Saturday, February 5, 2011

Movie guide: What's in theaters Feb. 4 - 10

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KEY: Four stars: superior. Three stars: good. Two stars: average. One star: poor. D (drug use), L (language), N (nudity), S (sexual situations, references), V (violence). Ratings by Dann Gire, Daily Herald Film Critic, unless otherwise noted.

“Black Swan” — Best Picture nominee! A perfectionist ballerina (Oscar nominee Natalie Portman) dances into madness as she auditions for the major roles in “Swan Lake.” With Barbara Hershey as her mom. Directed by Darren Aronofsky. At the Century Centre and River East 21 in Chicago and the Evanston Century. (R) D, N, L, S, V. 108 minutes.

“Blue Valentine” — A bold and perceptive exploration of the magical intangibles that connect two people in love's first blush but fail to bond a couple for the long haul. Ryan Gosling and Oscar nominee Michelle Williams bravely go for broke in this thoughtful, adult domestic drama all about the death of love. Originally rated NC-17 for graphic sex scenes, but re-rated R upon appeal. (R) L, N, S.

“The Company Men” — Three high-paid corporate suits (Ben Affleck, Tommy Lee Jones and Chris Cooper) deal with being laid off their lucrative jobs that define their identities. Directed, written and produced by John Wells as a harsh and engaging Bible lesson laced with hope and optimism. (R) L, N. 109 minutes.

“The Fighter” — Best Picture nominee! Oscar nominee Christian Bale punches his way to stealing the show as an emaciated half-brother and trainer to Mark Wahlberg's boxer in this fact-based, energetic domestic drama directed by David O. Russell. Look for stellar turns by Oscar nominees Melissa Leo and Amy Adams, too. (R) D, L, S, V. 114 minutes.

“The King's Speech” — Best Picture nominee! Great performances! Funny, witty script! Excellent sets and photography! The true story of how a feisty Australian speech therapist (Oscar nominee Geoffrey Rush) helped King George VI (Oscar nominee Colin Firth) overcome his stutter in time for him to unite the U.K. against the Nazis during a radio address. Ignore the R rating and go anyway. (R) L. 118 minutes.

“No Strings Attached” — Ashton Kutcher and Natalie Portman play two young professionals who try to have a sexual relationship without emotional ties. They carry off the tired plot with believable chemistry and Ivan Reitman's sincere direction. (R) D, L, S. 110 minutes.

“127 Hours” — Best Picture nominee! Riveting, fact-based drama about a climber (James Franco in excellent form) trapped in the Utah desert and unable to free his crushed arm from underneath a fallen boulder. (R) L, S. 96 minutes.

“Rabbit Hole” — A serene, transcendent drama about a couple (Oscar nominee Nicole Kidman and Aaron Eckhart) recovering from the death of their young son. With Dianne Wiest and Sandra Oh. (PG-13) D, L. 92 minutes.

“The Social Network” — Best Picture nominee! David Fincher's superb dramatization of the founding of Facebook and the fascinating, complex characters who started it and then sued each other over it. With Oscar nominee Jesse Eisenberg, Justin Timberlake, Andrew Garfield and Rooney Mara. (PG-13) D, L, S. 120 minutes.

“True Grit” — Best Picture nominee! The Coen brothers redo the 1969 western with Oscar nominee Jeff Bridges wearing Marshal Rooster Cogburn's eye patch and winning newcomer and Oscar nominee Hailee Steinfeld playing the precocious Mattie Ross out to avenge her father's murder by a bad man (Josh Brolin). Matt Damon finally rescues self-centered Texas Ranger LaBoeuf from the memories of Glen Campbell's limited original interpretation. (PG-13) V. 110 minutes.

“Unstoppable” — Tony Scott's pulse-racing thriller about a runaway train loaded with hazardous materials and the two blue-collar guys (Denzel Washington and Chris Pine) who think they can stop it. Prepare your nails for biting. (PG-13) L. 99 minutes.

“Winter's Bone” — Best Picture nominee! A teen girl (Oscar nominee Jennifer Lawrence) goes looking for her missing dad in the poverty-stricken Missouri Ozarks in Debra Granik's excellent drama that drops us into a frightening, realistic subculture of paranoia and mistrust. (R) D, L, V. 100 minutes.

“Biutiful” — Oscar nominee Javier Bardem's world-weary performance highlights Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu's bleak mess of a drama about a cancer-stricken father of two attempting to get his affairs in order before checking out. (R) D, L, N, S. 148 minutes.

“The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader” — Lucy, Edmund and their bratty cousin get swept aboard a royal ship and launched on yet another Narnian adventure. The opening scene is great, but the magic doesn't quite carry through. Reviewed by Michael Wilmington. (PG) 115 minutes.

“The Dilemma” — Ron Howard directs an erratic mishmash of comedy and serious drama as Vince Vaughn figures out how to tell his best pal (Kevin James) he saw his wife (Winona Ryder) smooching a tattooed man (Channing Tatum) at the Chicago Botanic Garden. With Jennifer Connelly. (PG-13) S. 118 minutes.

“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1” — A wearing tale of color-bled, never-ending scenes of isolation and despair, mistrust and miscalculation as director David Yates sets us up for “Part 2” in 2011. Harry, Ron and Hermione track down Horcruxes containing parts of Lord Voldemort's dark soul. Not converted into 3-D as originally announced. (PG-13) S, V. 146 minutes.

”The Housemaid” — Remake of a 1960 Korean drama about a lowly maid impregnated by a rich, entitled patriarch in a superbly photographed class drama that threatens to break out into a terror tale, but doesn't. In Korean with subtitles. At the Music Box Theatre, Chicago. (NR) N, S, V. 106 minutes.

“Inside Job” — An investigative documentary on how America's financial meltdown really happened. (PG-13) D, S. 120 minutes. Reviewed by Raymond Benson.

“The Mechanic” — Remake of Charles Bronson's 1972 thriller stars Jason Statham as a hit man who trains a violent drifter (Ben Foster) to be an assassin, without telling him he killed the man's dad (Donald Sutherland). Brutal action scenes and pithy tough-guy dialogue dominate the story. (R) L, N, S, V. 92 minutes.

“The Rite” — A doubting priest-in-training (Colin O'Donoghue) gets sent to exorcist school in Rome under the instruction of a crusty priest (Anthony Hopkins) out to help drive a demon out of a pregnant Italian girl. Reviewed by Christy Lemire, Associated Press. (PG-13) L, S, V. 113 minutes.

“Tangled” — The Rapunzel story gets a 3-D animated treatment by Walt Disney, although the self-aware jokes give it an extra “Shrek” dimension. Mandy Moore is the hairy heroine in a musical that's much more cartoony than Disney's “Toy Story 3.” (PG) 101 minutes.

“The Tourist” — Johnny Depp stars as a community college math teacher who gets caught up in a web of intrigue by a mysterious woman (Angelina Jolie) aboard a train to Vienna. A tepid thriller that doesn't live up to its megawatt star power. (PG-13) V, L. 103 minutes.

“TRON Legacy” — The CGI effects have more personality than the characters in this sequel to the 1982 video game-linked movie. Sam Flynn (Garrett Hedlund) gets sucked into the digital Grid where he reunites with his missing dad (Jeff Bridges). (PG) 125 minutes.

“Yogi Bear” — Dan Aykroyd provides the personality to Jellystone Park's most famous bear. Justin Timberlake is Boo Boo. Animated in 3-D and based on the 1960s TV series. Reviewed Associated Press. (PG) 82 minutes.

“The Green Hornet” — The radio/TV vigilante gets a frat-boy makeover with Seth Rogen as Britt Reed, a publisher's son who takes on crime with his associate Kato (Jay Chou), whose martial arts skills mostly come from digital editing. (PG-13) D, L, S, V. 119 minutes.

“Gulliver's Travels” — A dismal digital 3-D update of Jonathan Swift's 1726 novel about a man (Jack Black in rocker mode) who goes into the Bermuda Triangle and winds up being a giant on the island of Lilliput. Amanda Peet, Billy Connolly, Emily Blunt and Jason Segel contribute their talents to this waste of pixels. (PG) 85 minutes.

“Little Fockers” — Dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb second sequel to the funny 2000 comedy “Meet the Parents.” Greg (Ben Stiller) must prove to his father-in-law (Robert De Niro) he has what it takes to become “the god-Focker.” I'm not kidding. (PG-13) D, L, S. 98 minutes.

“Sanctum 3-D” — Several cave divers get trapped underwater and must find a way out, or else. With Ioan Gruffudd and Rhys Wakefield. Reviewed by Jake Coyle, Associated Press. (PG-13) L, V. 109 minutes.

“Dhobi Ghat” — Also called “The Mumbai Diaries,” a dramatic collage of people in the famous city. In Hindi/English. (NR) 100 minutes.

“Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji” — A comedy that says, “Love grows. Men don't!” In Hindi. (NR) 115 minutes.

“From Prada to Nada” — A Latina take on Jane Austen's “Sense and Sensibility.” Two sisters are forced to move in with their estranged aunt in L.A. (PG-13) D, S. 107 minutes.

“The Roommate” — A college student takes in a hot roommate, who's also a psycho. Not screened for critics, and we all know what that means, don't we? (PG-13) L, S, V. 93 minutes.

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