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Kam's Kapsules by Kam Williams

Aliens of the Deep (G). Disney and I-Max teamed up to produce this 3-D documentary directed by James Cameron, an undersea expedition to an underwater mountain range which is home to some of the strangest animals on the planet, such as 6-foot long worms and blind white crabs.

Alone in the Dark (R for violence and profanity). Supernatural thriller, based on the Atari video game of the same name, features Christian Slater as a detective who encounters a series of paranormal events while investigating the death of a friend. With Tara Reid and Stephen Dorff.

Are We There Yet? (PG for language and crude humor). Road comedy about the nightmarish ordeal of a playboy (Ice Cube) who agrees to drive his workaholic girlfriend's (Nia Long) disobedient kids from Washington, D.C. to New York City for a New Year's Eve reunion with their mom.

Assault on Precinct 13 (R for drug use, graphic violence and profanity). This overhaul of the grisly 1976 crime thriller of the same name stars Ethan Hawke as an embattled veteran desk sergeant dealing with an attack by an armed gang of mobsters intent on freeing a drug kingpin (Laurence Fishburne) being held in an understaffed Detroit jail. With Ja Rule, Brian Dennehy, John Leguizamo, and Gabriel Byrne.

The Aviator (PG-13 for nudity, sexual content, mature themes, profanity, and a crash sequence). Martin Scorcese tapped Leonardo DiCaprio to play Howard Hughes in this biopic about the enterprising, eccentric playboy who parlayed a modest inheritance into a massive fortune. With Kate Beckinsale as Ava Gardner, Cate Blanchett as Katherine Hepburn, Jude Law as Errol Flynn, Gwen Stefani as Jean Harlow, Jane Lynch as Amelia Earhart, Stanley DeSantis as Louis B. Mayer, and Michael-John Wolf as Cary Grant.

Bad Education (Unrated). Oscar-winner Pedro Almodovar (Talk to Her) wrote and directed this semi-autobiographical film which examines the effect of sexual abuse by a Catholic priest on the friendship of two boys, one of whom grows up to be a filmmaker. In Spanish with subtitles.

Beyond the Sea (PG-13 for profanity and sexuality). Kevin Spacey directed and stars in this bio-pic chronicling the life and times of crooner Bobby Darin. Kate Bosworth plays wife Sandra Dee, while John Goodman, Greta Scacchi, Bob Hoskins and Brenda Blethyn round out the cast.

Coach Carter (PG-13 for sex, expletives, violence, drug use and underage partying). Samuel L. Jackson handles the title role in this true story of an inner-city, high school basketball coach who cared enough about his players to bench the entire team for academic underperformance, even though they were undefeated at the time. With Ashanti and Debbi Morgan.

Elektra (PG-13 for action violence). Jennifer Garner stars as the screen version of the Marvel Comics character blessed with super-human martial arts skills and the ability to see into the future after a near death experience. Cartoon adaptation co-stars Terence Stamp and Goran Visnjic.

Hide and Seek (R for violence and frightening sequences). Robert De Niro stars in this horror film as a widower whose nine-year-old daughter (Dakota Fanning) creates an imaginary friend, Charlie, to deal with her mother's suicide. Famke Janssen co-stars as the little girl's shrink who determines that Charlie might be more real than imagined.

Hotel Rwanda (PG-13 for violence, profanity, and disturbing images). Don Cheadle landed a Golden Globe nomination for his performance in this true story about a hotel manager who saved over 1,000 refugees from ethnic cleansing during the Rwandan civil war. With Nick Nolte, Joaquin Phoenix, and Cara Seymour.

In Good Company (PG-13 for sex content and drug references). Dennis Quaid stars in this comedy of errors as a demoted corporate middle manager whose new young boss (Topher Grace) starts dating his 18 year-old daughter (Scarlett Johansson).

Kinsey (R for sex content). Laura Linney and Liam Neeson star in this look at the life of Alfred Kinsey, Harvard-educated academic whose pioneering research in human sexual behavior in the late Forties opened up a whole new field of study.

Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events (PG for mature themes, scary situations, and mild epithets). Jim Carrey narrates this adaptation of the popular children's book series as the greedy Count who adopts three orphaned distant relatives with the hope of stealing the kids' inheritance.

Meet the Fockers (PG-13 for off-color humor, profanity, and a drug reference). Sequel to Meet the Parents introduces Barbara Streisand and Dustin Hoffman as the very ethnic parents of Ben Stiller. Plot has Robert DeNiro and Blythe Danner, returning as protective parents of the bride (Teri Polo), now venturing to Detroit to size-up their daughter's soon to be in-laws.

The Merchant of Venice (R for nudity). Tenth big screen adaptation of the William Shakespeare classic about a man expected to pay off a loan he took for a friend with a pound of his own flesh. Starring Al Pacino as Shylock, Jeremy Irons as Antonio, Joseph Fiennes as Bassanio, and Lynn Collins as Portia.

Racing Stripes (PG for crude humor and language). Frankie Munoz lends his voice to the title character in this live action/animation comedy about a baby zebra accidentally abandoned by a traveling circus in Kentucky where he is adopted by a teenage girl (Hayden Panettiere) who helps him overcome ostracism and self doubts while training him on her father's horse farm to run with the thoroughbreds. Additional voicework supplied by Steve Harvey, Joe Pantoliano, David Spade, Snoop Dogg, Mandy Moore, Jeff Foxworthy, Whoopi Goldberg, Dustin Hoffman, and Michael Clarke Duncan.

Sideways (R for sex, expletives, and nudity). Road film with Paul Giamatti as a recently-divorced writer who embarks on a weekend exploration of the California wine country with a washed-up actor friend (Thomas Haden Church) to soak their woes while reflecting on their failed relationships.

A Very Long Engagement (R for violence and sexuality). Audrey Tautou stars in a World War I romance drama, adapted from the novel of the same name by Sebastien Japrisot, as a woman desperately searching everywhere from the city of Paris to the trenches on the front lines for her missing fiancé, a soldier who had been court-martialed. In French with subtitles.

White Noise (PG-13 for violence, profanity, and disturbing images). Romantic thriller revolving around a widower (Michael Keaton) contacted by his murdered wife (Chandra West) via the static on his radio, a theme reminiscent of the Jim Caviezel-Dennis Quaid sci-fi hit Frequency.