Here are selected minireviews of films in theaters, listed alphabetically. Ratings range from zero to four stars.
“ATL”
TEEN DRAMA|***|PG-13|Though the specter of drugs is part of “ATL,” it isn’t a drug movie, and it doesn’t send its characters on a harrowing journey into danger. It’s a film about growing up and working, about falling in love, about planning for your future, and about the importance of friends. For Rashad (Tip
Harris), the best day of the week is Sunday, because that’s when he and three friends head for the Cascade, a roller rink where they show off with intricately choreographed moves on the floor. It’s also where Rashad falls in love for the first time. (Roger Ebert)|105 minutes
“Aquamarine”
COMING OF AGE |** 1/2|PG|The adventures begin when Claire and Hailey find a mermaid in the pool. Which means they have to deal with the mermaid, the moving-away thing and a cute lifeguard named Ray. There’s nothing original about “Aquamarine,” which owes a fish-out-of-water debt to “Splash.” But there’s a sense that the script understands how tween girls think and what interests them (or maybe it’s just what we hope interests tween girls): romance, not sex. Their innocent crush on Ray, for instance, is adorable, as are their not-quite-successful attempts to pick up dating techniques from the sages at Seventeen. (Chris Hewitt, Knight Ridder Newspapers)| 107 minutes
“Brick”
HIGH SCHOOL NOIR|***|R|It’s all here, the cliques, the provisional relationships, the exploitative friendships. Yet high school was never as noir a place as it is in writer-director Rian Johnson’s promising debut “Brick.” Brendan (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) finds the body of former girlfriend Emily. Flash to two days earlier when she left him a note about a rendezvous. He had hoped to be a rescuer, not a detective. “Brick” is not just another teen movie. One listen to the hard-boiled patois proves it. Yet in being so unlike the typical high school flick, “Brick” captures anew the alienation, the ridiculously earnest intensity of feeling, the insularity of experience that make up the blunder years. Also stars Nora Zehetner, Lukas Haas, Noah Fleiss, Matt O’Leary and Emile de Ravin. (Lisa Kennedy)|110 minutes
“Curious George”
ANIMATED FAMILY FILM|***|G|An amiable and amusing animated film that brings the beloved children’s character to the big screen for the first time. While it doesn’t reach the same heights as the Pixar or DreamWorks animated films, it should please both youngsters and their parents. Starring the voices of Will Ferrell, Dick Van Dyke, and Drew Barrymore. (James Ward, Visalia Times-Delta)|87 minutes
“Date Movie”
SPOOF|** 1/2|PG-13|From the makers of “Scary Movie” and “Spy Hard” comes a nonstop spoof on romantic comedies. Don’t expect enlightenment, but it’s fair to expect a good number of crude laughs at the expense of an overworked Alyson Hannigan manages to keep it all sweet, and there are plenty of “I can’t believe they did that” moments. (Michael Booth)|70 minutes
“Don’t Come Knocking”
LIGHT DRAMA|*** 1/2|R|Wim Wenders creates a wonderful bookend for his beloved road-and-regret movie “Paris, Texas.” Here, co-author Sam Shepard stars as a cowboy movie actor who rides off into the sunset to right some wrongs from his wild life. He winds up in Butte, Mont., with an angry former girlfriend and an even angrier son he didn’t know he had. Generous and beautiful, full of the Wenders spirit. (Booth)|105 minutes
“Failure to Launch”
Y-CHROMOSOME ROMANTIC COMEDY|
** 1/2|PG-13|Matthew McConaughey
and Sarah Jessica Parker star in this romantic comedy – directed by “Shanghai Noon’s” Tom Dey – that hopes to wrench the guy demographic away from its Game Boys – girlfriends in tow. Manly yes, but she’ll like it too. Tripp (McConaughey) and friends Demo and Ace are grown men still living comfortably with their folks. During a visit with friends who rediscovered their friskiness once their son was out of the house, Tripp’s parents (Kathy Bates and football great Terry Bradshaw) hire consultant Paula (Parker) to coax their big bird from the too cozy nest they’ve provided him. Zooey Deschanel, Justin Bartha and Bradley Cooper make good friend foils to Tripp and Paula’s main attraction fireworks. (Kennedy)|105 minutes
“Firewall”
THRILLER|** 1/2|PG-13|This is the bank security system that Jack Stanfield built. This is the system that Jack built that cyberrobber Bill Cox (Paul Bettany) plans to steal millions from. This is the wife (Virginia Madsen) and kids Bill will use as leverage to break into the system that Jack built. If “Firewall” feels familiar, its because star Harrison Ford infuses this sometimes tense, more often routine, thriller with his brand of emotion. Security, vulnerability and the American family under siege are themes that might have earned additional thought. But “Firewall,” directed by Richard Loncraine and written by Joe Forte, gives us little reason to bestow deeper meaning on what is basically a pre-owned Ford vehicle. (Kennedy)|105 minutes
“Friends With Money”
COMEDY OF MANNERS|** 1/2|R |Almost any of the great Victorian novels could have been titled “Friends With Money,” so it’s not a bad idea to update the concept of friendly envy to modern-day Southern California. Jennifer Aniston has tried many jobs but ended up as a housecleaner, while her wealthier friends pursue careers, marriages and parenthood. It almost works, but there’s no one here to like and root for. The Victorians knew enough to supply a brave heroine or a nasty villain who made us care about the ending. (Booth)|88 minutes
“The Hills Have Eyes”
HORROR REDUX|** 1/2|R|The Carter family meets misery when it runs into a clan of mutated miners and their spawn with a craving for flesh and revenge on their tormented minds. A-bomb tests and the sins of eminent domain figure heavily in Alexandre Aja’s remake of Wes Craven’s family showdown in the desert. After a season of horror flicks more interested in inflicting maximum mayhem on their characters, “The Hills Have Eyes” seems ambitious. Almost. You don’t have to buy into the “why do they hate us” agonies and the embittered answer to know co-writers Aja and Gregory Levasseur wanted to express something about victims, terror, payback and middle Americans. (Kennedy)|107 minutes
“Ice Age: The Meltdown”
ANIMATED COMEDY|***|PG|The long-awaited sequel to “Ice Age,” which was a box office hit and mixed an appealing array of animation styles. This time, the ice is going away, but don’t expect too many deep references to global warming. Ray Romano, Denis Leary and John Leguizamo reprise their voice roles, joined by Queen Latifah as a love interest for the big woolly mammoth Manny (Romano). (Booth)|90 minutes
“Inside Man”
CAPER THRILLER|*** 1/2|R|Spike Lee’s “Inside Man,” poses, then takes its own delicious time answering this: How could master thief Dalton Russell (Clive Owen) let his intricate bank heist devolve into a hostage situation in which 50 New Yorkers become like cards in a three-card monte game, divided and shuffled from room to room? Denzel Washington gives a jazz-cool turn as hostage negotiator Keith Frazier. Jodie Foster whets her edge as the well-connected Madeline White, called on to retrieve a a valuable by the bank’s founder Arthur Case (Christopher Plummer). There’s lots of Lee woven into this studio joy. Newcomer Russell Gewirtz’s script is a marvel of snap and drama. (Kennedy)|129 minutes
“Lucky Number Slevin”
NEO-NOIR|***|R|First there’s the cast: Morgan Freeman, Ben Kingsley, Bruce Willis. And those are just the heavyweight heavies in “Lucky Number Slevin,” directed by Peter McGuigan. Then there’s Jason Smilovic’s agile, dialogue-rich script about a guy who finds himself between two feuding mobsters. A case of mistaken identity (or is it?), has Slevin (Josh Hartnett) set to do some bloodletting just to stay alive. There are so many players in this shell game of a flick, a person can get paranoid. That’s the idea. We can only hope that the one thing fatal about Lucy Liu’s likable femme is that she’s a coroner. (Kennedy)|110 minutes
“The Pink Panther”
COMEDY REMAKE|** 1/2|PG|Steve Martin attempts to revive the classic Blake Edwards-Peter Sellers collaboration about the idiot inspector Clouseau, and his unlikely success in solving international crimes. The humor is shallow, but funny enough in places to entertain 8- to 11-year-olds, and some of their parents. (Booth)|92 minutes
“The Shaggy Dog”
COMEDY|** 1/2|PG|Tim Allen was born to play a dog. He has been practicing since before he became a TV star – the growling, the panting, the crotch fixation. Disney’s remake of “The Shaggy Dog” uses Allen to great effect in a comedy about a workaholic dad who has to be bitten by a magical dog and become canine himself to find out the truth about his family and the real villains in a trial he is trying. There are also problems with pacing and tone. Robbins wastes a lot of time setting up this magical dog’s origins, complete with a jackbooted black helicopter dog-nap team, and the film’s frequent trips into the animal testing/torture lab are unpleasant and could creep out younger children. (Roger Moore, The Orlando Sentinel)|95 minutes
“She’s the Man”
ROMANTIC COMEDY|** 1/2|PG-13|In another telling of the gender-bending Shakespeare play “Twelfth Night,” Amanda Bynes stars as a girl who poses as her brother at an elite private school. She starts to fall in love with her brother’s roommate, who has eyes for another, who in turn has eyes for the girl she thinks is a boy. It’s not a brilliant rendering, but it’s a teen-friendly movie that doesn’t push the boundaries of an R rating. (Booth)|105 minutes
“Take the Lead”
DRAMA|** 1/2|PG-13|Running almost completely on the charm of Antonio Banderas, this latest version of urban dancing competitions follows on the success of the documentary “Mad Hot Ballroom.” Teacher comes to beleaguered school, proposes formal dancing as a way to motivate kids; kids scoff, try it, change their lives. A predictable formula, executed in mediocre spirit. (Booth)|108 minutes
“Thank You for Smoking”
SATIRE|** 1/2|R|Christopher Buckley’s hilarious sendup of American contradictions loses some bite in the translation to film. Aaron Eckhart plays Nick Naylor, the world’s smoothest talker, and well he should be, as he’s the chief spokesman for the tobacco industry. The movie promises to explore the mixed morality of doing your job well in defense of the indefensible, but winds up delivering shallower comments on politics and family. The comic pacing and editing are atrocious, damaging otherwise respectable material. (Booth)|92 minutes
“The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada”
MYTHIC WESTERN|*** 1/2|R|When Melquiades Estrada is killed by a border patrol agent, his first burial hardly deserves the name. His second is a disgrace. Only friend and fellow cowboy Pete Perkins – Tommy Lee Jones – believes in justice and a proper burial. In his directorial debut, Jones and screenwriter Guillermo Arriaga deliver a tale worthy of Greek drama. Pete kidnaps the agent, takes possession of Melquiades’ corpse and sets off into Mexico to bury his friend (Jose César Cedillo). Melquiades’ third interment is the stuff of myths remade for modern woes. “Three Burials” is a stunning visual ballad about loss and a staggeringly soulful meditation on loyalty. That would be enough. That it speaks to one of our nation’s most volatile issues makes it a remarkable achievement. (Kennedy)|121 minutes
“Tsotsi”
DRAMA|***|R |This year’s Academy Award winner for foreign language film tells the story of a young South African street criminal suddenly confronted with moral choices, and his own humanity. Tsotsi is a brutal thug who kills a woman in a carjacking, only to discover a baby in the back seat. In his own violent, single-minded way, he tries to raise the baby while figuring out what to do next. (Booth)|96 minutes
“V for Vendetta”
GRAPHIC NOVEL FABLE|***|R| Cheesy but true: “V for Vendetta” deserves an E for entertaining. Natalie Portman and Hugo Weaving are Evey and masked avenger V, the shades-of-gray heroes in this ka-pow, ka-boom tale of fascism and resistance. Although the movie’s based on a graphic novel created during Margaret Thatcher’s stint as British prime minister, the Wachowski brothers have found plenty of resonant material. And while the movie’s set in London in the near future, the “former colonies” make disturbing cameo turns. And the brothers have a copacetic director in James McTeigue (he worked on their “Matrix” trilogy). “V” takes you on a pleasure ride all the while tossing pop-culture kernels of wisdom at you. The one sticking point: the movie’s R rating. (Kennedy)|132 minutes
“The Wild”
ANIMATION|**|G|Think of the big cat in Disney’s G-rated feature “The Wild” as “The Lying King.” It’s not that zoo star Samson is a bad dad. Far from it – and Kiefer Sutherland gives fine voice to a father flummoxed, concerned and loving. It’s just that he embellishes tales of the Serengeti for his cub too well. And when young Ryan flees the New York Zoo for the teeming land of Pop’s stories, Samson and a cohort of zoo pals head to the jungle. If that sounds familiar, it’s because DreamWorks got there first with the more entertaining “Madagascar.” Other actors lending their voices to this wayward menagerie include Janeane Garofalo, Jim Belushi and Eddie Izzard. (Kennedy)|85 minutes
GIANT SCREEN
“The Human Body”
IMAX: A look at the everyday functions that keep us alive, through May 25|$8, $6 ages 3-12 and 65-plus|Denver Museum of Nature & Science, 2001 Colorado Blvd., 303-322-7009, dmns.org
“Mystic India: An Incredible Journey of Inspiration”
IMAX: The film begins in 1792 and follows an 11-year-old who left his home to begin a journey of spiritual awakening. It’s the true story of the boy’s seven-
year trip covering 8,000 miles.|$8, $6 ages 3-12 and 65-plus|Denver Museum of Nature & Science, 2001 Colorado Blvd., 303-322-7009, dmns.org
“Wired to Win: Surviving
the Tour de France”
IMAX: The true story of two elite cyclists Australian Baden Cooke and French teammate Jimmy Casper as they compete in the legendary race.|$8, $6 ages 3-12 and 65-plus|Denver Museum of Nature & Science, 2001 Colorado Blvd., 303- 322-7009, dmns.org
Wildlife Experience
IWERKS: The museum presents “Dolphins,” on its 45-by-60-foot screen through February 2007.|$4.95-$7.95, free 2 and under|10035 S. Peoria St., 720- 488-3300, wildlifeexperience.org|PARKER
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
CU International Film Series
-SU|The annual festival, established in 1941, offers films, screenings, special events and programs. Times vary. Most films are $5, $4 CU-Boulder students with I.D.|Muenzinger Auditorium, CU-Boulder campus, 303-492-1531, internationalfilmseries.com|BOULDER
Denver Art Museum Spring 2006 Film Series
TU|The film series offers a collection of American gangster films from the 1930s. This week’s film: “Angels With Dirty Faces” (1938). The series continues Tuesdays through May 16. Films begin at 7 p.m., box office opens at 4 p.m. $7-$8 per film|Starz FilmCenter at the Tivoli, Ninth Street and Auraria Parkway, 303-820-3456, denverartmuseum.org
EarthWalk Media
Today|Presents a documentary on sustainable solutions for the planet, “Mama Earth: Her Destiny – Our Hands,” 5 p.m. $5 suggested donation|New Belgium Brewery, 500 Linden St., earthwalkmedia.com, newbelgium.com|FORT COLLINS
The Power of One Film
TH|The Colorado Film School at Lowry is presenting three screenings of films as the second of four segments in The Power of One Program, a year-long series of cultural events designed to connect and inspire the community. The series wraps up with “Spellbound” (2002). Admission for each film is free, and a question-and-answer session follows
|Colorado Film School at Lowry, Building 965, Lowry Boulevard and Yosemite Street, 303-739-6617, auroragov.org/thepowerofone|AURORA
Starz First Look Film Festival
-SU|”Witness the Future of Film” is the theme for the sixth annual festival continuing through Sunday. The festival offers screenings, panel discussions and more. Times vary|Starz FilmCenter, 900 Auraria Parkway, 303-595-3456, ext. 3, firstlookfest.com
