Films This Week
Check out the movies playing around town.
With reviews and trailers.
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THE CONSPIRATOR Reviewed this issue. (PG-13) 123 minutes. (★★★) Starts Friday.
POTICHE The divine Catherine Deneuve has a marvelous time as the "trophy wife" of the title, who glides out from under the thumb of her controlling husband to run the family company in this frisky, frothy, yet cogent satire on gender and class mores from Francois Ozon (8 Women). It's 1977, and although feminism is on the rise, Deneuve's martinet husband (Fabrice Luchini) forbids her to do anything but loiter around her fabulous house all day, and jog. But when hubby is taken hostage by striking workers at the umbrella factory they own, she not only steps into the fray (encouraged by her old flame, the formidable Gerard Depardieu, as a working-class hero-turned-mayor), she proves much more competent at running the business they inherited from her father. The tone is light, but the heroine's journey to selfhood feels right-on. And of course Ozon revels in the period clothes and hair styles, color-coding each sequence to La Deneuve's wardrobe. Fun, tender and surprising. (Not rated) 103 minutes. In French with English subtitles. (★★★)—Lisa Jensen. Starts Friday. Watch film trailer >>>
RIO Brazilian animation director Carlos Saldanha (the first three Ice Age movies) turns to more familiar turf with this CGI comedy about a domesticated pet macaw (voice of Jesse Eisenberg) on the adventure of a lifetime with a free-spirited female (Anne Hathaway) and a flock of exotic wild birds in Rio de Janeiro. Jamie Foxx, Jane Lynch, George Lopez, and Will i Am contribute voices. (PG) 96 minutes. Starts Friday. Watch film trailer >>>
The Truman Show Friday & Saturday night Midnight Showings
The Big Sleep Saturday + Sunday Weekend Matinee 10am
On the Waterfront Flashback Feature Thur 4/21 8
Eclectic movies for wild & crazy tastes plus great prizes and buckets of fun for only $6.50. This week: THE TRUMAN SHOW Playing up his earnest, corn-fed boyishness, Jim Carrey is an ordinary guy who discovers his entire life has been manufactured to entertain a global TV audience in Peter Weir's savvy 1998 satire on our plugged-in society, narcotized by the lure of faux experience. (PG) 103 minutes. (★★★)—Lisa Jensen. Fri-Saturday midnight only. At the Del Mar.
CONTINUING SERIES: WEEKEND MATINEE CLASSICS AT APTOS CINEMA If you've only ever seen them on TV, don't miss this series of classic movie matinees unspooling each weekend at Aptos Cinema. This week: THE BIG SLEEP Bogart and Bacall team up with steamy and provocative results in Howard Hawks' 1946 mystery classic, based on the Raymond Chandler novel. It's one of the most incomprehensible plots in all of cinema, but who cares, with the leads vamping each other with such risqué glee, or Bogie muttering of a young nympho, "She tried to sit in my lap while I was standin' up." Film noir at its most entertaining. (Not rated) 114 minutes. (★★★★)—Lisa Jensen. Sat-Sun matinee only, 11 a.m. Admission $6. At Aptos Cinema.
CONTINUING SERIES: FLASHBACK FEATURES Oldies and goodies on Thursday nights at the Cinema 9, presented by your genial host, Joe Ferrara. $5 gets you in. This week: ARMAGEDDON Noise matters in this 1998 Michael Bay blockbuster about a giant asteroid heading for Earth. What this loony-tunes thriller has going for it are big, thundering effects up the wazoo to distract from its other shortcomings. Billy Bob Thornton, Bruce Willis, Steve Buscemi, Ben Affleck, and Liv Tyler star. (PG-13) 150 minutes. (★★)—Lisa Jensen. Tonight (Thursday) only, 8 p.m., at the Cinema 9.
CONTINUING EVENT: LET'S TALK ABOUT THE MOVIES This informal movie discussion group meets at the Del Mar mezzanine in downtown Santa Cruz. Movie junkies are invited to join in on Wednesday nights to discuss current flicks with a rotating series of guest moderators. Discussion begins at 7 pm and admission is free. For more information visit www.ltatm.org. Now Playing
ARTHUR The old Dudley Moore comedy gets a reboot for Russell Brand in the role of the lovably boozy rich boy who will have to get a grip and grow up to keep the woman he loves (Greta Gerwig). Helen Mirren plays his ally and nanny (a female version of the butler role for which John Gielgud won an Oscar in the original film). Jennifer Garner and Nick Nolte co-star for director Jason Winer (TV's Modern Family). (PG-13) 105 minutes.
CERTIFIED COPY Juliette Binoche and the sun-dappled landscape of Tuscany star in this drama of relationships and illusion from Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami. (Not rated) 106 minutes. In French and Italian with English subtitles.
CRACKS Jordan Scott (daughter of Ridley, niece of Tony) makes an assured and skillful feature film debut with this psychological melodrama of illusion, identity, festering passions, and emotional mayhem-most-British at a staid English girls boarding school ca 1934. Eva Green and Juno Temple are just right as a louche young gym teacher and the possessive schoolgirl who adores her. Scott's set-up of the story is smart and polished in every respect, but the finale (adapted from the controversial 2000 novel by Sheila Kohler) feels dishonest and lacks the weight of tragic inevitability. (Not rated) 104 minutes. (★★1/2) Lisa Jensen
DIARY OF A WIMPY KID: RODRICK RULES The original cast is back in place for this second installment of the series based on the illustrated novels of Jeff Kinney. Zachary Gordon returns as the adolescent hero, back in middle school and coping with all the usual suspects—including an older brother (Devon Bostwick) who’s blackmailing him to do his bidding. Robert Capron, Rachael Harris, and Steve Zahn co-star for incoming director David Bowers. (PG)
HANNA Saoirse Ronan (Atonement; The Lovely Bones) stars in this action thriller as a 16-year-old girl raised in the wilds of Finland by her ex-CIA op father (Eric Bana) and dispatched on a deadly mission across Europe, pursued by agents dispatched by a sinister spymaster (Cate Blanchett). Olivia Williams and Tom Hollander co-star for director Joe Wright (Atonement). (PG-13) 111 minutes.
HOP The suddenly-ubiquitous Russell Brand lends his voice to this live-action/animation comedy as E.B., teenage son and heir apparent to the Easter Bunny, who runs away to Hollywood to become a drummer. (PG)
I AM An uplifting doc that dares to ask: What’s right with the world? Filmmaker Tom Shadyac, who was more of a mainstream film director, seems to want to come to terms with life here—he survived a tragic accident and suddenly got to thinking more deeply. There are some fine moments in the film and it works because the director takes us along his journey, rather than trying to force feed us his opinions. (PG) 76 minutes. (★★★) Greg Archer
INSIDIOUS Patrick Wilson and Rose Byrne star in this supernatural thriller as parents battling to stop an evil force from dragging their comatose child permanently into an alternate realm. Ty Simpkins, Lin Shaye, and Barbara Hershey co-star for director James Wan. (PG-13) 102 minutes.
JANE EYRE Mia Wasikowska is a poised, yet fiercely self-directed Jane to Michael Fassbender’s wry, stormy Rochester in Cary Joji Fukunaga’s fresh take on the evergreen, Victorian-era Gothic romance. It’s a deeply felt, beautifully wrought little gem of mood and sensibility. Moira Buffini’s smart script mines every nuance of feeling out of Charlotte Bronte’s story, spoken and otherwise; together, the filmmakers resist every temptation to resort to overheated melodrama, weaving instead a compelling narrative of urgent emotional suspense. (PG-13) 120 minutes. (★★★1/2) Lisa Jensen
THE KING'S SPEECH And the Oscar goes to this juicy and rewarding true story about an accidental monarch struggling to conquer a private affliction that makes public life a nightmare. Director Tom Hooper also won gold, along with the formidable Colin Firth as the prince who will be George VI, cursed with a crippling stammer just when the nation needs a strong, confident leader. Geoffrey Rush is great as his eccentric speech therapist; the marvelous Helena Bonham Carter leads a Who's Who of splendid British thesps in supporting roles. (R) 118 minutes. (★★★1/2) Lisa Jensen
LIMITLESS Bradley Cooper stars in this thriller about a lowly copywriter and wannabee novelist who’s slipped a radical, secret “smart drug” that enables him to use 100% of his brain power—but also brings him to the attention of a powerful mogul (Robert De Niro), and sinister forces out to obtain his supply of the drug. Adapted from the Alan Glynn novel. Abbie Cornish and Anna Friel co-star for director Neil Burger. (PG-13) 97 minutes.
THE LINCOLN LAWYER Slick, invigorating and, most of all, interesting, The Lincoln Lawyer packs a punch. Matthew McConaughey plays a criminal defense lawyer-for-hire in L. A.(he does a great deal of business from the back seat of his Lincoln Town Car) who must defend a rich boy accused of assault. This is McConaughey’s best role in years and the supporting cast—Marisa Tomei, Ryan Phillippe, and William Macy—shines. From the bestselling Michael Connelly legal thriller, here’s hoping that should a series of films be launched, the filmmakers create just the right amount of edge and intrigue as they do here.. (R) 119 minutes. (★★★1/2)
MIRAL Artist-turned-filmmaker Julian Schnabel (Basquiat; Before Night Falls; The Diving Bell and the Butterfly) directs this drama set in war-torn East Jerusalem. Frida Pinto (Slumdog Millionaire) stars as a young woman raised in an orphanage on the principles of peace and education; radicalized by her mission to teach children in a Palestinian refugee camp, she falls in love with an activist (Omar Metwally), and gets swept up in the war. Based on the semi-autobiographical book by Rula Jebreal. Alexander Siddig, Willem Dafoe, and Vanessa Redgrave have featured roles. (PG-13) 114 minutes.
PAUL Simon Pegg and Nick Frost star as a couple of nerdy Brit comic fanboys on the road in the States who find a stowaway in their RV outside of Area 51—a wisecracking alien who’s tired of Earth and wants to go home. Seth Rogen provides the voice of the runaway alien. Greg Mottola (Superbad; Adventureland) directs. (R) 104 minutes.
SOUL SURFER AnnaSophia Robb stars as Bethany Hamilton in this inspirational true story of the teenage girl who lost her arm in a shark attack, but didn't let it stop her from returning to the world of competitive surfing. Helen Hunt, Dennis Quaid, Craig T. Nelson, and Kevin Sorbo co-star for director Sean McNamara. Shot on location in Hawaii. (PG)
SOURCE CODE I smell a sequel. In this clever film, Jake Gyllenhaal is a government agent transported again and again into the mind of a passenger on a commuter train just before it blows up. The idea is to determine the identity of the bomber before another strike. Look for the stellar subplot about why this is actually happening. Vera Farmiga, Michelle Monaghan, and Jeffrey Wright co-star; Duncan Jones (Moon) directs. (PG-13) 93 minutes. (★★★) Greg Archer
SUCKER PUNCH Expect anything and everything (giants, dragons, samurai swordsmen, girls in chains) in this pastiche of fantasy/noir/graphic novel-ist themes from monochromatic pulp director Zack Snyder (300; The Watchmen). Emily Browning stars as a nubile young woman locked in a mental institution by her evil stepfather who rallies a posse of like-minded, kick-ass gals to mentally alter their reality, perform epic quests, and free themselves. Or something. (PG-13) 120 minutes.
WIN WIN Paul Giamatti stars in, yet again, a standout film about a character trying to come to terms with what life is handing him. GIamatti is a lawyer and volunteer high school wrestling coach who winds up caring for a displaced teen (newcomer Alex Shaffer). He decides to mold the boy into a star athlete. There’s an interesting back story, too, about the boy’s grandfather and mother.. Written and directed by quirk-meister Tom McCarthy (The Station Agent; The Visitor). Amy Ryan, Jeffrey Tambor, Bobby Cannavale, and Melanie Lynskey co-star. (R) 106 minutes. (★★★) Greg Archer
YOUR HIGHNESS The creators of The Pineapple Express (stars Danny McBride and James Franco; director David Gordon Green) come together again and the result ... is not that pretty. Franco plays a prince hoping to rescue his kidnapped love (Zooey Deschanel).He drags his weed-smoking, slacker brother (McBride) along. And then Natalie Portman shows, not offering much to this tired tale. (R) 102 minutes. (★★) Greg Archer
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