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BAD SANTA (R) --
Billy Bob Thornton is a grifter posing as a shopping-mall Santa Claus and
bilking shoppers out of their money until he learns the true meaning of Christmas
in this film directed by Terry Zwigoff (Ghost World). Co-stars Bernie Mac,
Tony Cox, Cloris Leachman and the late John Ritter, who co-starred with Thornton
in Sling Blade. Opens Wednesday in wide release
BROTHER BEAR (G) --
Animated film about a Native American who is transformed into a bear. Directed
by Aaron Blaise and Robert Walker and starring the voices of Jonathan Winters,
Victoria Jackson and Ben Stein. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace
20, Chalmette, Grand, Hollywood Cinemas 9
DR. SEUSS' CAT IN THE HAT (PG) -- Mike Myers stars as the mischievous children's-book
character in this directing debut from Bo Welch, featuring makeup by Rick Baker
and co-starring Alec Baldwin, Sean Hayes and model/heiress/videophile Paris Hilton.
AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Grand, Hollywood
Cinemas 9, Prytania
ELF (PG) -- B-
Jon Favreau directs this silly story of a human orphan raised by Santa's elves
who must now find his way (and his biological father) in the big city. Oh, and
he has to save Christmas, too, of course. Will Ferrell's big, hilarious heart
(and his mustard-color tights) makes the tissue-paper-thin tale a real charmer.
Costars James Caan, Bob Newhart as Papa Elf and Ed Asner as Santa himself. (Carlson)
AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Hollywood Cinemas
9
THE FIGHTING TEMPTATIONS (PG-13) --
New York ad exec Cuba Gooding Jr. must form a gospel choir in his former Georgia
hometown in order to collect on the inheritance left him by his dead aunt. Grand
FILMS FROM ALONG THE SILK ROAD: CENTRAL ASIAN CINEMA (NR) -- Critically
acclaimed touring film program, curated by Alla Verlotsky and Kent Jones, includes
several films from the region including Darezhan Omirbaev's Kairat and
Ardak Amirkulov's The Fall of Otrar (presented by Martin Scorsese). Visit
www.zeitgeistinc.org
for showtime and other info. Friday through Dec. 19 at Zeitgeist
GINGER AND CINNAMON (NR) -- C Daniele Luchetti's Italian comedy is the
story of a 30-year-old aunt and her 14-year-old niece who are both interested
in the same guy. This picture largely serves to prove that cinematic shallowness
is not monopolized by Hollywood. (Barton) 7:30 p.m. daily through Thursday
at Zeitgeist
GOTHIKA (R) -- Halle Berry gets her first solo star billing as a criminal
psychologist who suddenly finds herself the primary suspect in the death of husband
Charles S. Dutton (can you really see them together?). Directed by Mathieu Kassovitz
and co-stars Penelope Cruz and Robert Downey Jr. AMC Palace 12, AMC
Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Grand, Hollywood Cinemas 9
THE HAUNTED MANSION (PG) --First, there was Pirates of the Caribbean;
now comes another film based on a Disney theme-park ride with Eddie Murphy as
a man protecting his family from ghosts. Directed by Rob Minkoff (Stuart Little
series) and co-stars Terence Stamp, Wallace Shawn and Jennifer Tilly. Opens
Wednesday in wide release
IMAX NUTCRACKER (NR) --
Tchaikovsky's holiday-friendly masterpiece told in 3-D splendor. Entergy IMAX
INTO THE DEEP: 3-D (NR) -- Howard Hall takes a 3-D look at the undersea world.
Entergy IMAX
KILL BILL VOL. 1 (R) --
D Quentin Tarantino's first movie in six years was hardly worth waiting
for. Uma Thurman stars as an assassin out for revenge against former associates
who tried to kill her. (Barton) AMC Palace 20
LEWIS AND CLARK (NR) --
The famous explorers' trek West is chronicled in this IMAX film presented
by National Geographic. Entergy IMAX
LOONEY TUNES: BACK IN ACTION (PG) --
Joe Dante (of Gremlins fame) directed this mix of live action and animation
featuring a who's-who of classic Warner Brothers' cartoon characters. Stars Brendan
Fraser, Timothy Dalton and Joan Cusack.
AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Grand, Hollywood
Cinemas 9
LOST IN TRANSLATION (R) -- A-
Writer-director Sofia Coppola (The Virgin Suicides) continues to establish
herself as a filmmaker with her own voice in this subtle, Tokyo-based tale of
the relationship between a fading movie star (Bill Murray) and the young wife
(Scarlett Johansson) of an L.A. photographer. (Simmons) Canal Place
LOVE ACTUALLY (R) --
B Richard Curtis' multi-character romantic comedy gets off to a terrific
start but fades in an overblown conclusion. Still, the picture has several affecting
passages. And the acting is memorably fine. Billy Nighy as an aging rocker is
a hoot. And Liam Neeson as a grieving husband who has just buried his wife and
Emma Thompson as a wife worried that her husband has fallen in love with someone
else stir us to the core. (Barton) (Reviewed in this issue.) AMC Palace 12,
AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Hollywood Cinemas 9
MASTER AND COMMANDER: THE FAR SIDE OF THE WORLD (PG-13) -- B+
Lucky Jack leaps to the big screen in this Peter Weir adaptation of the Patrick
O'Brian novels. A spare script leaves plenty of time for stunning visuals and
fascinating evocations of life aboard a 19th-century British warship. Weir's nearly
flawless directorial eye is aided by the intelligent casting of Russell Crowe
and Paul Bettany (A Beautiful Mind) as friends Jack Aubrey and Stephen
Maturin. A first-rate action-adventure. (Carlson) (Reviewed in this issue.)
AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Canal Place, Chalmette,
Grand, Hollywood Cinemas 9
THE MATRIX REVOLUTIONS (R) --
D Disappointing. Dull. Depressing. The utter mediocrity of the final installment
in what was going to be the greatest sci-fi trilogy ever undercuts the brilliance
of all that has come before. The Wachowski brothers' inventiveness and originality
peters out, as they largely forsake both Neo and the Matrix in favor of a narrative
focused almost singularly on the City of Zion. It's like we took the red pill,
and all the good stuff -- even if it wasn't real -- is gone. (Carlson) AMC
Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Canal Place, Chalmette, Entergy
IMAX, Grand, Hollywood Cinemas 9
THE MISSING (R) --
Tommy Lee Jones reunites with estranged daughter Cate Blanchett to help her
find her daughter who was kidnapped by Apaches in this Western from director Ron
Howard. (Apparently Howard's been itching to do a Western ever since he co-starred
with John Wayne in The Shootist.) Co-stars Evan Rachel Wood, Val Kilmer
and Aaron Eckhart. Opens Wednesday in wide release
MYSTERIES OF EGYPT (NR) --
Omar Sharif narrates this IMAX look at the ancient history and culture of Egypt,
sponsored by National Geographic. Entergy IMAX
MYSTIC RIVER (R) -- B+
Three south Boston friends (Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon) find themselves
struggling with loss and revenge in this flawed adaptation of the Dennis Lehane
bestseller. The power and intelligence of this film reside almost solely in Penn's
raw performance as a grieving father. (Carlson) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace
20, Canal Place
OUT OF TIME (PG-13) --
A chief of police in a Florida town (Denzel Washington) finds himself to be a
murder suspect in this thriller from Carl Franklin. Grand
PEPPERMINT (NR) --Costas Kapakas directs this coming-of-age story set in
Greece, inspired by a family's photo album. 9:30 p.m. daily through Thursday
at Zeitgeist
PIECES OF APRIL (PG-13) -- The Patricia Clarkson film festival continues
with Peter Hedges' directing debut about a hip young New Yorker (Katie Holmes)
trying to fix Thanksgiving dinner for her separated parents (Clarkson, Oliver
Platt). Co-stars Sean Hayes and Derek Luke. Canal Place
RADIO (PG) --
Mentally challenged Cuba Gooding Jr. goes from being ridiculed as a young man
to becoming a fixture on a South Carolina high school football team, thanks to
his friendship with coach Ed Harris in this fact-based story directed by Michael
Tollin and co-starring Debra Winger. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC
Palace 20, Grand
RUNAWAY JURY (PG-13) -- B
Gene Hackman, Dustin Hoffman, John Cusack and Rachel Weisz are joined by a fine
supporting cast (including local favorites such as Fahnlohnee Harris, Michael
Arata and Carol Sutton) in this sometimes fun but ultimately tepid John Grisham
story set in New Orleans. (Simmons) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC
Palace 20, Hollywood Cinemas 9
SANTA VS. THE SNOWMAN (NR) --
Santa Claus squares off against a jealous snowman in a battle for the North Pole
and, by extension, Christmas itself. Entergy IMAX
SCARY MOVIE 3 (PG-13) --
Spoofmeister David Zucker replaces the Wayans brothers in keeping up the yucks
with an ensemble cast featuring Eddie Griffin, Leslie Nielsen, Darrell Hammond,
Charlie Sheen and Queen Latifah. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace
20, Chalmette, Grand
SCHOOL OF ROCK (PG-13) -- B+
With a script by offbeat writer Mike White, Richard Linklater's mainstream comedy
gives wild man Jack Black his best role yet as a substitute teacher who turns
a bunch of uptight 12-year-olds into a rock 'n' roll band. (Barton) AMC Palace
12
SHATTERED GLASS (PG-13) -- Hayden Christensen (of the recent Star Wars
series) plays New Republic reporter Stephen Glass, whose fraudulent
reporting disgraced the reputable magazine and preceded The New York Times'
Jayson Blair scandal. Co-stars Peter Sarsgaard (Housebound, Boys Don't
Cry) and Chloe Sevigny. Opens Wednesday at Canal Place
THE STATION AGENT (R) -- B+ Writer-director Tom McCarthy's endearing drama
features a loner dwarf (Peter Dinklage) who seems to attract equally isolated
people (Patricia Clarkson, Bobby Cannavale) in a small town. Co-stars Michelle
Williams. McCarthy, who apparently wrote the roles for his lead actors, does a
great job of creating space for his characters to fill in amusing and endearing
details about themselves without pandering to the audience. Though Dinklage and
Clarkson do fine work, Cannavale is the surprise here as a lost puppy of a roadside
vendor who befriends Dinklage's Fin whether he likes it or not. (Simmons) Opens
Wednesday at Canal Place
THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE (R) --
Remake of Tobe Hooper's 1974 horror classic, produced by Michael Bay, with debuts
by director Marcus Nispel and screenwriter Scott Kosar, and starring Jessica Biel,
R. Lee Ermey and New Orleanian John Larroquette (reprising his original role as
the narrator). AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Grand
TIMELINE (PG-13) --Richard Donner (Superman, Conspiracy Theory)
directed this time-travelling thriller about Yale students trying to rescue their
history professor after he's swept away to 12th century France. Stars Paul Walker,
Billy Connolly and Frances O'Connor. Opens Wednesday in wide release
TUPAC: RESURRECTION (R) --Hip-hop legend Tupac Shakur is chronicled by
MTV video and documentary veteran Lauren Lazin. AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20,
Chalmette, Grand, Hollywood Cinemas 9
| AMC Palace 12 734-2020; AMC Palace 16 734-2020; AMC Palace 20 734-2020; Canal Place 581-5400; Chalmette 277-9797; Downtown Joy 522-7575; Entergy IMAX 581-4629; Plaza 245-0102; Prytania 891-2787; Zeitgeist 525-2767
Compiled by David Lee Simmons
Contributors: Rick Barton, Shala Carlson, David Lee Simmons |
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