25TH HOUR (PG-13) Spike Lee's melancholy mess of a movie stars Edward Norton as a big-time Manhattan drug dealer brooding away his last day of freedom before going away for a seven-year prison stretch. There's no real story arc to the film (no real story, period, come to think of it), just Monty wandering around in a state of emotional near-paralysis, glaring at everyone and everything, including himself. Also stars Philip Seymour Hoffman, Barry Pepper, Rosario Dawson, Anna Paquin and Brian Cox. 
ABOUT SCHMIDT (R) Jack Nicholson is resplendently bland in this skewed character study of an ordinary, retired insurance salesman with penchant for crankiness and a bad comb-over (is there such a thing as a good comb-over?). After his wife suddenly dies, Nicholson's Schmidt hops in his 30-foot Winnebago and embarks on a mini-road trip revisiting his past — only to find he doesn't really seem to have a past, or a future. Also stars Hope Davis, Dermot Mulroney, Kathy Bates and Howard Hesseman. 1/2
ADAPTATION (PG) Like their earlier Being John Malkovich, screenwriter Charlie Kaufman and director Spike Jonze's latest is a nearly indescribable meta-adventure that grabs real life by the short-and-curlies and uses it as a jumping-off point for some of the most fiercely imaginative filmmaking around. Kaufman makes himself the movie's central character and gets Nicolas Cage to play him, turning the bulk of the film into Cage/Kaufman obsessing about himself, about his constantly morphing new script (also called Adaptation), and about the creative process in general. Also stars Meryl Streep, Chris Cooper and Brian Cox.
ANTWONE FISHER (PG-13) Denzel Washington's directorial debut is a sort of African-American Equus, starring Washington himself as a navy psychiatrist doing his best to help a troubled young seaman. Also stars Derek Luke and Joy Bryant.
CATCH ME IF YOU CAN (PG) Steven Spielberg's movie about the world's most successful con man is glossy Fun with a Capital F, a snappy old-school caper that never takes itself too seriously. Leonardo DiCaprio stars as Frank Abagnale, a high school dropout who in the 1960s successfully impersonated a doctor, a lawyer and an airline pilot, and who passed some 4-million worth of forged checks, all before his 21st birthday. Also stars Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken, Martin Sheen and Nathalie Baye. 1/2
CHICAGO (PG-13) Rob Marshall pulls out all the stops in this lavish, big-screen adaptation of the hit Broadway musical about a 1920s chorus girl who shoots her lover, goes to jail and becomes a big celebrity. Taking place simultaneously in gritty reality and in the projected fantasies of its characters, the movie cleverly folds its story into a series of show-stopping musical numbers. Stars Rene Zelwegger, Richard Gere, Catherine Zeta-Jones, John C. Reilly and Taye Diggs.
CONFESSIONS OF A DANGEROUS MIND (R) The latest script from Charlie Kaufman (Adaptation) is based on the "unauthorized autobiography" of gonzo Gong Show host Chuck Barris. That's only a jumping-off place, however, for a feature-length fever dream as personal, edgy and just plain odd as anything we've seen from Kaufman, and directed in surprisingly surefooted style by hunk-turned-auteur George Clooney. The film unfolds as a loopy, extended flashback, a peek inside the aggressive but weirdly fragile personality of genius-cum-village-idiot Barris (a hound-dog-mugged, superlatively rumpled Sam Rockwell). There's an actual life-story skittering about somewhere within the decidedly nonlinear narrative of Clooney's movie, but this darkly comic vision is far closer to metafiction than it is to anything remotely resembling a standard bio-pic. The best bits in this material exist between the lines, and that's where Clooney allows us to find them. Also stars Drew Barrymore, Julia Roberts, George Clooney and Rutger Hauer. 1/2
DARKNESS FALLS (PG-13) As a child, Kyle (Cheney Kley) has a brush with the curse of Darkness Falls, a creature that kills anyone who sees its face and that can only attack in the dark. He returns to the town years later when his childhood friend Caitlin (Emma Caulfield) asks him to help her brother Michael (Lee Cormie), who has suddenly become deathly afraid of the dark. The story is fast-paced, creepy and original, and the special effects, mainly brief glimpses of the creature and the sounds of its sighs and wails, round out a well-crafted movie. Darkness Falls is enough to make anyone at least a teensy bit scared of the dark. —Ana Lopez
DIE ANOTHER DAY (PG-13) It's a long way from Once Were Warriors for director Lee Tamahori, who helms this latest Bond blowout in which 007 tracks traitors and terrorists from North Korea to Cuba to Iceland. The plot's pretty convoluted (as all the recent Bonds have been), some of the CGI effects are awfully cheesy, and the movie overstays its welcome by a good 20 minutes. Stars Pierce Brosnan, Halle Berry, Rosamund Pike and Stephen Yune. 1/2
DRUMLINE (PG-13) Although Drumline can be cliched and manipulative, it has genuine excitement for its subject matter. The movie is set in fictitious Atlanta A&T. The college's newest scholarship hotshot Devon Miles (Nick Cannon) has unparalleled gifts as a snare drummer, which he knows all too well. With his arrogant attitude he frequently butts heads with high-minded music director Dr. Lee (Orlando Jones) and drum major Sean (Leonard Roberts). Scripters Tina Gordon Chism and Shawn Schepps quickly show that they're well versed in the dynamics of college marching bands. 1/2—CURT HOLMAN
EL CRIMEN DEL PADRE AMARO (R) The Mexican import, which involves a young priest in a sexual relationship with a 16-year-old girl, doesn't offer much beyond the sensationalism of its subject matter. The film's much more interested in heavy-breathing melodrama and naked skin than nuance. In all, El Crimen del Padre Amaro is a rather flat, unimaginative handling of material that might be better suited to a Mexican TV soap opera. At Channelside Cinemas in Tampa and Burns Court in Sarasota. Call theater to confirm. 1/2
FINAL DESTINATION 2 (R) In this sequel to the psychological thriller that attempts to dispel the myth of accidental death, the premise remains the same. Death, shrouded in mystique, determines everyone's expiration date. When the timeline of fate is disrupted, reverberations of wanton tragedy follow. The plot flows well but obviously cannot be taken too seriously. The film relies on death's cruel and gory manifestations to yield cheap thrills. Stars Ali Larter, A.J. Cook, Michael Landes. 1/2—Corey Myers
FOOD OF LOVE (NR) Based on David Leavitt's acclaimed novel The Page Turner, the film is a romantic coming-of-age story set in the world of classical music. Filmed on location in Barcelona and New York City, the story follows Paul Porterfield (Kevin Bishop), an attractive young American just beginning to face the challenges of adulthood. A promising pianist, he is hired to be a page-turner for his idol, the internationally renowned concert pianist Richard Kennington (Paul Rhys). The two men immediately feel a mutual attraction, which is later re-ignited when they accidentally meet in Barcelona. (Not Reviewed)
GANGS OF NEW YORK (R) Martin Scorsese's enormously ambitious new film about mid-1800s blood feuds and power struggles is a huge, magnificently sprawling thing that manifests all the power and resonance of classical myth. The movie's focus is the love-hate relationship between the characters played by Daniel Day-Lewis and Leonardo DiCaprio, but Scorsese constantly layers his cinematic mural with additional characters, historical nuances and stories-within-stories. Gangs of New York is certainly History Writ Large, but the bulk of it is as accessible as anything this director's ever done. The movie is big, bloody, ornate, passionate and full of over-the-top emotions, like a grand opera re-imagined as a really cool comic book. Also stars Cameron Diaz.
THE GURU (R) Party Girl director Daisy Von Scherler Mayer has removed any sliver of her previous offbeat charm from this trite story of trendy New Yorkers who glom onto a struggling Indian actor (Jimi Mistry) masquerading as a spiritual leader and "Guru of Sex." Heather Graham returns to familiar territory as a sweet porn star who advises the New Age swami in this fluffy romantic comedy with a rank center. —Felicia Feaster
A GUY THING (PG-13) Paul (Jason Lee) is slated to get married in a week when he wakes up after his bachelor party to find a strange girl named Becky (Julia Stiles) in his bed. Desperate to make sure that his fiancee, Karen, played by Selma Blair, doesn't find out, Paul begins telling fib upon fib to save his impending nuptials. The film's main problem is that it's difficult to see Jason Lee as anyone other than himself on screen. Blair, on the other hand, slips easily into the role of the perfect if dispassionate bride-to-be, while Stiles plays the cool and quirky Becky well enough. Also stars James Brolin. —Ana LopezHOW TO LOSE A GUY IN 10 DAYS (PG-13) Matthew McConaughey plays a raconteur who makes a bet he can stay in a relationship for more than 10 days, but picks the wrong woman (Kate Hudson), who desperately wants to ditch him. (Not Reviewed)
THE HOURS (PG-13) The film interweaves moments from the lives of three women living in three separate times and places, straining to establish unifying themes involving feminine strength (or lack thereof), motherhood, lesbianism and suicide. In the best segment, the writer Virginia Woolf (Nicole Kidman) skulks about in 1923, chain-smoking and mulling over ideas for a new book. In the worst segment, a contemporary New York publisher (Meryl Streep), nicknamed for a character in Woolf's book, prepares a party for Harris' dying writer. In between, there's Julianne Moore as a 1950s housewife who reads Woolf's book, quietly cracks up, and checks into a hotel with a year's supply of sleeping pills. Also stars Toni Collette and Claire Danes.
JUST MARRIED (PG-13) This slapstick-filled, European-scenery-drenched romantic comedy stars the good-looking actor who plays Kelso on That '70s show and the cute actress (Brittany Murphy) who's Luanne's mouthpiece on King of the Hill and Eminem's booty call in 8 Mile. The nauseatingly ubiquitous real-life couple play newlyweds caught in the crossfire of disapproving parents and friends. Of course, mayhem ensues. (Not Reviewed)
KANGAROO JACK (PG) Lookin' for something loopy? This film concerns two longtime friends who get entangled with the mob and are forced to deliver 100,000 to Australia. It all gets out of control when the money is lost to a wild kangaroo. (Not Reviewed)LORD OF THE RINGS: THE TWO TOWERS (PG-13) Peter Jackson's second installment of J.R.R. Tolkien's saga is an even more richly detailed tale than the first. The new movie communicates even more vividly the essence of the astonishing world it imagines — a place where the kingdoms of men coexist with all manner of strange creatures and where magic supercedes science in a way that Harry Potter can only dream about. Stars Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen and Christopher Lee. 1/2
MAID IN MANHATTAN (PG-13) A senatorial candidate falls for a hotel maid, mistaking her for a socialite after seeing her in an elegant dress that actually belongs to one of the hotel's wealthy patrons. Stars Jennifer Lopez, Ralph Fiennes and Stanley Tucci. (Not Reviewed)
MAX (PG-13) Noah Taylor plays a young, pre-Fuhrer Hitler struggling to sell his hopelessly mediocre paintings in Munich circa 1918. John Cusack plays Max Rothman, a Jewish art dealer who encourages the young Hitler, despite radical dissimilarities in the two men's aesthetics and personalities. It's not nearly as ridiculous as you might think, but the film suffers on several levels, beginning with the fact that its primary focus is not Hitler at all, but its title character, who's simply not terribly interesting.
MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING (PG) Nia Vardalos stars in this sweet-natured, sporadically amusing adaptation of her one-woman show about a plain Greek-American woman who transforms herself into a babe and hooks up with her Prince Charming — who, much to the chagrin of her loud and proud Greek family, turns out to be as WASP-y as they come. In all, Greek Wedding probably worked better on stage than on the big screen. Also stars John Corbett, Michael Constantine, Lainie Kazan and Andrea Martin. 1/2
NARC (R) Not a bad movie, but nothing too far removed from the usual cops 'n' robbers fare that passes through the multiplexes on a regular basis. Narc's primary strength is the intense performance by Ray Liotta; he's cast as a detective whose best friend, a fellow cop, was murdered while investigating drug running on the streets of Detroit. Also stars Jason Patric. —Matt Brunson
NATIONAL SECURITY (PG-13) Ex L.A. cop Hank Rafferty (Steve Zahn) and police academy reject Earl Montgomery (Martin Lawrence), form an unlikely duo as security guards on a hunt to find the bad guys who killed Hank's partner. The plot isn't anything spectacular, but it provides an occasionally effective platform for the comic pairing of competent and determined Hank with thrill-seeking Earl. The story drags a little at times, and some characters' motivations seem weak, but Earl's smart mouth and his chemistry with Hank minimize the movie's flaws. Also stars Bill Duke and Eric Roberts. 1/2—Ana Lopez
THE PIANIST (R) Roman Polanski's film is based on the memoirs of Polish-Jewish classical pianist Wladyslaw Szpilman, who continued to be devoted to his art, even as he watched his world crumble and suffered an endless series of horrors and humiliations designed to rob him and others like him of dignity, humanity and, ultimately, life. The film's cool, reserved and utterly unsentimental style might sound at odds with the extremity of the subject matter, but it's all the more haunting for it. Stars Adrien Brody, Thomas Kretschmann, Ed Stoppard and Frank Finlay.
RABBIT-PROOF FENCE (PG) Director Phillip Noyce's quietly moving tale exposes one of the Western world's dirtiest little secrets. Rabbit-Proof Fence focuses on the execrable racial laws in effect in Australia for much of the 20th century, when countless children of mixed aboriginal and white parentage were kidnapped by government employees and imprisoned in "re-education" centers. The film takes place in 1931 and is based on the true story of three young Aboriginal girls who escaped from one of these centers and trekked some 1,500 miles across the Outback to get back home.
THE RECRUIT (PG-13) Slick, briskly paced but ultimately forgettable thriller starring Colin Farrell as a MIT whiz kid tapped by veteran spook Al Pacino to work for the CIA. The movie's first half is fairly interesting as it depicts Farrell's basic training, awkwardly folding in a romantic interest subplot, while the later sections are a strictly by-the-numbers account of Farrell routing out a mole. It's all handled in a steady, competent manner, with solid performances all around, but with few real thrills and even less surprises. The movie feels too small and cramped to generate much excitement and it's too glossy to communicate the sort of paranoia and quiet menace it clearly wants us to feel. Also stars Bridget Moynahan. Opens Jan. 31 at local theaters.
SHANGHAI KNIGHTS (PG-13) Chon (Jackie Chan) and Roy (Owen Wilson) are reunited when Chon's estranged father is murdered by a Chinese rebel, who escapes to England. What else could be on the intrepid duo's mind but revenge? Oh, and toss in a worldwide conspiracy to murder the royal family. (Not Reviewed)
STAR TREK: NEMESIS (PG-13) This by-the-numbers entry in the Next Generation franchise pits the Enterprise crew against a bad-tempered Picard clone with an agenda that includes destroying the Federation. The movie meanders during its first hour, leaving us uncertain of what its actual plot is, then bombards us with routine action scenes during its second half. The whole production feels flat, tired and hopelessly pedestrian.
TWO WEEKS NOTICE (PG-13) What you see is what you get in this pleasant but thoroughly unsurprising romantic comedy that stars Hugh Grant and Sandra Bullock doing what each does best. Bullock plays a smart, slightly neurotic but thoroughly adorable lawyer who goes to work for Grant. They're complete opposites — he's a filthy rich Republican and she's a neo-hippie political activist – so, naturally, they fall in love. The script is short on originality or big laughs, but there are no real missteps either. Also stars Alicia Witt. —Reviewed entries by Lance Goldenberg unless otherwise noted.
This article appears in Jan 29 – Feb 4, 2003.