IN THEATERS:
The Incredible Burt Wonderstone (PG-13)
Starring Steve Carell, Steve Buscemi, Jim Carrey
Story by Chad Kulgen & Tyler Mitchell and Jonathan Goldstein & John Francis Daley
Screenplay by Jonathan Goldstein & John Francis Daley
Directed by Don Scardino
While a comedy about rival magicians starring Steve Carell and Jim Carrey seems like a no-brainer, this movie actually looks worse every time I see an ad for it. I truly hope to be proven wrong.
The Call (R)
Starring Halle Berry, Abigail Breslin, Morris Chestnut
Story by Richard D’Ovidio & Nicole D’Ovidio & Jon Bokenkamp
Screenplay by Richard D’Ovidio
Directed by Brad Anderson
Writer-director Brad Anderson has done some stellar, scary work on past thrillers like Session 9 and The Machinist. But this generic 911-dispatcher-races-against-the-clock movie feels beneath him.
Stoker (R)
Starring Nicole Kidman, Mia Wasikowska, Matthew Goode
Written by Wentworth Miller
Directed by Chan-wook Park
Critics are split right down the middle on this thriller, the English-language debut of Korean auteur Chan-wook Park (Oldboy). Some find its Hitchcockian ambitions playful and nasty; others find it dreadfully boring. Either way, it seems better than most movies in theaters.
PLAYING AT THE ANGELIKA DALLAS and CINEMARK WEST PLANO
No (R)
Starring Gael García Bernal, Alfredo Castro, Antonia Zegers
Written for the screen by Pedro Peirano
Directed by Pablo Larraín
In another year, this dramedy about Chile’s 1988 campaign for democracy could have easily won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film. Alas, it was up against the ultra-depressing Best Picture nominee Amour. I’d still vote for this one (pun intended).
PLAYING AT THE ANGELIKA PLANO and THE MAGNOLIA
Upside Down (PG-13)
Starring Kirsten Dunst, Jim Sturgess, Timothy Spall
Written and directed by Juan Solanas
I would have loved the hell out of this sci-fi twist on Romeo and Juliet in high school. Now? It looks awful silly.
PLAYING AT THE ANGELIKA PLANO and THE MAGNOLIA
AT HOME:
Top Pick
Who Framed Roger Rabbit?
Easily one of the greatest films of the ’80s and one of the most inventive things ever put onscreen, this noir comedy still dazzles on its 25th anniversary. If you’ve never seen it, this is one for you and your kids to enjoy. There’s simply been nothing else like it before or since.
To rent:
• Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away (46%)
• The First Time (44%)
• The Flat (83%)
• Hitchcock* (63%)
• Life of Pi* (88%)
• Rise of the Guardians (74%)
• Smashed (84%)
• Sound City (100%)
• Spiders (17%)
• This is Not a Film (99%)
• This Must Be the Place (68%)
To buy (click the link to watch on Netflix):
TV: Law & Order: Criminal Intent (Season 10), Ripper Street (Season 1), SpongeBob SquarePants (Season 8)
Blu-ray: Brother Bear, The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Mulan*, Nanook of the North, The Taint, Tristana, Willow, Zulu Dawn
Criterion: The Blob, Ministry of Fear
*recommended
(Release dates and locations subject to change.)