Films
Capsule reviews with star ratings are written by reviewers for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Opening today:
Adoration
A student (Devon Bostick) inserts himself into an account of a failed terrorist plot. Running time: 1:40
Rating: (language, sexual content) River Park Square: 11:50 a.m., 2:10, 4:40, 7:20, 9:55.
Every Little Step
Exploring the phenomenon of “A Chorus Line” as dancers audition for a Broadway revival. Running time: 1:36
Rating: PG-13 (sexual references, strong language) River Park Square: 11:55 a.m., 2:25, 5, 7:35, 10:10.
Continuing:
Angels & Demons
••1/2 Ron Howard’s trimmer follow-up to his bulky “The Da Vinci Code” is a ticking-bomb thriller tightly wrapped in a papal plot and cinched in the ribbons of religion and science. With Tom Hanks as the symbologist teamed with a fetching physicist (Ayelet Zurer) to save the Vatican. Running time: 2:18 Rating: PG-13 (disturbing images, violence) Garland: 9:45.
Away We Go
••• Likable John Krasinski and Maya Rudolph co-star as expectant parents in this alterna-quirk comedy/drama in the spirit of “Garden State” and “Juno.” Running time: 1:37 Rating: R (language, sexual content) River Park Square: 6:15, 9:05.
Brüno
•• An audacious Austrian fashionista comes to America seeking celebrity and success. Packed with talking penises, celebrity ambushes and butt jokes galore, the latest provoc-umentary from Sacha Baron Cohen (“Borat,” “Ali G”), is a crude, cringeworthy and intermittently funny affair that triggers the gag reflex. Running time: 1:22 Rating: R (crude sexual content, graphic nudity, language) NorthTown Mall: 12:45, 3:15, 5:40, 8, 10:15. River Park Square: 10:15 a.m., 11:15 a.m., 12:25, 1:25, 2, 2:35, 3:35, 4:15, 4:45, 5:45, 6:20, 6:55, 7:50, 8:30, 9:10, 10. Riverstone: 12:55, 4:25, 7:55, 10:15. Spokane Valley Mall: 10:20 a.m., 12:30, 3, 5:30, 7:50, 10:15. Village Centre: 11:15 a.m., 1:20, 3:30, 5:30, 7:40, 9:50.
Chéri
••1/2 Stunning but flat, Stephen Frears’ adaptation of Colette’s seriocomic novels (“Cheri,” “The Return of Cheri”) stars the minx-like Michelle Pfeiffer as a Princess Charmante and petulantly attractive Rupert Friend as the sleeping beauty she initiates.. Running time: 1:32
Rating: R (drug use, sexual content) River Park Square: 10:45 a.m., 1:10, 3:30.
Grand Canyon Adventure: River at Risk
A raft ride down the Colorado puts a spotlight on water conservation. Running time: :43 Rating: Not rated violence IMAX (Riverfront Park): 11:30 a.m.
The Hangover
••• Four guys go to Vegas for a bachelor party, and mayhem and memory-loss ensue. A loopy farce from the warped mind that brought you “Old School,” with a scene-stealing performance from Zach Galifianakis. Running time: 1:39 Rating: R (nudity, language, sexual content, drug material) Hayden: 7:35, 9:40. NorthTown Mall: 11:35 a.m., 2:55, 5:30, 7:55, 10:20. River Park Square: 11 a.m., 1:20, 3:45, 6:50, 9:25. Riverstone: 12:35, 4:05, 7:40, 10:10. Spokane Valley Mall: 12:40, 3:05, 5:25, 7:45, 10:05. Village Centre: 5, 7:20, 9:40.
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Hogwarts students face attacks from Voldemort and their own rampaging hormones. Running time: 2:33 Rating: PG (language, sensuality, scary images, violence) Hayden: noon, 3, 6, 9. NorthTown Mall: 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m., noon, 2:30, 3, 3:30, 6, 6:30, 7, 9:30, 10, 10:35. Post Falls: 1:05, 4:10, 7:20. River Park Square: 10 a.m., 10:45 a.m., 11:15 a.m., 12:15, 1:30, 2:15, 3, 3:45, 5, 6:15, 7, 7:30, 8:30, 9:45, 10:30. Riverstone: 11:30 a.m., noon, 12:30, 1, 3, 3:30, 4, 4:30, 6:30, 7, 7:30, 8, 9:50, 10:20, 10:50. Spokane Valley Mall: 9:35 a.m., 10:05 a.m., 12:20, 12:50, 1:20, 3:40, 4:10, 4:40, 7, 7:30, 8, 10:20, 10:50. Village Centre: 10 a.m., 11:20 a.m., noon, 1, 2:30, 3:10, 4, 5:40, 6:20, 7, 8:50, 9:30.
I Love You, Beth Cooper
•1/2 Chris Columbus directs unknown Paul Rust as an ubergeek high school grad who confesses his love for the cheerleader hottie (Hayden Panettiere) in this insipid teen comedy, “Superbad”ded-up with underage drinking and a little raunch. Running time: 1:42 Rating: PG-13 (violence, crude and sexual content, drug references, language, teen drinking) River Park Square: 11:20 a.m., 2:10, 4:55, 7:25, 9:55. Riverstone: 12:10, 3:40, 7:50, 10:25. Spokane Valley Mall: 9:45 a.m., 12:15, 2:40, 5:10, 7:40, 10:10. Village Centre: 12:30, 2:45, 5, 7:15, 9:35.
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
•• Call it “The Crass Menagerie,” this attempt to wring every last nickel from the animated series about a clan of prehistoric animals. Running time: 1:34 Rating: PG (peril, rude humor) Hayden: 12:40, 2:55, 5, 7:05, 9:05. NorthTown Mall: 11:45 a.m., 2:45, 5:05, 7:30, 9:45. Post Falls: 12:35, 2:50, 5:05, 7:15. River Park Square: 10:30 a.m., 11:35 a.m., 12:50, 1:50, 3:15, 4:10, 6:35, 9. Riverstone: 12:15, 3:45, 7:15. Spokane Valley Mall: 10:10 a.m., 12:35, 2:50, 5:05, 7:20, 9:35. Village Centre: 11 a.m., 1:10, 3:20, 5:30, 7:45.
Ice Age: Dawn
of the Dinosaurs 3D:
NorthTown Mall: 11:20 a.m., 2, 4:20, 6:45, 9:20. Riverstone: 11:45 a.m., 3:15, 6:45, 9:30. Village Centre: 10:20 a.m., 12:40, 2:50, 5, 7:10, 9:20.
Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa
Taking up where the 2005 original left off, our heroes – a lion (voice by Ben Stiller) and his New York Zoo friends – crashland in their Africa homeland. Running time: 1:28 Rating: PG (crude humor) Garland: 9:30 a.m.
Moon
••• Sam Rockwell gives a virtuoso performance as an astronaut alone on the moon, accompanied only by a robot and operating a mining enterprise for Earth, in this eerie near-future tale from first-time filmmaker Duncan Jones (David Bowie’s son). Running time: 1:37 Rating: R (language) River Park Square: 11:55 a.m., 2:20, 4:50, 7:15, 9:45.
My Sister’s Keeper
••1/2 A melodramatic adaptation of the Jodi Picoult bestseller about a young girl (Abigail Breslin, “Little Miss Sunshine”), her teenage sister stricken with leukemia, and the parents (Cameron Diaz, Jason Patric) doing everything they can to defy death. Bring Kleenex. Running time: 1:48 Rating: PG-13 (teen drinking, language, sensuality, disturbing images) Hayden: 12:10, 2:30, 4:50, 7:10, 9:30. NorthTown Mall: 2:10, 4:55, 7:35. River Park Square: 10:30 a.m. Riverstone: 7:20, 10. Spokane Valley Mall: 11:45 a.m., 2:15, 4:45, 7:15, 9:50. Village Centre: 1:40, 7.
Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
•• Ben Stiller returns in this knee-jerk sequel to the surprise 2006 family-friendly smash, a super-sized rehash transplanted from New York’s Museum of Natural History to the sprawling Smithsonian in Washington, D.C., with lots of running around and CG effects. Running time: 1:45 Rating: PG (language) Garland: 12:30, 5:05.
The Proposal
••• This romantic lark (do you call it a rom-romp?) features Sandra Bullock as a prickly boss and Ryan Reynolds as her human pincushion of an assistant. She wants a green card, he wants a promotion, so they make a deal. Running time: 1:48 Rating: PG-13 (language, nudity, sexual content) Hayden: 12:30, 2:45, 5:10, 7:25, 9:45. NorthTown Mall: 12:25, 4, 6:50, 9:35. Post Falls: 1, 3:10, 5:30, 7:35. River Park Square: 11:10 a.m., 2, 4:40, 7:20, 10. Riverstone: 12:20, 3:50, 7:05, 9:45. Spokane Valley Mall: 12:55, 3:25, 6:45, 9:30. Village Centre: 11:15 a.m., 1:45, 4, 6:30, 8:50.
Public Enemies
G-man Melvin Purvis (Christian Bale) vows to nab notorious criminal John Dillinger (Johnny Depp). Running time: 2:20
Rating: R (gangster violence, language) NorthTown Mall: 12:30, 4:35, 7:45, 10:45. Post Falls: 1:10, 4:15, 7:30. River Park Square: 11:05 a.m., 2:15, 5:15, 7:05, 8:30, 10:15. Riverstone: 11:50 a.m., 3:20, 6:50, 9:55. Spokane Valley Mall: 12:25, 3:20, 6:50, 9:45. Village Centre: 10:20 a.m., 1:10, 4, 6:50, 9:40.
Star Trek
•••1/2 J.J. Abrams’ enjoyable reboot of the sci-fi saga takes a refreshing chug from the fountain of youth, imagining what happened when Kirk met Spock. Running time: 2:06
Rating: PG-13 (sexual content, violence) Riverstone: 11:35 a.m., 3:05, 6:35, 9:35. Village Centre: 11:10 a.m., 4:30, 9:40.
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
•• Michael Bay’s follow-up to his entertaining 2007 film is bigger, longer and louder – but in this case, more is less. Running time: 2:29 Rating: PG-13 (drug material, crude and sexual material, violence, language) Hayden: 12:15, 3:15, 6:15, 9:10. IMAX (Riverfront Park): 12:30, 3:45, 7, 10:15. NorthTown Mall: 12:15, 3:55, 7:15, 9:55, 10:30. Post Falls: 12:40, 4, 7:20. River Park Square: 11:30 a.m., 1:15, 2:50, 4:45, 6:25, 8:15, 9:40. Riverstone: 11:40 a.m., 3:10, 6:40, 10:05. Spokane Valley Mall: noon, 3:30, 6:55, 10:25. Village Centre: 11:45 a.m., 12:15, 3, 3:30, 6:15, 6:40, 9:20, 9:50.
Up
•••• Buoyant Pixar film about a childless grouch (voice of Ed Asner) and a fatherless boy (Jordan Nagai) who float off to the wilds of Venezuela in a house lashed to helium-filled balloons. Running time: 1:29 Rating: PG (peril) Hayden: 12:35, 3, 5:15. NorthTown Mall: 11:55 a.m., 2:20, 4:45, 7:10. Post Falls: 12:45, 3:05, 5:40, 8:05. River Park Square: 11:25 a.m., 2:05, 4:30, 7:10, 9:50. Riverstone: 12:45, 4:15. Spokane Valley Mall: 9:55 a.m., 12:45, 3:15, 7:10, 9:40. Village Centre: 10:15 a.m., 12:30, 2:45.
Up in Disney Digital 3D: Village Centre: 11:15 a.m., 1:30, 3:45, 6:15, 8:45.
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
•• Hugh Jackman revisits his X-Men role to show how Wolverine came into being in this meaningless mishmash of combat sequences, passable visual effects, Marvel Comics back story and goofy Liev Schreiber-as-a-villain thespianizing. Running time: 1:48 Rating: PG-13 (language, sexual content) Garland: 2:45, 7:20.
Year One
••1/2 Jack Black and Michael Cera play primitive hunter-gatherers with very modern vocabularies and senses of humor who wander through Old Testament scenarios in this lean but resourceful comedy. Running time: 1:37 Rating: PG-13 (language, comic violence, crude and sexual content) NorthTown Mall: 11:10 a.m., 10:10.