Some reviews originate at newspapers that do not award star ratings. Ratings range from zero to four stars.
OPENING THIS WEEK
“Transformers: Dark of the Moon” Reviewed on Page 1D
“Larry Crowne” Reviewed on Page 5D
“Page One: Inside The New York Times” Reviewed on Page 6D“Trollhunter” Reviewed on Page 6D
“General Orders No. 9” Reviewed on Page 7D
CONTINUING
Here are selected mini-reviews of films in theaters, listed alphabetically.
“Beginners”Romantic dramedy R. Mike Mills’ semi-autobiographical gem about love, loss and a father who tells his son he’s gay — when he’s 75, no less — is far more sweet than bitter. Christopher Plummer and Ewan McGregor have loving father-son chemistry as Oliver and Hal Fields. Melanie Laurent beguiles as the woman whose arrival helps pose further questions about romance and the era one is born into. (Kennedy) 104 minutes
“Bad Teacher”Comedy. R. All legs and hair and eyeliner and attitude, Cameron Diaz makes a formidable bad teacher in the raunchy new comedy. She’s nasty, conniving and selfish as Elizabeth Halsey, a middle-school instructor who cares more about scamming money for breast implants than about student participation or test scores. (Connie Ogle, McClatchy Newspapers) 92 minutes
“Buck”DocumentaryPG. “Buck” introduces us to the lifelong cowboy who helps trainers and riders of all levels learn to work more patiently and effectively with their horses. His philosophy is that you can’t break a horse in a violent way, as others have done for years. (Christy Lemire, Associated Press) 88 minutes
“Cars 2″Animated G. Lightning McQueen (voice of Owen Wilson) reluctantly takes buddy Tow Mater (an incomparable Larry the Cable Guy) to the World Grand Prix, while Brit agents Finn McMissile and Holley Shiftwell (Michael Caine and Emily Mortimer) mistake the hayseed vehicle for a super spy. (Kennedy) 106 minutes
“Conan O’Brien Can’t Stop”DocumentaryR. Contractually prohibited from TV, radio, online appearances after NBC and he parted ways, former “Tonight Show” host Conan O’Brien took his show on the road. Director Rodman Flender provides a fly-on-the-wall view of the 32-city tour. (Kennedy) 89 minutes
“Green Lantern”Superhero flickPG-13. Alien comes to Earth and give Ryan Reynolds a magic ring. (Kennedy) 114 minutes
“Judy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer”ComedyPG. A mild-mannered kids comedy that makes for a pleasant-enough time-killer. All garish colors, small-scale sight gags and kid- friendly one-liners. Judy Moody organizes a contest so that she and her friends don’t face another summer of “snoresville.” (Roger Moore, Orlando Sentinel) 91 minutes
“Midnight in Paris”Comedy PG-13. A magical auto transports successful screenwriter but struggling novelist Owen Wilson from the Paris he’s visiting with his impatient fiancee (Rachel McAdams) and her wealthy parents by day to the Paris of Picasso and Dali, Cole Porter and Ernest Hemingway. (Kennedy) 94 minutes
“Mr. Popper’s Penguins”ComedyPG. Tom Popper is a fast-rising New York real-estate wheeler-dealer. His climb to the top has distanced him from his ex-wife and two kids. When cartons of penguins arrive at his penthouse door, a bequest from his late father, the famously loyal birds set Popper on a path to redemption. (Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune) 91 minutes
“Submarine”ComedyR. A bracingly unsentimental coming-of-age comedy. Locale: starkly beautiful, gray-toned Swansea, Wales. This film has a particular comic angst that rings bells, be you male or be you female, Welsh or American, 16 or 61. (Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune) 97 minutes
“Super 8″Fantasy adventure PG-13. J.J. Abrams’ mash note to Steven Spielberg starts off engagingly enough. The year is 1979 and a group of kids in an Ohio town are making a zombie movie when a train wrecks and a mystery begins. Somewhere along the way, “Super 8” veers onto a familiar track, becoming chase-obsessed, explosion-heavy and leaving behind the authentic emotions it set up so well about mourning, hankering — and moviemaking. (Kennedy) 112 minutes
“The Tree of Life”Visual poem PG-13. Terrence Malick has given us a demanding and astonishing gift about family, place and time. Brad Pitt and Sean Penn portray Mr. O’Brien and Jack O’Brien, a father and son occupying very different eras (the 1950s and the present). Newcomer Jessica Chastain is a wonder as Mrs. O’Brien. At the Esquire Theatre. (Kennedy) 138 minutes
“The Trip”Wry road trip Not rated. Restaurant reviewer Steve and friend Rob tour England’s Lake District, consuming some rarified vittles and trading barbs, riffing on Michael Caine and sharing a few weightier insights. British comic actors Steve Coogan and Rob Brydon reunite to greatly amusing as well as truly melancholy effect for a second Michael Winterbottom comedy. (Kennedy) 111 minutes
“X-Men: First Class”Comic-book X-cellence PG-13. Teenage mutant angst, a Holocaust survivor’s drive for vengence, and oh, yeah, and the Cold War at its hottest. This prequel recounts how the X-Men came to be. (Kennedy) 131 minutes
GIANT SCREENIMAX — Denver Museum of Nature & Science
“Mysteries of the Great Lakes 2D,” “The Wildest Dream: Conquest of Everest 2D,” “Born to Be Wild 3-D” and “Under the Sea 3-D.” Dates, times and tickets vary. 2001 Colorado Blvd., 303-322-7009,
IWERKS — The Wildlife Experience
“Dinosaurs Alive!” Animalopolis” and “The Living Sea.” Dates, times and tickets vary.10035 S. Peoria St., Parker, 720- 488-3300,
