CINEMA
At the Movies
Opening
Hostel: Part II 1/2
Director Eli Roth's horror sequel is about three young American women who are lured to the Slovakian torture chamber by a beautiful model who promises them restful R&R at an "exotic destination." Review in Thursday's Today section. (R)
Ocean's Thirteen
Danny Ocean and the gang are back as they team up with an old nemesis to help settle a score. George Clooney and director Steven Soderbergh return with Brad Pitt, Matt Damon and Andy Garcia, plus new cast members Al Pacino and Ellen Barkin. Review on Page 26. (PG-13)
Surf's Up
In this animated movie, a documentary crew follows Cody Maverick, a young penguin with a gift and passion for surfing, as he enters his first pro competition. Shia LeBeouf, Jeff Bridges, Jon Heder and Zooey Deschanel lead the voice cast. Review on Page 27. (PG)
The Valet
A French comedy about a billionaire industrialist who is caught with his mistress by the paparazzi. To avoid a messy divorce, he invents an outrageous lie and asks his mistress to pose as the sweetheart of a parking attendant. Review on Page 18. (PG-13)
Now Playing
PG
Are We Done Yet? 1/2
Ice Cube and Nia Long return in the sequel to the popular "Are We There Yet?" Nick and his ever-growing family move out to the Oregon countryside and have an adventure rebuilding their dream Victorian house. No cleverness was exerted on this movie, as it's more of an endurance test than a comedy.
Bridge to Terabithia
An 11-year-old boy has his life changed forever when he befriends the tomboy class outsider. Together, they create an imaginary kingdom filled with ghosts, trolls and other magical beings. This is a perfect family-friendly movie and a tear-jerker to boot.
Miss Potter
Renee Zellweger stars in the biopic of renowned children's author Beatrix Potter, who overcame a domineering mother and the chauvinism of Victorian England to become the creator of the memorable Peter Rabbit. The film does justice to a singular imagination and presents both worlds the writer inhabited while specifically showing how she was able to navigate through life.
Shrek the Third
Everybody's favorite green ogre is back, this time embarking on a quest to find a suitable replacement king (besides himself) to rule the land of Far Far Away. This installment of the monster of an animated franchise still subverts the fairy tales we grew up with, but it's smothered in a suffocating sense of been-there, done-that. While it's visually more dazzling than ever, it lacks the zip of its predecessors.
PG-13
Away From Her 1/2
The comfortable life of an aging couple living in the country is disrupted as the wife develops Alzheimer's, something she realizes when she insists upon going to a full-time care facility. The film's far from depressing because actress Julie Christie goes down like a luminous ship at sea. In the end, nothing's for keeps, not even matters of the heart.
Gracie
A teenage girl overcomes the loss of her brother by fighting the odds to play competitive soccer at a time, the late '70s, when girls' soccer did not exist. The movie, unfortunately, breezes through life-altering developments superficially and with dizzying speed.
Kickin' It Old Skool
In 1986, a 12-year-old boy ends up in a coma after a break dancing accident at a school talent contest. He wakes up 20 years later as a man-child, played by Jamie Kennedy. When his parents' yogurt store faces closure, the dancer attempts to save the place by entering a top-dollar competition with the help of his old crew, who have all long left breakin' behind them. This movie is more amusing than it has a right to be, thanks to the surprising subtlety of Kennedy's performance and the script itself.
Next 1/2
Nicolas Cage stars as a man who can see into the future, an ability that makes him a target of the FBI, which wants him to help stop America's enemies before they strike. This supposed paranormal thriller, unfortunately, shows how a solid crew of filmmakers and performers can apply a big-studio budget to a good story and still have absolutely everything come out wrong.
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End 1/2
With Jack Sparrow trapped in Davy Jones' locker, Will and Elizabeth ally with Capt. Barbossa on a desperate quest to free him. But first, the trio must forge their way to exotic Singapore and confront a cunning Chinese pirate. Generous as the movie may be with action and spectacle, there's still a ponderousness to this sequel that counterweights the good booty.
Spider-Man 3
In this latest installment of the hugely successful franchise, the result is a bloated, uneven behemoth of a flick, with more villains, more supporting characters and more plot lines.
Peter Parker/Spider-Man battle human foes and their supervillainous alter egos, he goes to the dark side when a black goop from outer space attaches to him, and he juggles two love interests! As people and threats come and go, the movie's narrative feels scattered.
Waitress
When a waitress in a cheery Southern diner discovers she's pregnant with her immature husband's baby, her dreams for a better life are squashed until a sympathetic and good-looking doctor arrives in town. With the help of the late director-actress Adrienne Shelly, Keri Russell gives one of the best on-screen performances of the year, one that's clipped, direct and self-aware -- utterly unromantic and yet full of feeling.
R
28 Weeks Later 1/2
In this woeful sequel to the zombie hit "28 Days Later," it's now six months after the rage virus wiped out the British Isles. Even though the reconstruction of the country is beginning, the virus is still alive and, with no outward symptoms, deadlier than ever. It's a strained story with an empty message, stiff and shallow characters, and overflowing with a barrage of turgid action sequences that look like inferior outtakes from the first movie.
300
Director Zack Snyder painstakingly re-creates the panels from Frank Miller's graphic novel about the ancient Battle of Thermopylae, in which 300 Spartans fought off a much larger Persian army. But the movie is so over-the-top, it's laughable, and so full of itself, it's hard to take seriously. The CGI effects and inventive violence are extremely cool at first, but the gimmicks wear off quickly and ultimately become overbearing, including the pounding musical score and profuse use of voice-over narrative.
Bug
Ashley Judd plays a lonely waitress who rooms in a rundown motel, living in fear of her abusive, recently paroled ex-husband. But a tentative romance with an eccentric, nervous drifter turns paranoiac when he reveals that there are bugs crawling under his skin. Whatever solid acting ability Judd shows early in this thriller goes utterly to waste, as the movie spirals ridiculously out of control by the end.
Georgia Rule
A rebellious teenager is taken to her grandmother's Idaho farm, where she meets the formidable matriarch of the family. Lindsay Lohan, Felicity Huffman and Jane Fonda star in a movie full of dysfunctional family clichés, a hodgepodge of histrionics that veer between high physical comedy and dark family drama that's painful to endure.
Knocked Up
From Judd Apatow, the man behind "The 40-Year-Old Virgin," comes a new comedy more consistently hilarious than its predecessor, and with even greater heart. A goofball of a slacker-stoner (Seth Rogen) enjoys a drunken romp with an up-and-coming entertainment reporter (Katherine Heigl) who's way out of his league. When the reporter realizes she's gotten pregnant from the one-night stand, she decides to keep the baby, and major life changes ensue.
Mr. Brooks 1/2
Kevin Costner stars as a respected family man trying to hide a deep, dark secret: He's a cunning serial killer. There's not much beyond the character's image, so extra material is thrown into the mix, like a second serial killer, a relative who might be a killer as well, and a witness who turns out to want to help the next time Brooks kills. And don't forget the tough homicide detective (Demi Moore) and an imaginary friend (William Hurt). It's just too much to make this movie work.
Perfect Stranger
When an investigative reporter learns that her friend's murder might be connected to a powerful advertising executive, she goes undercover to find out the truth, only to discover that she isn't the only one changing identities. Halle Berry and Bruce Willis star in this thriller that starts off all sleek and sexy, but later collapses in a heap of plot twists that are annoyingly implausible.
Shooter
Mark Wahlberg stars as a former Marine Corps sniper who is lured out of retirement, only to be double-crossed in a government conspiracy. Antoine Fuqua's silly action flick revels in masculine clichés and over-the-top braggadocio. It's like two hours of watching a man hit himself in the face while yelling how tough he is.
Vacancy
Luke Wilson and Kate Beckinsale star as a couple who wind up at a middle-of-nowhere motel, complete with creepy night manager. They find graphic snuff movies on the TV set and find out that they were shot with hidden cameras right in their rundown room. This is the kind of horror flick that hopes the audience will get off on the violence it portrays, which is especially distasteful and, frankly, misogynistic.
Art House | Revival
The Doris Duke Theatre, Honolulu Academy of Arts
900 S. Beretania St.; $7 general; $6 seniors, students and military; $5 Academy members (532-8768):
This Film Is Not Yet Rated
(NC-17) At 1, 4 and 7:30 p.m. Friday.
Ever Since the World Ended
At 1, 4 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday; 7:30 p.m. Monday; and 1 and 7:30 p.m. Tuesday.
Sir! No Sir!
At 1 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and June 14.
Movie Museum
3566 Harding Ave.; $5, $4 members; reservations recommended due to limited seating (735-8771):
My Mother Frank
At 2, 4, 6 and 8 p.m. Friday and Monday.
The Graduate
At 2, 4, 6 and 8 p.m. Saturday.
Festa Di Laurea (Graduation Party)
Hawaii premiere. At 2, 4, 6 and 8 p.m. Sunday.
Letters From Iwo Jima
At 12:30, 3, 5:30 and 8 p.m. June 14.