UNDERWORLD: EVOLUTION (R) — Kate Beckinsale leaps back into the battle between vampires and werewolves for control of this planet in this sequel to the 2003 film. Len Wiseman returns to direct; Scott Speedman and Derek Jacobi co-star.

Now Showing

BLOODRAYNE (R) — Kristanna Loken and Michael Madsen star in Uwe BollÕs ( House of the Dead ) action-adventure vampire flick about the battle between good and evil, adapted from the video game of the same title. Ben Kingsley, Michelle Rodriguez and Meatloaf costar. AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20

BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN (R) — Every now and then, a film comes along that actually lives up to its hype, and rarely has this match been so dead-on as it is with Ang LeeÕs film about the repressed love affair between two cowboys: pent-up Ennis (Heath Ledger) and nervy Jack (Jake Gyllenhaal) that spans two decades. This film doesnÕt just offer the most revealing acting performances by these two young performersÕ careers; it may be the best example of Ang LeeÕs fascination with isolated and repressed characters run all the way from 1993Õs The Wedding Banquet and The Ice Storm through Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and, yes, even 2003Õs clunky Hulk . This one has all the subtlety that his previous work lacked, and may be the yearÕs best film, thanks in no small party to Larry McMurtryÕs adaptation of the Annie Proulx short story. LeeÕs camera work has never been more ironic, setting his closed-off lovers against wonderous, wide-open mountainscapes. Co-stars Michelle Williams and Anne Hathaway. (Simmons) AMC Palace 20

CASANOVA (R) — Heath Ledger, in his other, very non-gay performance of the season ( Brokeback Mountain being the other), stars as the legendary lothario in Lasse HallstromÕs film, co-starring Sienna Miller, Jeremy Irons, Lena Olin and Oliver Platt. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20

CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN 2 (PG-13) — Steve Martin, Bonnie Hunt, Hilary Duff and Piper Perabo return in this sequel to the 2003 film about a blended family featuring 12 kids and many misadventures. Adam Shankman takes over directing duties. Co-stars Euegene Levy. AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9

THE CHRONICLES OF NARNIA: THE LION, THE WITCH AND THE WARDROBE (PG) — Relocated to a country house during World War II, the four Pevensie children are left at loose ends most of the day, and itÕs during a game of hide and seek that the youngest of them, Lucy (Georgie Henley), conceals herself inside a large wardrobe. Backing into the stacks of fur coats, she discovers that the wardrobe has no back, and in fact leads into a wintry forest where a single lamp-post stands. Here, she encounters a man-goat hybrid named Mr. Tumnus (James McAvoy), who informs her she has entered the land of Narnia, where winter has reigned for a century, under the command of the evil White Witch (Tilda Swinton). But a prophecy has said that one day, four humans will bring an end to the tyranny with the aid of Aslan, a giant mystical lion (voiced by Liam Neeson) whoÕs kind of a fantasy version of Jesus. (Thompson) AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9

DOLPHINS (G) — Marine biologists study the communication of dolphins in nature. Narrated by Pierce Brosnan with music by Sting. Kenner MegaDome

THE FAMILY STONE (PG-13) — HereÕs an odd one: I loved it, and I hated it. The movieÕs too overstuffed by half with pointless people and plot lines that dangle out there like warning signs, begging you to stay away, lest you suffer the holiday heart attack brought on by rich and empty calories. Among its characters are a gay, deaf son with a black partner; a stoner (Luke Wilson) who sees the freak in his big broÕs uptight fiancŽe (Sarah Jessica Parker); and the tragic mommy (Diane Keaton) who keeps her enormous family together during the Christmas season. And yet as ridiculous, as mawkish and schizophrenic as The Family Stone is, itÕs also a surprisingly endearing piece of work — one about people who behave the way real folks would if their on-screen lives werenÕt always manipulated by overeager filmmakers and greedy studio bosses squeezing every last drop of sentimentality from characters who are ultimately resistant to such unbecoming behavior. (Wilonsky) AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20

FUN WITH DICK AND JANE (PG-13) — The Jerry Lewis chromosome is running amok again inside Jim Carrey, and in this remake of the 1977 George Segal-Jane Fonda farce, he revels in his usual quota of rubber-faced, talking-in-tongues set pieces. Otherwise, this sometimes pointed, sometimes pointless comedy is pure post-Enron — the tale of a prosperous suburban couple (Carrey and TŽa Leoni) driven to a crime spree by sudden poverty and lingering revenge against a giant malfeasant corporation (Alec Baldwin plays the Ken Lay stand-in) thatÕs left its employees in the lurch. CarreyÕs hilarious job search — stuffy bank, big-box discount store, Mexican day-labor crew — is the funniest part of the film. (Gallo) AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9

GLORY ROAD (PG-13) — Based on the true story of the 1966 Texas Western menÕs basketball team that won the NCAA championship with the first-ever all-African-American starting lineup. Directed by James Gartner and starring Josh Lucas as Coach Don Haskins. AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9

GRANDMAÕS BOY (PG-13) — Thirtysomething slacker Allen Covert is forced to move in with grandmother Doris Roberts in this comedy directed by Nick Goossen (who has served as co-producer Adam SandlerÕs flunky on previous films) and co-starring Shirleys Knight and Jones. AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9

HARRY POTTER AND THE GOBLET OF FIRE (PG-13) — Not only does this fourth Potter movie — scripted once again by Steve Kloves (who also wrote the first two) and directed by Mike Newell ( Four Weddings and a Funeral ) — assume prior knowledge of the other films; it even assumes youÕve already read the book. If you somehow missed the last three, this isnÕt likely to be the one to break your pattern. (Thompson) AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Causeway Cinema

HOODWINKED (PG-13) — The old Little Red Riding Hood story gets the animated-film treatment in this offering from the newly formed Weinstein Company, with Cory Edwards making his feature-film directing and screenwriting debut, and voices provided by Anne Hathaway, Glenn Close, Anthony Anderson, James Belushi and Patrick Warburton. AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9

HOSTEL (R) — Writer/director Eli Roth tells the story of the horror two American backpackers (Jay Hernandez and Derek Richardson) and their new Icelandic friend (Eythor Gudjonsson) encounter in an Eastern European hostel. AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9

KING KONG (PG-13) — Peter Jackson, maker of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, wastes not a cent on his $200 million Kong remake; it is, at various moments, a lively, frantic, noisy, and touching spectacle, which is to be expected from a man who claims the 1933 original as one of his favorite films. Yet itÕs turgid and soulless, too — a nearly note-for-note remake that spares no expense in order to run nearly twice the original length. Whole scenes have been copied, whole speeches lifted. Ann Darrow (Naomi Watts) is once again a starving New York actress, rescued from the streets by jungle-picture director Carl Denham (Jack Black, in way over his eyebrows). The heroÕs still named Jack Driscoll (Adrien Brody), but here heÕs a spindly playwright. When at last Jackson drops anchor on Skull Island, King Kong becomes precisely what you expect: a deafening video game in which the characters overcome one squishy, sharp-toothed peril after another. The girl still cries, the ape still dies, and all youÕre left with is a ringing in your ears. (Wilonsky). AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9

LAST HOLIDAY (PG-13) — A New Orleans cookware resident (Queen Latifah) who has led a sheltered, no-risk shifts into Carpe Diem mode when she finds out she is terminally ill in this comedy directed by Wayne Wang (Because of Winn-Dixie) and co-starring LL Cool J, Gerard Depardieu, Alicia Witt and New OrleansÕ own red canary, Julia LaShae. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12, Hollywood Cinemas 9

MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA (PG-13) — Rob Marshall (Chicago) directs the story of one womanÕs rise from a poverty-stricken fishing village to the privileged life of JapanÕs most celebated geisha. AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Hollywood Cinemas 9, Prytania

MUNICH (R) — Steven SpielbergÕs brilliantly searching thriller about IsraelÕs pursuit of 11 Palestinians who planned the murders of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Summer Olympic Games probes the moral and strategic issues of how to deal with terrorism. Though it deals with events from three decades ago, this movie couldnÕt be more relevant, whether we think of it in terms of the continuing hositilities between Jews and Arabs or consider its implications for our own American policies in Iraq and elsewhere in the world in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. SpielbergÕs greatness as a filmmaker has long been established. This film makes clear that behind his phenomenal instincts as an entertainer lies a profound consciousness wrestling with the most fundamental issues of human civilization. (Barton) (Reviewed in this issue.) AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12

THE PRODUCERS (PG-13) — Nathan Lane and Matthew Broderick reunite in their Broadway musical roles as Max Bialystock and Leo Bloom, respectively, whose efforts to consciously produce a Broadway dud backfires with the infamous Springtime for Hitler . Directed by Broadway vet Susan Stroman and co-starring Uma Thurman and Will Ferrell. NOTE: There will be a special screening benefiting the NO/AIDS Task Force, with a guest appearance by Producers Tony-winning performer Gary Beach, at 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 23, at the AMC Palace 20. AMC Palace 20

THE RINGER (PG-13) — Desperate for money to help a friend, and hoping to call in a favor from his compulsive-gambler uncle Gary (Brian Cox), office drone Steve (Johnny Knoxville) finds that his uncle is woefully in debt to a loan shark who has a soft spot for the Special Olympics — especially the reigning champion, Jimmy (Leonard Flowers), Òthe Deion Sanders of retards.Ó So Gary ropes Steve into a plan thatÕll pay both their debts — bet against Jimmy and have Steve, a former amateur track champion, enter the contest pretending to be mentally handicapped. (Thompson) AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20

RUMOR HAS IT É (PG-13) — Rob Reiner, who replaced screenwriter Ted Griffen as director 10 days into production, shows once again how he has lost a step since the glory days of This Is Spinal Tap or even A Few Good Men in this romantic comedy-drama starring Jennifer Aniston, Kevin Costner, Mark Ruffalo and Shirley Maclaine. GriffinÕs set-up is novel to say the least: Black-sheep, underachieving Aniston suspects her family was the inspiration for the Charles Webb novel (and Mike Nichols film) The Graduate , to the point where she might not even be her fatherÕs daughter. There are some interesting comments on family, identity and compatibility, but all the stars involved seem restrained and unable to play to their strengths. (Simmons) AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Causeway Cinema, Hollywood Cinemas 9

TRISTAN & ISOLDE (PG-13) — Billed as the big love story before Romeo and Juliet , this one features the romance between an English knight (James Franco) and the daughter of an Irish king (Sophia Myles). Directed by Kevin Reynolds ( The Count of Monte Cristo ) and co-starring Rufus Sewell. AMC Palace 10, AMC Palace 12, AMC Palace 16, AMC Palace 20, Holiday 12

WALK THE LINE (PG-13) — Director and co-writer James Mangold all but gives us the day-to-day blow-by-blows of Johnny CashÕs early years, from rising Sun to falling star almost done in by amphetamines. For all the affection Mangold feels for Cash (Joaquin Phoenix) and June Carter (Reese Witherspoon), the movie feels oddly dispassionate — more like a lecturer reading from a required text than someone recounting a story that needed to be told. Phoenix simply doesnÕt have the weight, the presence, the gravitas of Cash; heÕs no more Johnny Cash than a 2-year-old in a Halloween costume is Batman. He never disappears in the role the way Jamie Foxx did in Ray , never makes us forget weÕre watching an acolyte repeat the masterÕs words without embodying their meaning. (Wilonsky) Causeway Cinema

WOLF CREEK (R) — A group of backpackers encounter terror in the form of a deceiving local in the Australian outback. Greg McLean directs. AMC Palace 20, Causeway Cinema

Special Screenings

DIONYSUS IN 69 (NR) — Zeitgeist kicks it old school in presenting this encore screening of the first film it ever showed. Brian De Palma directed this work with an 8 mm as a project while he was a film student at New York University, a screen adaptation of the theatrical interpreation of EuripidesÕ The Bacchae — performed in the nude. For mature audiences only. 8 p.m. Wednesday at Zeitgeist

DREAMS MONEY CAN BUY (NR) — Hans RichterÕs 1946 avant-garde masterpice tells the story of a man who learns how to manufacture and sell dreams, featuring the music of a wide range of composers including Duke Ellington and John Cage. 8 p.m. Friday at Zeitgeist

EMPEROR TOMATO KETCHUP (NR) — Shuji Terayama directed this 1970 underground art film in which the kids take over society and produce a world of heightened sexuality and violence — think Lord of the Flies gone even more haywire. For mature audiences only. 8 p.m. Saturday at Zeitgeist

A PAGE OF MADNESS (NR) — Teinosuke Kinugasa directed this 1926 Japanese silent film that is considered a heavy influence on such later Japanese master directors as Kurosawa and Ozu, about an elderly man who takes a job at an asylum in the hopes of one day freeing his wife. 8 p.m. Thursday at Zeitgeis t

AMC Palace 10 (Hammond) 429-9090; AMC Palace 12 734-2020; AMC Palace 16 734-2020; AMC Palace 20 734-2020; Causeway Cinema (985) 626-9853; Holiday 12 (985) 893-5444; Hollywood Cinemas 9 464-0990; Kenner MegaDome 468-7231; Prytania 891-2787

Contributors: Rick Barton, Bill Gallo (New Times Media), David Lee Simmons, Luke Y. Thompson (New Times Media), Robert Wilonsky (New Times Media)

Compiled by David Lee Simmons and Katie Walenter