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Some releases may not be showing locally this week.
ANTONIA (PG-13) 2006. Four girls,
living in poverty in Sao Paulo, Brazil,
attempt to change their fate by form
ing a rap group. Writer-director Tata
Amaral's film won a Havana Film
Festival Award for Best Score, the
Special Jury Award from the Sao
Paulo International Film Festival, and
a Prize of the Ecumenical Jury from
the Czech Republic's Zlin International
Film Festival for Children and Youth;
Jie film was also nominated for the
Contigo for Best Motion Picture. Part
of the ACC Library’s iFilms series.
ASHES OF TIME REDUX(R)
Ouyang Feng (I eslie Cheung), a man
whose heart 'was broken when his love
married his brother, lives a solitary
life in the desert, hiring swordsmen
for contract killings. Ashes of Time
/My*also features Tony Leung Ka
Fai, Brigitte Lin, Tony Leung Chiu Wai,
Maggie Cheung and Charlie Yeung.
With the reedited version of his 1994
"wuxia pien" (heroic swordplay movie).
Wong Kar Wai (Chungking Express, In
the Mood for Love, 2046) has suppos
edly made up for the disappointing My
Blueberry Nights.
AUSTRALIA (PG-13) An epic
romance inspired by the films of David
Lean, a war movie not far removed from
Michael Bay’s Pearl Harbor, and most
surprisingly, a Western that might make
John Ford a little jealous, Australia
tries to be all things to all audiences,
succeeding often enough to cover up
the numerous blemishes that pock its
nearly three-hour visage.
BOLT (PG) Perfect puppy Bolt (v.
John Travolta) stars as a superpowered
pooch in a sci-fi/action series that the
Disney Channel has probably con
sidered airing in the past. The sharply
animated, directed and written flick
is the closest Disney has gotten to
achieving Pixar-like quality, possibly
due to the presence of Pixar founder
John Lasseter as executive producer
and Cars writer Dan Fogelman. Let's
hope this becomes the studio's rule,
not just a one film exception.
CHANGELING (R) On a Saturday in
1928, switchboard supervisor Christine
Collins (Angelina Jolie) goes to work,
leaving her nine-year-old son, Walter,
home alone. When she returns that
evening, Walter has disappeared, but
Christine's nightmare has just begun.
Five months later, fhe L.A.P.D., repre
sented by the forced cheerful grin of
Captain J.J. Jones (Jeffrey Donovan),
return Walter to his distraught mother
amid popping flashbulbs and scrib
bling reporters. But Christine doesn't
recognize this new, shorter, circum
cised boy. Unsurprisingly. Changeling
is another superb notch in the ever-
expanding, ever-elegant belt that holds
up Eastwood's directing slacks.
CHRISTMAS ON MARS (NR)
Christmas on Mars, amateurishly acted
by The Flaming Lips' family, friends
and road crew, is not a bad trip, yet
the apologistic caveat that it's awe
some if you're stoned won't cut it with
most filmgoers. Fans of the band will
surely be beside themselves with glee,
and anyone who enjoys a far-out film
experience won't leave disappointed.
Christmas on Mars will certainly vie
for future midnight movie revival, and
that is the highest compliment given
a low budget film of such curious
inconsistency.
THE DARK KNIGHT (PG-13) A comic
book-based film has never been so
dark, so real, so mystifying, and so
deep, rich with characterization, nimble
plotting, and intricate set pieces.
THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD
STILL (PG-13) The new Day the
Earth Stood Still won't impress older
viewers with a nostalgic soft spot for
the original, and younger viewers unfa
miliar with Klaatu and GORT probably
won’t care too much for this boring,
action-spotted sermon either.
DELGO (PG) Kudos to Atlanta-based
Fathom Studios for getting their first
feature made, marketed, and released,
but Delgo won't win them any more
praise. Two races of near identical
dino-people battle for supremacy over
their shared planet. Young Lockni
hero Delgo (v. Freddie Prinze Jr.) and
Nohrin Princess Kyla (v. Jennifer Love
Hewitt) swoon like star-crossed lov
ers, while civil war rages. Plus, Delgo
wields a Force-like power over magic
stones. The ‘big name" cast—Prinze,
Hewitt, Val Kilmer, Malcolm McDowell.
Michael Clarke Duncan, Oscar-winner
Louis Gossett Jr., Anne Bancroft. Eric
Idle. Chris Katlan, Kelly Ripa and Burt
Reynolds—were hired less for how
well they'd voice their characters and
more for what demographic they'd
attract. In a year that has produced
WALL •£, Kung Fu Panda, and Bolt.
Delgo looks especially substandard.
I've played crappy videogames with
better animation and stories
EAGLE EYE (PG-13) Slacker Jerry
Shaw (Shia LaBeouf) starts receiving
mysterious phone calls leading him
across the country on a mission with
national security implications. Soon,
the FBI. the Air Force and the Pentagon
are searching for Jerry and his part
ner. single mom Rachel Holloman
(Michelle Monaghan), as they get
closer and closer to the target selected
by the shady lady on the phone. Eagle
Eye is interesting and engaging, but
it is not the least bit fun. The tedious
setup, almost all of it seen in the trailer,
actually gives way to an intriguing sce
nario whose course I couldn't plot, and
whose destination I wanted to reach.
Too bad getting there is so bumpy.
THE FAMILY THAT PREYS (PG-13)
Perry's latest may be his best film to
date. Perry’s continued efforts to diver
sity his characters—and presumably
audience—needs work, but this juicy
melodrama is just the right amount of
overcooked for those with a taste for
the auteur's dishes.
FOUR CHRISTMASES (PG-13) Four
Christmases may be the funniest holi
day movie since National Lampoon's
Christmas Vacation. It remains comi
cally nimble, never staying with one
famiiy for too long. Spending an entire
film with any of these households
would be too much for any viewer
to bear. However, another disastrous
familial encounter with Jon Favreau,
Tim McGraw, Kristen Chenoweth or
Dwight Yoakum is never more than
20 minutes away. Four Christmases
should amuse anyone but those
Grinches and Scrooges incapable of
enjoying a salty, sweet Christmas treat.
HAPPY-GO-LUCKY (R) Thirty-year-
old. primary schoolteacher Poppy
(Sally Hawkins) is London's most
incorrigibly, dangerously upbeat
woman. Mike Leigh’s meandering
film simply goes where Poppy goes,
and she goes to a lot of random .
places During the joyously pleas
ant Happy-Go-Lucky, Leigh's rifling
through Poppy's pocketbook of life,
trying to figure out how she remains
so optimistic in a world that's gone to
shit. Poppy trudges on. determined to
make everyone happy, and that dogged
determination fascinates Leigh, who
passes that interest along through his
winning film.
MADAGASCAR:ESCAPE 2
AFRICA (PG) Former New York City
Zoo residents Alex (v. Ben Stiller),
Marty (v. Chris Rock), Gloria (v. Jada
Pinkett Smith), and Melman (v. David
Schwimmer) are jazzed to finally leave
Madagascar, but their plane, piloted by
those psycho penguins, crash lands
in Africa. On the beautiful savannas of
an animal reserve, these not-so-wild
animals get in touch with their roots.
Alex meets his parents (v. Bernie Mac
and Sherri Shepard); Marty learns
zebras share a strange collective mind;
Gloria finds a hippo, Moto Moto (v.
Will.i.Am), looking for some big loving;
and Melman becomes a witch doctor.
The animal antics are cute, and the PG
jokes are harmless.
METROPOLITAN OPERA: THAIS
An opera by Jules Massenet, based on
the novel by Anatole France, first per
formed in Paris in 1894. Set in Roman
Egypt, the plot revolves around the
attempted conversion of a courtesan,
Thais, by a Christian monk. Athanaei.
With its erotic undertones, this opera
has inspired many controversial pro
ductions, although it is seldom part of
the standard operatic repertoire.
MILK (R) When Harvey Milk (Sean
Penn) became the nation's first openly
gay elected official, he changed the
world. A year later, he and mayor
George Moscone (Victor Garber) were
dead, assassinated by former city
supervisor Dan White (Josh Brolin).
Oscar-nominee Gus Van Sant gives
independent filmmaking (Elephant,
Last Days, Paranoid Park) a break, and
the result could be a multiple Oscar
nominee, judging from the sensational
trailer. With Emile Hirsch, Diego Luna
and James Franco.
NOTHING LIKE THE HOLIDAYS
(PG-13) Nothing Like the Holidays
is the Hispanic version of last year's
Alrican-American This Christmas,
itself a variation on 2005's whitebread
The Family Stone. Like holiday
standards, all three are sentimentally
sturdy enough to be sung in a variety
of styles and languages. Nothing
Like the Hol'dayd Humboldt Park-
based Rodriguez clan—patriarch
Edy (Alfred Molina), matriarch Ana
(Elizabeth Pefla). and kids (John
Leguizamo, Vanessa Ferlito, and
Freddy Rodriguez)—are just struggling
to celebrate the season in accented
Spanglish. Fortunately, the sappy
cliches and stale jokes are wrapped
with vivacious performances and
seasonal spirif a plenty. It gels boring
and predictably melodramatic in the
third act. but what do you expect? It’s
the holidays
PUNISHER: WAR ZONE (R) The
third big-screen incarnation of Marvel
Comics' vigilante hero. Punisher: War
Zone is one goopy, gory, violent flick.
It won't make anyone forget The Dark
Knight, but fans of blood or Marvel's
avenger will think it a kick.
OUANTUM OF SOLACE (PG-13)
From the opening sequence—a car
chase on a twisty, scenic Italian high
way—the 22nd James Bond film feels
more like a traditional Bond movie
than its immediate predecessor, Casino
Royale. The most strapping Bond,
Daniel Craig brings the cold virility
wrote about by Fleming in the original
novels. Craig also displays the proper
dry Brit wit one expects from their
Bond when the exchange, be it with
Judi Dench's wonderful M or villains
like Casino Royalds bloody-teared Le
Chiffre or Dominic Greene, requires it.
QUARANTINE (R) A reporter. Angela
Vidal (Jennifer Carpenter, Showtime's
superb serial killer serial, 'Dexter"), •
and her cameraman, Scott (Steve
Harris, "The Practice"), are tasked with
following a Los Angeles fire station for
a night. Instead, they end up trapped in
an apartment building with its vicious
infected residents. The entire movie
unfolds through the footage shot by
Scott, a gambit that lends Quarantine
an effective you-are-there chilliness
that will please genre fans looking for
some Blair Witch-style scares.
RELIGULOUS (R) Smug comedian
Bill Maher usually has a lot of answers,
but in the irreverent, funny Religulous,
he has a lot of questions. As offensive
as Maher can get. he never comes off
as mean-spirited during his cross
country querying of several religious
leaders and followers. Believers blindly
clinging to their faith will probably have
a hard time hearing Maher’s doubt
laden conclusions, but anyone with an
open mind should walk away with a few
complex quesfions where once existed
simple answers.
ROLE MODELS (R) Danny (Paul
Rudd), working the same pointless
job—he shills an energy drink called
Minotaur—for 10 years, is in a rut.
He hates his life, and consequentially,
the world. Winding up on the wrong
side of the law. Danny and his best
friend/coworker. Wheeler (Seann
William Scott) are sentenced to 150
hours of community service at a Big
Brother program called Sturdy Wings.
Naturally, life lessons are learned by
everyone, especially the two man-
children. Director Wain (Wet Hot
American Summer, The Ten) sets the
perfect tone for each scene, allowing
Rudd, Scott, and the other undervalued
supporting piayers to do what they do
MOVIE LISTINGS
Theater schedules often change after our deadline. Please call ahead.
ACC LIBRARY (706-613-3650)
Antonia (PG-13) 7:00 (Th. 12/18)
BEECHWOOD (706-546-1011)
Due to production deadlines. Beechwood movie times are
only accurate through December 18. Visit www Flagpole.com
for updated times.
Australia (PG-13) 4:35, 8:05
Bolt (PG) 5:15, 7:45
Bolt (3D) (PG) 4:30, 7:00, 9:15
The Day the Earth Stood Still (PG-13) 4:50. 6:30,
7:15, 9:00, 10:00
Delgo (PG) 4:55, 7:05, 9:20
Four Christmases (PG-13) 4:40, 7:10, 9:25
Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (PG) 4:45, 7:20 (no
7:20 show W. 12/17)
Metropolitan Opera: Thais (NR) noon (Sa. 12/20)
Nothing Like the Holidays (PG-13) 5:00, 7:25, 9:50
Punisher: War Zone (R) 9:55
Quantum of Solace (PG-13) 4:45, 7:30, 10:00
Transporter 3 (PG-13) 9:35 (no shows W. 12/17)
Twilight (PG-13) 4:15. 7:05. 9:45
CARMIKi 12 (706-354-0016)
Due to production deadlines, Carmtke movie times are only
accurate through December 18. Visit www Flagpole.com for
updated times.
Australia (PG-13) 1:00, 4:30. 7:45
Bolt (3D) (PG) 12:30, 2:45, 5:00, 7:15, 9:30
The Day the Earth Stood Still (PG-13) 12:30, 1:00,
2:50, 4:00, 5:10, 7:00. 7:30, 9:45, 10:00
Delgo (PG) 12:30. 2:45, 5:00, 7:15, 9:30
Four Christmases (PG-13) 1:00, 3:15, 5:30, 7:45,
10:00
Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (PG) 1:30, 4:30
Nothing Like the Holidays (PG-13) 12:45, 3:00,
5:15, 7:30, 9:45
Punisher: War Zone (R) 1:00, 4:20, 7:00, 9:45
Quantum of Solace (PG-13) 7:00, 9:40
Role Models (R) 1:00, 3:15, 5:30, 7:45, 10:00
Transporter 3 (PG-13) 12:45, 3:00, 5:15, 7:30, 9:45
Twilight (PG-13) 1:30, 4:15. 7:00, 9:45
CINE (706-353-3343)
Cm6 will be closed on Chnslmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Ashes of Time Redux (R) 5:00, 7:00, 9:00 (add'l time
Sa. 12/20-Su. 12/21: 3:00) (no 9:00 show Su. 12/21)
(starts F. 12/19)
Christmas on Mars (NR) 9:00 (Th. 12/18-Sa. 12/20)
Happy-Go-Lucky (R) 5:00. 7:30 (no 7:30 show W.
12/17)(ends Th. 12/18)
Religulous (R) 9:55 (no show W. 12/17) (ends Th.
12/18)
Synecdoche, New York (R) 4:30, 7:15, 9:45 (add'l
time Sa. 12/20-Su. 12/21: 2:00) (no 9:45 show Su.
12/21)
Tell Me Do You Miss Me (NR) 7:30, 9:30 (W. 12/17)
GEORGIA SQUARE 5 (706-548-3426)
Due to production deadlines. Georgia Square Five movie
times are only accurate through December 18. Visit www.
Flagpole.com for updated times.
Changeling (R) 4:00, 7:00, 10:00
The Dark Knight (PG-13) 4:10, 7:45
Eagle Eye (PG-13) 4:10, 7:10, 9:55
The Family That Preys (PG-13) 4:05, 9:45
Quarantine (R) 5:20, 7:30, 9:40
WALL»E (G) 7:05
HWY 17 DRIVE-IN THEATERS (706-213-7693)
Delgo (PG) 7:00 (F. 12/19-Su. 12/21)
Twilight (PG-13) 7:00 (F. 12/19-Su. 12/21)
best; make people laugh. Role Models
is so laugh out loud funny you’ll have
to see it twice.
SEVEN POUNDS (PG-13) Will Smith
reteams with his Pursuit of Happyness
director, Gabriele Muccino, tor another
sad, ultimately uplifting tearjerker.
Smith stars as a suicidal man looking
to change the lives of seven strangers
after he finds love with an ill woman
(Rosario Dawson). If everything goes
according to plan, Smith could be
looking at a third Best Actor nomina
tion. With Woody Harrelson, Barry
Pepper, Michael Ealy and Connor
Cruise, the 13-year-old adopted son of
Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman
SYNECDOCHE, NEW YORK (R) See
Movie Pick.
THE TALE OF DESPEREAUX (G)
Despereaux (v. Matthew Broderick), a
mouse with big ears and bigger cour
age, must prove his mettle after being
banished from his home. In fhe human
world. Despereaux befriends Princess
Pea (v. Emma Watson) and Roscuro the
Rat (v. Dustin Hoffman). What hopes to
be the holidays' biggest animated fam
ily film is based on Kate DiCamillo's
Newberry Medal winning book.
TELL ME DO YOU MISS ME (NR)
2006. In Tell Me Do You Miss Me,
celebrated New York-based indie
rock band Luna—vocalist/guitarist
Dean Wareham. guitarist Sean Eden,
bassist Britta Phillips, and drummer
Lee Wall—bare their musical souls,
discussing the limit of their ambitions,
the modesty of their success, and their
feelings for one another while prepping
for their final world tour, spanning
England. Japan and Spain. Filmmaker
Matthew Buzzell and guitarist Eden will
discuss the film following the 7:30 p.m.
show and will stick around to introduce
the 9:30 p.m. show.
TRANSPORTER 3 (PG-13) The
Transporter flicks, all three of them,
but especially the third, know exactly
what they are. They are guilty pleasures
meant to while away an afternoon, not
to win awards or critical accolades.
Filled with the chopsocky, MMA
action we've come to expect from that
strangely charismatic Neanderthal,
Statham, and some wicked stunt driv
ing, Transporter 3 w\\ please franchise
diehards as well as those action fans
who’ve yet to realize the 1980s are over.
TWILIGHT (PG-13) Fortunately,
Twilight \sn'\ the unmitigated disaster
I anticipated. Director Catherine
Hardwicke and screenwriter Melissa
Rosenberg (Step Up) have made the
best film they could from the source
material provided by Stephanie Meyer.
Thanks to a writer and director that
took the Romeo and Juliet courtship
of a vampire and a human seriously,
the film rises above giggle-inducing
dialogue, groan-inducing vampire
super-speed and strength, and a sim
plistic makeup-and-snarl depiction of
its central monsters.
WALL«E (PG) Leave it to Finding
Nemo writer/director Andrew Stanton
to rocket Pixar back to the animated
heavens With WALL*E, a deeply
human story with only minimal human
interaction and maximum entertain
ment value, Pixar again pulls off their
most stunning feat, making the rare
creation of an animated masterpiece
look so easy.
YES MAN (PG-13) In Jim Carrey
plays Carl Allen, a man known for
saying no. who commits to saying yes
to every request for an entire year. The
trailer supplies a few laughs, but even
at that truncated length, the premise
wears thin by the time Carrey is annoy
ingly harassing Zooey Deschanel about
Red Bull. Forgetting Sarah Marshall
director Nicholas Stoller cowrote the
adaptation of Danny Wallace's memoir.
With Bradley Cooper, Terence Stamp
and John Michael Higgins.
Drew Wheeler
16 FLAGPOLE.COM • DECEMBER 17, 2008