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
“Brave” * * *
Reviewed on Page 1C
“Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter” * *
Reviewed on Page 6C
“Seeking a Friend For the End of the World” * * * ½
Reviewed on Page 6C
“Hide Away” * * ½
Reviewed on Page 6C
“Monsieur Lazhar” * * * ½
Reviewed on Page 7C
“Lola Versus” * *
Reviewed on Page 7C
“Bel Ami” * *
Reviewed on Page 6C
CONTINUING
Here are selected mini-reviews of films in theaters, listed alphabetically.
“For Greater Glory”
War epic. R. An epic dramatization of a little-known chapter of Mexican history called the Cristiada — in which the country’s Roman Catholics rebelled against a government crackdown on religion — “For Greater Glory” is at times so heavy-handed that the movie itself seems at war. Unfortunately, the enemy is not just the repressive administration of President Plutarco Calles (Ruben Blades), who in 1926 signed into law a systematic smothering of Catholicism, but the audience. When the fighting is finally over, you may feel like surrendering, along with Calles. (Michael O’Sullivan, The Washington Post) 143 minutes
“Hysteria”
Drama. * * ½ R. Like the inventors of the vibrator it depicts, “Hysteria” really aims to please. And like an inattentive lover displaced by the sexual aid, the film never quite satisfies. True to the title, there are a few hysterically funny moments as a couple of Victorian-era British doctors and an amateur inventor stumble into the creation of a mechanical device to pleasure women. The fictionalized story built around Dr. Mortimer Granville (Hugh Dancy), who patented an electric massager around 1880, is choked with clichés playing the era’s prim and proper morality against progressive, freethinking ideals that would take hold in the coming decades. (David Germain, Associated Press) 95 minutes
“The Intouchables”
Comedy. * * * R. On paper, this film looks like eat-your-vegetables cinema: the story of a wealthy, white disabled man and the troubled black youth from the projects who becomes his reluctant caretaker. It could have been painfully mawkish, but writers and directors Olivier Nakache and Eric Toledano upend expectations by infusing the comedy with a subversive, playful tone throughout, with some totally inappropriate humor and even some surprises. It’s sweet but not saccharine. At the Mayan. (Christy Lemire, The Associated Press) 112 minutes
“Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most Wanted”
Animated animal joyride. * * * ½ PG-13. Vivid and wisecrackingly enjoyable, this sequel finds Central Park Zoo escapees Alex the Lion (Ben Stiller), Marty the Zebra (Chris Rock), Gloria the Hippo (Jada Pinkett Smith) and Melman the Giraffe (David Schwimmer) homesick for their New York enclosures. When last we saw them, their indefatigable penguin compatriots had left them in Africa as they and their chimp-powered plane set a course for a Mediterranean casino. At the start of “Madagascar 3,” the foursome catch up with the penguins in Monte Carlo. They also attract the attention of an out-of-control animal-control officer (Frances McDormand) who wants a lion for her overcrowded trophy wall. Better than ever before, “Madagascar 3” makes a persuasively dear argument for the power of friendship. (Kennedy) 93 minutes
“Marvel’s The Avengers”
Superhero flick. * * * ½ PG-13. Leave it to director/writer Joss Whedon to find potent, wry, even touching chemistry in a bickering collection of superheroes used to going it alone. The creator of Buffy, slayer of vampires, knows his way around bold action, special effects that earn the moniker, and character above all. The gang’s all here, marshaled on screen by Nick Fury (Samuel L. Jackson). Franchisees Iron Man, Thor, Captain America and the Hulk, as well as Black Widow and Hawkeye. (Kennedy) 143 minutes
“Men in Black 3”
Fantasy sequel. * * ½ PG-13. While not exactly essential, Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones’ return as the titularly clad operatives comes with the charm of reprised, well-liked characters and a “didn’t-see-that-coming” conclusion that makes up for sci-fi ride’s early sequelitis. Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld, the time-traveling take finds Agent J (Smith) headed back to 1969 in hopes of saving K — and the planet. Josh Brolin proves to be understated fun as the younger K and the arrival of multidimension-gleaning character Griffin (Michael Stuhlbarg) adds touchingly to this space-time ride. (Kennedy) 106 minutes
“Moonrise Kingdom”
Coming-of-age tale. * * * ½ PG-13.
The contradiction inherent to all Wes Anderson films — the juxtaposition of the meticulous artificiality of the settings and the passionately wistful emotions that are longing to burst free — is at its most effective in a while in “Moonrise Kingdom.” The director and co-writer’s tale of first love, filled with recognizable adolescent angst and naive fumblings, feels at once deeply personal and universally relatable. (Lemire) 94 minutes
“Prometheus”
Sci-fi. * * * R. Ridley Scott’s quasi-prequel, starring Noomi Rapace, Michael Fassbender and Charlize Theron, has muck-in-the-dark menace. And this space-travel misadventure also has the gaping mouthed beasts of Scott’s sci-fi/horror classic “Alien” that so resemble a Freudian fright mashup of sex organs. But if you’re hoping for a visceral reprise of “Alien,” you’re bound to be thwarted. “Prometheus” is the work of an older, wiser director, one entertaining the grander questions raised by space travel and corporate incursions, raised by the idea of humans not being alone, and raised by our fears of not being particularly well-regarded by the galaxy’s other inhabitants. At times, the movie is more “The Tree of Life” than “Star Trek.” For some, this will be a good thing. For others, a letdown. (Kennedy)124 minutes
“Rock of Ages”
Musical. * * * ½ R. With its tale of young lovers working in a legendary rock club on L.A.’s Sunset Strip, Adam Shankman’s adaptation of Chris D”Arienzo’s Broadway musical makes a ridiculously tasty hash of corn and sleeze. Jennifer Hough and newcomer Diego Boneta are sweet as Sherrie and Drew but it’s the vets that rock this outing: from Tom Cruise as rock narcissist Stacee Jaxx to Alec Baldwin as club owner Dennis Dupree to Catherine Zeta-Jones as a political wife hell bent on shutting them down. (Kennedy) 123 minutes
“Safety Not Guaranteed”
Time-travel comedy. * * * ½ R.
Few descriptions of this film will do it justice. It’s a more ambitious and touching movie than seems possible given its starting point, which is a classified ad in an alternative newspaper about time travel. The ad comes up at a story conference for Seattle magazine. A writer named Jeff (Jake Johnson) volunteers to try to track down whoever placed the ad. He demands two interns to help him, and is assigned Darius (Aubrey Plaza) and Arnau (Karan Soni). She’s an intense, quirky loner. He’s a virginal nerd with big glasses. The team goes to Ocean View, Wash., and fairly easily finds the guy who placed the ad: a mid-30s grocery clerk named Kenneth (Mark Duplass). (Ebert) 94 minutes
“Snow White and the Huntsman”
Fairy-tale action. * * PG-13. “Snow White and the Huntsman” is a too earnest (if action-packed) return to one of the Brothers Grimm’s enduring and vexing heroines. Kristen Stewart and Charlize Theron have a pretty face-off as Snow White and the malevolent queen out to get her. Chris Hemsworth portrays the tracker of the title. Giant talents — Ian McShane, Bob Hoskins, and Ray Winstone among them — appear as the famous dwarfs. (Kennedy) 126 minutes
“That’s My Boy”
Comedy. ½ R. Lowbrow comedy goes subterranean in this product of the Adam Sandler movie factory unpolluted by a trace of ambition or wit. This film forgets that good comedy is rarely dumb, it just plays dumb. Sandler, treading water in a sea of bodily fluids, retarded sexuality and antisocial behavior, makes you yearn for the rib-tickling sophistication of “Ernest Goes to Camp.” The deluxe-stupid script positions Sandler as Donny, a washed-up minor celebrity who rocketed to national fame when he impregnated his red-hot math teacher at age 13. Now he’s a beer-bloated, middle-aged child-man who needs his successful adult son’s financial help to avoid a prison sentence for tax evasion. The boy (Andy Samberg), whom he christened Han Solo, changed his name to Todd and severed all ties for reasons that should be obvious. On Todd’s wedding weekend, Donny re-enters his life, wreaking havoc at every turn. (Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune) 114 minutes
