Now Showing
Some reviews originate at newspapers that do not award star ratings; some movies are not screened in advance for critics. Ratings range from zero to four stars.
OPENING THIS WEEK
“The Raven” * *
Reviewed on Page 7C
“The Five-Year Engagement” * * Reviewed on Page 7C
“Safe” * ½
Reviewed on Page 6C
“The Pirates! Band of Misfits” * *
Reviewed on Page 6C
“Damsels in Distress” * * *
Reviewed on Page 8C
“Darling Companion” *
Reviewed at
“The Salt of Life” * * *
Reviewed at
“Four Lovers” * ½
Reviewed at
“The Ballad of Genesis and Lady Jaye” * * * *
Reviewed at
“Life Happens”
Not reviewed
CONTINUING
Here are selected mini-reviews of films in theaters, listed alphabetically.
“American Reunion”
Comedy sequel. * * ½ R. Are we surprised that “American Reunion,” the latest in the surprisingly lasting “American Pie” series, starts with a dual masturbatory scene? Of course not. But as formulaic as “American Reunion” is — and as unchanged as its characters remain — the movie has its merits. (Ricardo Baca, The Denver Post)113 minutes
“Bully”
Documentary. * * * ½ PG-13. Lee Hirsch’s empathetic, provocative film features five families living with the fallout of bullying. Two sets live on with a lifetime of questions and without their young sons. Tyler Long hanged himself at 17. Ty Smalley committed suicide when he was 11. The mother of 14-year-old Ja’Meya Jackson almost lost her daughter to the prison system after the picked-on teen brandished a gun on a school bus. It may “get better,” as the campaign pitched to gay-lesbian-bisexual-transgender youths states, but 16-year-old Kelby Johnson and her family’s experience in Tuttle, Okla., underscores what bad can feel like. What’s missing here makes the title a bit of bait-and-switch: The so-called bully remains too much a mystery. Still, “Bully” is smart and compassionate must see about the pain of wounded kids and the frustration felt by their parents. (Lisa Kennedy, The Denver Post) 98 minutes
“The Cabin in the Woods”
Cheeky horror. * * * R.
“Five friends walk into a cabin” could easily be the start of a horror-movie gag in which the jokes are on the characters as, one by one, they meet a bloody end. With a well-concocted mix of shudders, titters and, yes, sorrow, director Drew Goddard and co-writer Joss Whedon turn that joke on its head. Out of the gate, the straightforwardly titled fright flick proves not so straightforward. While there’s the quaint-sounding abode of the title, action also unfolds in a subterranean control room. It’s a crazy, clever mashup with some nice moments of existential grappling. The filmmakers want us to care about the fates of the college students — and we do. They also want us to get a kick out of the two lab managers, overseeing the cabin’s mayhem. Thanks to actors Richard Jenkins and Bradley Whitford, we do. (Kennedy) 105 minutes
“Chimpanzee”
Nature documentary. * * * G.
Having qualms about Alastair Fothergill and Mark Linfield’s stunningly observant documentary about an orphaned chimp named Oscar might sound a bit like hating puppies. But this film’s astonishing views are too often undercut with a coddling script full of unnecessary anthropomorphic tics meant to rope kids in when the images do the job so well. “The Jungle Book,” anybody? (Kennedy) 78 minutes
“The Deep Blue Sea”
Period drama. * * * ½ R. Terence Davies’ film is set in London “around 1950” and is based on a play by Terence Rattigan, a playwright born 100 years ago this year. It tells the story of Hester Collyer (Rachel Weisz), an attractive but inward young woman, who is married to Sir William Collyer (Simon Russell Beale), a judge much her senior. The story all takes place on a single day some 10 months after she left her husband for a young lover (Tom Hiddleston). At the Chez Artiste. (Roger Ebert, Universal Uclick) 98 minutes
“Lockout”
Fun hostage film. * * ½ PG-13.
This film follows a mission so impossible that not even the U.S. Marines can do the job. No, this one will take — don’t hold your breath — yes, One Man. The invention of the One Man Movie has been one of the handiest story devices to come along since the fruit cart. All I need do is quote two sentences from the trailer and in your mind you know exactly how the Deep-Voiced Trailer Guy sounds when he says them: “My daughter … is on a goodwill mission on that station. There’s only One Man who can get her out … Snow!” The worried father who is speaking is — why, the president of the United States, of course. And where is the station where his daughter, Emilie (Maggie Grace), is on a goodwill mission? It’s a maximum-security prison in orbit around the Earth, naturally. Guy Pearce and Vincent Regan also star. (Ebert) 95 minutes
“Marley”
Music documentary. * * * ½ PG-13. This is an ambitious and comprehensive film and does what is probably the best possible job of documenting an important life. Authorized by all the members of his scattered family and with rights to all of his music and a wealth of previously unseen film and video footage, it shows the growth of a legend. What is interesting is that Marley seems not to have had a concrete goal for his career other than to use music to bring people together. His instincts were good and he followed them, and to an unusual degree he found independence in a white-ruled music industry. At the Mayan. (Ebert) 144 minutes
“Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”
Romance. * * ½ PG-13. The film is based on Paul Torday’s novel, a political satire that was a best seller in the U.K., and allows an opening into the worlds of British and Yemeni politics, the devotion of salmon fishermen and the possibilities of romance among humans and salmon, who in this story must both swim upstream. Amr Waked and Ewan McGregor star. (Ebert) 101 minutes
“Think Like a Man”
Comedy. * * PG-13. Comedian and radio host Steve Harvey wrote a best seller titled “Act Like a Lady, Think Like a Man: What Men Really Think About Love, Relationships, Intimacy and Commitment.” This was advice for women. It apparently left some questions, because in 2010 Harvey felt the demand for another book, “Straight Talk, No Chaser: How to Find, Keep and Understand a Man.” In this movie we’re expected to believe that every woman in the film bought the book and started living her life according to it. The twist comes when the men in their lives discover their secret reading and study the book themselves. Now the men know the women’s game plan. Michael Ealy, Gabrielle Union and Jenifer Lewis are among the stars. (Ebert) 122 minutes
“The Three Stooges”
Comedy remake. * * ½ PG.
The casting of the three leads in this comedy is just about ideal. Larry, Curly and Moe are played by Sean Hayes, Will Sasso and Chris Diamantopoulos, who are made to look enough like the originals to justify no complaints. This movie has been in development for something like a decade, and survived the bankruptcy of MGM. Perhaps we should be grateful for the delay. The film is wisely brief and divided into three segments that are linked together with the Stooges being raised in an orphanage. They spent not only their childhoods there, but their entire lives until the present day — parents, for some reason, being reluctant to adopt them. Segments 2 and 3 center around the bankruptcy of the orphanage and the pledge by the Stooges to raise $830,000 almost overnight to keep it open. (Ebert) 92 minutes
GIANT SCREEN
IMAX — Denver Museum of Nature & Science
“To the Arctic 3D,” “Tornado Alley 3D” and “Flying Monsters 3D.” Dates, times and tickets vary. 2001 Colorado Blvd., 303-322-2009,
IWERKS — The Wildlife Experience “Turtle Vision 3D,” “Sharks 3D,” “The Alps” and “Alaska Dogs.” Dates, times and tickets vary. 10035 S. Peoria St., Parker, 720-488-3300, thewildlife
FILM SERIES
Denver Psychoanalytic Film Series
Today: Monthly movie series continues with “Caught,” 7 p.m. Discussion with guest psychoanalyst included. Free. Montview Church, 1980 Dahlia St., 303-667-5743
