SACRED PLANET (G) Robert Redford narrates this Large Format IMAX journey to various exotic locations around the world. (Not Reviewed)
THE STORY OF RICKY (R) A super-adrenalated hybrid of splatter film, comic strip and prison drama, Story of Ricky is one of the great guilty pleasures of the Golden Age of Hong Kong cinema. This 1991 exercise in bad taste is crammed to the gills with moments of jaw-dropping outrageousness — which no doubt accounts for its appearance at Madstone's Bad Art for Bad People party — and sensitive types are hereby given fair warning to stay far, far away. The movie, which details an incarcerated hero's ridiculously bloody encounters with a sadistic warden and his henchmen, is told in a snappy, self-aware and gleefully deranged style that gives new meaning to the term "over the top," while brilliantly emulating the Japanese manga (comic book) on which it was based. Exploding heads and mutilated body parts played for big laughs and, for those with strong stomachs and an appreciation for the perverse, raised to state-of-the-art status. Stars Fan Sui Wang, Yukari Oshima, Frankie Chin and Gloria Yip. Opens May 7 at Madstone Theaters. 
TAKING LIVES (R) Nothing sets Taking Lives apart from countless other crime thrillers (except Academy Award-winner Angelina Jolie's bare breasts). Jolie plays the foxy, fearless Illeana Scott, a top FBI profiler hired to track down a serial, chameleon-like killer who steals the identities of his victims. The movie takes a twist when Jolie's character finds herself the victim of deception. Certain aspects of the story are confusing and irrelevant, which is sort of a hallmark of this genre, as is the predictable ending and the inhospitable local police team threatened by a talented, methodological agent helping to solve a case. As holes gape in the plot, the movie's appeal fades. Also stars Ethan Hawke and Keifer Sutherland. 1/2 —Whitney Meers/Cooper Cruz
VAN HELSING (PG-13) A stale, incoherent belch of computer-generated sound and fury whose only knack seems to be the ability to simultaneously induce both headaches and comas. Even hardcore horror fans aren't likely to find much worthwhile in this bombastic mess in which a pair of fashionably dressed monster slayers (Hugh Jackman and Kate Beckinsale) spend a couple of hours running around like headless chickens, shooting bullets, arrows and stakes at anything that moves. The CGI effects are omnipresent and absolutely awful, with gigantic werewolves and Mr. Hyde's coming off as unintentional cartoons with all the personality of Casper the Friendly Ghost. The flesh and blood creatures don't fare much better, with Shuler Hensley making for an utterly bland Frankenstein monster, and Richard Roxburgh's ear-ringed and ponytailed Dracula coming off as a second-rate, Flamenco-dancing reject from the Gypsy Kings. The look of Van Helsing is darkly luxurious and faithful in its way to the old Universal horror films on which it's based, but director Stephen Sommers mistakes attractive set design for mood, and his movie is so frenetic it kills any chance for a poetic moment. The overkill factor extends to the pacing — Sommers simply fills the screen with one big, tedious fight scene after another — and all we can do is wonder what somebody like Guillermo del Toro might have done with this material. Also stars David Wenham and Kevin J. O'Connor. Opens May 7 at local theaters.
WEATHER UNDERGROUND (NR) Remember when terrorists were far more likely to be pampered white kids from New Jersey than Muslim fanatics from any number of Arab countries? Well, unless you're in the range of a half-century old or know your American history really well, you probably don't remember — but luckily, you have Sam Green and Bill Siegel's new documentary to remember for you. Weather Underground is the story of the infamous Weathermen, a group of '60s revolutionaries whose dedication to the violent overthrow of the U.S. government led to their bombings of dozens of public buildings (not excluding the Pentagon). Siegel and Green let the Weatherman tell their own story, assembling several former members who wax nostalgic about what it was like to be young, smart and high on sex, drugs and revolution. The talking heads present a fascinating portrait of what is essentially the flip side of peace 'n' love hippie-ism, but it's hard to shake the feeling that Weather Underground is letting its characters off the hook. The movie is an admirable beginning history lesson of the once-and-former Radical Left, but it doesn't go nearly deep enough in exploring the contradictions and ethical conundrums inherent in the movement. Even if the film doesn't exactly glamorize political terror, there are some problematic implications to be found here for anyone who cares to read between the lines.
