Current movie summaries
9/27/2012Summaries are condensed from Blade or wire reviews and reflect the theater schedule starting Friday. Films are rated on a scale of 5 stars (best) to Bomb (worst). The reviewer's name, movie running time, and abbreviations of the theaters where the movie is playing are at the end of each summary.
2016 Obama's America. Best-selling author Dinesh D'Souza races against time to find answers to Obama's past and reveal where America will be in 2016. PG ** 89 min. (Wire review) (FT)
The Avengers. Earth's mightiest heroes team up to save the world from an evil demigod and an alien warrior race out to conquer Earth. In 3-D at select locations. PG-13 ***** 142 min. (Baird) (MIT)
The Bourne Legacy looks to continue the trilogy's popular run without Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) or two-time director Paul Greengrass. Jeremy Renner is effective but lacks Damon's charisma as Aaron Cross, another genetically modified super agent gone rouge who is pursed by the same U.S. government officials who created him and are now trying to kill him. PG-13 ** 135 min. (Baird) (FT)
The Campaign. The Campaign's timing couldn't be better -- though the comedy could. It's not that this Will Ferrell-Zach Galifianakis vehicle as rival Congressional candidates from North Carolina isn't funny; it packs a lot of humor in its 90 minutes, with the occasional edgy non-partisan zinger. But as an insightful piece of political commentary, which is what most of us are ready for as we near Nov. 6, The Campaign comes up short given our current political system and the ripe-for-parody candidates it supplies us. R *** 97 min. (Baird) (FT)
Dredd. The future America is an irradiated waste land. On its East Coast, lies Mega City One -- a vast, violent metropolis where criminals rule the chaotic streets. The only force of order lies with the urban cops called "Judges" who possess the combined powers of judge, jury, and instant executioner. Known and feared throughout the city, Dredd (Karl Urban) is the ultimate Judge, challenged with ridding the city of its latest scourge -- a dangerous drug epidemic that has users experiencing reality at a fraction of its normal speed. In 3-D at select theaters. R * 98 min. (Wire review) (FP, FT, LC)
End of Watch. Young Los Angeles police officers Taylor and Zavala patrol the city's meanest streets of south central Los Angeles. The action unfolds through footage from the handheld HD cameras of the police officers, gang members, surveillance cameras, and citizens caught in the line of fire to create a riveting portrait of the city's most dangerous corners, the cops who risk their lives there every day, and the price they and their families are forced to pay. R *** 1/2 109 min. (Wire review) (FP, FT, LC, SDI)
Expendables 2. The gang is reunited and, along with newcomers, they are enlisted to take on a seemingly simple job. The task looks like an easy paycheck for Barney and his band of old-school mercenaries. But when things go wrong and one of their own is viciously killed, the Expendables are compelled to seek revenge in hostile territory where the odds are stacked against them. PG * 104 min. (Wire review) (FP)
Finding Nemo. The new Disney classic released in 3-D about an overly protective clownfish named Marlin and his son Nemo who become separated in the Great Barrier Reef. In 3-D at select locations. G ***** 100 min. (Wire review) (FP, FT, LC)
Hope Springs. After thirty years of marriage, a middle-aged couple attends an intense, week-long counseling session to work on their relationship. PG-13 *** 1/2 100 min. (Wire review) (FT)
House at the End of the Street. Seeking a fresh start, newly divorced Sarah and her daughter Elissa find the house of their dreams in a small town. But when startling and inexplicable events begin to happen, Sarah and Elissa learn the town is located in the shadows of a chilling secret. PG-13 *** 101 min. (Wire review) (FP, FT, LC)
Ice Age: Continental Drift. Manny, Diego, and Sid embark upon their greatest adventure after cataclysm sets an entire continent adrift. Separated from the rest of the herd, they use an iceberg as a makeshift ship, which launches them on an epic seafaring quest. In 3-D at select locations. PG *** 94 min. (Wire review) (MIT)
The Master. After returning from the Second World War, a psychologically troubled drifter meets the charismatic leader of a new religion. The Master befriends the drifter to help him sort out his life and provide meaning. The drifter becomes his right-hand man and, after a while begins to question both his belief in the leader and his teachings as the organization grows and gains a fervent following. R **** 150 min. (Wire review) (FP, LC)
The Odd Life of Timothy Green. An inspiring, magical story about a happily married couple, Cindy and Jim Green, who can't wait to start a family, but can only dream about what their child would be like. When young Timothy shows up on their doorstep one stormy night, Cindy and Jim -- and their small town of Stanleyville -- learn that sometimes the unexpected can bring some of life's greatest gifts. PG *** 1/2 100 min. (Wire review) (SDI)
ParaNorman. When a small town comes under siege by zombies, who can it call? Only misunderstood local boy Norman, who is able to speak with the dead. In addition to the zombies, he'll have to take on ghosts, witches and, worst of all, moronic grown-ups, to save his town from a centuries-old curse. In 3-D at select locations. PG *** 1/2 93 min. (Wire review) (FP, FT)
The Possession. Clyde and Stephanie Brenek see little cause for alarm when their youngest daughter Em becomes oddly obsessed with an antique wooden box she purchased at a yard sale, only to discover that the box was built to contain a dibbuk, a dislocated spirit that inhabits and ultimately devours its human host. PG-13 ** 91 min. (Wire review) (FP, FT, LC, SDI)
Resident Evil: Retribution. The Umbrella Corporation's deadly T-virus continues to ravage Earth, transforming the global population into legions of the flesh-eating undead. The human race's last and only hope, Alice, unveils more of her mysterious past as she delves further into the complex. In 3D at select theaters. R * 95 min. (Wire review) (FP, FT, LC, SDI)
Robot and Frank. Set in the near future, an ex-jewel thief receives a gift from his son: a robot butler programmed to look after him. But soon the two companions try their luck as a heist team. PG-13 ** 1/2 89 min. (Wire review) (LC)
Trouble with the Curve. Gus Lobel is one of the best scouts in baseball, but age is starting to catch up with him and the front office is starting to question his judgment. The one person who might be able to help is his daughter, Mickey, who has never been close to her father. Mickey joins him on his latest scouting trip, jeopardizing her own career to save his. Forced to spend time together for the first time in years, each makes new discoveries. PG-13 ** 111 min. (Wire review) (FP, FT, LC)