Some reviews issue during newspapers that do not endowment star ratings; some cinema are not screened in allege for critics. Ratings operation from 0 to 4 stars.
OPENING THIS WEEK
“This Means War” * ½
Reviewed on Page 6D
“The Secret World of Arrietty”
* * *
Reviewed on Page 8D
“Kill List” * * * ½
Reviewed on Page 4D
“Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance”
Not reviewed
CONTINUING
Here are comparison mini-reviews of films in theaters, listed alphabetically.
“Albert Nobbs”
Costume drama. * * * R.
“Albert Nobbs” has been a passion plan for Glenn Close given she won an Obie in a purpose behind in 1982. As star, writer and co-writer — and lyricist for a film’s thesis strain — she has poured her heart and essence into this film. What Close accomplishes is something deeper than aspect imitation. Jettisoning all of a mawkish tenderness that competence have sabotaged a film, executive Rodrigo Garcia and his star (Close) make this withdrawn, near-asexual quadruped both fascinating and emotionally captivating. (Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune) 113 minutes
“The Artist”
Silent movie. * * * ½ PG-13. There is powerful regard for this story of a silent-era star struggling opposite a waves of a talkies. Stars embody Jean Dujardin and Bérénice Bejo, above, and John Goodman . (Lisa Kennedy, The Denver Post) 100 minutes
“Big Miracle”
Family movie. * * * PG. The predicament of a family of gray whales, stranded underneath a Alaska ice, perplexed a republic and forced oil group and environmentalists, locals and Cold War foes to group adult in this pleasant story. Drew Barrymore, John Krasinski and Dermot Mulroney star. (Roger Moore, McClatchy-Tribune News Service) 104 minutes “Chronicle”
Comic fantasy. * * * PG-13. Teenagers acquire super powers and, being teenagers, videotape themselves as they learn what they can do in “Chronicle,” an interesting comic-book film yet a comic book. Featuring effects that put a final dual “Spider-Man” cinema to shame, engaging, plausible characters and a kind of real-teens/real-problems eloquent screenplay, this creates an interesting practice in that child’s game, “What would YOU do if we had superpowers?” Dane DeHaan, Alex Russell and Michael B. Jordan star. (Roger Moore, McClatchy-Tribune News Service) 84 minutes “Contraband”
Thriller. * * * R. Mark Wahlberg delivers a products in this B-movie about bootlegging in boozy, hurtful New Orleans. He plays a raider who has left legit offered domicile alarm systems. His mom (Kate Beckinsale) runs a beauty salon. They have dual kids. He’s wised adult and left “the life” behind. But his wife’s younger hermit (Caleb Jones) hasn’t. (Roger Moore, McClatchy-Tribune News Service) 99 minutes
“Extremely Loud Incredibly Close”
Drama. * * * ½ PG-13. Director Stephen Daldry and screenwriter Eric Roth done sacrifices in bettering Jonathan Safron Foer’s 9/11 novel for a vast screen. Yet they’ve done a relief of a movie. The film is reduction endangered with inhabitant mishap than it is with community healing. It tightens a concentration on Oskar Schell (Thomas Horn), a lamentation child on a hunt for a close that fits a pivotal his father left him. Sandra Bullock plays Oskar’s mother, and Tom Hanks a father killed in a attacks on a World Trade Center. (Kennedy) 129 minutes
“The Grey”
Action. * * * ½ PG. Ottway (Liam Neeson) and a tiny planeload of oil- association workers set out for a pursuit on an aeroplane that crashes somewhere in Alaska. Most are killed or die quickly. Seven are left alive. They wish they’ll be found by rescuers, yet their craft is fast being lonesome with snow. They set out in sour cold, slogging by snow, eating a small food from a plane, starting fires during night, greatly wakeful that they have captivated a vast following of wolves. Frank Grillo and Dermot Mulroney also star. (Roger Ebert, Universal UClick) 117 mins
“Haywire”
Action. * * ½ R. Steven Soderbergh expel Gina Carano, a mixed-martial-arts star/model, in this film and surrounded her with gifted actors since he wanted to see an movement film starring a lady who could credibly kick a vital daylights out of legions of guys who got in her way. (Roger Moore, McClatchy-Tribune News Service) 93 minutes
“The Iron Lady”
Biopic. * * ½ PG-13. See this play about Margaret Thatcher, Britain’s Prime Minister and a initial womanlike celebrity of a Western nation, not since it’s an satirical story lesson. It’s too rushed to offer that purpose. Instead see it for Meryl Streep. Streep is considerable portraying a regressive maverick’s arise in Britain’s domestic establisment. But she is astoundingly touching as a octogenarian whose once-great egghead powers are flickering. (Kennedy) 105 minutes
“Journey 2: The Mysterious Island”
Fun fantasy. * * ½ PG. The film is loosely a supplement to “Journey to a Center of a Earth” with dual connections: It’s desirous by a Jules Verne novel, and it co-stars immature Josh Hutcherson as a hero, Sean. Sean and his stepdad Hank (Dwayne Johnson, a.k.a. The Rock) fly off to a Pacific to rescue his Grandpa. On attainment they sinecure a traveller helicopter commander named Gabato (Luis Guzman). Gabato has a daughter named Kailani (Vanessa Hudgens). These 4 fly off in a helicopter, are trapped in a Category 5 hurricane, that rips it to pieces, and are propitious adequate to find themselves alive on a beach of a Mysterious Island. (Roger Ebert, Universal Uclick) 94 minutes
“Man on a Ledge” Thriller. PG-13. David Englander (Ed Harris) is in collusion with corrupt, coke-dealing cops and has railroaded a probity complement into convicting Nick Cassidy (Sam Worthington), a former military officer who accompanied him as a ensure on a brief outing during that a $40 million solid was stolen. Nick, found guilty of a burglary since of trumped-up justification given by his depraved colleagues, faces 25 years in jail after his interest is incited down. He uses his father’s wake to shun and climbs to a 21st building of a hotel and pretends to be a suicidal jumper and case for time while his hermit tries to find a diamond. (Stephen Holden, The New York Times) 112 minutes
“My Week With Marilyn” Drama. * * * R. In 1956, a immature and fervent Colin Clark was third partner editor on a London set of “The Prince and a Showgirl.” Based on Clark’s memoirs, this well-acted drama, starring Michelle Williams, doesn’t irradiate a poser of Monroe so most as remind us how complicated, perfectionist and insinuate a purpose of witness can be. (Kennedy) 99 minutes
“One for a Money” Comedy-drama. PG-13. The latest Katherine Heigl car finds her in a purpose of Stephanie Plum, a divorced and recently impoverished Jersey girl. She takes a pursuit operative for her cousin’s bail bond association and leaps during a possibility to lane down Joe Morelli (Jason O’Mara), a patrolman left bad — yet he might be trusting — and also a male who prolonged ago did Stephanie wrong. (A.O. Scott, The New York Times) 106 minutes
“Red Tails”
Action. * * ½ PG-13. Despite overwhelming aerial scenes and good intentions, a George Lucas-produced film is grounded by awkward dialogue, a labyrinth tract and a occasional differing anachronism. It’s an inspired-by story of a Tuskegee Airmen that wanders from extravagantly interesting to schoolroom exegetic to one-note flatness. Cuba Gooding Jr. and Terrence Howard star. (Tish Wells, McClatchy-Tribune News Service) 120 minutes
“Safe House”
Rerun movement film. R. Ryan Reynolds plays Matt Weston, a CIA newbie reserved to male a frequency used Cape Town facility. Every day he clocks in, checks a reserve and waits to see if he’ll finally get something to do. Soon adequate he does: A patrol of tough agents arrive to survey Tobin Frost (Denzel Washington), a tip view who went brute 9 years ago and has been offered America’s secrets. (John DeFore, Special to The Washington Post) 115 minutes
“A Separation”
Drama. * * * ½ PG. Iranian writer-director Asghar Farhadi’s domestic play is frontrunner in a Academy Awards competition for unfamiliar denunciation film for good reason: it is studious filmmaking during a finest. Hushed, beautifully achieved and vividly composed, a film invites us into a painful story of Simin (the radiant Leila Hatami) and Nader (Peyman Maadi), a middle-class integrate who partial ways since he refuses to leave Iran and his bum father for a consequence of their teenage daughter. Nader’s fight with a caretaker plunges story into a new set of questions about rifts over a marital. The writer-director’s intricately mindful and ethics enchanting screenplay is also nominated for an Oscar. In Persian with English subtitles. At a Mayan. (Lisa Kennedy, The Denver Post) 123 minutes
“Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy”
Suspense. * * * * R. An expertly crafted digest of a classical John le Carré espionage novel about cunning in a lofty top reaches of British intelligence, with Gary Oldman in a pretension role. (Amy Biancolli, Houston Chronicle) 127 minutes
“The Vow”
Romance. PG-13. This new film, loosely formed on a loyal story, follows a life of a lady who comes out of a coma with no correlation of her married life. The film’s biggest resources are Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum. McAdams has a form of radiant face and honeyed celebrity that make it easy to tumble in adore with her. Tatum brings both a severe physicality and startling disadvantage to his role. They make it easy to base for this integrate to stay together. (Rick Bentley, McClatchy Newspapers) 104 minutes
“The Woman in Black”
Spooky thriller. * * * R. Daniel Radcliffe, above, acquits himself pretty good in his initial adult big-screen purpose as a immature lawyer, singular father and widower. He’s also a unwell immature attorney in Britain in a early 1920s who contingency trek to a marshy East Coast and rummage by a papers of a family whose long-abandoned mansion, Eel Marsh, is to be sold. (Roger Moore, McClatchy-Tribune News Service) 95 minutes
GIANT SCREEN
IMAX — Denver Museum of Nature Science
“Tornado Alley 3D” and “Flying Monsters 3D.” Dates, times and tickets vary. 2001 Colorado Blvd., 303-322-2009, dmns.org
IWERKS — The Wildlife Experience “Turtle Vision 3D,” “Sharks 3D,” “The Alps” and “Alaska Dogs.” Dates, times and tickets vary. 10035 S. Peoria St., Parker, 720-488-3300, thewildlife experience.org
FILM SERIES
Denver Psychoanalytic Film Series
Today: Monthly film array continues with “Buck,” 7 p.m. Discussion with guest psychoanalyst included. Free. Montview Church, 1980 Dahlia St., 303-667-5743