"Along Came Polly"
Ben Stiller and Jennifer Aniston star in a standard type A meets type B romantic comedy. This time Stiller is a paranoid risk analyst and Aniston is a free spirit. The familiar story is saved by a hilarious supporting cast.
Rated PG-13. 2.5 Stars
"The Big Bounce"
Owen Wilson is hilarious and charming in this light-hearted caper flick about a drifter getting conned by a beautiful femme fatale in Hawaii. This Elmore Leonard adaptation received harsh reviews and a poor box office showing. It's actually the most fun film so far this year.
Rated PG-13. 3.5 Stars
"Big Fish"
At his father's deathbed, a young man tries to sift through the fact and fiction of his father's larger-than-life stories. Tim Burton's beautiful film is something of a marvel, a tall tale with imagination and heart to spare helped out by good humor and solid performances by Ewan McGregor, Albert Finney and Jessica Lange.
Rated PG-13. 4 stars
"The Butterfly Effect"
Ashton Kutcher can't be faulted in this mess of a thriller as a man learns he can use repressed memories to change the past. It gets dumber the more you think about it.
Rated R. 2 stars
"The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King"
The cinematic trilogy of our time wraps up with a bang as the divided Fellowship comes face-to-face with the evils of Mordor in a medley of breath-taking battles, intricate storytelling and dazzling visuals. Though the end plods a bit, the final film lays the groundwork for what an epic should be.
Rated PG-13. 5 stars
"Monster"
An interesting study of the causality behind the actions of Aileen Wuornos, a prostitute turned serial killer in 1980s Florida. The film, which focuses on Aileen's mother-daughter relationship with her lesbian lover rather than the crimes themselves, is nothing particularly inventive. Charlize Theron, in a career-changing performance, is absolutely brilliant.
Rated R. 4 stars
"21 Grams"
Benicio Del Toro, Sean Penn and Naomi Watts star as unrelated people drawn together by a linked tragedy in director Alejandro Gonz?lez Iñ?rritu's explosively dramatic exploration of humanity and loss. One of the year's best.
Rated R. 5 stars
"Win a Date With Tad Hamilton!"
A small-town girl wins a date with a Hollywood superhunk only to enamor him to the discontent of her best friend, who happens to be in love with her. Another light-hearted and well-intentioned chick flick.
Rated PG-13. 3 stars
