Fantastic Mr. Fox
Starring George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Wally Wolodarsky, Eric Anderson, Michael Gambon, Willem Dafoe, Owen Wilson, and Jarvis Cocker.
The stop-motion animated Fantastic Mr. Fox received enthusiastic reviews from national critics and those in Los Angeles and New York, where the film opened recently. Directed by Wes Anderson from the Roald Dahl children's book, the film looks rather primitive compared with today's state-of-the-art 3D computer-animated features, the critics agree, while also observing that may be part of its charm. Indeed, Lou Lumenick in the New York Post described it as "a retro marvel."
None of the critics appeared to be put off at all by the unrefined imagery. "Once you adjust to its stop-and-start rhythms and its scruffy looks, you can appreciate its wit, its beauty and the sly gravity of its emotional undercurrents," wrote A.O. Scott in the New York Times. Elizabeth Weitzman in the New York Daily News escalated the praise, calling the movie, "a visual treasure that successfully blends deadpan quirkiness with a wry realism rarely seen in any film, let alone one for children." In USA Today Claudia Puig somewhat reticently concluded that Anderson renders Dahl's story as "a sometimes witty, if odd, cartoon for all ages." Actually, several critics suggested it may not be a movie for children at all. Kenneth Turan in the Los Angeles Times called it "ultrasophisticated," adding that it "does more than occupy its own particular space between the worlds of childhood and adults. It provides a pleasantly cerebral experience, exhilarating and fizzy, that goes to your head like too much Champagne."
RATING: PG for action, smoking and slang humor.
The Book of Eli
Starring Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Mila Kunis, Ray Stevenson, Jennifer Beals, Frances de la Tour, Michael Gambon, and Evan Jones.
The Hughes brothers'(Menace II Society, From Hell) The Book of Eli is a post-apocalyptic film involving a tacit man named Eli (Denzel Washington) who along with Solara (Mila Kunis) must keep a sacred book away from the sadistic Carnegie (Gary Oldman). Reviews for the post-apocalyptic action film have been overwhelmingly mixed with many critics citing the heavy Christian overtones as noteworthy, with Variety critic Todd McCarthy noting, "In all likelihood, this will not be one of star (and producer) Denzel Washington's bigger grossers, although if Warner Bros. cared to court the normally stay-at-home Christian audience, it would hit a mother lode of positive response." However, Michael Phillips of the Chicago Tribune argues that this is not the film's only selling point, "For some, this genre picture will come with the bonus of its conspicuous and heavy-duty religiosity. It is about the Word, and who controls it."
But The Book of Eli works, even if the preservation of Christianity isn’t high on your personal post-apocalypse bucket list. Establishing its storytelling rules clearly and well, the film simply is better, and better-acted, than the average end-of-the-world fairy tale." The New York Observer's Rex Reed commented that, "Even after the action leads to a final series of revelations that render everything else preposterous, you will still feel the adrenaline. Boredom is not an option." On the other end of the critical spectrum is Owen Gleiberman of Entertainment Weekly noting "The Book of Eli is the first Hughes brothers movie that feels stripped of drama, imagination, sensibility. Some may find the film worth sitting through simply for its final ''Whoa!'' of a twist, but the Hughes brothers direct most of it as if they were glorified end-of-the-world set decorators." Contemporary critics seem to be at odds as to whether Eli is worthy of critical praise or simply entertaining, but overwhelmingly the best reviews for Eli are those that seem to take the film as an exciting ride containing elements too preposterous to make an in depth reading of the movie fruitful.
RATING: R for some brutal violence and language.
It's Complicated
Starring Meryl Streep, Steve Martin, Alec Baldwin, John Krasinski, and Lake Bell.
Jane is the mother of three grown kids, owns a thriving Santa Barbara bakery/restaurant and has—after a decade of divorce—an amicable relationship with her ex-husband, attorney Jake. But when Jane and Jake find themselves out of town for their son’s college graduation, things start to get complicated. An innocent meal together turns into the unimaginable—an affair. With Jake remarried to the much younger Agness, Jane is now, of all things, the other woman. Caught in the middle of their renewed romance is Adam, an architect hired to remodel Jane's kitchen. Healing from a divorce of his own, Adam starts to fall for Jane, but soon realizes he's become part of a love triangle. Should Jane and Jake move on with their lives, or is love truly lovelier the second time around? It's... complicated.
RATING: R for some drug content and sexuality.
Sherlock Holmes
Starring Robert Downey Jr., Jude Law, Rachel McAdams, Mark Strong, Eddie Marsan, and Kelly Reilly.
Sherlock Holmes has made his reputation finding the truth at the heart of the most complex mysteries. With the aid of Dr. John Watson, his trusted ally, the renowned "consulting detective" is unequaled in his pursuit of criminals of every stripe, whether relying on his singular powers of observation, his remarkable deductive skills, or the blunt force of his fists. But now a storm is gathering over London, a threat unlike anything that Holmes has ever confronted...and just the challenge he's looking for.
RATING: PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, some startling images and a scene of suggestive material.
Avatar
Starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Michelle Rodriguez, Giovanni Ribisi, Joel David Moore, CCH Pounder, Peter Mensah, Laz Alonso, Wes Studi, Stephen Lang, and Matt Gerald.
Jake Sully is a former Marine confined to a wheelchair. But despite his broken body, Jake is still a warrior at heart. He is recruited to travel light years to the human outpost on Pandora, where a corporate consortium is mining a rare mineral that is the key to solving Earth's energy crisis. Because Pandora's atmosphere is toxic, they have created the Avatar Program, in which human "drivers" have their consciousness linked to an avatar, a remotely-controlled biological body that can survive in the lethal air. These avatars are genetically engineered hybrids of human DNA mixed with DNA from the natives of Pandora... the Na'vi. Reborn in his avatar form, Jake can walk again. He is given a mission to infiltrate the Na'vi, who have become a major obstacle to mining the precious ore. But a beautiful Na'vi female, Neytiri, saves Jake's life, and this changes everything. Jake is taken in by her clan, and learns to become one of them, which involves many tests and adventures. As Jake's relationship with his reluctant teacher Neytiri deepens, he learns to respect the Na'vi way and finally takes his place among them. Soon he will face the ultimate test as he leads them in an epic battle that will decide the fate of an entire world.
RATING: PG-13 for intense epic battle sequences and warfare, sensuality, language and some smoking.