J. Edgar
Over a career that began during World War I and endured almost until the era of Watergate, famed founding director of the FBI J. Edgar Hoover (1895-1972) battled communists, gangsters, Nazi spies, the Kennedys, the civil rights movement and (albeit reluctantly) the Mafia.
That's a lot of time and a lot ...
|
J. Edgar (CNS)
J. Edgar
Clint Eastwood’s latest directorial masterpiece is a biopic
about J. Edgar Hoover (1895 - 1972) with Leonardo DiCaprio in the lead
role. Hoover directed the Federal Bureau
of Investigation for 48 years and, according to the film, was a virtual
demigod, a hybrid of a government servant who served his own ego above all.
|
J. Edgar (SRR)
Jack
Click title to see this St. Anthony Messenger movie review.
|
Jack (SAM)
Jack and Jill
The sad arithmetic of the latest Adam Sandler offering "Jack and Jill" (Columbia) is that a double serving of its star—one in drag—adds up, in the end, to a half-witted comedy. Too crude for kids and too puerile for their elders, moreover, director Dennis Dugan's grab bag of potty humor, harsh ...
|
Jack and Jill (CNS)
Jack the Giant Slayer
Faith-tinged and fun, "Jack the Giant Slayer" (Warner Bros.) is director Bryan Singer's 3-D retelling of the classic fairy tale, into which screenwriters Christopher McQuarrie and Dan Studney blend elements of the related story "Jack and the Beanstalk."
The resulting hybrid, which also combines live action and animation, offers teens and ...
|
Jack the Giant Slayer (CNS)
Jack Reacher
"Jack Reacher" (Paramount) begins with a sniper killing five people, including a woman holding a 7-year-old girl, and ends in a fusillade of semiautomatic rifle fire. Between those disturbing visuals, it's a reasonably compelling detective story.
The hero of the title (Tom Cruise) -- a man seemingly without a past -- ...
|
Jack Reacher (CNS)
Jackal, The
Click title to see this St. Anthony Messenger movie review.
|
Jackal, The (SAM)
Jackass 3-D
No excretory function is left unexamined in "Jackass 3-D" (Paramount), the third feature-length installment of violent and bizarre stunts performed by Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, Wee Man and the rest.
In their attempt to top the past two films, director Jeff Tremaine and writer (so to speak) Preston Lacy take the ...
|
Jackass 3-D (CNS)
Jackass The Movie
Sophomoric, repulsive series of vignettes in which a group of failed frat-boy wannabes videorecords pranks and various acts of self-abuse, humiliation and violence. As directed by Jeff Tremaine, the plotless movie revels in people getting hurt with their pain considered hilarious to their friends. Vulgar body fluid humor, language, violent acts ...
|
Jackass The Movie (CNS)
Jackass: Number Two
Johnny Knoxville and his masochistic troupe serve up a second helping of stupidity in this follow-up based on their popular -- and all too appropriately named -- MTV show. Directed as before by Jeff Tremaine, the film once again plays pain and humiliation for laughs through an outrageous series of "Candid ...
|
Jackass: Number Two (CNS)
Jacket, The
Dark and disjointed psychological thriller about an amnesiac Gulf War veteran (Adrien Brody) who is framed for the murder of a policeman and is sentenced to an asylum for the criminally insane where a psychiatrist (Kris Kristofferson) subjects him to mind-altering "treatment" -- involving being strapped into a straitjacket and locked ...
|
Jacket, The (CNS)
Jane Austen Book Club, The
Genteel, nicely acted "chick flick" about friends (Kathy Baker, Maria Bello and Emily Blunt) who start a book-discussion group on Jane Austen as a catharsis for their friend (Amy Brenneman) whose husband (Jimmy Smits) has announced he's leaving her, and who hope she'll fall for the young man (Hugh Dancy) who's ...
|
Jane Austen Book Club, The (CNS)
Jane Eyre
Click title to see this St. Anthony Messenger movie review.
|
Jane Eyre (SAM)
Jane Eyre
Charlotte Bronte's classic novel gets the horror film treatment in "Jane Eyre" (Focus), an adaptation that remains true to the original story but ramps up the gothic and scary elements. Creepiness aside, this is a well-acted film that recreates a bygone era when individuality took a back seat to convention, and ...
|
Jane Eyre (CNS)
Jarhead
Intermittently arresting war movie based on Anthony Swofford's memoirs of his experiences in the first Gulf War, which follows a unit of Marines from boot camp to deployment in Iraq -- seen through the eyes of a team of snipers (Jake Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard) -- where they battle scorching heat, ...
|
Jarhead (CNS)
Jeepers Creepers 2
Surprisingly canny chiller about a busload of high school students stranded on a lonely highway and besieged by a demonic creature (Jonathan Breck) hungry for human flesh. Director Victor Salva overcomes cardboard characterizations and effectively builds suspense through much of the film, resulting in some genuinely scary moments, before surrendering to ...
|
Jeepers Creepers 2 (CNS)
Jennifer's Body
As scripted by "Juno" writer Diablo Cody, "Jennifer's
Body" (Fox) is an unwieldy combination of comedy and horror that
presents gore with relish and exploits adolescent sexuality.
The Jennifer of the title (Megan Fox) is a fetching but cynical
student at a small-town high school who is both envied and despised by
her peers. ...
|
Jennifer's Body (CNS)
Jerry McGuire
Click title to see this St. Anthony Messenger movie review.
|
Jerry McGuire (SAM)
Jersey Girl
Generally appealing relationship comedy in which a celibate widower (Ben Affleck) living with his crusty dad (George Carlin) and winsome little daughter (Raquel Castro) meets a sexually aggressive female (Liv Tyler) and must also choose between family life or a workaholic career. Writer-director Kevin Smith's sweet-natured tale of family values triumphing ...
|
Jersey Girl (CNS)
Jersey Girl
Click title to see this St. Anthony Messenger movie review.
|
Jersey Girl (SAM)
Jesus Camp
Click title to see this St. Anthony Messenger movie review.
|
Jesus Camp (SAM)
Jesus Camp
Fascinating and frightening documentary about an evangelical summer camp where children are trained to lead the fight in "reclaiming America for Christ" through a militant Christianity which critics claim has little to do with the Gospel. Co-directors Heidi Ewing and Rachel Grady give voice to both those who charge that what ...
|
Jesus Camp (CNS)
Jet Lag
Detained overnight at the Paris airport, two strangers -- an uptight French expatriate (Jean Reno) and an insecure cosmetician (Juliette Binoche) fleeing an abusive lover -- clash over their opposite approaches to life before admitting to mutual attraction and the possibility of fresh starts. Co-writer and director Daniele Thompson unreels an ...
|
Jet Lag (CNS)
Jet Li's Fearless
Action drama loosely based on the life of Chinese cultural hero Huo Yuanjia (Jet Li), an arrogant martial artist whose pursuit of street-fighting fame ends in tragedy, prompting a spiritual awakening that leads him to found a school to promote self-improvement and national pride during the foreign occupation of China at ...
|
Jet Li's Fearless (CNS)
Jiminy Glick in LaLaWood
Lame improvised comedy about a clueless entertainment critic (a well-padded Martin Short), who is rocketed into the showbiz spotlight when he lands an exclusive one-on-one with a notoriously reclusive young megastar, while at the same time becoming involved in a Hollywood murder mystery. Despite some amusing mock interviews with real celebrities, ...
|
Jiminy Glick in LaLaWood (CNS)
Jimmy Carter Man From Plains
Thoughtful, though unabashedly adulatory and overlong, documentary portrait of the 39th president as he takes a cross-country book tour to promote his controversial 2006 volume on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, with some reflections on his early life and presidential administration. Versatile director Jonathan Demme's film makes the most of its subject's genuine ...
|
Jimmy Carter Man From Plains (CNS)
Jindabyne
Click title to see this St. Anthony Messenger movie review.
|
Jindabyne (SAM)
Jindabyne
Meaty morality play, based on a Raymond Carver short story, reset in the visually stunning Australian Snowy Mountains about a weekend fisherman (Gabriel Byrne) and his three buddies who find the body of a murdered young women but fail to report the discovery immediately, leading to ostracism by his wife (Laura ...
|
Jindabyne (CNS)
John Carter
Thanks in no small measure to the magic of movies, Tarzan is the character most closely associated with author Edgar Rice Burroughs (1875-1950). Yet it's one of Burroughs' lesser-known heroes—introduced in his first novel, serially published in 1912—that a group of 21st-century filmmakers have chosen to bring to the screen in ...
|
John Carter (CNS)
John Carter
This epically expensive film cost Disney $200 million
dollars to produce. It’s both a
throwback to American history and futuristic sci-fi story based on a character
and series of novels by Edgar Rice Burroughs of “Tarzan” fame.
John Carter is a former Confederate soldier who heads west
to Arizona Territory only for men ...
|
John Carter (SRR)
John Tucker Must Die
Lightweight comedy about a new girl at a high school (Brittany Snow) who, wanting to fit in, conspires with a spiteful trio of popular girls (Arielle Kebbel, Ashanti and Sophia Bush) to seek revenge against a girl-juggling jock (Jesse Metcalfe) after discovering that he'd been triple-timing them. Director Betty Thomas undermines ...
|
John Tucker Must Die (CNS)
Johnny English
Silly spy spoof about a bumbling British agent (Rowan Atkinson) who must recover the stolen crown jewels and stop a loony Frenchman (John Malkovich) from usurping the English throne. Directed by Peter Howitt, the film's crude bathroom humor and slapstick sight gags are the comedic equivalent of English cuisine -- bland ...
|
Johnny English (CNS)
Johnny English Reborn
There's so much to commend in "Johnny English Reborn" (Universal), a comedy sequel which has none of the scatological humor of its predecessor—2003's "Johnny English"—that it seems a shame to highlight, and quibble about, a single vulgar sight gag.
Still, since it's such an unfortunate anomaly in an otherwise recommendable movie, ...
|
Johnny English Reborn (CNS)
Johnson Family Vacation
Tiresome comedy in which a family patriarch (Cedric the Entertainer) piles his wife (Vanessa Williams) and kids (Bow Wow, Solange Knowles and Gabby Soleil) into a souped-up Lincoln Navigator and travels cross-country from California to Missouri for a family reunion, on the way sidelined by several obstacles. Director Christopher Erskin's film ...
|
Johnson Family Vacation (CNS)
Jonah Hex
"Jonah Hex" (Warner Bros.), based on the popular DC Comics series, tries very hard to be a rip-roaring Western but keeps falling between two stools. The title character is both hero and villain, a crusader for justice but also a man hellbent on revenge.
The period atmosphere is gritty and ...
|
Jonah Hex (CNS)
Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie
Whimsical, computer-animated retelling of the biblical story of Jonah and the whale, featuring a salad-bar of Christian vegetables who sing and dance their way through this parable of God's unconditional love. Written and directed by Mike Nawrocki and Phil Vischer and based on the popular "Veggie Tales" video series, the movie's ...
|
Jonah: A Veggie Tales Movie (CNS)
Jonas Brothers: The 3-D Concert Experience
Upbeat concert film capturing performances during the popular boy band's 2008 "Burnin' Up" tour, interspersed with some behind-the-scenes footage of real-life siblings Kevin, Joe and Nick Jonas' life on the road and a lavish music video set in New York's Central Park. While the target audience of tween girls may be ...
|
Jonas Brothers: The 3-D Concert Experience (CNS)
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island
If the 2008 3D film “Journey to the Center of the Earth”
could be called a sequel to the story first published by the French novelist
Jules Verne in 1864, then “Journey 2: The Mysterious Island” is not only a
sequel to the film but to Verne’s 1874 novel “The Mysterious Island” as well.
The ...
|
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (SRR)
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island
Given the prescience and speculative power of his imagination regarding science and technology, it's safe to assume 19th-century author Jules Verne would enjoy watching 3-D movies. Alas, Verne would likely be disappointed by "Journey 2: The Mysterious Island" (Warner Bros.).
Although shot and projected in 3-D (and also available on Imax ...
|
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island (CNS)
Journey to the Center of the Earth
Enjoyable update of Jules Verne's classic 1864 novel with a present-day geology research professor (Brendan Fraser), his late explorer brother's son (Josh Hutcherson) and their Icelandic guide (Anita Briem) finding themselves deep below the earth's surface, reliving most of the incidents from the book. Though not as memorable as the Hollywood ...
|
Journey to the Center of the Earth (CNS)
Joyeux Noel
Click title to see this St. Anthony Messenger movie review.
|
Joyeux Noel (SAM)
Joyeux Noel
Click title to see this Every Day Catholic movie review.
|
Joyeux Noel (EDC)
Joyeux Noel
Intensely moving World War I tale of soldiers -- Scottish, French and German -- who spontaneously agree to a cease-fire on the Western front on Christmas Eve as they hear carols wafting from the enemy's trenches, intermingle and bond on a humanistic level, to the eventual disdain of their superiors. Writer-director ...
|
Joyeux Noel (CNS)
Joyful Noise
Divas duel and a red-state Romeo and Juliet fall for each other in "Joyful Noise" (Warner Bros.).
Though it gives a pass to an incidental out-of-wedlock fling, and showcases some humor and vocabulary that make it unsuitable for youngsters, writer-director Todd Graff's otherwise uplifting celebration of traditional values emphasizes trust in ...
|
Joyful Noise (CNS)
Joyful Noise
Queen Latifah and Dolly Parton play two church singers at odds with each other over who should lead the choir when the director, played by Kris Kristofferson, passes away. When the pastor, played by Courtney B. Vance, chooses Queen Latifa’s character Vi Rose instead of Dolly Parton’s GiGi, Christian charity becomes ...
|
Joyful Noise (SRR)
Julie & Julia
Post-World War II Paris and post-9/11 New York are the disparate settings for "Julie & Julia" (Columbia), writer-director Nora Ephron's charming, frequently funny portrait of two women who never met, but whose destinies were both shaped by one of the most influential books of the 20th century.
The ...
|
Julie & Julia (CNS)
Jumper
Chaotic science fiction thriller about a young man (Hayden Christensen) who learns he has the ability to transport himself instantly to any location around the globe, and how he teams with another Jumper (Jamie Bell) to fight an agent (Samuel Jackson) of the evil Paladin forces bent on their extermination. The ...
|
Jumper (CNS)
Jumping the Broom
Expertly performed faith-tinged family comedies such as "Jumping the Broom" (TriStar) are such a rare and welcome treat, is it even fair to quibble?
We must. The family secret at the heart of the plot is so emotionally painful and morally and legally complex, it would stop people in their tracks ...
|
Jumping the Broom (CNS)
Jungle Book 2, The
Fun-filled sequel to the 1967 animated classic about Mowgli (voice of Haley Joel Osment), a boy raised in the wild who must choose between life in a "man-village" and his jungle friends, including the lovable bear, Baloo (voice of John Goodman). While the new film lacks the originality and enduring appeal ...
|
Jungle Book 2, The (CNS)
Juno
Smart, funny and ultimately moving comedy-drama with a strong pro-life message about an unwed teen (an outstanding Ellen Page) who decides not to have an abortion, and promises the coming baby to a childless couple (Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner) who long to adopt. The narrative has just the right moral ...
|
Juno (CNS)
Juno
Click title to see this Every Day Catholic movie review.
|
Juno (EDC)
Jurassic Park
Moviegoers are in for some extreme excitement if they venture within the terrifying boundaries of "Jurassic Park" (Universal), now rereleased with 3-D effects.
Steven Spielberg directs the mother of all monster movies from Michael Crichton's best-selling novel, detailing what happens after genetically re-created dinosaurs break loose in a theme park and ...
|
Jurassic Park (CNS)
Just Friends
Leaden romantic comedy about a former overweight "loser" (Ryan Reynolds) turned suave and successful ladies man, who, while waylaid in his New Jersey home town, pursues the affections of his high-school best friend and crush (Amy Smart), who back then only saw him through platonic eyes. Despite ending on an admirably ...
|
Just Friends (CNS)
Just Go With It
Take a sophisticated classic farce—set it in Hawaii—then trash the piece, and you have "Just Go With It" (Columbia).
In this very loose—and sloppy—remake of 1969's "Cactus Flower," director Dennis Dugan and screenwriters Allan Loeb and Timothy Dowling supply Adam Sandler with the overload of potty humor on which nearly ...
|
Just Go With It (CNS)
Just Like Heaven
Charming romantic fantasy about a dedicated young doctor (Reese Witherspoon), comatose after a near-fatal car accident, whose spirit "haunts" a grieving widower (Mark Ruffalo) who has rented her former apartment. Despite a somewhat formulaic setup and an uncertain start, director Mark Waters directs with just the appropriate gossamer touch, and the ...
|
Just Like Heaven (CNS)
Just Married
Insipid romantic comedy about an average working Joe (Ashton Kutcher) and his wealthy bride (Brittany Murphy) whose disastrous European honeymoon nearly ends their brief marriage. Director Shawn Levy pushes sappy, cutesy and teary scenes in which the self-absorbed couple sulk, pout and scream until they come to their senses. A live-in ...
|
Just Married (CNS)
Just My Luck
Lightweight if likable romantic comedy set in New York about a girl (Lindsay Lohan) with uncanny luck and a guy (Chris Pine) with none, who magically swap fortunes through a chance encounter at a masquerade ball, winding up on polar ends of the luck spectrum and falling for each other, though ...
|
Just My Luck (CNS)
Just Wright
The familiar elements of both romantic comedy and inspirational sports films are seamlessly blended in "Just Wright" (Fox Searchlight).
Queen Latifah plays Leslie Wright, a super-competent physical therapist and hardcore New Jersey Nets fan who has come to accept—however ruefully—her status as every guy's nonromantic homegirl.
Her younger, attractive ...
|
Just Wright (CNS)
|
