Movie Minis

OPENING

• The Battle of Algiers (1967) (No MPAA Rating — made before the advent of the rating system; adult subject matter, with occasional graphic violence and profanity in a wartime setting) — **. A revival of Gillo Pontecorvo’s acclaimed and controversial polemical thriller about a guerrilla uprising in Algiers. It celebrated the triumph of radical Algerian nationalism in the early 1960s at the expense of French colonial rule. Curiously, the triumph is affirmed only in the epilogue, since most of the picture deals with the defeat of insurgents, concentrated in the Casbah, by a hard-nosed, realistic and lethally efficient paratroop commander in the late 1950s. The role was memorably portrayed by Jean Martin. The filmmakers attempt to spread the martial admiration and atrocities around, although their ultimate ideological aim is the glorification of a mass revolutionary impulse that defies suppression or discouragement. In retrospect, the director’s political dogmas take a heavy toll of his pictorial dynamism. In French and Arabic with English subtitles. Exclusively at the E Street Cinema.

• Bubba Ho-Tep (2003) (R) — A whimsical comedy that purports to account for a still living but obscure Elvis Presley. Portrayed by Bruce Campbell, he is imagined as an elderly resident in an East Texas retirement home. Ossie Davis co-stars as a crony who believes himself to be the late President Kennedy.

• Chasing Liberty (2004) (PG-13: Sexual situations, some alcohol use and brief nudity) — **1/2. Pop songstress Mandy Moore plays the president’s daughter chafing under the too-watchful eye of the Secret Service. A presidential excursion to Prague with Daddy (Mark Harmon) sets her off on a liberating jaunt through Europe with a young security agent (Matthew Goode) in tow. The film’s glorious cityscapes and potential star Mr. Goode’s easy charisma compensate for its paint-by-numbers emotional palette. Reviewed by Christian Toto.

• Girl With a Pearl Earring (2003) (PG-13) — A movie version of the period novel by Tracy Chevalier, who attempted to evoke the arduous but briefly exalted situation of a Delft lass of the 1660s who becomes the model for artist Jan Vermeer in the famous title painting. The heroine, Griet, played by Scarlett Johansson, reluctantly joins the domestic staff of the Vermeer household to help support her own needy family. She arouses the resentment of Vermeer’s wife (Judy Parfitt) and the lechery of his patron (Tom Wilkinson) while emerging as a useful artistic instrument for the painter (Colin Firth).

• Monster (2003) (R) — A biographical melodrama about the executed serial killer Aileen Wuornos, portrayed by Charlize Theron, recently selected best actress of 2003 by the National Society of Film Critics. Christina Ricci co-stars as Selby Wall, a young woman who becomes the lover of the doomed protagonist. The cast also includes Bruce Dern.

• My Architect (2003) (No MPAA Rating — adult subject matter) — A biographical documentary feature about the famous American architect Louis Kahn, compiled by his son Nathaniel. The interview subjects include I.M. Pei, Frank Gehry and Philip Johnson. Exclusively at E Street Cinema.

• My Baby’s Daddy (2004) (PG-13) — A comedy about the effects of impending fatherhood on a trio of bachelor pals, played by Eddie Griffin, Anthony Anderson and Michael Imperioli. Directed by Cheryl Dunye and once titled “My Baby’s Mama.”

NOW SHOWING

• Bad Santa (2003) (R: Coarse language, sexual situations, alcohol abuse and anger toward children) — *1/2. Billy Bob Thornton plays a soused Santa wreaking mayhem on a series of department stores. The film desperately wants to tweak the mushy Christmas movies released each Yuletide, but only manages to drown itself in mean-spirited, one-note mockery. Even the often brilliant Mr. Thornton can’t muster an ounce of humanity for his depraved rent-a-Santa. Reviewed by Christian Toto.

• The Barbarian Invasions (2003) (R: Frequent profanity and sexual candor; a subplot about heroin addiction) — **. The French-Canadian filmmaker Denys Arcand gave boudoir farce a literate and sophisticated update in 1986 with “Decline of the American Empire,” which satirized the moral and political complacency of a group of hedonistic, left-wing faculty colleagues from Montreal. “Invasions” revisits this overprivileged bunch about 15 years later, and age is taking a toll. The puckish satyr Remy (Remy Girard), who teaches American colonial history, has been hospitalized for cancer treatments in a crowded Montreal hospital where pain relief includes heroin injections from the junkie daughter of one of his former mistresses. The entire harem rallies around to dote on the patient, who remains a largely unrepentant fool, sometimes troubled by the thought of having endorsed every left-wing “ism” that was available. Mr. Arcand goes soft to a fault himself as departure time nears for Remy. The characters are bilingual, but a considerable amount of dialogue is in French with English subtitles.

• Big Fish (2003) (PG-13: fight scene; partial nudity; innuendo) — ***1/2. A magical-realist cocktail of Southern gothic, fairy-tale whimsy and psychedelic freak show from director Tim Burton. Beneath the gleaming set-pieces, “Fish” is a very old and human story, of an estranged son seeing his father to death’s door. Starring Albert Finney, Ewan McGregor, Billy Crudup and Jessica Lange. Reviewed by Scott Galupo.

• Calendar Girls (2003) (PG-13: Sustained sexual innuendo; occasional profanity and fleeting nudity) — ***. An overextended but genial tribute to a group of Yorkshire club women who turn their annual calendar into a more lucrative fund-raiser for cancer by adding discreetly nude poses to the traditional celebration of homemaking and gardening skills. The plot derives from a real-life caper that made a small town called Rylstone newsworthy in 2000. This fictionalized telling conjures up a similar close-knit community, Knapely, and teams Julie Walters and Helen Mirren as the ringleaders. The movie remains fresh and appealing until the models head off for a promotional jaunt to Los Angeles, an excursion that persuades you the characters should stay as close as possible to Yorkshire.

• Cheaper by the Dozen (2003) (PG: brief profanity; mature themes) — *1/2. Barely resembling its 1950 predecessor, this remake stars Steve Martin and Bonnie Hunt raising 12 children while holding down their dream jobs. Lots of predictable physical humor laden with easy sentimentality. Reviewed by Scott Galupo.

• Cold Mountain (2003) (R: Graphic violence against the setting of the Civil War; occasional profanity, sexual vulgarity and sexual candor; fleeting nudity and simulations of intercourse) — *1/2. Anthony Minghella, the accomplished adapter of “The English Patient” and “The Talented Mr. Ripley,” gets stuck in treacherous expository ruts while attempting a faithful transposition of the award-winning novel by Charles Frazier. Jude Law and Nicole Kidman are cast as the Civil War love match Inman and Ada, who begin a tentative courtship in the far western North Carolina town of Cold Mountain shortly before the war and survive long enough to cherish a reunion in the winter before it ends. Inman undertakes a perilous trek home after being injured at Petersburg. Ada is rescued from solitude and genteel ineptitude by a resourceful, blunt farmhand named Ruby, enjoyably portrayed by Renee Zellweger. The vitality that enters with Ruby fails to sustain the grueling romantic odyssey, always hostage to sadistic delaying tactics, especially the recurrent atrocities committed by a Home Guard posse led by psychopaths Ray Winstone and Charlie Hunnam.

• The Cooler (2003) (R: Nudity, sexual situations, alcohol use and spasms of violence) — ***. William H. Macy is “the Cooler,” a sad sack so unlucky he works at a casino where he “cools” hot gamblers just by standing near them. Lady luck finally smiles on him when he meets a fetching cocktail waitress (an earthy Maria Bello) who falls for his inherent kindness. Director Wayne Kramer fashions a gritty tale with a kiss of fantasy, aided by a rageful Alec Baldwin as the casino boss. Reviewed by Christian Toto.

• The Fog of War (2003) (PG-13: Intense images of war and destruction) — ***. Documentarian Errol Morris spends quality time with the once-reviled defense secretary Robert McNamara, who recalls his involvement not only in Vietnam but in World War II and the Cuban Missile crisis as well. Often riveting and never as tendentious as one might expect. Reviewed by Scott Galupo.

• The Haunted Mansion (2003) (PG: Occasional ominous and morbid depiction; fleeting comic vulgarity) — *1/2. A supernatural farce inspired to some extent by the popular Disneyland attraction, “Mansion” isn’t consistently clever. The setting tends to inhibit slapstick fleetness and ingenuity, especially from Eddie Murphy. He stars as a glad-handing, workaholic and square New Orleans real estate agent, stranded during an overnight thunderstorm with his wife and two kids. Marcia Thompson is an adorable choice as the wife, but the new movie waxes erotically creepy by making her a prey to sexual extortion.

• House of Sand and Fog (2003) (R: Occasional profanity, graphic violence and sexual candor) — **1/2. The principal characters take a mortal beating in this faithfully doleful movie version of a novel by Andre Dubus III. Nevertheless, writer-director Vadim Perelman, a transplanted Russian, has an aptitude for painful intimacy and emotional calamity. The movie’s merciless sorrows are reinforced by compelling performances from Sir Ben Kingsley, Jennifer Connelly and the Iranian actress Shohreh Aghdashloo. Miss Connelly is cast as a despondent, destructive young woman who loses her family home in the San Francisco Bay Area to neglect and possible bureaucratic error. The residence is bought at public auction by aristocratic Iranian immigrants, Sir Ben and Miss Aghdashloo. The psychological costs of dispossession loom very large in this story, and Sir Ben is magnificent as a strong personality who proves unable to avert disaster.

• In America (2003) (PG-13: Occasional profanity, sexual candor, graphic violence and allusions to drug addiction) — **. A semi-autobiographical tearjerker from the Irish filmmaker Jim Sheridan. Through Paddy Considine as a floundering young family man called Johnny Sullivan, he recalls a period in the early 1980s when he moved into a Hell’s Kitchen slum with his wife and two young daughters while working as an off-Broadway director. The filmmaker seems to be repaying intimate emotional debts to the wife and kids. His own daughters are credited as co-writers. Samantha Morton is radiant as the young wife, as are juveniles Sara and Emma Bolger as her daughters. It’s unfair competition for Mr. Considine. With Djimon Hounsou as an outrageously suffering and then generous neighbor who bails the Sullivans out of trouble by dying in a timely fashion.

• The Last Samurai (2003) (R: Graphic violence, with gruesome illustrative details, during extended battle sequences; occasional profanity) — *1/2. Tom Cruise is cast as an American interloper in Japan, a disenchanted veteran of the Civil War and the Indian Wars called Capt. Nathan Algren. Hired to train Imperial conscripts, Algren is captured during an encounter with a samurai warlord (Ken Watanabe) and his band. He winters as a captive and then rides with the warlord to a spectacular battlefield defeat. Algren is mistaken for a morally superior scold by the star and the filmmakers. The case for his alternately sneering and suffering interference remains a shambles.

• The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003) (PG-13: Sustained ominous atmosphere; intense chases and battle sequences, with occasional graphic violence and gruesome illustrative details) — ****. Peter Jackson closes the cinematic book in suitably stirring fashion for his triple epic adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s mythological saga about the valiant preservers of Middle Earth. Mr. Jackson has certainly set imposing and sumptuous new standards for heroic adventure spectacle and fantasy. The tenacious heroes endure their final ordeals while carrying the insidious ring of the evil-eye wizard Sauron to its only safe repository, the lava pits of Mt. Doom. And they defend the mountainside citadel of Minas Tirith, capital of the kingdom of Gondor, from massive assaults by Sauron’s barbaric hordes. There are so many farewell scenes and recessionals before the fadeout that you suspect Mr. Jackson is reluctant to part with the illusion he has sustained over three consecutive holiday seasons. He deserves a final Oscar coronation, but don’t be surprised if Hollywood finds some ridiculous way to deny him.

• Mona Lisa Smile (2003) (PG-13: Sexuality; mature themes) — *1/2. Julia Roberts is the most agreeable, lovable bohemian from Berkeley you’ll ever meet in this protofeminist caricature of the Eisenhower era. Miss Roberts plays a maverick art history professor at buttoned-up Wellesley, where she encourages her young charges to look beyond motherhood and marriage for satisfaction. Also starring Kirsten Dunst, Julia Stiles and Maggie Gyllenhaal. Reviewed by Scott Galupo.

• Paycheck (2003) (PG:13: Intense violence, harsh language) — **. The overexposed Ben Affleck plays a scientist on the run in “Paycheck,” a futuristic tale based on a short story by Philip K. Dick (his work also inspired “Blade Runner” and “Total Recall”). Mr. Affleck’s character does work for high-tech businesses and then has his memory erased for security purposes. His latest employer not only zaps his memory but neglects to pay him, leaving him only with an envelope full of seemingly random objects. Uma Thurman co-stars as the woman who helps Mr. Affleck reassemble his past from those objects and save his future when his employer finds out about their task. If only we could forget Mr. Affleck’s wooden performance and how easily “Paycheck” squanders its nifty premise. Reviewed by Christian Toto.

• Peter Pan (2003) (PG: Fleeting ominous episodes and comic vulgarity) — **1/2. A fitfully appealing reprise of the James M. Barrie classic from Australian filmmaker P.J. Hogan, entrusted with the novelty of a live-action production that casts an actual adolescent boy as Peter. The choice, Jeremy Sumpter, doesn’t exactly redefine the role, but he’s robust and good-humored. Mr. Hogan wisely returns to Barrie himself for the wittiest lines and situations; he turns to deft computer animators for miraculous enhancements that can rival or surpass the Disney animators of half a century ago. The Disney version was a 50th anniversary “Pan.” This one anticipates the centennial by a year.

• Something’s Gotta Give (2003) (PG-13: sexual content, brief comic nudity, occasional profanity) — **. A menopausal little ditty starring Jack Nicholson and Diane Keaton as aging lovebirds. Despite two top-shelf actors who sizzle together, “Give” is, after all, a grayed-over retread of the Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan heart-tuggers, with the added wrinkle that it thinks it’s delivering a news flash: that men and women in their twilight years are still vital. Also starring Keanu Reeves and Frances McDormand. Reviewed by Scott Galupo.

• Stuck on You (2003) (PG: 13: Sexual situations and humor, coarse language and cartoon-style violence) — **1/2. Matt Damon and Greg Kinnear stars as conjoined twins in the Farrelly brothers’ latest farce. What sounds offensive on paper isn’t nearly so rude, thanks to the Farrellys’ affection for the characters. The gags, alas, can’t measure up to the duo’s best work, “There’s Something About Mary,” or even their infantile “Kingpin.” Reviewed by Christian Toto.

• To Be and To Have (2002) (No MPAA Rating; adult subject matter but suitable for all ages) — ****. An exceptionally strong year for documentary features is enhanced anew with this French-made tribute to a dedicated teacher, Georges Lopez, observed during a winter and spring of instruction in Saint-Etienne sur Usson, a small dairy community in the Auvergne. Though not exactly a “one-room” schoolmaster, he is responsible for a small group of students whose ages range from 4 or 5 to 11 or 12. Emulating the patience and concentration of his subject, filmmaker Nicolas Philibert emerges with a lucid and affectionate impression of elementary teaching and learning. “To Be” really does elevate the cliche “back to basics,” linking it to the intimacy of a particular classroom and set of personalities. In French with English subtitles. Exclusively at Visions Cinema, Bistro & Lounge.

• Young Black Stallion (2003) (G) — A belated “prequel” to Carroll Ballard’s superlative 1979 movie version of the Walter Farley children’s classic “The Black Stallion.” Directed in an Imax format by Australian Simon Wincer, the film has a featurette running time of about 50 minutes. It concerns a North African girl called Neera who becomes lost in the desert and is rescued by the sudden appearance of the stallion, who bonds with the child and carries her back to safety. A limited engagement, exclusively at the National Museum of Natural Historyand the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center. Not reviewed.MAXIMUM RATING: FOUR STARS