Opening
scream 4 -(Odeon/SilverCity/Uni 4/Caprice) Wes Craven — who knows more than a little about things that go bump in the night — directs this reboot of the classic deconstructive slasher series (the first film of which he also directed). Starring Scream survivors Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and David Arquette. Starts Fri.
rio -(Odeon/SilverCity/Uni 4) This very colourful animated romp stars a domesticated macaw that heads off on a wild jaunt to Rio de Janeiro to find avian amour. Featuring the vocal talents of Jesse Eisenberg and Anne Hathaway. Starts Fri.
win win -(Odeon) Paul Giamatti stars in this comedy about a down-on-his-luck attorney who coaches a high school wrestling team in his spare time. And just when he thinks a star athlete is going to deliver him a big payday, the kid’s mom comes stumbling out of rehab to derail the deal. Starts Fri.
Continuing
★½ arthur -(Odeon/SilverCity/Caprice) Here’s a disappointingly over-stated and ill-conceived remake of the delightful 1981 comedy about a boozy, immature playboy. Despite the star power of Russell Brand and the great Helen Mirren, only a few of the jokes have real zing and Arthur himself is irritating rather than charming.
★★★½ hanna -(Capitol/SilverCity/Uni 4) A 16-year-old girl, trained as an assassin by her CIA rogue agent of a father, is on the run across North Africa and Europe as ruthless intelligence agents try to track her down. Starring Cate Blanchett, Eric Bana and a very persuasive Saoirse Ronan (The Lovely Bones). The plot cheats a bit, but this thriller couched in terms of a fairy tale is engaging and very well directed by Joe Wright (Atonement, Pride & Prejudice).
hop -(Odeon/SilverCity/Capitol/Caprice) In this fluffy bit of animated fun for the whole family the teenage son of the Easter Bunny heads to Hollywood to join a rock ‘n’ roll band — only to encounter some unexpected adventures.
★★ hobo with a shotgun -(Capitol) Spring has sprung and here comes a grumpy Rutger Hauer playing a homeless vigilante who blasts his pump-action shotgun at a variety of shitweasels including crooked cops and a pedophile Santa (!). This deliberately trashy send-up of exploitation cinema is not without its rancid charms.
★★ insidious -(Capitol/SilverCity) Insipid is more like it, although this tale of a couple trying to save their comatose child from strange supernatural forces has a few good scares up its sleeve — which they pull off without resorting to gore.
★★½ jane eyre -(Odeon) The classic Charlotte Brontë romance about a young governess and a house with terrible secrets gets a handsome-looking but rather dull remake that stars the wonderful Mia Wasikowska (Alice in Wonderland) and the rather wooden Michael Fassbender (Inglourious Basterds). See review.
★★½ limitless -(SilverCity) Bradley Cooper plays an unmotivated writer who discovers a new drug that somehow gives him super-human mental powers, in a thriller with aspects of a headtrip movie. Co-starring Robert De Niro and Australia’s Abbie Cornish (Bright Star).
★★★½ the lincoln lawyer -(Capitol) This tricky crime thriller stars Matthew McConaughey as an unconventional lawyer who gets in over his head while representing a wealthy client accused of murder. Based on the novel by Michael Connelly. McConaughey brings his natural gifts — roguish charm overlaid with dollops of sleaze and smug self-regard — in what could be a career-saving role. The great supporting cast includes Marisa Tomei, William H. Macy, John Leguizamo and Ryan Phillippe.
soul surfer -(SilverCity) A teenage surfer loses her arm to a shark attack and somehow summons the courage to ride the waves again. Based on the true-life tale from a few years back.
your highness -(Odeon/SilverCity/Uni 4) This tongue-in-cheek medieval action flick has been reviled even by the pushover critics. Starring James Franco, Natalie Portman, Toby Jones, and Zooey Deschanel.
★★★ source code -(Odeon/SilverCity) Jake Gyllenhaal stars in a sci-fi-ish thriller about a soldier who is teleported into the body of a stranger in order to find the terrorist due to blow up a train in eight minutes. The Matrix-meets-Groundhog-Day premise is more clever than the movie itself, which is solid but unremarkable.
★★ sucker punch -(Capitol) The newest visual extravaganza from the director of 300 and Watchmen features a young woman sent to a brutal insane asylum where she escapes from the horror of her imprisonment by believing that the power of her imagination is enough to set her free. Nifty visuals, sure, but there’s not much here to get excited about.
Imax
Date
★★★½ ARABIA -(1:00 5:00) The past and the present merge in this exploration of the rich history and present-day exoticism and complexity of Saudi Arabia.
★★★★ born to be wild -(10am, noon, 2:00, 4:00, 7:00) Take a remarkable safari as this documentary takes you up close and personal with the people who nurture orphaned baby elephants and orangutans en route to re-releasing them into the wild. Narrated by Morgan Freeman. This is a great film! See review.
journey into amazing caves -(11am, 3:00, 6:00, 8:00)
screenings
Movie Monday – Screening ★★★½ Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work. It’s impossible not to enjoy this candid, raunchy documentary of Joan Rivers — and impossible not to admire the original shoots-from-the-lip queen of comedy (and, latterly, cosmetic surgery). 6:30pm MONDAY in the 1900-block Fort. By donation. 595-FLIC. moviemonday.ca
Cinecenta
Cinecenta at UVic screens its films in the Student Union Building. Info: 721-8365. cinecenta.com.
★★★★ incendies -(Wed.-Thurs., April 13-14: 7:00, 9:30) This Oscar-nominated film from Quebec portrays the unwrapping of a dark and violent mystery, as two children probe their mother’s shocking personal history from a long-ago civil war in the Middle East.
★★★★ black swan -(Fri.-Sat., April 15-16: 3:00, 7:10, 9:20) Get ready for some brilliant and disturbing ballet noir from arty director Darren Aronofsky (Pi, The Wrestler) in an intense psychological thriller about two gorgeous dance rivals, played by Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis.
justin bieber: never say never -(Sat.-Sun., April 16-17: 1:00 matinee) Canada’s pop music phenom hits the big screen with a concert film that will have the tweens swooning.
the way back -(Sun., April 16: 3:00, 7:00, 9:35 & Mon.-Wed., April 17: 7:00, 9:35) If some guys who just escaped from a Siberian gulag want to reach freedom, all they have to do is hike 4,000 miles to the border of India. Starring Colin Farrel, Ed Harris and Jim Sturgess, and directed by the great Peter Weir (Gallipoli, Master and Commander). “Beyond its visual splendors the film achieves searing moral power.” -Hollywood Reporter
The Roxy
Playing Nightly April 15th to 21st
Paul (14A) at 7:15 pm (Fri -Thur) A pair of comic book geeks in love with sci-fi get more than they bargained for.
Adjustment Bureau (PG) at 9:00 pm (Fri -Thur) Hard-working Matt Damon stars in a tepid thriller about a man who defies a mysterious agency.
Rango (PG) at 1:00 pm and 2:45 pm (Sat, Sun)This whacky animated spoof of classic westerns stars a chameleon (Johnny Depp) who dreams of being a hero.
The King’s Speech (PG) at 4:30 pm (Sat, Sun) Long live this royal Oscar champ, the much loved and lauded historical drama about King George VI.
