Young lovers cavort in pre-Castro Cuba

“Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights”

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In 1958, Katey (Romola Garai) moves with her family to Havana where she meets a club waiter (Mexican actor Diego Luna) and learns to dance like a real Cuban. The dancing is OK, as is actor Luna (“Y Tu Mama Tambien”). What’s refreshing is that the film reminds us that long before there was a man named Castro, there was a dictator named Batista (DVD, VHS; 1:45; rated PG-13 for sensuality).

“Starsky & Hutch”

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Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson, with rapper Snoop Dogg as “urban informant” Huggy Bear, star in this remake of the ‘70s television series. There’s a silly plot involving a drug kingpin, played by Vince Vaughn, but it does little more than provide a chance for the actors to riff on their ‘70s-era characters (DVD, VHS; 1:37; rated PG-13 for drug content, sexual situations, partial nudity, language, some violence).

“The Human Stain”

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Adapted from Philip Roth’s novel, this Robert Benton film would seem to have everything. But Anthony Hopkins and Nicole Kidman are wrong, director Robert Benton tries too hard and screenwriter Nicholas Meyer isn’t able to make Roth’s fanciful story about an elderly professor with a big secret into something that works as a movie (DVD, VHS; 1:46; rated R for language and sexuality/nudity).

“The Big Bounce”

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This Owen Wilson vehicle is a lame adaptation of Elmore Leonard’s first attempt at mystery fiction. First made in 1969, the story has been updated with Hawaii standing in for Michigan and Wilson standing in for Ryan O’Neal as a stumblebum thief. While Oahu’s mountains and beaches look good, the plot holes are bigger than Diamond Head. (DVD, VHS; 1:29; rated PG-13 for sexual content, nudity, violence, language).