Vol. LXII, No. 11
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Wednesday, March 12, 2008
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10,000 B.C. (PG-13 for action violence). Peripatetic prehistoric adventure about a brave young warrior (Steven Strait) who leads a tight-knit band of brothers on an epic journey to the ends of the Earth to rescue the love of his life (Camilla Belle) from the clutches of the warlike tribe who kidnapped her during a raid of their village.
The Band’s Visit (PG-13 for brief profanity). Cross-cultural comedy about the hijinks which ensue when an Egyptian police orchestra gets lost on its way to a concert in Israel and ends up stranded in a tiny town where everybody learns a touching lesson in tolerance. (In Arabic, Hebrew and English with subtitles)
The Bank Job (R for profanity, sexuality, nudity and violence). Jason Statham stars in this action thriller about a struggling car dealer duped by a fetching femme fatale (Saffron Burrows) with a hidden agenda into hatching a plan to burglarize a London bank’s safe deposit boxes containing not only millions in cash and jewelry but a treasure trove of dirty secrets.
College Road Trip (G). Coming-of-age comedy about a high school student (Raven Symone) whose plans for a girls-only trip visiting prospective colleges are ruined when her overbearing, police chief father (Martin Lawrence) insists on accompanying her instead.
Definitely, Maybe (PG-13 for profanity, sexuality, smoking and frank dialogue). Flashback flick revolving around a Manhattanite (Ryan Reynolds) in the midst of a messy divorce who decides to reminisce about the three loves of his life so that his curious 11 year-old daughter (Abigail Breslin) can guess which was her mother. Was she his college sweetheart (Elizabeth Banks), his best friend and confidante (Isla Fisher) or the tough-to-tame free spirit (Rachel Weisz). Cast includes Derek Luke and Liane Balaban.
The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (PG-13 for nudity, sexuality and profanity). Bittersweet bio-pic, based on the memoir of the same name by the late Jean-Dominique Bauby (Mathieu Amalric), the once vivacious editor-in-chief of Elle Magazine who suffered a stroke at 43 which left him paralyzed and unable to communicate except by blinking his only functioning eye. (In French and English with subtitles)
Doomsday (R for profanity, nudity, sexuality and graphic violence). Neil Marshall (The Descent) wrote and directed this sci-fi thriller about an elite squad of scientists dispatched to a quarantined hot zone in Scotland to find a cure for a lethal virus which has already claimed millions of lives. Cast includes Rhona Mitra, Bob Hoskins and Malcolm McDowell.
Fool’s Gold (PG-13 for violence, profanity, sexuality and brief nudity). Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey co-star in this action comedy about a just-divorced couple who rekindle their romance after reuniting to search for a sunken treasure buried aboard a Spanish sailing ship lost at sea in 1715. Supporting cast includes Donald Sutherland, Malcolm-Jamal Warner and Brian Hooks.
Horton Hears a Who (G). Jim Carrey provides the voiceover for the title character in this animated adaptation of the Dr. Seuss kiddie classic about an elephant determined to come to the assistance of the inhabitants of a tiny planet when he hears cries for help coming from a speck of dust floating through the air. Voice cast includes Steve Carrell, Carol Burnett, Jonah Hill, Jamie Pressly, SNL’s Amy Poehler, Isla Fisher, Will Arnett and Seth Rogen.
In Bruges (R for pervasive profanity, graphic violence and drug use). Mob comedy about a couple of hit men (Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson) sent by their boss (Ralph Fiennes) to unwind in Belgium for a couple of weeks after an assignment in London goes horribly wrong.
Jumper (PG-13 for intense violence, brief sexuality and some profanity). Time-travel sci-fi thriller, based on the Steven Gould novel of the same name, about a genetic anomaly (Hayden Christensen) able to teleport himself anywhere who finds himself embroiled in a war that has been raging for eons between “Jumpers” and their sworn enemies, the “Paladins.” With Samuel L. Jackson, Jamie Bell, Diane Lane, Tom Hulce and Anna Sophia Robb.
Juno (PG-13 for profanity, premarital sexuality, and mature themes). Coming-of-age dramatic comedy about a pregnant teen (Ellen Page) who divides her time between getting to know the father (Michael Cera) and bonding with the couple (Jennifer Garner and Jason Bateman) about to adopt her unborn baby. Cast includes Allison Janney, J.K. Simmons, and Rainn Wilson.
Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day (PG-13 for sexual innuendo and partial nudity). Frances McDormand stars in the title role of this romantic comedy, adapted from Winifred Watson’s 1938 novel of the same name, about an unfairly-fired British nanny who tries a new line of work as the social secretary of an American starlet (Amy Adams).
Never Back Down (PG-13 for mature themes, intense violence, profanity, teen partying and premarital sexuality). Overcoming-the-odds drama, set in Orlando, stars Sean Faris as the hot-headed new kid in town who starts studying mixed martial arts after being beaten up by a bully (Cam Gigandet) for flirting with his girlfriend (Amber Heard) at a party. Karate Kid-inspired adventure features Djimon Hounsou in the Mr. Miyagi role as the lad’s mild-mannered mentor.
The Other Boleyn Girl (PG-13 for sexuality, violence and mature themes). 16th C. romance drama, based on the historical novel of the same name by Philippa Gregory, revolving around the competition between sisters Mary (Scarlett Johansson) and Anne (Natalie Portman) Boleyn for the affections of England’s King Henry VIII (Eric Bana). With Kristin Scott Thomas, Jim Sturgess and Rue McLanahan.
Penelope (PG for sexual innuendo, mature themes and mild epithets). Christina Ricci handles the title role in this romantic fairy tale about an aristocratic heiress burdened by a family curse which prevents her from enjoying her dowry until she finds true love with an appropriate suitor. Cast includes James McAvoy, Catherine O’Hara and Reese Witherspoon.
Persepolis (PG-13 for sexual references, profanity, mature themes, violent images and brief drug use). Feminist animated adventure, set at the dawn of the Iranian revolution in the late seventies, chronicles the resistance to the oppressive, fundamentalist Islamic regime displayed by a defiant young girl (Chiara Mastroianni) followed from the age of 9 to 24. (In French, Persian, German and English with subtitles)
The Savages (R for sexuality and profanity). Dysfunctional family drama about the sibling rivalry which re-arises between a brother (Philip Seymour Hoffman) and sister (Laura Linney) when they both move back home to care for their senile father (Philip Bosco).
Semi-Pro (R for profanity and crude humor). Sports comedy starring Will Ferrell as a one-hit wonder who purchases a last place, minor league basketball team and tries to inspire his players to achieve their NBA hoop dreams. Ensemble cast includes Woody Harrelson, rapper Andre Benjamin, ex-Conan O’Brien sidekick Andy Richter, comedian DeRay Davis, Will Arnett, Maura Tierney, David Koechner, SNL alum Tim Meadows, R&B diva Patti LaBelle, Oscar-nominee Jackie Earle Haley and comedienne Charlene Yi.
The Spiderwick Chronicles (PG for peril, mature themes, frightening images and action violence). Escapist fantasy about twin brothers (Freddie Highmore) who, along with their sister (Sarah Bolger), discover a magical world filled with fairies and scary creatures soon after moving with their mother (Mary-Louise Parker) from New York City to their great, great Uncle Arthur’s (David Strathairn) secluded, rundown country estate.
Step Up 2 the Streets (PG-13 for profanity, suggestive material and brief violence). Foot-stomping sequel features Briana Evigan as an orphaned street-dancer who falls in love with a classmate (Robert Hoffman) from the other side of the tracks at the prestigious Maryland School for the Arts. With only a cameo by the star of the original, Channing Tatum.
Vantage Point (PG-13 for intense violence, disturbing images and brief profanity). Political potboiler examines an attempted assassination of the President of the United States (William Hurt) from the varying perspectives of eight eyewitnesses. Ensemble cast includes Forest Whitaker, Dennis Quaid, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana, Matthew Fox, Eduardo Noriega, Richard T. Jones and Bruce McGill.