“Cars 2”
** 1/2 stars (out of four) | The latest from the genuis factory Pixar doesn’t exactly sputter. Nor does this spy-flick primer for the car-seat crowd vroom story-wise. Lightning McQueen (voiced by 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. G. 1 hour, 46 minutes. Lisa Kennedy, The Denver Post
“Crazy, Stupid, Love”
** 1/2 stars (out of four) | With the summer’s most promising cast, this multigenerational rom-com about soon-to-be-divorced Cal (Steve Carell) and mentor in hookups Jacob (Ryan Gosling) should have been crazier, sexier, cooler. Which doesn’t mean it’s stupid. But the direction never finds the sweet spot between hopeful and bitter. Worse, the filmmakers waste the gifts of Marisa Tomei, hardly easy to pull off. Still, it boasts one of the finest “didn’t see that coming” scenes in a long while. Emma Stone and Julianne Moore star as Jacob’s and Cal’s romantic game changers. PG-13. 1 hour, 45 minutes. Lisa Kennedy, The Denver Post
“Water for Elephants”
*** stars (out of four) | This adaptation of Sara Gruen’s beloved novel is not, to borrow the Benzini Bros. Circus’ motto — “the most spectacular show on Earth.” But it is a class act. An engaging two hours of old-fashioned narrative rhythms and starshine, with Reese Witherspoon, Robert Pattinson and Christoph Waltz as its doomed love triangle. And a stipple-faced elephant named Rosie is wonderfully riveting. PG-13. 2 hours. Lisa Kennedy, The Denver Post
