Eugene Weekly : Movies : 3.22.07


.MOVIE LISTINGS | MOVIE REVIEW ARCHIVE | THEATER INFO

 

OPENING OR RETURNING:
Films open the Friday following date of EW publication unless otherwise noted. See archived movie reviews.

Hills Have Eyes 2, The: Just what you need: Another movie about inbred, murderous hillfolk. This time, they’re after a unit of National Guard soldiers. Because that makes it timely. R. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15.

INLAND EMPIRE: An inconsistent, ambitious mess from the creatively bizarre mind of David Lynch. This one involves an actress (Laura Dern) trapped in her own head, a Polish remake, a sitcom involving bunnies and … and much more. R. Bijou. See review this issue.

Joni Mitchell: Professionally filmed program from BBC television that includes the only known video of the Blue era. Part of the “In-Concert” late night series. Not rated. Bijou LateNite.

Last Mimzy, The: A mysterious box of toys gives two children strange powers and draws them and their families into a magical, sometimes scary world. With Timothy Hutton, Joely Richardson and Rainn Wilson. PG. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15.

Last Refuge for the Senses: Subtitled or Noise Hippies Against All War, filmmaker Ben Russell’s program features eight films by five artists that mix up DIY cinema and independent music. 7 pm March 29, DIVA. $5, $3 stu., members.

Messengers, The: When a family tries to take over a sunflower farm, things go weirdly wrong — especially when John Corbett arrives. Supposedly, the kids can see things the parents can’t. Creepiness abounds. PG13. Movies 12.

Pride: The story of a teacher (Hustle & Flow‘s Terrence Howard) who forms an African-American swim team in a rough Philly neighborhood. The movie looks like it means well, but it also looks mighty familiar. PG. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15.

Reign Over Me: Former college roommates Charlie (Adam Sandler) and Alan (Don Cheadle) randomly meet again, but rebuilding a friendship with Charlie, who lost his family on 9/11, proves complicated. With Liv Tyler and Jada Pinkett Smith. R. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15.

Shooter: Former Army sniper Bob Lee Swagger (Mark Wahlberg), whose name almost couldn’t be funnier, is pressed back into service protecting the president — and then caught up in a horrible doublecross. Directed by Antoine Fuqua (Training Day). R. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15.

TMNT: Does shortening Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles to TMNT make it hipper? Not sure. This animated version finds the formerly-of-the-’80s foursome fighting ancient monsters with the help of Casey Jones (now voiced by Chris Evans) and good ol’ April O’Neil (Sarah Michelle Gellar). PG. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15.

Unbearable Lightness of Being (1988): Philip Kaufman’s masterly drama about life in Czechoslovakia on the eve of the 1968 invasion by the USSR is based on the novel by Milan Kundera. Stars Daniel Day Lewis as a doctor, Lena Olin as his lover, and Juliette Binoche as the woman he falls in love with. Erotic. Beautiful. R. 6:30 pm March 23, Unity of the Valley, with discussion to follow. Free.

Video Slam: Monthly event invites video artists to submit short videos of up to 10 minutes for a competition that follows the format of the poetry slam. 4 pm March 25, DIVA. $2-$5.

 

CONTINUING:

Amazing Grace: Ioan Gruffudd stars as British abolitionist William Wilberforce in a solid but uninspired film directed by Michael Apted, whose resumé includes everything from the 49 Up documentary series to Bond entry The World is Not Enough. PG13. VRC Stadium 15.

Because I Said So: Diane Keaton plays a mom conspiring with her two elder daughters (Lauren Graham and Piper Perabo) to get youngest child Milly (Mandy Moore) a good man. PG13. Movies 12.

Blood Diamond: Leonardo DiCaprio, Djimon Hounsou and Jennifer Connelly star in Edward Zwick’s (Glory) film about diamond mining in Sierra Leone in the 1990s. R. Movies 12. (12/21/06)

Breach: Dramatic thriller follows Eric O’Neill (Ryan Phillipe) in his new job: secretly keeping an eye on Robert Hanssen (Chris Cooper), a government employee being investigated as a suspected mole. With Laura Linney. Movies 12.

Bridge to Terabithia: Adaptation of the much-loved children’s book by Katherine Paterson, in which two lonely kids create a fantasyland for themselves. Despite the fantasy-film feel of the trailer, the film is said to be very loyal to the book. PG. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15.

Casino Royale: Bond gets blond as Daniel Craig (Munich, Infamous) steps into the role in a rebooting of the whole franchise, turning it into something darker and, well, better. With Judi Dench and Eva Green. PG13. Movies 12. (11/22/06)

Catch and Release: Jennifer Garner is a suddenly single woman who finds comfort in her quirky male friends after the death of her fiancé. With Kevin Smith and Timothy Olyphant. PG13. Movies 12.

Charlotte’s Web: Dakota Fanning plays Fern, the little girl who loves her pig Wilbur (voice of Dominic Scott Kay) more than anything. Julia Roberts voices Charlotte the spider, who helps Wilbur escape his fate. G. Movies 12.

Dead Silence: Creepy dolls, a mad ventroloquist and grisly murders — oh, and Donnie Wahlberg (formerly of NKOTB) and model Amber Valletta. This frightfest clearly has everything. R. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15.

Ghost Rider: What did they do to Nicolas Cage’s face? He looks like he lost at least 10 years to play the titular hero, whose long-ago deal with the devil forces him to hunt rogue demons at night. PG13. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15.

Happy Feet: Warner Bros. chases some March of the Penguins dough with this animated film, starring Elijah Wood as a cute lil’ guy in search of his soul mate. (OK, so they were working on this one first.) PG. ACADEMY AWARD: BEST ANIMATED FEATURE. Movies 12.

I Think I Love My Wife: Written by, directed by and starring Chris Rock, this seven-year-itch comedy puts Rock between his busy wife (Gina Torres, last seen on Serenity) and a hot young lady (Kerry Washington). R. VRC Stadium 15.

Lives of Others, The: Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck’s debut feature, set in East Germany in the 1980s, is a gripping and affecting look at the watched and the watcher: a playwright suspected of being subversive, and the stoic police captain who warms to the writer’s life while spying on him. ACADEMY AWARD: BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM. R. Bijou. (3/8)

Music and Lyrics: Hugh Grant is back in scruffy, lovable mode as a washed-up pop star who has a new chance at fame — if he can just write the right song for a young diva. Drew Barrymore plays his “plant lady,” who has a flair for words. PG13. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15.

Night at the Museum: When down-on-his-luck Larry (Ben Stiller) gets a job as the night guard at a museum, he sure doesn’t expect the exhibits to come alive at night. There’s something very Jumanji about this. PG. Movies 12.

Pan’s Labyrinth: Writer-director Guillermo del Toro delivers a beautifully wrought, sometimes excruciating film that follows a young girl though her adventures in a fantastic otherworld — and through a difficult, frightening existence in this one. In Spanish with English subtitles. ACADEMY AWARDS: CINEMATOGRAPHY; ART DIRECTION. R. Bijou. (2/8)

Premonition: Linda Hanson (Sandra Bullock) is having a very bad week: One day, her huband is killed in a car wreck; the next, she wakes up and he’s still alive. Does that sound interesting? Don’t be fooled: This is an overwrought, tedious stinker. PG13. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15. See review this issue.

Pursuit of Happyness, The: Will Smith stars as a down-on-his-luck father who strives to make it as a stockbroker while facing eviction and raising his son (Smith’s real-life son Jaden). PG13. Movies 12.

Stomp the Yard: A troubled street dancer from L.A. finds himself a hot commodity among the step dancing teams of two fraternities at a university in Atlanta. PG13. Movies 12.

300: Super-stylized, derivative and overbaked film, based on Frank Miller’s graphic novel, about the Battle of Thermopylae, when King Leonidas (Gerard Butler) led 300 apparently half-naked Spartans against the massive army of Persia. R. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15. (3/15)

Wild Hogs: What kind of dirt did the producers have on William H. Macy, John Travolta, Tim Allen and Martin Lawrence to get them to appear in this male-bonding, midlife crisis flick with a mortifying trailer? PG13. Cinemark. VRC Stadium 15.

 

MOVIE THEATERS
Use the links provided below for specific show times.

Bijou Art Cinemas
Bijou Theater 686-2458 | 492 E. 13th

Regal Cinemas
Cinema World 342-6536 | Valley River Center

Cinemark Theaters
Movies 12 741-1231 | Gateway Mall
Cinemark 17 741-1231 | Gateway Mall