On7 Movie Caps

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This article was published 13/02/2011 (5348 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The following movies have been previously reviewed by Free Press movie critic Randall King, unless otherwise noted.

ANOTHER YEAR

Globe. PG

This comedy-drama from Mike Leigh (Secrets and Lies) examines a year in the life of a happily married couple (Jim Broadbent and Ruth Sheen) and their less happy friends. Leigh (Naked, Secrets & Lies) is one of the few filmmakers eager to capture us in all our failed glory, earning him once again his sterling reputation for authenticity. ‘Ö’Ö’Ö’Ö (Reviewed by Katherine Monk)

BARNEY’S VERSION

Grant Park. 14A

This adaptation of Mordecai Richler’s novel is a portrait of a dyspeptic jerk. Fortunately, that portrait is greatly enriched by Paul Giamatti’s performance as Barney, a Montreal TV producer whose life is recounted through his three marriages and his friendship with a troubled writer (Scott Speedman). ‘Ö’Ö’Ö1/2

BLACK SWAN

Grant Park, Polo Park. 14A

Natalie Portman reaches a career pinnacle as a ballerina whose personality shatters under the duress of capturing the white swan-black swan duality demanded of the starring role in Swan Lake. Darren Aronofsky’s followup to The Wrestler is a feminine bookend to that portrait of a performer tested by punishing professional and personal challenge, and in the bargain is an unprecedented, canny examination of the terrors of incipient womanhood. ‘Ö’Ö’Ö’Ö

THE EAGLE

Globe, Polo Park, St. Vital. 14A

A Roman soldier (Channing Tatum) seeks the titular golden emblem of his father’s lost legion in Britain to the north of Hadrian’s wall with his only assistance coming from disgruntled slave Esta (Jamie Bell) with a grudge against the Romans. There’s a meaty story here, but director Kevin Macdonald asks that the audience blindly follow the lead of Esta, who takes up Marcus’s mission even against the interests of his own brethren, to sucker audiences into buying into a naive notion of honour. ‘Ö’Ö

THE FIGHTER

Polo Park. 14A

A supportive family may not be all it’s cracked up to be. At least that was the case with welterweight boxer Micky Ward (Mark Wahlberg), who was trained by his crack addict brother (Christian Bale) and managed by his pushy mom (Melissa Leo) before he took his career into his own hands, as we see in this compelling drama marked by excellent performances, especially from Bale. ‘Ö’Ö’Ö1/2

GNOMEO AND JULIET

Kildonan Place, Polo Park, St. Vital, Towne. G

Star-crossed garden gnomes (voiced by James McAvoy and Emily Blunt) fall in love, despite the lifelong rivalry that exists between their two houses. This occasionally cute 3-D animated feature splices Toy Story and Shakespearean tragedy, but lacks the originality of the former and trivializes the latter. ‘Ö’Ö1/2

THE GREEN HORNET

Kildonan Place, Polo Park, St. Vital. PG

After decades of attempts by Hollywood to bring the Green Hornet to the screen, we get a disappointing, vulgarian comedy starring Seth Rogen as the titular masked crimefighter, a millionaire wastrel who decides to surreptitiously take on the underworld alongside his martial arts master/assistant Kato (Jay Chou). ‘Ö’Ö1/2

HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS: PART ONE

IMAX. PG

The most thrill-a-minute entries of all J.K. Rowlings’ books sets up the final confrontation between young Master Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) and his nemesis Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes). The thrills are there but the pace and execution seems uneven as Potter and pals Hermione (Emma Watson) and Ron (Rupert Grint) are forced to abandon Hogwarts School to track down the objects that ensure Voldemort’s immortality. Then again, this really is only half a movie. ‘Ö’Ö’Ö1/2

JUST GO WITH IT

Kildonan Place, Grant Park, Polo Park, St. Vital, Towne. PG

This romantic comedy, adapted from I.A.L. Diamond’s screenplay Cactus Flower) is about a plastic surgeon (Adam Sandler) who enlists his assistant (Jennifer Aniston) to masquerade as his estranged wife in an effort to win the affection of a young hottie (Brooklyn Decker). It’s a rarely amusing movie overwhelmed by grating kids, unfunny sidekicks, half-hearted Sandler funny voices and a co-star who seems more fearful of smiling with each passing year. ‘Ö (Reviewed by Roger Moore)

JUSTIN BIEBER: NEVER SAY NEVER

Grant Park, Polo Park, St. Vital, Towne. G

The 16-year-old teen idol is the latest recipient of a 3-D concert film, providing scream-y titillation for his fans, although it may be a shoot-me-now prospect for parents obliged to attend. An illuminating portrait of Bieber gives way to an infomercial at the halfway point, which is unfortunate because this tween-targeted film could have been so much better. ‘Ö’Ö’Ö

THE KING’S SPEECH

Globe, Grant Park, Polo Park, St. Vital. PG

At the dawn of the Second World War, the obligation of public figures to speak to a radio audience put the pressure on Bertie (Colin Firth), a.k.a. the reluctant King George VI, whose stammer made public speaking a horror. Bertie’s rocky relationship with unorthodox speech therapist Lionel Logue (Geoffrey Rush) forms the crux of this handsome drama from director Tom Hooper, demonstrating how history casts the most unlikely actors for its plum parts. ‘Ö’Ö’Ö’Ö

THE MECHANIC

Polo Park, St. Vital, Towne. 18A

An underachieving remake of the 1972 Charles Bronson movie, this one stars Jason Statham as a professional hitman who takes a friend’s wastrel son (Ben Foster) under his wing to teach him the killing biz. Instead of maintaining the original film’s perverse existential worldview, this one is slicker, prettier, and, alas, sequel-ready. ‘Ö’Ö

NO STRINGS ATTACHED

Grant Park, Kildonan Place, Polo Park, St. Vital, Towne. 14A

Two friends (Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher) decide to have a sexual relationship without the romance. Director Ivan Reitman frames the story as a kind of Bizarro When Harry Met Sally — can men and women just have sex, or does the friendship part always get in the way? It’s a clever conceit, but without the scriptwriting panache of a Nora Ephron, it feels a bit limp. ‘Ö’Ö1/2 (Reviewed by Chris Knight)

THE RITE

Polo Park, St. Vital, Towne. 14A

Anthony Hopkins stars as an exorcist who takes a young skeptical seminary student (Colin O’Donoghue) under his wing, introducing the young man to the darker side of his faith. Hopkins classes up the film, but even his otherworldly powers can only make this overly familiar demonic possession thriller engaging for so long. ‘Ö’Ö’Ö (Reviewed by Christy Lemire)

THE ROOMMATE

Kildonan Place, Polo Park, Towne. PG

A mentally unbalanced, possibly homicidal college freshman (Leighton Meester) becomes obsessed with her new roommate (Minka Kelly). Both actresses fail to fire up the tension. Neither Meester’s madness nor Kelly’s growing alarm generate much suspense or urgency. ‘Ö (Reviewed by Roger Moore)

SANCTUM 3D

Grant Park, Polo Park, St. Vital, Towne. 14A

A group of scientists get stuck in a cave and are forced to use their wits, and will, to survive. The 3-D action sequences work well, but the human drama is entirely overcooked. Richard Roxburgh and Ioan Gruffudd star. HH1/2 (Reviewed by Katherine Monk)

TANGLED

Polo Park. G

The digital animators at Disney create some very handsome tresses and a darn good yarn in this revision of Rapunzel. A princess must find her real parents before an evil old woman hides her away forever. Adult-oriented writing and kid-savvy storytelling braid together to form a stylish do that delivers entertainment without messy melodrama. ‘Ö’Ö’Ö (Reviewed by Katherine Monk)

TRUE GRIT

Grant Park. 14A

Unlike the 1969 film with John Wayne, filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen treat Charles Portis’s novel as sacred text in this grim, funny film starring Jeff Bridges as dodgy drunk lawman Rooster Cogburn and newcomer Hailee Steinfeld as the 14-year-old girl who demands Cogburn track down the criminal (Josh Brolin) responsible for her father’s murder. ‘Ö’Ö’Ö’Ö

YOGI BEAR

Polo Park. G

Yogi and Boo Boo (voiced respectively by Dan Aykroyd and Justin Timberlake) must team with Ranger Smith (Tom Cavanaugh) and his filmmaker girlfriend (Anna Faris) to save Jellystone Park. The voice casting of a former Blues brother and a current pop star promises savoury comic goodness, but this thing is as flavourless as a picnic basket filled with rice cakes. ‘Ö1/2