“Anonymous”
***
Self-appointed master of disaster Roland Emmerich bemoans a cataclysm of a literary sort in this entertaining if wrongheaded period film about who was the actual writer of the works credited to William Shakespeare. Was it the loutish, boozy actor Will Shakespeare? Or might it have been Edward De Vere, 17th Earl of Oxford? Set amid the political intrigue of Elizabethan England, the movie makes no bones about whom it’s rooting for. Rhys Ifans’ De Vere is prone to longing gazes as he hears his words spoken but cannot claim them as his own. As queen, Vanessa Redgrave delights in Elizabeth’s love of theater. PG-13. 2 hours, 10 minutes. Lisa Kennedy, The Denver Post
“Project Nim”
***
Nim is spirited away from a primate compound in Oklahoma to the Upper West Side of Manhattan, where he will be raised like a human baby. It’s an absorbing, agonizing documentary about ambition, lust and anthropomorphism at their most heedless, and records suffering and manipulation so extreme that description can barely do them justice. PG-13. 1 hour 33 minutes. Ann Hornaday, The Washington Post
“A Very Harold & Kumar Christmas”
*½
A very, very Harold and Kumar yuletide movie, with rampant sex gags and whorls of pot smoke in stereovision. R. 1 hour, 30 minutes. Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle
“The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1” (in stores Saturday)
**½
This first half of the final installment of Stephanie Meyer’s vamp saga is packed with as many emotional and contemplative moments as the brooding vampire — while the second half will have the kind of action that makes a werewolf howl. The division would have been OK if director Bill Condon hadn’t stretched scenes to the point of tedium and cranked up the volume of the soundtrack to annoying levels. At least Kristen Stewart gets her first real opportunity to act instead of being the passive, dour object of everyone’s affections. PG-13. 1 hour, 57 minutes. Rick Bentley, McClatchy Newspapers
More releases
Available today
Ancient Aliens: Season Three
Anonymous
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation — Grave Danger
Dangerous Liaisons
Downton Abbey Season 2
Ethos
Father Dowling Mysteries: The First Season
Fireflies in the Garden
Fred 2: Night of the Living Fred
Geek Charming
The Hour
The Jazz Singer
Lady and The Tramp Diamond Edition (Blu-ray Debut)
La Jetee and Sans Soleil (Blu-ray debut)
Love Story (Blu-ray debut)
New Tricks, Season 6
The Phantom of the Opera at the Royal Albert Hall
The Rebound
Rocko’s Modern Life: Season Two
The Song of Lunch
Stormhouse
The Sunset Limited
The Valentine’s Collection … Featuring One Zillion Valentines
Vision Quest
Yakuza Weapon
