Weekly Film Listings for September 25

Not all film updates were available at press time. Please call theatres to confirm titles and times.

Odeon 383-0513, Capitol 6 412-2255, Caprice 474-3212, Cinecenta 721-8365, University 4 721-1171, Sidney Star 655-1171, IMAX 953-IMAX, Roxy 382-3370, SilverCity 381-9300

OPENING

**¼ Nights in Rodanthe - (Capitol) Richard Gere and Diane Lane bring lots of soulful star power to this romantic drama about late-blooming love; unfortunately, what starts as a passable chick flick deteriorates into an awkward weeper in the final third. Starts Fri.

Miracle at St. Anna - (SilverCity) Spike Lee has challenged himself with this project, an epic war tale involving a quartet of soldiers from an all-black platoon fighting in Italy during WW II. Starts Fri.

Eagle Eye - (Capitol/SilverCity/Uni 4/Caprice, 7:00, 9:00; Sat.-Sun. 2:00) This ultra-paranoid thriller stars Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan as two innocents blackmailed into performing risky criminal acts by a mysterious woman who uses high-tech surveillance and violence to control them. But why? That question gets answered Friday.

The Lucky Ones - (Capitol) Three wounded soldiers fly home from Iraq and end up taking a road trip together that allows them to assess their lives and rethink their future. Starring Rachel McAdams and Tim Robbins. Starts Fri.

Choke - (Odeon) This edgy, low-budget comedy-drama based on the novel by Chuck Palahniuk (Fight Club) features a sex-addict scam artist who works in a historical theme park and struggles to pay his senile mother’s hospital bills. Phew! Starts Fri.

CONTINUING

The Alps - (IMAX) Hit the heights with the newest IMAX offering, which chronicles a daring ascent of the deadly Eiger face.

***½ Burn After Reading - (Capitol/SilverCity/Uni 4/Caprice, 7:10, 9:10; Sat.-Sun. 2:10.) The Coen Brothers are in fine form in this black-as-coal screwball farce about a couple of fools (Frances McDormand, Brad Pitt) who decide to blackmail a just-fired CIA analyst (John Malkovich) after they find a disc with his tell-all memoirs on it. Add in a whole daisy chain of adulterous relationships, unhappy wives and nincompoop spies and you’ve got yourself a fine comedy. With George Clooney, Tilda Swinton and Richard Jenkins.

*** The Dark Knight - (SilverCity/IMAX) The dark death of Heath Ledger casts a shadow over the latest Batman tale. Although initially gripping, this is an A-list film trying way too hard to find thematic depth in comic-book material. With Christian Bale, Gary Oldman and Maggie Gyllenhaal.

Dinosaurs: Giants of Patagonia - (IMAX) Donald Sutherland narrates this speculative account of the life of a dinosaur in the Argentina of hundreds of millions of years ago.

*** Elegy - (Odeon) A Philip Roth novella is the basis for this erotic drama about an esteemed university professor (Ben Kingsley) who falls in love with a beautiful student (Penelope Cruz), but pushes her away with his obsessive jealousy and fear of commitment.

*** Ghost Town - (Odeon/SilverCity) British comic Ricky Gervais brings his “comedy of discomfort” to this tale of a hugely unlikable dentist who has to develop a modicum of social skills in order to appease a ghost that has decided to haunt him until he agrees to break up the impending marriage of his widow to a jerk. Co-starring Greg Kinnear and Téa Leoni. See review.

House Bunny - (Roxy, 7:15) The ridiculously perky Anna Faris stars as a Playboy bunny booted out of the Mansion who falls in with seven sadsack sorority sisters who desperately need some self-confidence and grooming tips so they can get a date before they die.

Igor - (Capitol/SilverCity/Uni 4/Caprice, 7:20, 9:15; Sat.-Sun. 2:20) The vocal talents of John Cusack star in this animated feature that spoofs Frankenstein movies as it tells the tale of an evil scientist’s hunch-backed lab assistant who has dreams of self-improvement: becoming a mad scientist himself.

**¾ Lakeview Terrace - (Odeon/SilverCity) The reliably misanthropic writer-director Neil LaBute (In the Company of Men) is behind this racially tinged psychological thriller about a cop (Samuel L. Jackson) who increasingly torments his new next door neighbours, an interracial couple who have attracted his hatred. See review.

** Mamma Mia! - (Odeon/Uni 4) Everyone’s favourite ABBA-based musical comes to the screen, starring Meryl Streep, Colin Firth and Pierce Brosnan (who sings like a wounded water buffalo). Weirdly edited and cheesier than feta pie, this is the most fun you’ll have at a bad movie all year.

*½ My Best Friend’s Girl - (Capitol/SilverCity) This toxic and rather vile romantic comedy stars Dane Cook as a “professional jerk” who is hired by other guys to take their prospective girlfriend out on a date so that they will look good by comparison. Unfortunately, when he provides this service for a friend (Jason Biggs), he and the girl in question (Kate Hudson) unexpectedly fall in love.

*½ Pineapple Express - (Roxy, 9:15) A stoner duo are pursued by a ruthless killer-cop after one of them witnesses her commit a murder. Although this starts out as a goofy pothead comedy it gradually deteriorates into an astonishingly violent (and unfunny) piece of trash that wastes the talents of Seth Rogen and James Franco.

** Righteous Kill - (SilverCity) Legendary (over-) acting titans Robert De Niro and Al Pacino lurch perilously close to self-parody in this gimmicky tale of hard-nosed NYC cops tracking down a serial killer.

*** Tropic Thunder - (Capitol) Ben Stiller, Robert Downey Jr. and Jack Black star in an action comedy about egotistical movie stars doing an over-the-top war movie who are forced to become soldiers for real when they get into a firefight with Asian drug thugs. This is staggeringly politically incorrect, and very funny.

***¾ Vicky Cristina Barcelona - (Odeon) Woody Allen is off his regular turf—but dealing with familiar themes—in this account of a romantic threesome (and a crazy ex-wife played by Penelope Cruz, for extra spice) who carry on in sun-drenched Spain. Starring Javier Bardem (No Country For Old Men) and latest Allen muse, Scarlett Johansson. Sexy, sunny and lyrical, this is Woody's best in 20 years.

***½ Wild Ocean - (IMAX) Although a bit preachy, this gorgeously photographed account of South Africa’s massive herring migration—and the thousands of predators it attracts—is an awesome portrait of nature’s brutal magnificence.

**½ The Women - (Odeon/SilverCity) A remake of the 1939 George Cukor movie, this dramedy focuses on a woman who leaves her adulterous husband behind while seeking the support of several society gal-pals. What was originally satiric has been softened by a sitcom treatment; the result is predictable and only mildly entertaining. Starring Meg Ryan, Annette Bening, Eva Mendes, and Candice Bergen.

LEAVING THURSDAY

Fly Me to the Moon - (Capitol)

House Bunny - (Odeon)

** Journey to the Center of the Earth - (SilverCity)

*** Traitor - (Capitol)

*½ Pineapple Express - (Capitol)

IMAX

The Alps - (11am, 4:00, 6:00)

*** The Dark Knight - (7:00 only)

Dinosaurs: Giants of Patagonia - (10am, noon, 3:00)

***½ Wild Ocean - (1:00, 5:00)

SCREENINGS

Antimatter - (See Short Cuts) The annual festival of underground and experimental cinema continues with screenings, a panel discussion on live cinema (Saturday) and a lighting workshop on Sunday. Screenings run through to September 27 at Open Space Arts Centre, 510 Fort; Deluge Contemporary Art, 636 Yates; Ministry of Casual Living, 1442 Haultain; and CineVic, 2022 Douglas.

Movie Monday - Showing Sybil. The young Sally Field stars in this 1976 classic, based on the true story of a victim of childhood abuse who eventually suffered from multiple-personality disorder. Joanne Woodward costars as the therapist who brings her back to reality. 6:30pm at Eric Martin Pavillion, 2326 Trent. By donation. 595-FLIC. moviemonday.ca

Art of the Edit - This workshop with Jennifer Abbott, the co-director and editor of The Corporation, will explore the art of editing for both narrative and documentary film. A must for editors of all levels. Saturday, September 27 at CineVic, 2022 Douglas. $60/$85. Contact office@cinevic.ca or call 250-389-1590.

From the Basement - This tasty-sounding concert series of independently produced performances by A-list rockers kicks off with Thom Yorke, the White Stripes and the Shins on Wednesday, October 1, at SilverCity. See Fall Guide for other upcoming concerts.

PLEASE NOTE: Due to strike action affecting the SUB, Cinecenta is currently closed (but could reopen at any time). Phone or log on for updates.