8 MILE (R) -- Curtis Hanson (Wonder Boys) directs Controversial
White Rapper Eminem as an aspiring Controversial White Rapper in a movie that
would've felt like a complete vehicle for Mr. Mathers without someone of Hanson's
reputation attached to the project. Brittany Murphy co-stars as Eminem's potential
love bee-atch. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Hollywood
Cinemas 9
8 WOMEN (R) -- OK, so how many murder-mystery musicals have you
seen lately? This film by Francois Ozon features a who's who of France's great
leading actresses, including Catherine Deneuve, Emmanuelle Beart and Isabelle
Huppert. Through Thursday at Canal Place
ABANDON (PG-13) -- Psycho-thriller features Katie Holmes as an overachieving
college student still dealing with the disappearance of her boyfriend two years
earlier, and recovering alcoholic detective Benjamin Bratt. AMC Palace 12
THE BARBERSHOP (PG-13) -- B Ice Cube and Cedric the Entertainer lead
a charming ensemble comedy about the day in the life at a Chicago barbershop.
Despite some needless cliches and thin character sketches, The Barbershop
joins this past summer's Undercover Brother as another frank dialogue
on race without getting bogged down in pretension. (Simmons) AMC Palace 16,
AMC Palace 20, Chalmette
BOWLING FOR COLUMBINE (R) -- B This typically heavy-handed and
hilarious documentary from liberal gadfly Michael Moore (Roger and Me)
is all over the map in its exploration of America's love/hate relationship with
guns. Moore knows how to get a laugh and make points, usually by inserting himself
into the mix, but has trouble finding a focus in his theme. (Simmons) Canal
Place
BROWN SUGAR (PG-13) -- Record-label rep Taye Diggs and reporter Sanaa
Lathan, two longtime friends, feel themselves suddenly drawn into romantic entanglements
in this romantic comedy from Rick Famuyiwa (The Wood). AMC Palace
16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Downtown Joy
COMEDIAN (R) -- B+ Debut documentarians Christian Charles and George
Steiner capture Jerry Seinfeld's drive to resucceed on the stand-up circuit.
Artfully shot and edited, Comedian is a commentary on defining yourself
by your work -- comedy providing an unusually brutal measuring stick. (Carlson)
(Reviewed in this issue.) AMC Palace 20, Hollywood Cinemas 9
FEMME FATALE (R) -- Hitchcock freak Brian De Palma, who's been
wandering in the wilderness with someone else's scripts (Snake Eyes,
Mission to Mars), picks up the pen again with this neo-noir about a seductress
(Rebecca Romijn-Stamos) who pulls a photographer (Antonio Banderas) into her
nasty web. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20
FRIDA (R) -- B+ Salma Hayek, whose career has largely been wasted before,
shines in her portrayal of Mexican artist Frida Kahlo. So does Alfred Molina
as husband/artist Diego Rivera in this paradoxically vibrant and episodic bio-pic
from Julie Taymor (Titus), who does a marvelous job of literally bringing
Kahlo's art to life. The script, one of those gang-bang efforts, is woefully
lacking in character development, but who cares? This movie, like the art of
Kahlo and Rivera, is too engaging to ignore. (Simmons) (Reviewed in this issue.)
Canal Place
GHOST SHIP (R) -- A salvage crew gets more than it bargained for when
it finds a long-lost passenger ship in this seasonally friendly film starring
Gabriel Byrne, Ron Eldard and Julianna Margulies. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace
16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Hollywood Cinemas 9
HAUNTED CASTLE (PG) -- Combination of live-action characters and computer-generated
scenes fill this 3-D version of the Faustian tale. Entergy IMAX
I SPY (PG-13) -- In another in a long line of "loosely adapted" TV
shows, Eddie Murphy and Owen Wilson team up in this action comedy from Betty
Thomas (Private Parts, Dr. Doolittle). AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace
16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Hollywood Cinemas 9
JACKASS: THE MOVIE (R) -- The popular MTV show comes to the big screen,
directed by creator/writer Jeff Tremaine. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC
Palace 20, Chalmette, Hollywood Cinemas 9
MOONLIGHT MILE (PG-13) -- Jake Gyllenhaal goes to live with the parents
(Dustin Hoffman, Susan Sarandon) of his dead fiancee, only to fall in love with
another woman in this '70s-era melodrama written and directed by Brad Silberling.
Palace 20
MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING (PG) -- B+ Nia Vardalos wrote and stars
in this romantic comedy about a Greek-American woman from a traditional family
who falls in love with a WASPy school teacher (a charming John Corbett). (Barton)
AMC Palace 20
NUTCRACKER 3D (NR) -- The classic holiday tale comes to the very, very
big screen. Entergy IMAX
PAID IN FULL (R) -- No, it's not the biography of master rapper Rakim,
but a fact-based story about a Harlem drug lord (Wood Harris) who has a crisis
of conscience after building his illicit empire in the 1980s. Charles Stone
III, he of the wildly popular Budweiser "Whazzzzup!" commercials, makes his
feature-film directing debut. AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Downtown Joy
POKEMON 4EVER (G) -- 4Ever, as in endless. This is the fourth in the
series of the popular animation characters. Chalmette
PUNCH-DRUNK LOVE (R) -- B Paul Thomas Anderson's comedy concerns a shy
businessman's (Adam Sandler) uncertain romance with a more sophisticated woman
(Emily Watson). Though likably quirky and adequately funny, this picture doesn't
measure up to Anderson's earlier work (Boogie Nights, Magnolia).
Sandler is surprisingly good, but Watson is largely wasted. (Barton) AMC
Palace 12, AMC Palace 20, Canal Place, Hollywood Cinemas 9
RED DRAGON (R) --Anthony Hopkins returns as Hannibal Lecter in this
rare bird, a remake of the first of the series, 1986's little-known Manhunter.
AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20
THE RING (PG-13) -- B- Despite some nice ideas and a great set-up,
Gore Verbinski's frightfest about a journalist (Naomi Watts) trying to unravel
the mystery behind a videotape that leads to death for all who watch it is ultimately
a disappointment. (Simmons) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette,
Downtown Joy, Hollywood Cinemas 9, Prytania
THE SANTA CLAUSE 2 (G) -- Santa (Tim Allen) has to get married to retain
his lofty status in this sequel to the 1994 comedy. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace
16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Hollywood Cinemas 9
SWEET HOME ALABAMA (PG-13) -- Reese Witherspoon must return to her
small Alabama hometown and obtain a divorce from her socioeconomically challenged
husband in order to marry her New York City beau in this romantic comedy directed
by Andy Tennant. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette,
Hollywood Cinemas 9
THE TRANSPORTER (PG-13) -- Trusted delivery man Jason Statham (Snatch)
gets into mob trouble when he breaks his own rule of not knowing what he's delivering.
AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette
THE TRUTH ABOUT CHARLIE (PG-13) -- B- Jonathan Demme's remake of Charade,
Stanley Donen's classic romantic/comedy/mystery falters over its casting decisions.
Thandie Newton stands in ably for Audrey Hepburn as the young widow being pestered
for her husband's missing money by a gang of toughs. But Mark Wahlberg hasn't
the requisite smooth charisma Cary Grant brought to original. We also miss such
memorable supporting players as George Kennedy and James Coburn. (Barton) (Reviewed
in this issue.) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 20
TUCK EVERLASTING (PG) -- Teen Alexis Bledel stumbles onto her neighbors'
own private little fountain of youth in this film co-starring William Hurt,
Ben Kingsley and Sissy Spacek. AMC Palace 20
THE TUXEDO (PG-13) -- Through a series of wacky mishaps, Jackie
Chan goes from cab driver to chauffeur to U.S. governmental spy who kicks much
ass after putting on a gizmo-filled tuxedo. AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20
