8 MILE (R) -- C+ Semi-autobiographical
it might be, but 8 Mile is smaller than life. The raw energy and talent
of Eminem is dampened by a too-long script and Curtis Hanson's torpid direction.
Kim Basinger and Brittany Murphy give tired performances in a film only briefly
invigorated by its portrayal of Detroit's hip-hop club scene. (Carlson) 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. Canal Place
ABANDONED (NR) -- B+ Arpad Sopsits'
autobiographical story about growing up in a Hungarian orphanage during the
Cold War is as grim a coming-of-age tale as I have ever encountered. A deft
metaphor for all of life behind the Iron Curtain during the Soviet Era, this
picture isn't one you'll soon forget. (Barton) (Reviewed in this issue.) 9:15
p.m. Friday through Dec. 6 at Zeitgeist
ADAM SANDLER'S 8 CRAZY NIGHTS (PG-13) --
Adam Sandler meets animation meets Hanukkah meets basketball meets musicals
in this bizarre holiday-season film from the popular comedian. Also features
the voices of fellow SNL alums Jon Lovitz and Kevin Nealon. Opens Wednesday
in wide release
APOLLO 13 THE IMAX EXPERIENCE (PG) --
Ron Howard's 1995 film about the doomed space flight (starring Tom Hanks, Kevin
Bacon and Ed Harris) becomes the first 35mm live-action film to be digitally
remastered for IMAX viewing. Entergy IMAX
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) 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
DIE ANOTHER DAY (PG-13) -- Unless
you've been living under a rock for the past month, you know the James Bond
series celebrates its 40th anniversary with Pierce Brosnan sexing up American
spy Halle Berry as the two team up to battle the Axis of Evil. Directed by Lee
Tamahori (Mulholland Falls). AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace
20, Chalmette, Hollywood Cinemas 9
THE EMPEROR'S CLUB (PG-13) --
The relationship between a prep-school teacher (Kevin Kline) and one of his
troubled students (Emile Hirsch) over a three-decade span is covered in this
melodrama by director Michael Hoffman. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 20
EXTREME OPS (R) -- A film crew shooting
extreme-sports dudes near the former Yugoslavian border accidently catches a
Serbian war criminal on the lam in this action film starring Rufus Sewell, Rupert
Graves and Bridgette Wilson-Sampras. Opens Wednesday in wide release
FAR FROM HEAVEN (R) -- Director Todd
Haynes reunites with star Julianne Moore (Safe) in this '50s-era melodrama of
a wife grappling with both her husband's (Dennis Quaid) homosexuality and a
flirtation with her African-American gardner (Dennis Haysbert of TV's 24). The
Oscar buzz on Quaid is already revving up. Co-stars New Orleans' own Emmy-winning
actress, Patricia Clarkson. Canal Place
FEMME FATALE (R) -- B- Brian De Palma's
thriller about a European ubercriminal wields a plot that feels cheater-baby
even when we see the clues pointing to its climactic twist. Rebecca Romijn-Stamos
is terrific in the lead, however. I've always been uncomfortable with De Palma's
attitude toward women, but this time out he's chosen a protagonist who can take
care of herself. (Barton) AMC Palace 20
FRIDA (R) -- B+ Salma Hayek 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. (Simmons) Canal Place
FRIDAY AFTER NEXT (R) -- Ice
Cube and Mike Epps reunite for the third installment of the Friday series,
this time with the pair working as mall security guards and trying to catch
the thief who stole their holiday presents. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16,
AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Downtown Joy, Hollywood Cinemas 9
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, Downtown
Joy, Hollywood Cinemas 9
HALF PAST DEAD (PG-13) -- No, it's
not about Steven Seagal's flagging career, but it does star Seagal as an undercover
agent in a prison trying to thwart a convict from convincing a death row inmate
into telling him where the condemned man hid tons of stolen government gold.
Happens every day! Directing debut by Don Michael Paul, who previously shot
his vision through Silk Stalking episodes on USA Network. AMC Palace 12,
AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Hollywood Cinemas 9
HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS
(PG) -- C- This second installment is boring and utterly conventional
-- all two hours and 50 minutes of it. It's pretty apparent that too much time
is spent on how everything looks and not enough on how any of it feels.
Kenneth Branagh as the wryly pompous Gilderoy Lockhart is one of the only bright
spots. Stay home and read the delightful book instead. (Carlson) (Reviewed in
the issue.) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Downtown
Joy, Hollywood Cinemas 9, Prytania
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, Hollywood Cinemas 9
INTO THE DEEP: 3D -- IMAX dives deep
into underwater to explore sea life. Entergy IMAX
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
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
THE IMAX NUTCRACKER 3D (NR) -- The
classic holiday tale comes to the very, very big screen. Entergy IMAX
PUMPKIN (R) -- A flawless college student
conspires with her sorority sisters to win a best-sorority competition until
she falls for a mentally retarded student who is participating in the house's
cause: the the Regionally Challenged Games. Co-stars Brenda Blethyn. 8 p.m.
Tuesday at the Mother-in-Law Lounge
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 20
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 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, Hollywood Cinemas 9
ROGER DODGER (R) -- B+ Campbell Scott
is hilarious as a self-delusional ladies' man lecturing his teen-age nephew
(Jesse Eisenberg) on how to pick up women in this biting debut from writer-director
Dylan Kidd. Jennifer Beals and Elizabeth Berkley show up as two potential targets
in a great set piece midway through. (Simmons) Canal Place
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
SOLARIS (PG-13) -- George Clooney and
Natascha McElhone star in Steven Soderbergh's remake of the 1972 sci-fi thriller
by Andrei Tarkovsky, which in turn was adapted from the novel by Stanislaw Lem.
A shrink (Clooney) starts seeing dead people, including his wife (McElhone)
after arriving at a space station. (Soderbergh told Film Threat his version
is "a combination of 2001 and Last Tango in Paris.") Opens
Wednesday in wide release
SPACE STATION (NR) -- A 3-D look at
the International Space Station. Entergy IMAX
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 20
TREASURE PLANET (G) -- Co-directors
Ron Clements and John Musker (Aladdin, The Little Mermaid) serve
up Disney's holiday animation offering, an outer-space version of Robert Louis
Stevenson's classic Treasure Island. Opens
Wednesday in wide release
THE TRIALS OF HENRY KISSINGER (NR) --
B Documentarians Eugene Jarecki and Alex Gibney are ardent witnesses for the
prosecution in the case against former National Security Advisor and Secretary
of State Henry Kissinger. But charging Kissinger as a war criminal is perhaps
not so easy as they make it seem. This film is marred by sins of omission rather
than commission. (Carlson) (Reviewed in this issue.)7:30 p.m. Friday through
Dec. 6 at Zeitgeist
WES CRAVEN PRESENTS: THEY (PG-13) --
No, the (former) master isn't director; perhaps that's for the best. Robert
Harmon (The Hitcher, Nowhere to Run) directs this thriller about
a grad student who tries to get to the bottom of her old childhood fear of the
dark after getting another round of the willies at night. Opens Wednesday
in wide release
