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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. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20,
Chalmette, Grand, Hollywood Cinemas 9
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
CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN (PG) --
College football coach Steve Martin moves wife/aspiring author Bonnie Hunt and
their 12 kids to a new coaching job in the big city in this loose remake of
both the 1950 family comedy and the book by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine
Gilbreth Carey. AMC Palace 12
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, Grand, Hollywood
Cinemas 9
FILMS FROM ALONG THE SILK ROAD: CENTRAL ASIAN CINEMA (NR) --
This touring program of central Asian cinema, originally scheduled to run through
much of December at Zeitgeist, has been CANCELLED.
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-starring 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.
AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Grand, Hollywood
Cinemas 9
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
THE LAST SAMURAI (R) -- A
Tom Cruise's newfound dramatic dignity provides the steady center of this stunning
epic film directed by Edward Zwick (Glory, Legends of the Fall).
Cruise's physical transformation from an alcoholic Civil War veteran to a formidable
samurai warrior is Oscar-worthy. Costar Ken Watanabe's wise warlord Katsumoto
represents a shattering English-speaking debut. Strongly scripted and gorgeously
filmed, The Last Samurai is a movie for the ages. (Carlson) (Reviewed
in this issue.) Scheduled to open Friday in wide release
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) 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) 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. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace
20, Chalmette, Grand, Hollywood Cinemas 9
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 20
PIECES OF APRIL (PG-13) --
A
Writer/director Peter Hedges' subtly funny and ultimately touching family comedy
about a rebellious daughter trying to reconcile with her judgmental mother offers
note-perfect performances by Katie Holmes and Patricia Clarkson and a spectacularly
affecting celebration of the spirit of Thanksgiving. (Barton) (Reviewed in this
issue.) 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
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
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 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette,
Grand
SHATTERED GLASS (PG-13) -- B
Screenwriter Billy Ray's directing debut aptly chronicles the exposure of The
New Republic reporter Stephen Glass as a fraud who fabricated nearly half
of his articles for the magazine, but offers little beyond that. Hayden Christiansen
does a fine job as Glass, though he seems to make him creepier than he appeared
to be to Glass' smitten co-workers. Peter Sarsgaard is better as the editor
who realizes Glass' fakery. Still, there's a desire for a juicier story here,
something Glass ironically enough could have provided himself (and probably
did in his novelized version of his own story, The Fabulist). Interesting
in a Journalism 101 kind of way, but by no means the New Millennium's All
the President's Men. (Simmons) (Reviewed in this issue.) 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) Scheduled to open Friday 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 20
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. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette,
Grand, Hollywood Cinemas 9
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
UNLIKELY HEROES (NR) --
Moriah Films (Genocide, The Long Way Home), the cinematic arm
of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, presents this documentary about Jewish resistance
during the Holocaust. Narrated by Ben Kinglsey. 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Canal
Place
| 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 |
Other Stories This Week in Movies:
Film Review
Pieces of April
The Last Samurai
Shattered Glass
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