Weekly Film Listings June 23-29
Opening
★★★★★ the tree of life -(Odeon) Winner of the top prize at the Cannes Film Festival. Starts Fri. See review on this page.
cars 2 -(Capitol/SilverCity/Uni 4/Caprice) Disney’s animation classic gets a snappy looking sequel, this one with a storyline involving international espionage. Voices by Owen Wilson and Michael Caine. Starts Fri.
bad teacher -(Odeon/SilverCity) Cameron Diaz is having fun playing a foul-mouthed, lazy and scheming junior high teacher. Co-starring Justin Timberlake. Starts Fri.
Continuing
the art of getting by -(Capitol)A fatalistic teen slacker finds his life more interesting when he is befriended by a popular but complicated girl. Starring Freddie Highmore (The Spiderwick Chronicles) and Emma Roberts (Nancy Drew).
★★★½ bridesmaids -(Odeon/SilverCity) SNL’s Kristen Wiig co-wrote and stars in this raucous but smart and heartfelt comedy that celebrates female friendship (while often being rather rude).
★★ green lantern -(Capitol/SilverCity/Uni 4/Caprice) Vancouver superhunk Ryan Reynolds plays a chartreuse-coloured superherohunk in yet another comic book adaptation that is an overwrought mess with little to recommend it.
★★ the hangover, part II -(Odeon/SilverCity) In this follow-up to the raucous raunchfest of last year is tedious and rarely funny.
★★★¼ kung fu panda 2 -(Capitol/SilverCity) Although the plot is pretty basic, the set design is both clever and gorgeous and the characters have heart. With voicings by Jack Black Angelina Jolie, Gary Oldman and Seth Rogen.
★★★★ midnight in paris -(Odeon) The latest from Woody Allen is a delightfully romantic whirl through Paris, both in the present day and during the fabled 1920s. The fine cast includes Owen Wilson, Rachel McAdams and Marion Cotillard.
mr. popper’s penguins -(Odeon/SilverCity/Uni 4) Jim Carrey stars in an amiably goofy comedy about an uptight businessman whose apartment gets invaded by cute penguins.
★★ pirates of the caribbean: on stranger tides -(Capitol/SilverCity) Penelope Cruz sets sail with Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush and the other piratical ne’er-do-wells of The Black Pearl in the fourth edition of this increasingly tedious action-comedy series.
★★★ potiche -(Capitol) When the owner of a company is taken hostage by striking workers, his trophy wife (Catherine Deneuve) takes over the reins of the business and proves to be surprisingly effective. Co-starring Gerard Depardieu.
★★★ x–men: first class -(Odeon/SilverCity) The earliest days of all those X-People are explored in a splashy and surprisingly entertaining action flick starring everyone from James McAvoy to Kevin Bacon.
★★½ super 8 -(Odeon/SilverCity/Uni 4/Caprice) The latest from writer-director J.J. Abrams is a sci-fi-ish thriller — think Stand By Me meets Invaders From Mars. Although often entertaining and definitely well-acted, this is calculated sentimentality, with many heavy-handed borrowings.
Leaving Thurs.
judy moody and the not bummer summer -(SilverCity)
Imax
★★★★ born to be wild -(10am, noon, 3:00, 5:00) A remarkable safari 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. Note: no 10am show on June 27.
fast five -(8:00 on Thurs.-Sat.; 7:00 on Sun.-Wed.) In the latest Fast & Furious installment, those sort-of good guys once again end up on the wrong side of the law. Starring Paul Walker and Vin Diesel. This is fine, trashy fun.
journey into amazing caves -(1:00; and 7:00, but Thurs.-Sat. only)
★★★★ pulse: a stomp odyssey -(10am, June 27 only)
rescue: disaster response -(11am, 2:00, 4:00, 6:00) High-adrenaline film depicts the courageous men and women who respond when global disaster strikes.
Screenings
Movie Monday – Screening 40 Years of Cool Aid Culture and Building Futures. It’s the 43rd anniversary of the start of Cool Aid, which has morphed from housing hippies to being a key member of Victoria’s helping community. 6:30pm MONDAY in the 1900-block Fort. By donation. 595-FLIC. moviemonday.ca.
punk cinema -The Lucky Bar is screening Bloody But Unbowed, the recent documentary chronicling Vancouver’s volatile and exciting punk scene in its glory years. SATURDAY, 8 pm, 517 Yates Street.
What in the World are they spraying? – Victoria’s first screening of this documentary about the chemtrail issue and geo-engineering. THURSDAY, 7:30pm at the Metro Studio Theatre (1411 Quadra). By donation.
Cinecenta
Cinecenta at UVic screens its films in the Student Union Building. Tickets are available 40 minutes prior to showtime. Info: 721-8365. cinecenta.com.
bill cunningham new york -(Wed.-Thurs., June 22-23: 7:15, 9:00) This documentary portrays the unique Bill Cunningham, a truly happy man who, every day, bicycles about Manhattan photographing what people are wearing. Celebrates the joy of life in a refreshingly naive way.
★★★ source code -(Fri.-Sat., June 24-25: 7:15, 9:10) Jake Gyllenhaal stars in a sci-fi-ish thriller. The Matrix-meets-Groundhog-Day premise is more clever than the movie itself, which is solid but unremarkable.
the tempest -(Sun.-Mon., June 26-27: 7:00, 9:10) Gender-bending version of Shakespeare’s classic play about magical doings on a far-off island. Starring Helen Mirren.
the arbor -(Tues.-Wed., June 28-29: 7:10, 9:00) This acclaimed British film very consciously plays with the conventions of fact, fiction and documentary as it takes a layered approach to portraying the working-class family of playwright Clio Barnard.
