Features

November 20, 2009

Capsule reviews of continuing films:

Capsule reviews of continuing films:

2012 — The end is not near enough for this latest nihilistic disaster flick, directed by end-of-the-world specialist Roland Emmerich. PG-13 for intense disaster and some language. 158 minutes.

1/2

ASTRO BOY — A shiny hodgepodge of “Pinocchio,” “WALL-E,” “Oliver Twist,” “Gladiator” and “Superman,” with some obvious visual touches from “The Iron Giant.” PG for some action and peril, and brief mild language. 90 minutes.

BOONDOCK SAINTS: ALL SAINTS DAY — Exactly the same vigilante shlock of the original “Boondock Saints,” a ridiculously over-the-top action film about a pair of Irish-American twins who set out with guns, recklessness and boozy bravado to rid Boston of criminals and mafia. R for bloody violence, language and some nudity. 117 minutes. Half a star out of four.

THE BOX — Cameron Diaz and James Marsden have a moral dilemma: Press a button on a mysterious container and they’ll get $1 million, but someone they don’t know will die. What button, on whose box, did writer-director Richard Kelly push to get the money to make this awful, preposterous thriller? PG-13 for theme, violence and disturbing images. 115 minutes.

A CHRISTMAS CAROL — When Charles Dickens wrote his classic story, it was a cautionary tale to greedy capitalists of the 19th century. Dickens’ story is about as sturdy a one as we have. Unfortunately, our 2009 version is defined only by its technology. PG for scary sequences and images. 95 minutes.

COUPLES RETREAT — Jon Favreau and Vince Vaughn reteam for this broad comedy about four couples who go on a tropical vacation together and all get sucked into therapy. PG-13 on appeal for sexual content and language. 110 minutes.

1/2

THE FOURTH KIND — Milla Jovovich plays an actress re-enacting an Alaska psychologist’s research into patients’ reports of strange phenomena. Olatunde Osunsanmi invests so much time trying to convince the audience of the events’ veracity he forgets to create even rudimentary tension. PG-13 for violent/disturbing images, terror, theme and brief sexuality. 98 minutes.

THE MEN WHO STARE AT GOATS — A fun tone is undermined by disjointed storytelling in George Clooney and producing partner Grant Heslov’s romp based on Jon Ronson’s amusing nonfiction book about the U.S. military’s research into psychic warfare and espionage. R for language, some drug content and brief nudity. 93 minutes.

1/2

PARANORMAL ACTIVITY —Micah has bought a video camera to document the weird stuff that has been happening in the two-story San Diego home he shares with his girlfriend of three years, Katie. The entire film takes place at the couple’s cookie-cutter dwelling. Its ordinariness makes the eerie, nocturnal activities all the more terrifying. R for language. 84 minutes.

PIRATE RADIO — No movie can be all bad when juiced up with a soundtrack of more than 50 classic rock songs, the musical backdrop for a story about merry DJs blasting illicit tunes into stodgy mid-1960s Britain from a boat offshore. R for language and some sexual content including brief nudity. 116 minutes.

WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE — The Maurice Sendak book is just 339 words long, but Spike Jonze has expanded the story with breathtaking visuals and stirring emotional impact. PG for mild thematics, adventure action and brief language. 101 minutes.

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