Kam’s Kapsules by Kam Williams

17 Again (PG-13 for profanity, sexuality, and teen partying). Time-travel comedy about a middleaged man (Zac Efron) stuck in a bad marriage and a dead end job who gets a new lease on life when he is miraculously turned into a teenager after falling into a river. Cast includes Matthew Perry, Thomas Lennon, and Leslie Mann.

Battle for Terra (PG for violence and mature themes). Animated science fiction adventure about the peaceful inhabitants of a distant planet who face annihilation when desperate human invaders declare war in the wake of the destruction of Earth. Voice cast includes Evan Rachel Wood, Luke Wilson, Amanda Peet, Dennis Quaid, Danny Glover, Rosanna Arquette, James Garner, and Chris Evans.

Crank: High Voltage (R for nudity, gory violence, graphic sexuality, and pervasive profanity). Jason Statham reprises his role in this sequel which finds the frantic hit man with heart disease on the run from Mexican and Chinese mobsters while trying to get some urgently needed medical assistance. Returning cast members include Amy Smart, Dwight Yoakum, and Efren Ramirez, and additions to the cast that include David Carradine and Corey Haim.

Earth (G). Disney nature film, narrated by James Earl Jones and Patrick Stewart, chronicles the efforts of several families of wild animals, including polar bears, ducks, and cranes, not only to elude predators but to adjust to atmospheric warming trends.

Fast & Furious (PG-13 for violence, sexuality, profanity, drug references, and intense action sequences). Fourth installment of the popular muscle car series, featuring a reunion of the original’s principal cast, revolves around a couple of unlikely buddies, a cop (Paul Walker) and a fugitive ex-con (Vin Diesel), who team up to infiltrate and bring down a Los Angeles heroin cartel. With Michelle Rodriguez, Jordana Brewster, and Laz Alonso.

Fighting (PG-13 for profanity, sexuality, and intense action sequences). Gritty, New York City saga about a tough small town kid (Channing Tatum), new in town, who is introduced to the world of bare knuckle street fighting by a con artist (Terrence Howard) who offers to be his manager. With Zulay Henao, Luis Guzman, and Brian J. White.

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (PG-13 for profanity, sexuality, and drug use). Romantic comedy about a confirmed bachelor (Matthew McConaughey) who, on the eve of his brother’s (Breckin Meyer) wedding, finds himself confronted by the disembodied spirits of the women he’s seduced and abandoned. Cast includes Jennifer Garner, Michael Douglas, Lacy Chabert, Robert Forster, Emma Stone, and Anne Archer.

Goodbye Solo (Unrated). Bittersweet drama, set in Winston-Salem, South Carolina, revolving around the unlikely friendship forged between a cheery Senegalese cab driver (Souleymane Sy Savane) searching for the American Dream and the suicidal senior citizen (Red West) he picks up as a passenger.

Hannah Montana: The Movie (G). Musical adventure about a teenage pop star (Miley Cyrus) overwhelmed by sudden fame who follows her father’s (Billy Ray Cyrus) advice by retreating to her tiny Tennessee hometown in order to get a fresh perspective about what really matters most in life. With Vanessa Williams, Barry Bostwick, and Emily Osment.

The Haunting in Connecticut (PG-13 for intense terror and disturbing images). Haunted house tale, based on a true story, recounts the host of supernatural horrors visited upon a family that moved into a renovated Victorian mansion that had been a mortuary where unspeakable acts had transpired. Cast features Virginia Madsen, Kyle Gallner, Elias Koteas, and Amanda Crew.

I Love You, Man (R for pervasive profanity and crude sexual references). Romantic comedy about a bride-to-be (Rashida Jones) whose friendless fiancé (Paul Rudd) searches for a buddy (Jason Segel) to serve as his best man at his impending wedding. With Jon Favreau, Jaime Pressley, J.K. Simmons, Andy Samberg, and Jane Curtin.

The Informers (R for nudity, graphic sexuality, pervasive profanity, drug use, and disturbing images). Drama, set in Los Angeles in the eighties, examines the exploits of a collection of characters over the course a very eventful week. Cast includes Academy Award winners Billy Bob Thornton and Kim Basinger, Oscar-nominees Mickey Rourke and Winona Ryder, plus Amber Heard, Rhys Ifans, and Chris Isaak.

Is Anybody There? (PG-13 for profanity, sexual references, and disturbing images). Drama set in the eighties at an old folks home on England’s seacoast, about a lonely 10-year-old (Bill Milner) befriended by a recently-widowed, grieving magician (Michael Caine).

Knowing (PG-13 for disaster sequences, disturbing images, and brief profanity). Nicolas Cage stars in this thriller about a professor whose son (Chandler Canterbury) digs up a time capsule buried in 1958 containing a coded scroll accurately predicting not only every disaster for the past 50 years but also an imminent cataclysmic event.

The Limits of Control (R for profanity and graphic nudity). Jim Jarmusch directs this surrealistic crime thriller about a mysterious loner (Isaach De Bankolé) with trust issues making his way across Spain to pull off a job. Cast includes Bill Murray, Tilda Swinton, Alex Descas, John Hurt, and Youki Kudoh, along with Gael García Bernal, and Paz De La Huerta.

Monsters vs. Aliens (PG for science fiction action, crude humor, and mild epithets). Animated adventure about a young woman (Reese Witherspoon) turned into a 50 foot giant by a meteorite, who is called upon by the President of the United States (Stephen Colbert) to defend the planet against an army of invading aliens with the help of a rag-tag team of monsters. Voice cast includes Seth Rogen, Hugh Laurie, Will Arnett, Kiefer Sutherland, Amy Poehler, Paul Rudd, and Renée Zellweger.

Observe and Report (R for graphic nudity, pervasive profanity, sexuality, violence, and drug use). Comedy about a bipolar security guard (Seth Rogen) determined to win the heart of a cashier (Anna Faris) and to catch the flasher (Randy Gambill) ruining the ambiance of the mall where he works. With Ray Liotta, Michael Pena, and John and Matt Yuen.

Obsessed (PG-13 for sexuality, violence, suggestive dialogue, and mature themes). Psychological thriller about a happily married asset manager (Idris Elba) whose tranquil life is turned upside down when a mentally unstable temp worker (Ali Larter) starts stalking him. With Beyoncé, Jerry O’Connell and Christine Lahti.

Paris 36 (PG-13 for violence, sexuality, nudity, and brief profanity). Historical drama, set in Paris in 1936, about a stage manager (Gerard Jugnot), a union organizer (Clovis Cornillac), and an impressionist (Kad Merad) who enlist the help of recently unemployed friends in staging a show at a boarded-up theatre where they had all worked just a few months earlier. In French with subtitles.

The Soloist (PG-13 for mature themes, drug use, and profanity). Jamie Foxx stars in this moving biopic about a Los Angeles Times reporter (Robert Downey, Jr.) who is stunned to discover that the homeless man he befriends in the park, who plays the violin, is a Juilliard trained former child prodigy. With Catherine Keener, Stephen Root, and Lisa Gay Hamilton.

State of Play (PG-13 for violence, profanity, sexual references, and brief drug use). Screen adaptation of the B.B.C. mini-series of the same name revolving around a team of reporters who work with the police to solve the murder of a congressman’s (Ben Affleck) mistress. Cast includes Russell Crowe, Helen Mirren, Viola Davis, Robin Wright Penn, Rachel McAdams, Jason Bateman, and Jeff Daniels.

Sugar (R for profanity, sexuality, and drug use). Sports saga about a promising baseball player (Algenis Perez Soto) from the Dominican Republic and his struggle to make it to the major leagues. In English and Spanish with subtitles.

X-Men Origins: Wolverine (PG-13 for intense violence and partial nudity). Latest installment in the Marvel Comics franchise focuses on Wolverine’s (Hugh Jackman) search for Sabertooth (Live Schreiber) in order to exact a measure of revenge for the death of his girlfriend, Silver Fox (Lynn Collins). With will.i.am, Ryan Reynolds, and Danny Huston.

Return to Cinema Review | Return to Top