Opening
super 8 -(Odeon/SilverCity/Uni 4/Caprice) The latest from writer-director J.J. Abrams is a spooky, sci-fi thriller that is set in 1979 and shows what happens as a group of kids react to very strange goings-on in their small town. Looks good! Starts Fri.
judy moody and the not bummer summer -(Capitol/SilverCity) A third-grader “sets out to have the most thrilling summer of her life.” Movie critics, not so much. Starts Fri.
Continuing
★★★½ bridesmaids -(Odeon/SilverCity/Uni 4) 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).
★★ the hangover, part II -(Odeon/SilverCity/Caprice) In this follow-up to the raucous raunchfest of last year, that tragically awry bachelor party in Vegas segues into a different set of nuptials in Thailand. Sadly, this sequel is tedious and rarely funny.
★★★½ hanna -(Capitol) 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).
★★★¼ kung fu panda 2 -(Capitol/SilverCity) It’s sequel time and Po (Jack Black) joins forces with other kung fu masters to defeat a dire villain. Although the plot is pretty basic, the set design is both clever and gorgeous and the characters have heart. With voicings by Angelina Jolie, Gary Oldman and Seth Rogen.
★★★ x–men: first class -(Odeon/SilverCity/Uni 4) 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. See review.
★★ pirates of the caribbean: on stranger tides -(Capitol/SilverCity/Uni 4) 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 — and alarmingly lucrative — action-comedy series.
★★½ thor -(Odeon) Directed, rather improbably, by Kenneth Branagh, this is a 3D account of the hammer-swinging Norse god after he gets the boot out of Asgard and ends up on earth — which he then has to save from annihilation. Two of the stars not playing Thor are Anthony Hopkins and Natalie Portman. Silly and awkward, but often entertaining.
leaving thurs.
★★★¼ the bang bang club -(Odeon)
★★★ the greatest movie ever sold -(Odeon)
★★★½ the lincoln lawyer -(Capitol)
Imax
★★★★ born to be wild -(10am, noon, 3:00, 5:00) 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. Note: no 10am screening on June 14.
fast five -(8:00 on Thurs.-Sat.; 7:00 on Sun.-Wed.)
hubble -(10am, June 14 only)
journey into amazing caves -(1:00, 4:00, and 7:00, but Thurs.-Sat. only)
★★★ wired to win: surviving the tour de france -(11am, 2:00, 6:00) Gorgeous race footage combines with intriguing medical details of what happens inside the body when racers take on the ultimate endurance contest.
Screenings
Movie Monday – Screening Back to the Garden, 2009. A group of Pacific Northwest “back to the landers” who were profiled in a doc 20 years ago were revisited by filmmaker Kevin Tomlinson, who was interested to see how their dreams of living free had panned out. Followed by Chomavision, the portrait of an 88-year-old Victoria artist who has triumphed over his bipolar affliction. Directed by Movie Monday founder Bruce Saunders. 6:30pm MONDAY in the 1900-block Fort. By donation. 595-FLIC. moviemonday.ca.
camas books: film night – Screening a double bill of The Perfect Vagina and Killing Us Softly, two films on the harmful effects of body image in a sexist society. Sunday, May 15, 7:30 pm at 2590 Quadra.
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.
★★★★ of gods and men -(Wed.-Thurs., June 8-9: 7:00, 9:25) Based on events during an upsurge of Islamist violence in 1996 Algeria, this elegant and meditative drama centres on eight French monks whose religious beliefs are challenged by their harrowing predicament. A must-see.
★★½ limitless -(Fri.-Sat., June 10-11: 7:15, 9:20) Bradley Cooper plays an unmotivated writer who discovers a new drug that somehow gives him super-human mental powers. Co-starring Robert De Niro and Australia’s Abbie Cornish (Bright Star).
circo -(Sun.-Mon., June 12-13: 7:25, 9:00) This documentary movingly chronicles a family circus that travels through rural Mexico performing aerial feats against a backdrop of sad clowns.
★★★★ a streetcar named desire -(Tues., June 14: 7:00, 9:25) It’s almost impossible to overstate the impact that Marlon Brando had when he burst onto the scene in the early ’50s. His raw, sexually charged performance is indelibly connected to this marvelous Tennessee Williams play about a fading sourthern belle slipping into madness.
every second counts -(Wed., June 15: 8:00 only) This special presentation is an inside look at the phenomenon of CrossFit, the ultra-endurance sport that pushes at the furthest boundaries of endurance.
The Roxy
hop -(2:15, Sat.-Sun.) In this fluffy bit of animated fun for the family the teenage son of the Easter Bunny heads to Hollywood to join a rock ‘n’ roll band, only to encounter unexpected trials.
★★★ fast five -(7:00) In the latest Fast & Furious installment, those sort-of good guys once again end up on the wrong side of the law as they finds themselves trapped between a vicious drug lord and an implacable federal agent. Starring Paul Walker and Vin Diesel. This is fine, trashy fun.
★★★ source code -(9:15) 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.
hoodwinked too! hood vs. evil -(1:00, Sat.-Sun.) This kid-friendly animation is a wacky take-off of classic fairy tales, as Red Riding Hood and the Wolf are called on to investigate the disappearance of Hansel and Gretel.
