-13 (violence, profanity, sex, drugs) — David Hiltbrand
GHOSTS OF GIRLFRIENDS PAST 2 1/2 stars. A “Christmas Carol” update with Matthew McConaughey as a heartbreaker who behaves badly because he’s protecting a fragile heart and Jennifer Garner as the one gal who’s onto him. An average rom-com, a better-than average McConaughey movie. 1 hr. 40 PG-13 (sexual candor, profanity) — Carrie Rickey
THE GIRLFRIEND EXPERIENCE 2 1/2 stars. Steve Soderbergh’s coldly voyeuristic piece of cultural anthropology offers a short and anything-but-sweet case study of a high-priced escort and the men, and money, in her life. Porn star Sasha Grey stars. 1 hr. 17 R (nudity, sex, profanity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
GOMORRAH 3 1/2 stars. A searing, documentary-like adaptation of Roberto Saviano’s best-selling expose about the Naples mafia. It’s tough, compelling stuff: a frightening portrait of corruption, cynicism, intimidation, greed and violence. 2 hr. 17 No MPAA rating (violence, drugs, profanity, nudity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
THE GREAT BUCK HOWARD 2 1/2 stars. John Malkovich shines as a show-biz mentalist entertaining half-filled theaters in second-tier towns in this gently funny, nostalgia-tinged portrait. Colin Hanks’ turn as the magician’s ill-equipped new road manager muddies the water. But when Malkovich is front and center, things are fine. 1 hr. 27 PG (profanity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
THE HANGOVER 3 stars. Four guys go to Vegas for a bachelor party, and mayhem and memory-loss ensue. A loopy farce from the warped mind that brought you “Old School,” with a scene-stealing performance from indie comedy dude Zach Galifianakis. Bradley Cooper also stars. 1 hr. 40 R (drugs, drink, profanity, nudity, cartoon violence, adult themes) — Steven Rea
HANNAH MONTANA THE MOVIE 3 stars. Miley Cyrus as brunette Miley Stewart, by day a stuttering, accident-prone high-schooler, by night (under a Barbie blonde wig) a strutting pop princess. Can down-home girl coexist with upbeat celebrat? Mildly diverting for parents, a three-star entertainment for their spawn. 1 hr. 42 G (product placement, shopaholia) — Carrie Rickey
HUNGER 3 1/2 stars. Filmmaker Steve McQueen’s powerfully disturbing Cannes-winning examination of the IRA hunger strikes that rocked Northern Ireland and the Thatcher government in the early 1980s isn’t so much a political film as it is a film about the human body, and spirit, as vessels for protest. At times jarringly beautiful and quiet, at times shocking in its Abu Ghraib-like depictions of abuse, this is strong, provocative work. 1 hr. 36 No MPAA rating (violence, nudity, profanity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
IL DIVO 3 1/2 stars. Paolo Sorrentino’s sensational (in both meanings of the word) account of the corruption-plagued regime of seven-time prime minister Giulio Andreotti, the Anton Ego of Italian politics. In Italian with English subtitles. 1 hr. 51 No MPAA rating (violence) — Carrie Rickey
THE INFORMERS 1 1/2 stars. In the same way “Valley of the Dolls” took the trash prose of Jacqueline Susann’s novel and turned it into awful cinema, Bret Easton Ellis’ tale of Tinseltown drugs, sex and excess transfers to the screen with mind-boggling, laugh-inciting horribleness. The acting — from Kim Basinger, Billy Bob Thornton, Winona Ryder, Mickey Rourke — astounds! 1 hr. 38 R (nudity, sex, drugs, alcohol, profanity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
IS ANYBODY THERE? 3 stars. Michael Caine gives a beautiful performance as an old and worn-out magician who reluctantly checks himself into a little retirement home, where he befriends the proprietors’ death-obsessed young son. 1 hr. 35 PG-13 (profanity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
KNOWING 2 stars. A weird and gloomy existential sci-fi thriller with Nicolas Cage as an MIT professor who discovers a page of numbers that seem to predict cataclysmic events. Run for your lives! 2 hrs. 02 PG-13 (violence, calamity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
LAND OF THE LOST 2 stars. Will Ferrell stars in this epically silly homage to Sid and Marty Krofft’s much-beloved Saturday morning series — a lavish Hollywood redo of a cheesy ’70s TV show about three Earthlings transported to a planet of dinosaurs and walking reptiles called Sleestaks. Knuckleheaded comedy ensues. 1 hr. 41 PG-13 (profanity, sexual humor, cartoon violence, adult themes) — Steven Rea
THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT 2 1/2 stars. Dennis Iliadis’ ultra-slick remake of Wes Craven’s 1972 classic about a couple who viciously kill the gang who raped their daughter, has high production values, polished performances and gorgeous visuals — and a happy ending. But it excises Craven’s dark political message: That violence is a virus which makes monsters of all us all, no matter how justified we think we are. 1 hr. 40 R (graphic and pervasive violence, profanity, sex, sadism, rape, gore) — Tirdad Derakhshani
LEMON TREE 3 stars. A lively deadpan comedy set on the Israel/West Bank “green line,” about two women, an Israeli and a Palestinian, and the citrus grove between them that is declared a security risk. Starring the strikingly lovely Hiam Abbass (”The Visitor”). 1 hr. 46 No MPAA rating (mature themes) — Carrie Rickey
THE LIMITS OF CONTROL 3 stars. Jim Jarmusch’s poetic, visually arresting take on the action thriller stars Isaach De Bankole as a man traveling through Spain, meeting strange, sinister types, having espressos and moving on. It’s about the space between the action, the steps along the way. 1 hr. 55 R (nudity, profanity, violence, adult themes) — Steven Rea
LYMELIFE 3 stars. A 15-year-old copes with a dysfunctional family while growing up on Long Island. Alec Baldwin, Rory Culkin, Jill Hennessy, and Timothy Hutton star. 1 hr. 35 R (sex, drugs, violence, profanity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
MANAGEMENT 3 stars. Jennifer Aniston and Steve Zahn star in this likably oddball rom-com about a traveling saleswoman and a motel night manager who won’t leave her alone. With Woody Harrelson. 1 hr. 33 R (sex, profanity, comic violence, adult themes) — Steven Rea
MONSTERS VS. ALIENS 3 stars. Playing in 2-D and 3-D formats, this goofy computer-animated romp is an amicable amalgam of the vintage sci-fi schlock “Attack of the 50 Foot Woman” and of Pixar’s “Monsters Inc.” With the voices of Reese Witherspoon, Seth Rogen and Kiefer Sutherland. 1 hr. 34 PG (Cartoon violence, sci-fi mayhem) — Steven Rea
MY LIFE IN RUINS 2 1/2 stars. Nia Vardalos as a tour guide in Athens who sheds the stiff academic jargon and stiffer blazer to let go, let live and let love. This followup to “My Big, Fat Greek Wedding” might be called “My Slimmed-Down Greek Retreading.” 1 hr. 35 PG-13 (sexual references, profanity) — Carrie Rickey
NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: BATTLE OF THE SMITHSONIAN 2 stars. Ben Stiller returns in this kneejerk sequel to the surprise 2006 family-friendly smash. A super-sized rehash — transplanted from New York’s Museum of Natural History to the sprawling Smithsonian in Washington, D.C. — with lots of running around and CG effects. Amy Adams, Robin Williams, Owen Wilson are among the gang of museum figures come-to-life. 1 hr. 45 PG (action, comic mayhem) — Steven Rea
OBSERVE AND REPORT 3 stars. Seth Rogen stars as a self-deluded, dysfunctional mall cop on the trail of a flasher in this sick, funny comedy. It’s weird stuff, delivered with subversive glee, but the characters — nutjobs all — have their hearts in the right place. With Anna Faris, Ray Liotta and Michael Pena. 1 hr. 26 R (sex, nudity, profanity, alcohol, drugs, violence, adult themes) — Steven Rea
OUTRAGE 3 stars. Kirby Dick’s riveting and provocative documentary about closeted gay politicians asks whether the right to privacy trumps the wrong of hypocrisy. 1 hr. 27 No MPAA rating (mature themes, sexual candor) — Carrie Rickey
PARIS 36 2 1/2 stars. Three unemployed stage performers in 1930s Paris decide to forcefully take over a theater and put on a show. French with subtitles. 2 hrs. PG-13 (violence, sexuality, nudity) — Carrie Rickey
RUDO Y CURSI 3 stars. Gael Garcia Bernal and Diego Luna star as broke bumpkin soccer playing brothers who miracuously get picked to play for Mexico’s premier pro teams in this screwball rags-to-riches drama. 1 hr. 43 R (violence, profanity, sex, nudity, drugs, adult themes) — Steven Rea
17 AGAIN 3 stars. Body-swap fantasy that rests on the sculpted shoulders of Zac Efron, a 17-year-old hoops star inhabited by the spirit of the 37-year-old Matthew Perry. Mildly diverting for adults, but for the teens who are its target audience, Efron’s outside shot is a three-pointer. 1 hr. 42 PG-13 (language, sexual candor, teen partying) — Carrie Rickey.
SIN NOMBRE 3 1/2 stars. Cary Fukunaga’s startlingly impressive first feature is ruthless in its depiction of the brutality and degradation confronting the hordes of illegal immigrants, crossing rivers and hopping trains trying to get to the U.S. The paths of a teenage Honduran girl and a Mexican gang member intertwine as they head for the Rio Grande. 1 hr. 36 R (violence, profanity, sex, adult themes) — Steven Rea
THE SOLOIST 2 1/2 stars. Joe Wright’s unsparing, unsentimental account of real-life newspaper columnist Steve Lopez (Robert Downey, Jr.) and his life-changing encounter with a homelesscello virtuoso Nathaniel Ayers (Jamie Foxx) is an involving chamber piece conducted as though it were a symphony. 1 hr. 49 PG-13 (thematic elements, drug use, profanity) — Carrie Rickey
STAR TREK 3 1/2 stars. J.J. Abrams’ enjoyable reboot of the sci-fi saga takes a refreshing chug from the fountain of youth, imagining what happened When Kirk Met Spock. With Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana and Leonard Nimoy. 2 hrs. 06 PG-13 (brief sexuality, action violence) — Carrie Rickey
STATE OF PLAY 3 1/2 stars. A journalist (Russell Crowe) and a politician (Ben Affleck), once college roommates, play hide-and-seek in this enthralling thriller where murder mystery and political scandal intersect. With Rachel McAdams, Helen Mirren and the ever-resourceful Jason Bateman. 2 hrs. 07 PG-13 (violence, profanity) — Carrie Rickey
SUGAR 4 stars. “Half Nelson” filmmakers Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck follow a young Dominican pitcher as he joins a Single-A team and dreams of playing in the Majors. A baseball movie,a stranger-in-a-strange-land movie, a movie about real people facing real challenges in the real world, this is a modest, masterful gem. 1 hr. 54 R (drugs, adult themes) — Steven Rea
SUMMER HOURS 3 1/2 stars. Olivier Assayas’ achingly beautiful meditation on inheritance and generational change is wildly different in scope and tone from the French director’s recent genre trilogy (”Demonlover,” “Clean” and “Boarding Gate”). A mature and ultimately very moving look at how three siblings (Juliette Binoche, Charles Berling, Jeremie Renier) come together for the imminent death of their mother. 1 hr. 43 No MPAA rating (adult themes) — Steven Rea
SUNSHINE CLEANING 3 stars. Amy Adams and Emily Blunt respectively glow and glower as two sisters who clean up crime scenes in order to finance private school for Adams’ son. Christine Jeffs directs this dramedy, also boasting fine performances by Alan Arkin and Clifton Collins Jr. 1 hr. 32 R (profanity, mature themes, sex) — Carrie Rickey
TENNESSEE 2 1/2 stars. Two brothers (Ethan Peck, Adam Rothenberg) take a roadtrip to their childhood home in search of their father and pick up an aspiring singer (Mariah Carey) along the way. 1 hr. 39 R (profanity, violence) — Carrie Rickey
TERMINATOR SALVATION 2 1/2 stars. Man and machine can’t seem to get along in this sci-fi shoot-’em-up, the fourth installment in the “Terminator series. The year is 2018 and the mood is post-apocalyptic, with Cristian Bale as John Connor, the resistance fighter leading the battle against the evil Skynet and its relentless robot army. A few moments of self-referential humor, but generally the tone is solemn, severe, sermonistic. 1 hr. 55 PG-13 (violence, profanity, post-apocalyptic despair, adult themes) — Steven Rea
TOKYO! 3 stars. Three shorts set in Tokyo but made by foreigners (Frenchmen Michel Gondry and Leos Carax, and South Korea’s Bong Joon-ho), in which xenophobes and freaks wander the streets, grappling with alienation and ennui, horror and regret, toilet paper and pizza boxes. The Gondry segment is a must-see. 1 hr. 52 No MPAA rating (violence, nudity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
TOKYO SONATA 3 1/2 stars. Extraordinary film about a Japanese family that becomes dysfunctional after the father loses his job. Japanese with subtitles. 2 hrs. PG-13 (violence, mature themes) — Carrie Rickey
TULPAN 3 stars. A young sheep herder on the Kazakhstan steppe desperately seeks a wife, a requirement for gaining his own flock. Russian and Kazakh with subtitles. 1 hr. 40 No MPAA rating (brief profanity, brief shot of centerfolds, animal births) — Carrie Rickey.
12 3 stars. Nikita Mikhalkov’s Oscar-nominated drama is a loose, loquacious reworking of Reginald Rose’s jury-room play, “12 Angry Men.” Set in contemporary Moscow (in a school gym), the film finds a dozen jurors debating the fate of a young Chechen, accused of killing his stepfather, a Russian army officer. 2 hrs. 39 PG-13 (violence, profanity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
TWO LOVERS 3 stars. Compelling yet improbable portrait of a suicidal sad sack and the two women in his life, set in an ethnic enclave of Brooklyn and loosely based on a Doestoevsky tale. Joaquin Phoenix, Gwyneth Paltrow and Vinessa Shaw star. 1 hr. 50 R (profanity, nudity, sex, violence, adult themes) — Steven Rea
TYSON 3 stars. A hugely engrossing documentary portrait of the former heavyweight boxing champion — albeit one with an unreliable narrator, Mike Tyson, sitting for the portrait. From director James Toback, who has known his subject for decades. 1 hr. 30 R (profanity, adult themes) — Steven Rea
UNDER THE SEA 3 stars. A giant-screen 40-minute extravaganza shot in the Coral Triangle of Papua New Guinea and in the waters of Southern Australia and the Great Barrier Reef, this Imax project teems with creatures that are bizarre, beautiful, and other-worldly. Narrated by a mercifully restrained Jim Carrey. 35 mins. G (fish on fish violence) — Steven Rea
UP 4 stars. Buoyant Pixar film about a childless grouch (voice of Ed Asner) and a fatherless boy (Jordan Nagai) who float off to the wilds of Venezuela in a house lashed to helium-filled balloons. It darts unpredictably between comedy and adventure, defying gravity and age. 1 hr. 36 PG (perilous situations, appropriate for those five to 105) — Carrie Rickey
X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE 2 stars. Hugh Jackman revisits his “X-Men” role to show how Wolverine came into being in this meaningless mishmash of combat sequences, passable visual effects, Marvel Comics backstory and goofy Liev Schreiber-as-a-villain thespianizing. 1 hr. 47 PG-13 (violence, intense action, adult themes) — Steven Rea
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RATINGS:
4 stars: Excellent; 3 stars: Good; 2 stars: Fair; 1 star: Poor
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