ABOUT A BOY (PG-13) -- B+
Chris and Paul Weitz step up in class with this comedy (from the Nick Hornby novel) about a rich idler (Hugh Grant) who prides himself on avoiding all human relationships that might obligate him in any way. (Barton) AMC Palace 20
AUSTRALIA: LAND BEFORE TIME (NR) -- NOT RATED
The IMAX Film Fest 2002 kicks off with this documentary exploring the land Down Under, from its coastal sea beds to its sand dunes. Thursday through Sunday at Entergy IMAX
BAD COMPANY (PG-13) -- NOT RATED
CIA veteran Anthony Hopkins recruits the "street-smart" brother (Chris Rock) of his late, Harvard-educated partner to go after the bad guys in this action romp from Joel Schumacher. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20
THE BOURNE IDENTITY (PG-13) -- C
Doug Liman's spy thriller seems an odd artifact in the post-9/11 world. Matt Damon stars as an amnesiac assassin on the lam from his own CIA handlers. Franka Potente is the innocent passerby who becomes his companion and romantic interest. (Reviewed in this issue.) (Barton) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette
THE DANGEROUS LIVES OF ALTAR BOYS (R) -- NOT RATED
Catholic schoolboys plot their revenge when a mean nun (Jodie Foster) confiscates their lurid comic book. Features animation from Todd MacFarlane. Costars include Kierin Culkin, Vincent D'Onofrio and Jena Malone. Canal Place
DIVINE SECRETS OF THE YA-YA SISTERHOOD (PG-13) -- NOT RATED
Sandra Bullock, Ellen Burstyn, Ashley Judd and Maggie Smith bring bring to life Rebecca Wells' 1996 novel about a Louisiana playwright (Bullock) who moves to Seattle to get away from her mother, only to learn about mom's adventures through a diary. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Prytania
ENOUGH (PG-13) -- C+
It's Sleeping With the Enemy with an aggressive twist. Deciding that the best defense is a good offense, battered wife J Lo stops running and learns to fight back when abusive husband Billy Campbell won't let her go. (Carlson) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20
HEY ARNOLD! THE MOVIE (PG) -- NOT RATED
The Nickelodeon series comes to the big screen, with voices provided by Spencer Klein, Jennifer Jason Leigh and Dan Castellaneta. MC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette
THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING EARNEST (PG) -- A-
Oscar Wilde's comic confection sports a plot as twisty as a pretzel and about as nutritious. Director Oliver Parker's fine cast (including Rupert Everett, Colin Firth, Judi Dench, Frances O'Connor and Reese Witherspoon) brings infectious zest to Wilde's tangy string of zingers about love and life. (Barton) Canal Place
INSOMNIA (R) -- B-
Christopher Nolan (Memento) returns with an Oscar-winning cast (Al Pacino, Robin Williams, Hilary Swank) but a weak script and a conventional neo-noir thriller format in this curious remake of the 1997 Norwegian film of the same name. (Simmons) AMC Palace 20
JUWANNA MANN (PG-13) -- NOT RATED
Tootsie takes it to the hoop with Miguel A. Nunez, Jr. as an outcast NBA player who goes drag in order to play in the WNBA. Complex sexual and gender issues (and laughs) ensue, with co-stars Vivica A. Fox and musical artists Ginuwine and Lil' Kim. AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Downtown Joy, Plaza
LIKE MIKE (PG) -- NOT RATED
Big takes it to the hoo with Lil' Bow Wow playing a little kid who through a freak accident becomes an NBA star. Features cameos by NBA stars including Allen Iverson, Jason Kidd and Chris Webber. Opens Wednesday at AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Downtown Joy, Plaza
LILO & STITCH (PG) -- NOT RATED
A Hawaiian girl befriends what she thinks is a dog but actually is an alien on his way to alien prison in this animation film from Disney. Chris Sanders directed, co-wrote and provides the voice for Stitch, the alien cum pup. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Plaza
MEN IN BLACK II (PG-13) -- NOT RATED
Director Barry Sonnenfeld and stars Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones and Rip Torn reunite for this long-awaited sequel to the fun 1997 romp of agents working with aliens on Earth to protect the planet from the bad aliens. Newcomers include Patrick Warburton, Lara Flynn Boyle and Rosario Dawson. Opens Wednesday at AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Canal Place, Chalmette, Downtown Joy, Plaza, Prytania
MINORITY REPORT (PG-13) -- B+
Steven Spielberg presents one of his most assured works in years, with Tom Cruise as a futuristic cop who prevents murders before they occur, only to find himself accused as a killer. (Simmons) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Canal Place, Chalmette, Plaza
MR. DEEDS (PG-13) -- NOT RATED
Funnyman Adam Sandler stars in this "homage" to the 1936 Frank Capra classic about an everyman who inherits a ton of dough and proceeds to help the less fortunate and fall in love. Co-stars Winona Ryder, Steve Buscemi, Peter Gallagher, Jared Harris and John Turturro. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette
MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING (PG) -- NOT RATED
Nia Vardalos wrote and stars in the screen adaptation of her autobiographical one-woman play about the misadventures of a Greek woman marrying a non-Greek man. AMC Palace 20, Canal Place
THE POWERPUFF GIRLS MOVIE (PG) -- NOT RATED
The popular TV show comes to the big (animated) screen, featuring voices by Cathy Cavadini, Tara Charendoff and E.G. Daily. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20
SCOOBY-DOO (PG) -- B-
Anyone for whom Scooby-Doo cartoons were an after-school staple should get a kick out of this silly, though poorly crafted romp. Shaggy (Matthew Lillard) and a delightfully digitized Scooby are as kid-friendly as ever, but moments of more adult humor may make this one more appropriate for adults with a juvenile sense of humor. (Carlson) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Downtown Joy, Plaza
SPIDER-MAN (PG-13) -- B
Tobey Maguire spins a believable web as your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man in this Sam Raimi effort. Superb casting, excellent use of Matrix technology and occasional flashes of visual brilliance make this one a solid summer flick, but it's not nearly the total comic book package that Darkman -- or even Batman -- was. (Carlson) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Plaza
SPIRIT: STALLION OF THE CIMARRON (G) -- B
In Shrek, the Dreamworks team flouted Disney convention by turning the beauty into a beast. In Spirit, they've again broken the rules -- this time by having the eponymous four-legged protagonist whinny and snort, but not talk. (Tisserand) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20
STAR WARS: EPISODE II -- ATTACK OF THE CLONES (PG) -- A-
The Empire bounces back as George Lucas brings us ever closer to the Star Wars mythology we know and love. Plenty of action, stunning visuals, a kick-ass Yoda and Hayden Christiansen's pitch-perfect performance as young Anakin Skywalker make this one more The Empire Strikes Back than Phantom Menace. (Carlson) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20
THE SUM OF ALL FEARS (PG-13) -- NOT RATED
Director Phil Alden Robinson and star Ben Affleck assume the helm of the Tom Clancy spy-thriller series featuring CIA superhero Jack Ryan. This time German neo-Nazis are trying to use a nuclear device they've swiped. Morgan Freeman, Liev Schreiber, Bridget Moynahan, James Cromwell and Philip Baker Hall co-star. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Downtown Joy
UNDERCOVER BROTHER (PG-13) -- B+
Eddie Griffin is hilarious in this surprisingly savvy parody of racism dressed up as an action comedy. No stereotype is left un-skewered in this uneven but wild ride, which also features Aunjanue Ellis, Denise Richards, Dave Chappelle and Neil Patrick Harris doing a very good impression of a very white man (go figure). (Simmons) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Downtown Joy, Plaza
WINDTALKERS (R) -- C
John Woo's WWII action flick offers a novel but wholly inadequate examination of the Navajo radio men whose use of their own language formed the basis for a communication code the Japanese were never able to crack. (Barton) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette
