Scheduled to Open Friday
FEVER PITCH (PG-13) -- Filmmakers Peter and Bobby Ferrelly (There's Something About Mary) and the screenwriting team of Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel (City Slickers) recrafted Nick Hornby's novel about a man's obsession with a soccer team affecting a new relationship. This time around, Jimmy Fallon is a Red Sox fan cheering the cursed team during last fall's World Series run just as he falls in love with Drew Barrymore. (Plot giveaway: Boston wins.)
SAHARA (PG-13) -- Hunky explorer Matthew McConaughey and witty sidekick Steve Zahn explore the fabled desert looking for a lost battleship and run into comely doctor Penelope Cruz in this adventure film directed by Breck Eisner.
Now Showing
THE AVIATOR (R) -- A Martin Scorsese's biography of Howard Hughes offers an Oscar-nominated lead performance by Leonardo DiCaprio in a tale perhaps less interested in factual accuracy than in seeing Hughes as an emblem of American individualism. Winner of five Academy Awards. (Barton) Causeway 4
BE COOL (PG-13) -- B F. Gary Gray's sequel to Get Shorty (both penned by New Orleans-born writer Elmore Leonard) returns John Travolta to his role as Chili Palmer, former wise guy now in the entertainment business. Chili conquered the movies in the original; here he's invading the movie business. This outing lacks the freshness and snap of the first, but it's diverting and fun enough. Uma Thurman provides the sex appeal. Vince Vaughn and The Rock provide laughs as a couple of wannabe tough guys. (Barton) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Causeway Cinema 4, Grand,
BEAUTY SHOP (PG-13) -- Queen Latifah goes the Ice Cube route as a hairdresser trying to keep her wacky, sassy employees in line in this comedy spin-off from the Barbershop franchise. Co-stars Kevin Bacon, Alfre Woodard, Mena Suvari and Djimon Hounsou. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Grand, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9, Movies 8
BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIE (PG) -- B- A commanding performance by AnnaSophia Robb holds together an otherwise uneven adaptation of Kate DiCamillo's Newbery Medal-winning children's book. Features nice performances by Eva-Marie Saint, Cicely Tyson, Jeff Daniels and the dog. (Tisserand) AMC Palace 20, Causeway 4, Chalmette 9
CONSTANTINE (PG-13) -- C- Francis Lawrence's adaptation of the comic book Hellblazer stars Keanu Reeves as a superhero who identifies demi-demons and dispatches them back to Hades. A convoluted plot involving a twin (Rachel Weisz) trying to solve the mysterious death of her sister is close to incoherent. The film's occasional theological contemplations threaten to get interesting, but in the end, they are as screwed up as everything else here. (Barton) AMC Palace 20
DIARY OF A MAD BLACK WOMAN (PG-13) -- New Orleans native Tyler Perry brings his stage play to the big screen, with Darren Grant directing and Perry playing several roles in the story of a woman (Kimberly Elise) who tries to recover from a devastating divorce. AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Grand
DOWNFALL (R) -- A Oliver Hirschbiegel's horrifying drama details Adolf Hitler's last days in a Berlin bunker. Bruno Ganz is brilliant in the leading role. Some controversy has oddly surrounded this film over whether it portrays Hitler sympathetically -- it doesn't, not even remotely. He is human, but he is unqualifiedly evil. His humanity serves to remind us how vigilant we must be to guard against the rise of others who wield power in the same monstrous way. In German with English subtitles. (Barton) Canal Place
FILM LOUNGE -- ten18 continues its film series. This week: Kurt & Courtney (1998), Nick Broomfield's sloppily researched but ultimately revealing look at the death of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain and his relationship with Courtney Love. 7:30 p.m. Tuesday at TwiRoPa
FORCES OF NATURE (NR) -- George Casey's documentary about the study of such natural phenomena as earthquakes, hurricanes and tornadoes. Directed by Kevin Bacon. Kenner MegaDome
GUESS WHO (PG-13) -- Extremely loose remake (if at all) of the 1967 message film Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, with gruff father Bernie Mac none too thrilled about his daughter (Zoe Saldana) marrying an impish white guy (Ashton Kutcher), who continually buries himself in a pile of lies in lame attempts to impress his future father-in-law. Directed by Kevin Rodney Sullivan (Barbershop 2). AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette 9, Grand, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9, Movies 8
HITCH (PG-13) -- A matchmaker (Will Smith) believes he knows exactly what it takes for a man to woo a woman -- until he meets a journalist (Eva Mendes) who not only questions his validity but also challenges his normally suave demeanor. Directed by Andy Tennant and co-starring Kevin James and Michael Rappaport. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette 9, Grand, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9
HOSTAGE (R) -- A cop (Bruce Willis) finds his negotiation skills put to the test when he has to juggle freeing both a kidnapped mafia figure and his own family in this action thriller directed by Florent Emilio Siri (making his American debut) and co-starring Kevin Pollack. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Holiday 12
ICE PRINCESS (G) -- High school bookworm Michelle Trachtenberg finds her groove as a champion figure skater. But first she has to convince her mother (Joan Cusack) that skating's better than Harvard in this teen romance comedy directed by Tim Fywell and co-starring Kim Cattrall with an appearance by Michelle Kwan. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette 9, Grand, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9
IMAGINARY HEROES (R) -- A suburban family is torn apart by one son's suicide (Ordinary People, anyone?) in this film directed by Dan Harris and starring Sigourney Weaver, Jeff Daniels and Emile Hirsch. What, no Timothy Hutton cameo? Canal Place
IN THE REALMS OF THE UNREAL (NR) -- Filmmaker Jessica Yu profiles enigmatic artist Henry Darger (who died in 1973), with narration by Dakota Fanning and Larry Pine. Canal Place
INTO THE DEEP (NR) -- IMAX cameras take a journey through the undersea world. Entergy IMAX
A LOVE SONG FOR BOBBY LONG (R) -- B- Adapted from Ronald Everett Capps' novel Off Magazine Street, Shainee Gabel's story of two New Orleans drunks (John Travolta, Gabriel Macht) and the young woman (Scarlett Johansson) who offers them a chance for redemption is thin and overlong. The three lead performances make the film worth seeing, however. Johansson's landed her a well-deserved Golden Globe nomination. (Barton) Chalmette 9
MILLION DOLLAR BABY (PG-13) -- A Clint Eastwood's Oscar-winning film about the relationship between an aging fight trainer and a female boxer is hampered by a script that lacks subtlety and occasionally strains credulity. The film overcomes these obstacles, however, with the majesty of its performances by Eastwood and Oscar winners Hilary Swank and Morgan Freeman. Winner of four Academy Awards including Best Picture. (Barton) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12
MILLIONS (PG) -- Two brothers try to spend a huge cache of stolen money before the switch to the Euro in this film directed by Danny Boyle (Trainspotting). AMC Palace 20, Canal Place
MISS CONGENIALITY 2: ARMED AND FABULOUS (PG-13) -- Sandra Bullock continues to funnel money into her production company (apparently) by starring in this sequel to her popular hit comedy about a cop who goes undercover to snag bad guys. This time the volatile cop is in Vegas to rescue kidnapping victims. Co-stars William Shatner, Ernie Hudson, Treat Williams and Regina King. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette 9, Grand, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9
OCEAN WONDERLAND 3D (NR) -- The Great Barrier Reef and the Bahamas are explored, with a focus on the diversity of marine and coral life, in this film using new HD digital 3D 1570 cameras. Entergy IMAX
THE PACIFIER (PG) -- Now that Gov. Schwarzenegger is a little long in the tooth for this kind of thing, Vin Diesel draws the short straw in portraying a Navy SEAL who takes on his toughest assignment: baby-sitting! (Amen, brother.) Directed by Adam Shankman and co-starring Lauren Graham (TV's Gilmore Girls), Faith Ford, Brad Garrett, Tate Donovan and Carol Kane. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette 9, Grand, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9, Movies 8
PANIC IN THE STREETS (NR) — A+ The New Orleans Film Festival presents this special screening of Elia Kazan’s pivotal 1950 film noir movie about a U.S. health inspector (Richard Widmark) who tracks a plague-infected killer (Jack Palance) and his flunky (Zero Mostel) through New Orleans. Kazan grew demonstrably as a filmmaker with this work, which through his casting of dozens of locals in key and smaller roles, and Joseph McDonald’s dynamic cinematography, is the most honest cinematic portrayal of New Orleans. 8 p.m. Tuesday at the Contemporary Arts Center
THE RING TWO (PG-13) -- B Naomi Watts returns as investigative reporter Rachel Kelly once again trying to protect her son (the sometimes creepy David Dorfman) from the little girl of the previous film. A vast improvement over the rather tepid 2002 original directed by Gore Verbinski, thanks to the direction of Hideo Nakata, who directed the original, Japanese versions of this popular series. Despite the Swiss cheese plotholes, Nakata better appreciates the visual and ambient possibilities of fear in this version and even overcomes what is now routine over-acting on Ms. Watts' part. (Simmons) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette, Grand, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9, Movies 8
ROBOTS (PG) -- Ice Age director Chris Wedge returns with this CGI tale about a young 'bot (voice of Ewan McGregor) whose idea of creating fellow robots who serve only a higher purpose is thwarted by corporate type (Mel Brooks). Co-stars the voices of Halle Berry, Robin Williams, D.L. Hughley, Paul Giamatti, Jim Broadbent, Drew Carrey, Amanda Bynes, Dan Hedaya, Jennifer Coolidge, Dianne Wiest and Stanley Tucci. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette 9, Hollywood Cinemas 9, Grand, Holiday 12, Movies 8
SHARKS 3D (NR) -- Jean-Michel Cousteau presents this underwater, 3D look at such famous sharks as the Great White and the Hammerhead. Entergy IMAX
SIDEWAYS (R) -- B+ Sideways, like Alexander Payne's earlier works Election and About Schmidt, is a witty and delightful comedy with more than its share of drama. The loserly Miles (Paul Giamatti) and his aging TV star friend Jack (Golden Globe winner and Oscar nominee Thomas Haden Church) take a bachelor-party tour through wine country, in which the fruit of the grape serves as a not-always-subtle metaphor for life. Co-stars Oscar nominee Virginia Madsen and Sandra Oh. Payne's and Jim Taylor's script won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay. (Simmons) AMC Palace 20, Causeway 4
SIN CITY (R) -- A- The unholy trinity of Frank Miller, Robert Rodriguez (Desperado, Spy Kids) and Quentin Tarantino creates a modern classic. Based on Miller's graphic novel series of the same name, Sin City is a vicious, funhouse romp through a captivating underworld of corrupt powerbrokers (Powers Boothe, Rutger Hauer), hard-bitten cops (Bruce Willis), questionable good guys (Mickey Rourke, Clive Owen) and Amazonian supermodel prostitutes and strippers (Rosario Dawson, Jessica Alba). The script is brilliantly structured (if a tad long), and the movie boasts a visual vivacity like none other, with its mixture of black-and-white photography, green-screen effects and liberal use of color. Comic-book chic. (Carlson) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Chalmette 9, Grand, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9, Movies 8
UP AND DOWN (R) -- The discovery of an abandoned infant changes the lives of two hoodlums in this comedy-drama directed by famed Czech director Jan Hrebejk. Canal Place
THE UPSIDE OF ANGER (R) -- The friendship between a mother of four (Joan Allen) and her irresponsible neighbor (Kevin Costner) blossoms into romance just as her daughters begin struggling with their own issues in this film directed by Mike Binder. Co-stars Evan Rachel Wood, Erika Christensen, Alicia Witt and Keri Russell. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9, Movies 8, Prytania
VOLCANOES OF THE DEEP SEA -- Actor Ed Harris narrates this look at life 12,000 feet below sea level, including the strange creatures that thrive near underwater volcanoes. Entergy IMAX
