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ARTHUR CHRISTMAS iPG) Santas
youngest son. Arthur Christmas (v
James McAvoy). hopes to use his
dad's high-tech equipment, capable ot
delivering toys worldwide in a single
night, to complete an urgent .Christmas
Eve mission. Aardman Animations,
the studio behind Wallace & Gromit,
return for their first feature since
Flushed Away, which didn't quite set
the box office afire The very British
cast includes Jim Broadbent as Santa,
Imelda Staunton as Mrs Claus. Bill
Nighy as Grandsanta and Hugh Laurie
as Steve.
AVERY HAROLDS KUMAR
CHRISTMAS (R) Six years after the
doped duos adventures in Guantanamo
Bay. Harold and Kumar (John Cho and
Kal Penn) get into the 3D Christmas
spirit alter Kumar burns down Harold's
father-in-law's prized Christmas
tree This tragedy sends them on a
night-long search for the perfect tree
that involves Neil Patrick Harris and
shooting Santa Claus The trailers are
making sure to push the high quotient
of sex and violence, especially during
Sunday s NFL games on Fox.
CONTAGION (PG-13) Steven
Soderbergh's new "What if ."epi
demic chiller is an excellent feature-
length Twilight Zone" What if a deadly
new, highly communicable virus
entered the population? How quickly
and effectively would the world's
governments and health agencies
(represented by Laurence Fishburne.
Kate Winslet. Bryan Cranston and
Marion Cotillard) respond 7 What sort
ot wildfire vYould spread via the blogo-
sphere (thanks. Jude Law) 7 How would
the rest of us (Matt Damon stars as the
people's proxy) respond as loved ones
(like Gwyneth Paltrow) quickly and
mysteriously fall ill 7 Screenwriter Scott
Z Burns (The Informant) answers all
these queries as Soderbergh clinically
depicts this eerily possible apocalyptic
scenario This excellent human horror
movie is unfolds like a zombie movie
where the zombies are microscopic and
nearly impossible to avoid Tension
builds and spread like the dully named
virus. MEV-1 Contagion plucks
chords tonally similar to those ot Jose
Saramago's novel. Blindness, but more
effectively than Fernando Meirelles'
adaptation Extra points for Cliff
Martinez's pulsing, electronic score
FOOTLOOSE (PG-13) Let's go ahead
and dispel any thoughts that the Kevin
Bacon slarrer is somehow above being
remade What Hustle & Flow filmmaker
Craig Brewer has done in remaking the
seminal '80s flick is impressive. Brewer
relocates the dance banning town of
Bomont from Oklahoma to Georgia,
adding another film to Brewer's resume
of intriguing cinematic stories about
the New South Ren MacCormack
(Kenny Wormald, looking like he
transferred from Rydell High) migrates
south to live with his aunt and uncle
(Kim Dickens and scene-stealing Ray
McKinnon, an Adel native and Oscar
winner) There he runs afoul of Rev
Shaw Moore (Dennis Quaid). who
instituted the dancing ban after his
son died in a car accident, and woos
Moore's beautiful, troubled daughter,
Ariel (Julianne Hough. 'Dancing with
the Stars”) Brewer's movie has a nice
rhythm and does the South more
justice than any other major Hollywood
release Appealing supporting turns
by Miles Teller and Ziah Colon in the
roles originated by the late Chris Penn
and Sarah Jessica Parker are central
to the movie's nostalgic success, but
the excellent use and updating of the
bestselling soundtrack seals the deal
Get ready to kick off those Sunday
shoes again.
• HAPPY FEET TWO (PG) Maybe
I don t get the appeal of penguins
Neither animated feature has interested
me very much despite the high qual
ity computer animation and voice
work Happy Feet Two might be the
most bored I have been in a theater
this year First film hero Mumble (v
Elijah Wood) must rescue his entire
penguin colony after a glacial calamity
Fortunately, he can count on the help
of best bud, Ramon (again energeti
cally voiced Ly Robin Williams), new
flying pal. the Mighty Sven (v Hank
Azaria). and some elephant seals led by
Beachmasler Brian (v Richard Carter)
The plot is a non-starter needed to
justify a number of song-and-dance
routines a la "Glee ” The climactic
rendition of ' Under Pressure” might
not make up for the boredom that pre
cedes it. but it sure outshines any other
scene. If not for the scene-stealing Brad
Pitt and Matt Damon as a punny Krill
duo. one might not even realize they're
not watching the first film
HOLLYWOOD COP (NR) 1987 Bad
Movie Night fave filmmaker Amir
Shervan gets a second screening
with his first English language film, a
precursor to Samurai Cop, screened
on Bad Movie Night back in July 2010.
Don't be fooled by the seeming appear
ance of famed actor Robert Mitchum;
that near lookalike is actually his oldest
son. Jim Mitchum. Astute observers
might also recognize Troy Donahue and
Aldo Ray. Oh. you're probably dying to
know what Hollywood Cop is about 7
Some generic potboiler about a detec
tive rescuing a kidnapped kid from
gangsters.
HUGO (PG) Legendary filmmaker
Martin Scorsese directs his first family
film and his first 3D movie on me cusp
of 70 In 1930s Paris, a young boy
named Hugo (Asa Butterfield, The Boy
in the Striped Pajamas) investigates a
mystery involving his late father and an
automaton. Academy Award nominated
screenwriter John Logan (Gladiator and
The Aviator) adapts the book by Brian
Selznick With Sacha Baron Cohen,
Chloe Grace Moretz. Ray Winstone and
Jude Law
IMMORTALS (R)An in-spirit
sequel of styie to Zack Snyder's 300,
Immortals cannot conjure the historical
magic of that 2006 blockbuster, but it is
certainly more visually appealing than
the bland, ugly Clash ot the Titans
One of Greek mythology's greatest
mortal heroes. Theseus (Henry Cavill,
the soon-to-be-Superman), gets his
exploits to foil King Hyperion’s (a
quirky Mickey Rourke, who one can
imagine bullying his way to portray
ing the villainous royal however he
damn well pleased) plan to release
the Titans and overthrow the gods
told on the big screen. Quite probably
the most visually striking film of the
year, thanks to the genius of director
Tarsem Singh (The Celt), the action
adventure fails exactly as other films
from the theater of the videogame
have Whereas cinematic videogames
intercut predominantly weak storytell
ing with interactivity, films striving to
look like videogames (the films of Zack
Snyder and Paul W S. Anderson) have
yet to overcome their inability to be
interactive, leaving the audience with
thrilling visuals and a static, shallow
narrative experience. Immortals' dra
matic sequences equate the cutscenes
of a videogame, and they bore far more
than the violent, bloody action thrills
you never get to play
IN TIME (PG-13) Gattaca writer-
director Andrew Niccol tweaks the
sci-fi genie again with this take on
Logan's Bun In a future world, every
one is genetically engineered to slop
aging at 25 To ward off overcrowding,
people are also designed to only live to
26 In this ageless new society, a man
accused of murder (Justin Timberlake)
goes on the lam with a pretty hostage
(Amanda Seyfried. Mamma Mia!)
With Olivia Wilde, Alex Pettyfer, Cillian
Murphy, Johnny Galecki and Vincent
Kartheiser ("Mad Men”).
JACK AND JILL (PG) Adam Sandler
must have thought the fake movies
from Funny People had real potential to
have signed on for this pitiful comedy
where he plays both Jack Sadelstein
and his twin sister, Jill They key to the
entire one-joke movie is that Sandler
makes an ugly woman Jill's homeli
ness and her lack of self-awareness
propel one lame gag after another
Sandler's usual pals (Allen Covert,
Nick Swardson) and celebrity cameos
pepper the cast. Al Pacino's appearance
is the least likely and most unfortunate
as he plays himself as a desperate man
smitten with Jill Regrettably, the flick
also features more than a handful of
casually stereotypical racial humor,
though everything, even the lazy plot
ting and joke writing, is executed with
the amiability that typifies its star.
However, geniality is no excuse for
Sandler fans to continue his string of
unsubtle, unoriginal comedy hits.
J. EDGAR (R) Clint Eastwood directs
nothing overwhelmingly with this fairly
straightforward biopic of the vision
ary American crime fighter J. Edgar
Hoover. The two-hour plus awards-bait
is a showcase for likely Oscar nominee
Leonardo DiCaprio. The 37-year-old
actor wastes not a moment of screen
time, during much of which he's clad
in ultra-believable makeup as the aged
Hoover, dictating his memoir to a string
of junior G-men. The film unfolds as a
sort ol greatest hits of Hoover's life. He
recounts his promotion to the head of
the FBI. the Lindbergh case, his close,
working relationship with longtime sec
retary Helen Gundy (Naomi Watts), his
close, private relationship with Clyde
Tolson (Armie Hammer. The Social
Network), and his too-close relation
ship with his mother (Dame Judi
Dench) Oscar winning screenwriter
Dustin Lance Black does not write this
film with anywhere near the introspec
tive depth of Milk; J Edgar offers
too few insights into an intriguingly
complex subject who had his fingers
in so many of America's historical pies
It's simply a nice Cliff's Notes version
of what would probably be a mammoth
biography through which to plow
THE LAST MOUNTAIN (NR) This
documentary reveals the battle to
protect the health and environment of
local communities from the destruc
tive power of the big coal industry in
Appalachia
MARTHA MARCY MAY MARLENE
(R) Another Olsen sister. Elizabeth, is
taking a dilferr nt route to stardom than
her now infamous elder twin sisters,
Mary-Kate and Ashley Sporting the
year's most easily abused title. Martha
Marcy May Marlene stars Olsen
attempting to reassimilate into her
family after escaping from an abusive
cult. Writer-director Sean Durkin's first
feature was a hit at Sundance, picking
up a Grand Jury Prize nomination. The
presence of John Hawkes (an Academy
Award nominee for Winter's Bone)
never hurts.
< THE MUPPETS (PG) The Muppet
Theater is again under threat as an oil
man plots to raze that venerable land
mark Kermit, Miss Piggy, Fozzy Bear,
Gonzo and the rest of the Muppets
stage the Greatest Muppet Telethon
Ever to help save their home I'm
excited to see what longtime fan Jason
Segel, his cowriter and Forgetting
Sarah Marshall director Nicholas
Stoller and director James Bobin
(“Flight of the Conchords” writer-
director) have in store for the greatest
puppets of all lime. In grand Muppet
tradition, expect Ions of cameos.
PUSS IN BOOTS (PG) Shreks fairy
tale may have moved on lo happily
ever after, but Puss in Boots (v. Antonio
Banderas) is still itching lor a fight. His
spinoff reveals the swordfiqhling antics
that led up to Puss meeting up with
Shrek and company. Naturally, this flick
was once slated for a direct-to-DVD
release; will the cat be able to match
the ogre's blockbuster results? Director
Chris Miller previously helmed Shrek
the Third Featuring the voices of
Salma Hayek and Zach Galifianakis.
THE SKIN I LIVE IN (R) How excit
ing 1 The new Pedro Almodovar is
scheduled to arrive at Cine before
the end ol the year The Spanish film
legend notched his fourth Palme d'Or
nomination from Cannes for his new
est collaboration with Muse. Penelope
Cruz. A brilliant plastic surgeon
(Antonio Banderas) experiments on a
beautiful, volatile woman with the new,
indestructible, synthetic skin he’s cre
ated Apparently, the good doctor might
have more of a past with his patient
than first thought. The poster looks
very “Nip/Tuck.’
THE SMURFS (PG) The live action/
CGI hybrid version of The Smurfs is
not as bad as its atrocious trailers
would imply, thanks largely to the
smurfish talents of Neil Patrick Harris.
Thanks to the clumsy plotting via
Clumsy Smurf (v. Anton Yelchin), Papa
Smurt (v. Jonathan Winters), Smurfette
(v. Katy Perry), Gutsy Smurf (v Alan
Gumming), Grouchy Smurf (v. George
Lopez), Brainy Smurf (v. Fred Armisen)
and Clumsy are chased to New York
City by Gargamel (Hank Azaria) and his
cat, Azrael. Intriguingly, the scripters
throw in unnecessary but welcome
nods to the Smurfs' Belgian roots and
creator Peyo, a cleverness undercut by
their own poor gags and the blandly
unattractive movie.
TAKE SHELTER (R) You're not alone
in thinking that the center is no longer
holding and that America is coming
undone Curtis (Michael Shannon), a
blue-collar guy living in Ohio with his
wife, Samantha (Jessica Chastain),
and their deaf daughter. Hannah (Tova
Stewart), understands exactly what
you’re feeling Haunted'by doom-laden
visions of the end times—sinister
storms, weird bird-flight configura
tions. auditory hallucinations and
recurring nightmares of being attacked
by phantom assailants—Curtis fixates
MOVIE LISTINGS
Schedules often change after our deadline. Please call ahead.
CINE (706-353-3343) check website for show times
CineKids: The Iron Giant (PG) 3:00 (F. 11/25-Su. 11/27)
Martha Marcy May Marlene (R) 5:15. 8:15 (W. 11/23-Th. 12/1)
no show Ih. 11/24
The Skin I Live In (R) 5:30, 8:30 (F. 11/25-Th. 12/1)
additional shows: 2:30 (F. 11/25-Su. 11/27)
Take Shelter (R) 5:30. 8:30 (ends W. 11/23)
Hollywood Cop (NR) 9:00 (Tu. 11/29)
The Last Mountain (NR) 5:00 (Tu. 11/29)
Accurate movie times for the CARMIKE 12 (706-354-0016),
BEECH’VOOD STADIUM 1 1 (706 546 1011) and GEORGIA
SQUARE 5 (706 548-3426) cinemas are not available by press
time. Visit www.flagpole.com for updated times.
Froggy went a-courtin !
on cleaning out the backyard storm
shelter in preparation for doomsday
Are the visions foreshadowing the
Apocalypse or is Curtis just going
crazy 7 Arkansas-born director Jeff
Nichols' first feature. Shotgun Stories
(also starring Shannon), was a solid
debut set in the heartland, chronicling a
modern-day family feud. Take Shelter is
a leap forward, building on his already
assured widescreen compositions
(courtesy of cinematographer Adam
Slone) and an affinity for drawing out
naturalistic performances from his cast
This time, however, an element of the
fantastic binds the narrative, generating
a heightened paranoia and unease that
is comparable to the subjective psy
chological horror of Polanski’s classic
Repulsion and Todd Haynes' environ
mental body-horror tale Sate. Shannon,
an actor who exudes menace even
when nothing particularly ominous is
occurring, crafts a brilliantly restrained
performance as Curtis, adding to his
already impressive resume as the
character actor of choice with leading-
man chops. Take Shelter is not a horror
movie in any strict sense. There’s no
whiff of the Gothic here or the traces
of blood-curdling terror that a slasher
movie provides What's unleashed,
though, is just as disturbing, if not
more so, because of its familiarity. The
world has shifted underneath Curtis'
feet His duties—to provide for his
family, keep his job. pay his bills on
time—are recognizable, and the fear
of losing it all (including his sanity),
especially at a time when society seems
to be fraying on a vast scale, makes
for distressing though always riveting
viewing. Had this bfen released in
the gloried 1970s, the decade where
its stylistic influences are rooted, it's
tempting to imagine the Spielberg of
Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third
Kind helming it for a major studio.
With just two movies. Nichols shows
remarkable promise as one of the best
American filmmakers around. [Hill]
TOWER HEIST (PG-13) With the help
of a con (Eddie Murphy), a group of
working stiffs (including Ben Stiller,
Matthew Broderick, Casey Affleck,
Gabourey Sidibe and Michael Pena)
plan a Danny Ocean-type heist on the
high-rise home of the rich guy that took
all of their money in a Ponzi scheme.
This action comedy from oft-maligned
Brett Ratner, who really missed his
decade (imagine the '80s buddy ccp
movies he could have made), also stars
Tea Leoni. Alan Alda and Judd Hirsch.
• THE TWILIGHT SAGA:
BREAKING DAWN—PART 1 (PG-
13) I really wanted to actively dislike
the penultimate Twilight movie. I
certainly don't feel kindly about the
book upon which it's based Yet some
how. between the page and screen.
Slephenie Meyer's loopy final novel
morphed into a bit of a horror movie.
While honeymooning, Edward and
Bella (Robert Pattinson and Kristen
Stewart) finally do it, and the 18-year-
old bride winds up pregnant with a
miraculous vampire-human hybrid
Director Bill Condon (Dreamgirls) pro
vides the best looking Twilight movie to
date, but he’s still saddled with Meyer's
poorly motivated characters and her
desperate rewriting of her universe's
own rules in order lo escape narrative
jams Fortunately, the deadly vampiric
pregnancy is a cool angle once the film
escapes the overlong first act honey
moon, consisting of super softcore love
scenes and a lot of chess Billy Burke's
wry, understated Charlie remains the
series' saving grace, and he's just not
around enough to counteract the infu
riatingly mopey leads. Taylor Lautner's
Jacob still seems like a better option
for Bella Thankfully. Meyer's teen-girl-
fairy-taL-turned-prolife-screed will be
over after one more movie.
Drew Wheeler
10 FLAGPOLE.COM NOVEMBER 23. 2011
