film

Film listings are edited by Cheryl Eddy. Reviewers are Robert Avila, Meryl Cohen, David Fear, Dina Gachman, Susan Gerhard, Dennis Harvey, Johnny Ray Huston, Patrick Macias, and Chuck Stephens. See Rep Clock and Movie Clock, for theater information.

Asian Film Festival

The Four Star Theatre's seventh-annual Asian Film Festival runs Aug 7-28. Venue is the Four Star Theatre, 2200 Clement, S.F. For ticket info and a full schedule, go to www.hkinsf.com. For commentary see last week's Bay Guardian. All times p.m.

Wed/20

Kunpan: Legend of the Warrior noon. Inner Senses 1:50. Golden Key 3:45. Heading North, Going South 5:35. Map of Sex and Love 7:25. Versus 9:45.

Thurs/21

Eliana, Eliana noon. Dang Bailey's and Young Gangsters 3:50. Kunpan: Legend of the Warrior 3:50. Sorrow of Brooke Steppe 5:45. Pretty Big Feet 7:35. Inner Senses 9:40.

Fri/22

Inner Senses 12:30. Heading North, Going South 2:35. Versus 4:30. Touch of Zen 6:45. The Phone 10:05.

Sat/23

Flying Dragon, Leaping Tiger noon. Zatoichi Meets the One-Armed Swordsman 1:50. Desire 3:45. Sorrow of Brooke Steppe 5:35. Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance 7:20. Musa: The Warrior 9:50.

Sun/24

25 Kids and One Dad 12:20. Musa: The Warrior 2:30. Heading North, Going South 5:40. Desire 7:40. Yamashita: The Tiger's Treasure 9:30.

Mon/25

Pistol Opera 12:15. Pretty Big Feet 2:35. Lover's Grief over Yellow River 4:45. Heading North, Going South 7. Musa: The Warrior 9.

Tues/26

Dang Bailey's and Young Gangsters noon. Touch of Zen 2:05. Desire 5:30. Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance 7:20. The Phone 9:50.

Opening

*The Adventures of Robin Hood See "In like Flynn," page 42. (1:42) Castro.

*American Splendor See "Our Movie Year," page 37. (1:41) Embarcadero.

And Now Ladies and Gentlemen See Movie Clock. (2:06) Lumiere.

If I Should Fall from Grace: The Shane MacGowan Story Making a case for Shane MacGowan as a one-man battling bastion against "the death of Irish culture" while also exhibiting a human train wreck, this portrait of the Pogues' former leader is a worthy if slightly padded one. He's seen shambling around various pubs, standing barely upright onstage, and slurring largely indecipherable comments in "interview" footage – thank god there are observers here (his parents, his girlfriend, former bandmates, Nick Cave) who actually have something to say, and can ar-tic-ul-ate it. "You can't be worried about t'ings like yer health," the notorious boozebag and (former?) heroin user mumbles at one point. Uh, right. It's strange that Sarah Share's well-crafted documentary pretty much ignores his last decade, spent with backing band the Popes, though no doubt the combustive prior Pogues history is far more colorful as recalled in detail here. They were a great band (if an uneven studio entity), and MacGowan was (is? who's been keeping track?) a fine songwriter-lyricist. The bountiful old performance footage here is exhilarating, the proliferation of old music videos (many offered in their entirety) rather less so. If you're already a convert, you'll be in heaven. If not, MacGowan's precarious presence as a crumbling 45-year-old offers enough bizarre entertainment value to hold the attention. (1:33) Roxie. (Harvey)

Marci X Friends' Lisa Kudrow stars as a ditzy socialite who suddenly becomes head of a hardcore rap label. (1:24) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London.

The Medallion A Hong Kong cop (Jackie Chan) finds a mysterious medallion that endows him with superhuman powers. (1:30) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London.

My Boss's Daughter A house-sitting gig goes awry in this comedy starring Ashton Kutcher and Tara Reid. (1:26) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London.

*Teknolust See Script Doctor, page 42. (1:22) Opera Plaza.

Ongoing

American Wedding The American Pie films distinguished themselves from the teen flick pack thanks to a recipe of wistful sentimentality and gross-out gags. The third film in the franchise, in which hapless Jim (Jason Biggs) is preparing to marry his flute-playing girlfriend, Michelle (Alison Hannigan), keeps the sap and semen-joke mixture of the first two, then dilutes it to the point of sogginess. Most of the old gang – chiefly, the obnoxious Stifler (Seann William Scott), the urbane Finch (Eddie Kaye Thomas), and Jim's well-meaning dad (Eugene Levy) – return for another helping, but with few envelopes left to push, the series' patented comedy of humiliation feels a bit stale by now; even the scatology and cock jokes come off as half-hearted. There's little that director-famous troubadour offspring Jesse Dylan (How High) adds to distinguish this last chapter, either, content to simply reheat once-tasty leftovers ad nauseam until they burn to an inedible crisp. (1:36) Century Plaza, Century 20, Kabuki, Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Fear)

Bad Boys II Recipe for Tasteless Blockbuster Casserole: Defrost and reheat congealed main ingredients of Bad Boys, that 1995 action-comedy about two trash-talkin' maverick Miami cops (Will Smith, Martin Lawrence) who refuse to "play by the rules" and have a knack for breaking into allegedly charming shtick, etc. Add creative brain trust of über-producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director-cinematic Antichrist Michael Bay to insure maximum lowest-common-denominator pandering and plague-of-frogs subtlety. Stir in enough story material for six films; be sure to include romantic interest (Gabrielle Union) in peril, lethal batches of ecstasy, stereotypical villains and over-the-top crime lord (Jordi Mollà, who should be paying Gary Oldman royalties). Spice liberally with gratuitously brutal violence and crass homophobic, racial gags to mask lack of flavor, wit, edge, or basic entertainment value. Cook for an inexplicable two and a half hours. Let simmer; serves millions (excluding critics and those who possess frontal lobes or love movies). Laugh all the way to bank, then scrape burnt mess off bottom of pan into garbage bin. (2:25) Century 20, 1000 Van Ness. (Fear)

*Bend It like Beckham With a witty screenplay, feel-good story, and kick-ass soundtrack, Gurinder Chadha's Bend It like Beckham (named, by the way, for the soccer star who's also known as Mr. Posh Spice) has already broken box-office records in the U.K. and arrives in the United States with a worldwide $50 million gross already under its belt. Jess, Beckham's protagonist, is a reluctant challenger who's driven by her passion for soccer to deviate from the expectations of her old-world family. Beckham pointedly punctures English, Indian, and immigrant foibles despite a few jokes that are broad enough to hit the side of a barn. But its pseudo-lesbian subplot is unlikely to ruffle viewers of any lifestyle. More satisfyingly, the film's climactic wedding scene erupts into high drama with mistaken-identity mischief delicious enough to ensure it won't be mistaken for Monsoon Wedding. (1:42) Galaxy. (B. Ruby Rich)

*Bugs! A distant cousin to the fine-tuned bug ballet of Microcosmos, the IMAX Bugs! – in thrillingly unsubtle 3-D – finds a more Hollywood-style drama in the kingdom of small critters, focusing on the life span of a green mantis nicknamed by his Latin proper name, Hierodula, and the charming Great Mormon butterfly, Papilio. Their parallel lives of eating, shedding, and transforming amount to character development that pays off when adulthood makes them natural enemies (one is the predator of the other). But this children's film has climaxes of all types – even a mantis sex scene so racy the producers conclude it with a leaf screen. The film, narrated by Judi Dench and running through musical styles like an Olympic gymnast going for gold, is presented without irony by Terminix. (:40) Metreon IMAX. (Gerhard)

Camp Camp takes us through a season at Camp Ovation, where all of the most talented drama geeks disappear to each summer, in case anyone was wondering. Michael arrives fresh from getting bashed at his high school prom for showing up in drag. Vlad fights hard to dispel golden-boy impressions (but nonetheless looks and sings like the missing sixth Backstreet Boy) and is somehow, mysteriously straight. Ellen, slightly insecure and friend to all of the fags at Camp Ovation, is glad to hear it. They and the rest of the drama gang eat, drink, and sleep tap routines, Shakespearean monologues, and show tunes, show tunes, show tunes, producing a new play at the grueling rate of every two weeks. While there are some seriously After-School Special moments, it's a sweet film with some good performances and a couple of plot lines it's a pleasure to think a small portion of teenage America may experience. (1:54) Lumiere. (Lynn Rapoport)

*Capturing the Friedmans Pegged as the lurid must-see of this year's Sundance Film Festival, Andrew Jarecki's documentary is definitely a fly in the ointment of any belief that documentary cinema (let alone legal process) necessarily equals truth. This movie leaves so many unpleasant questions unanswered you'll be positively itchy with the sense of being soiled-by-association. Tipped by postal inspectors, police raided the home of one Arnold Friedman, a well-liked schoolteacher and father of three teenage sons. They found stores of "kiddie porn" (or at least teen porn); this led to interviews with students in Mr. Friedman's after-school computer classes, held in the family's basement. The stories that emerged described horrific, sometimes quite literally beyond-belief sexual abuse of boys by both Friedman and youngest son Jesse. Were the purported victims' testimonies influenced and inflamed by the zealousness of investigators, not to mention the wildfire outrage that ran through local parents? (Some class attendees still insist nothing happened at all, but their voices were overwhelmed during the resulting media and prosecutorial onslaught.) What's perhaps most disturbing about this one-of-a-kind document is that hysteria becomes indistinguishable from truth, even (or especially) among the Friedmans themselves – a family that recorded itself endlessly via home videos (amply excerpted here), to a remarkable and unflattering degree. Watching them tear themselves apart under pressure – with self-appointed mother-of-all-martyrs Elaine quite possibly inflicting more damage than press, community, law, and still-questionable sex crimes combined – is an experience you won't soon forget. (1:47) Four Star. (Harvey)

Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore, and Lucy Liu return, this time involved in reclaiming missing Witness Protection Program rosters. Major impediments are Justin Theroux as Barrymore's satanic ex-boyfriend, and Demi Moore (who's not on-screen that much, despite the impression given by the ads) as a former angel gone bad. The first Angels, also directed by McG, raised the discourse level of megamall franchise flicks by more than a few notches: it was funny, spectacular, knowingly ridiculous, and ironic in all the right ways. This sequel falls into that shrug-inducing cinematic category known as Just More of the Same. Which ain't a bad thing necessarily, though the freshness is definitely edging toward day-old-doughnut here. The action sequences are now so far outside the realm of physical possibility that they're just silly – a dirt biking set piece is one iota short of simply being fully animated. There are so many cameos (Bruce Willis, Jaclyn Smith, Pink, the Olsen twins, etc.) that some more desirable talents with actual roles – notably Crispin Glover – get scarcely more screen time. Bernie Mac is a poor substitute for Bill Murray's inspirational weirdness as the new Bosley, while Moore's stony posturing is the worst piece of overhyped, overpaid celebrity supervillain casting since Schwarzenegger as Mr. Freeze in Batman and Robin. Despite these flaws, there's enough color, kitsch, and miscellaneous swirling motion to warrant giving Full Throttle OK marks as a fun if immediately forgettable way to spend $9.50. (1:45) 1000 Van Ness. (Harvey)

*The Cuckoo In Alexander Rogozhkin's brilliant satire, Veiko (Ville Haapasalo), a Finnish lad recruited by the S.S., has pulled the short straw of duty: he's been "cuckoo'd," or chained (literally) to a rock with a sniper rifle and instructions to kill advancing enemy soldiers. After he eventually Houdinis his way out of the predicament, he runs across a local Lapp lass (Anni-Kristiina Juuso) who's nursing a wounded Russian officer (Viktor Bychkov) back to health. Both the strapping lad and the elder gentleman wield a strong attraction to the earth mother – who's got more than enough libido for all three of them – and a mutual hatred of each other. None of them, however, share a common tongue. Rogozhkin's handling of the trio's skewed three-way conversations is so deadpan it would give Kaurismäki pause, but his central conceit, that even humanity at its worst can eventually fashion a forum and persevere, betrays a pulse behind the smirk. (1:44) Smith Rafael. (Fear)

*Dirty Pretty Things Stephen Frears (Dangerous Liaisons, The Grifters, High Fidelity) has returned over and over to smaller British projects between Hollywood assignments, notably two Roddy Doyle adaptations (The Snapper, The Van). Dirty Pretty Things is by a newish writer, Steve Knight, and in its tonally very different way it's almost as fresh a take on polyglot London as My Beautiful Laundrette. Things revolves around Okwe (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a Nigerian doctor-exile living a hand-to-mouth life in the U.K. He's illegally working as a cab driver and a night clerk at a boutique hotel run by pragmatically slimy Juan (Sergi Lopez). Likewise employed at the hotel as housekeeping staff is Muslim Turkish Senay (Audrey Tautou), a registered refugee awaiting governmental approval of her immigrant status. Before long, Okwe discovers that the hotel profits from on-site organ harvesting that preys on desperate illegal immigrants. Knight's script doesn't always smooth together its various mystery, suspense, caper, and slice-of-life elements. The dialogue is sometimes too pontificating, and the incipient romance between Okwe and Senay is perhaps the least effective aspect here. But Frears handles it all so beautifully that the end result is still near extraordinary. (1:49) Bridge, Empire, Orinda. (Harvey)

*Le Divorce Left by her trustafarian mate, pregnant poet Roxy (Naomi Watts) is visited in Paris by her hungry-for-experience sis Isabel (Kate Hudson), who soon realizes she's clearly not in Santa Barbara anymore. With the help of her sibling and an expat writer (Glenn Close), Isabel cracks the French cultural code embedded in everything from cocktails to fashion, and together the sisters take in the drawing rooms, haute cuisine, silk lingerie, and rococo social convolutions of the Old World. Self-consciously witty, briskly paced, and true to its source, Le Divorce succeeds where other modern-day Merchant Ivory productions have faltered; it captures the follies, foibles, and faux pas that occur as two worlds collide and collude, as well as the soufflé-lite pleasures of the City of Light. (1:55) Embarcadero, Orinda. (Kimberly Chun)

*Finding Nemo When his beloved son Nemo is whisked from the ocean by a scuba diver, neurotic clown fish Marlin (Albert Brooks) launches a Great Barrier Reef-sized quest to track him down, running into a huge assortment of oceanic perils (sharks, shipwrecks, weird-looking deep-sea fish, seagulls) and pals (notably a forgetful fish named Dory, who, as voiced by Ellen DeGeneres, gets the film's biggest laughs) along the way. Meanwhile, Nemo hatches elaborate escape plans with the creatures dwelling in his new home – a dentist's office aquarium. Though the search-and-rescue plot of this latest computer-animated adventure from Disney-Pixar (Toy Story, A Bug's Life, Monsters, Inc.) will play pretty routine to the grown-ups, pint-sized audiences will be in suspense to the end; adult audiences can enjoy the film's more subtle, clever touches (the dental-office scenes are particularly ingenious). (1:41) Century 20, Jack London, Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Eddy)

Freaky Friday Thanks to a magic fortune cookie, mom Jamie Lee Curtis and daughter Lindsay Lohan (who also starred in The Parent Trap, another Disney remake) swap bodies and learn to see things through each other's eyes. While the film has its highlights – Curtis on the back of a motorbike, Lohan faking her way Milli Vanilli-style through a garage rock gig – it still feels a bit stale and is less playful and goofy than the original. The new Freaky Friday taps the clichés of the overworked, under-attentive mother and the teen acting out because she needs TLC to the max. The result: an MTV-soundtracked, Hot Topic-clad, formula family flick. Still, not bad for a summer afternoon rife with low expectations and girlish giggles. (1:49) Century Plaza, Century 20, Grand Lake, Jack London, Kabuki, Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Sabrina Crawford)

*Freddy vs. Jason If you're not a fan of horror movies (specific subgenre: '80s slasher flicks), if you loathe excess violence, or if your favorite movie of 2002 was The Hours, don't even bother. Freddy vs. Jason is not for you. However, any kid who grew up shrieking with delight over the creative kills of the almighty Krueger and Voorhees is bound to have a good time with this one, which sees the terrible two at first allied (on Elm Street), then locked in an epic, exceptionally blood-drenched clash of the titans (at Camp Crystal Lake). As "cinema," Freddy vs. Jason has some problems – laughable dialogue, plot holes, and a heroine whose figure is the most memorable part of her performance. But to quote the film, "Freddy is fighting Jason! What more do you want?!" See also Script Doctor, page 42. (1:32) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London, Kabuki, Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Eddy)

*Gigantic: A Tale of Two Johns They Might Be Giants, the Brooklyn duo of John Flansburgh (glasses, guitarist) and John Linnell (cuter, accordion player, more distinctively nasally vocals), are possibly the greatest snark-rock combo ever. Their greatest hits (or mostly nonhits, in actual chart terms) might comfortably stretch to two whole discs, with no two fans ever agreeing about track selection. TMBG are master musical-genre dilettantes; three minutes spent with them will reliably land somewhere between the painless, the amusing, and the nirvanic. For all but the dedicated (of which there are many), however, 30 minutes is pushing it. Ergo my mixed feelings about the 102 minutes that make up Gigantic: A Tale of Two Johns, A.J. Schnack's documentary homage to the band. If you love TMBG and every breath they exhale, you will be in hog heaven here – in good company, too, given the film's lineup of celebrity fans almost too geek-chic perfect to be believed (Dave Eggers, Harry Shearer, Conan O'Brien, Josh Kornbluth, Janeane Garofalo, Jon Stewart). If you just like them, all of this feature's shiny toy-ness will begin to pall after a while, leaving you with a confusing mixture of delight, guilty ingratitude, and hunger for beefsteak. (1:42) Galaxy. (Harvey)

Grind Asinine, inane, puerile: only ugly words should be allowed near this pile of boyish crappy crap. With upward of a dozen excrement jokes, Grind aims to be a male version of Blue Crush, blandly dousing the road trip-underdog sports plot with generous amounts of Jackass, The Man Show, and teen movies past – for example, a thoroughly unattractive version of Matthew McConaughey's Dazed and Confused ladies' man character. Eric (Mike Vogel) and his three skater-dude buddies ditch slacker and college plans alike to pursue their dream of corporate sponsorship, the passport to girls, parties, free skateboards and the good life. They follows the demo tour of pro skater Chris Wilson (Jason London) hoping to catch his attention. After failing in various ways, they get a little assistance from pro-skater chick Jamie (Jennifer Morrison), the film's only girl with a shirt on and a second dimension to her personality. In the end what the boys (who look like they're pushing 30) find most important is ... corporate sponsorship. But only after forging priceless bonds insulting women, midgets, and general humanity. (1:40) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London, Kabuki, Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Koh)

Johnny English You loved him in Black Adder and as Mr. Bean, but when Rowan Atkinson broke out onto the silver screen, audiences found themselves torn between loyalty and discrepancy. Coming into Johnny English, I carried doubts, and although the role of a bumbling secret agent seems promising, it does not match Atkinson's comedic ability. Still, one cannot help but chuckle at the predictable pickles English struggles out of. Peppering the story line is a French supervillain who plots to steal the crown – overplayed by none other than John Malkovich. As well as one-hit wonder Natalie Imbruglia as Johnny's inevitable love interest. I'm still confused as to what Malkovich is doing here, but hey, we all gotta make a buck. More subtle than Mike Myers's hit Austin Powers trilogy, Johnny English takes a common play on the iconic Bond series and blends it with British buffoonery, more aligned with American humor, only a veteran such as Atkinson can own. The film grossed more than $100 million before its U.S. release, and although this amount eclipses the moderately positive critique I can offer, audiences could be wasting their money on a worse film. (1:24) Century 20. (Pham)

Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life Since the Tomb Raider masterminds seem unwilling to aspire beyond the principle that people will watch lint form if it features Angelina Jolie, they might as well save money next time and make Lara Croft: Telemarketer. Wearing Indiana Jones couture, our hot Lady Croft returns to find and protect Pandora's box, an artifact containing a dark force that bad guys wish to control (you know, unlike that time in Raiders of the Lost Ark when the exact same thing happens). Jolie again emotes via eyebrow raises and looks like a petulant version of the Bionic Woman as her lack of agility is disguised by slo-mo. Low-octane action scenes are dropped into the narrative at random and are missing logic to an annoying degree; for example, when Croft wants to get to the surface of the ocean quickly, she deliberately slices her arm, waves the blood around, and then hitches a ride on Jaws after a lengthy showdown. Um, I guess that's faster than swimming. (2:00) Century 20, Kabuki, Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Koh)

The Magdalene Sisters The Magdalene Laundries were set up as sanctuaries for Ireland's "wayward girls," a broad term that could be applied to young women who'd given birth to a child out of wedlock, such as Rose (Dorothy Duffy), or who'd been raped, like Margaret (Anne Marie Duff). Run by an order of nuns bearing the beyond-ironic moniker Sisters of Mercy, these church-operated institutions preached spiritual penance through hard labor and corporal punishment. Credit goes to the actresses, mostly unknowns and all pitch-perfect in their roles, but it's the director, Peter Mullan, who fuels the film with a harsh, lyrical fury. The Magdalene Sisters has stirred up its share of controversy (it was denounced by the Vatican the same day it won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival), but Mullan has his sights set on bigger game than just kitchen-sink melodrama or sensationalism. His refusal to pander to audience expectations ups the ante substantially; what really makes The Magdalene Sisters such an extraordinary experience is that, unlike most cine-fictional drama rooted in fact, the eventual catharsis feels genuinely earned.

(1:59) Embarcadero, Empire. (Fear)

*OT: Our Town Director Scott Hamilton Kennedy documents a high school production of Our Town, questioning, observing, and affirming a brash attempt at making Thornton Wilder's chestnut relevant to contemporary Compton. OT's first few seconds illustrate the pop-cultural chasm, ricocheting from Ice Cube's "Straight outta Compton" defiance to the pure corn of Hal Holbrook in a '70s-era TV production of the Wilder play. As a pair of high school teachers reconstruct Our Town in the image of the students and their families, Kennedy takes advantage of the access his movie-director status provides to elaborate on the project; he steps out of the school and into different hangouts and homes. The teenage tendency to self-dramatize isn't absent from OT: Our Town, but Kennedy's direction – unlike MTV's youth programming – doesn't indulge it. As "reality" TV-style distortions of documentary spill into movie theaters, OT: Our Town offers something different: art that's connected to life. (1:16) Roxie. (Huston)

Open Range A group of free-range cattlemen, led by the gruff Boss (Robert Duvall) and a former gunslinger (Kevin Costner), graze their herd near the territorial boundaries of a corrupt, controlling Irish rancher (Michael Gambon). An attempt at intimidation leaves one cowboy wounded and another murdered, leading Boss and his sidekick into town to settle a debt with cold stares and hot lead. Costner's latest directorial musing keeps its B-movie revenge narrative simple and its pacing deliciously deliberate, unafraid to take its time gearing up for an impressively brutal, bullet-ridden climax. A reverence for the genre's iconography, however, holds sway over the storytelling; the film is less a rumination on the Old West than a reference catalogue of old westerns, all homages and hat-tippings. A tendency for third-act speechifyin' and pontificatin' eventually smothers the movie's many pleasures, and what starts out as a lean, mean look at frontier justice turns into a horse opera sunk by an overdose of auterist hubris. (2:20) Century Plaza, Century 20, Grand Lake, Metreon. (Fear)

Passionada (1:45) Galaxy.

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl In this seaworthy tale from Ring director Gore Verbinski and action-happy producer Jerry Bruckheimer, offbeat swashbuckler Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) and blacksmith Will Turner (Lord of the Rings elf Orlando Bloom) team up to pursue the snarling buccaneers who've kidnapped Will's beloved Elizabeth (Keira Knightley from Bend It like Beckham). Seems the crew of the Black Pearl (including Geoffrey Rush as their monkey-toting leader) believe she's the key to lifting the nasty curse that plagues them. Pirates taps plenty of familiar motifs – a talking parrot ("Shiver me timbers!"), a cave filled with treasure, cannon fights, people saying, "Arrrr!" – and follows a pretty rote escape-and-capture story line. And yeah, it's based on a Disneyland ride. But thanks in no small part to Depp's oddly endearing performance, the good-natured Pirates aims for fun and largely succeeds. (2:23) Century Plaza, Century 20, Grand Lake, Kabuki, Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Eddy)

The Princess Blade This potentially gratifying mix of martial arts, science fiction, and political intrigue betrays its pulp origins by succumbing to some disastrously trendy dramatic tropes. Set in a future where North Korea has taken over Japan, and where members of the emperor's private guard have become paid assassins, the film follows the trials of warrior Yuki (famed swimsuit model Yumiko Shaku) as she struggles to learn the truth behind her mother's murder – along with her own true identity – in time to do some carin' and sharin' with a dreamy revolutionary dude. Director Shinsuke Sato is every bit the neophyte: Instead of exploring the topical sci-fi of his manga-inspired premise, Sato focuses on soap opera-style characters played by actors incapable of supplying more than a single dimension apiece. The film's saving grace might have been its well-staged action sequences, choreographed by Donnie Yen (who performed similar duties for Iron Monkey and Blade II). But as any casual kung fu viewer could tell you, three good fight scenes do not make a good movie. (1:33) Galaxy. (Macias)

Seabiscuit In the midst of the Great Depression, a second-rate racing nag named Seabiscuit, laden with an oversized jockey (Tobey Maguire), a laconic trainer (Chris Cooper), and a zealous manager (Jeff Bridges), somehow broke track records and captured the public's fancy. Based on Laura Hillenbrand's insanely readable biography, the film adaptation by Gary Ross (Pleasantville) also gets people rooting for the under-horse while imbuing social significance to the sport of kings, though his version seems overflowing with its own sense of stateliness. The movie often seems less a retelling of the legendary equine success story than a catalog of pure Americana, owing as much to Horatio Alger's bootstrap fables or Walker Evans's photography as it does to horse racing and history. Amazing performances, gorgeous autumnal visuals, and elliptical editing provide a wonderful cadence but eventually lose by a nose to Capraesque populist pandering, complete with PBS-friendly narration that equates the martyr mare with New Deal politics quicker than you can say Triple Crown-ed metaphor. (2:21) Century 20, Empire, Grand Lake, Jack London, Kabuki, Metreon, Oaks, 1000 Van Ness, Orinda. (Fear)

The Secret Lives of Dentists The erratic Alan Rudolph has always enjoyed, with varying success, diving into self-contained milieus – from the Me Decade mecca in Welcome to L.A. to the famous salons of The Moderns and Mrs. Parker and the Vicious Circle. But he's arguably never investigated a scene as familiar yet surprising as the one here: a suburban middle-class marriage, with children. Dentists who share a practice, David (Campbell Scott) and Dana Hurst (Hope Davis) have reached that point in their lives where activity is incessant but actual stimulation is rare; with three very young daughters, a mortgage, and god knows what other ordinary obligations stretching years ahead, their well-plotted future can be seen as either comforting or suffocating. Secret Lives' long climax is nothing more than a family of five getting the flu – and it might be the most engrossing, detailed, nail-biting set piece you'll see all year. (1:44) Smith Rafael. (Harvey)

Spellbound A frightening, often comedic look into the family lives of the nation's top young spellers, Jeff Blitz's documentary too easily balances the oddities of overachievers: if there's an obsessed speller, there's also a nonchalant one; some families are wealthy, some are poor. There's diversity, love, faith, and most predictably, a fight against the odds. Though the film builds tension as it reaches various humiliating climaxes at the microphone, it suffers the same malady as its subjects: it feels far more stage-managed than earned or lived. (1:36) Opera Plaza. (Gerhard)

Spy Kids 3-D: Game Over Pint-size spy Juni Cortez (Daryl Sabara) has been called in from the cold to rescue his sister (Alexa Varga), who's trapped in an online video game run by a megalomaniacal game programmer (Sylvester Stallone). The only way to get her out is to get Juni in the game himself and past the numerous 3-D (literally!) obstacles that stand in his way. The third time is not usually a charm when it comes to movie trilogies, but Robert Rodriguez's tales of junior league espionage have always had charm to spare; even this weakest entry in the series has just enough infectious, imaginative magnetism to put most average kids flicks to shame. Pulling the 3-D rabbit out of the hat usually signals a last-gasp gimmick, but the overall campfire-story giddiness here feels more like a filmmaker delighting in sharing ancient cinematic tricks with a new generation of popcorn munchers. (1:25) Century 20, Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Fear)

Step into Liquid There's nothing more photogenic than bronzed surfers cutting through sun-dappled waves – and yet there are few things as hard to capture on-screen as the exhilarating rush that makes surfing so addictive and so popular. This paradox has dogged surf-umentaries since their first dip into the cinematic pool, and it's something that Step into Liquid seems to know it can't outpaddle. So filmmaker and pedigreed surf aficionado Dana "Son of Bruce" Brown bypasses capturing lightning in a bottle, concentrating instead on fashioning a cinematic Surf Culture for Dummies that's less an Endless Summer than endless summaries of facts on the modern-day wave-rider lifestyle. The MTV-friendly aesthetics and moondoggy narration (warbly voiced philosophy about harmony, nature, etc.) are a poor substitute for actual adrenaline, however, and even with some gorgeous visuals, it still feels like a simplified tourist version of a second-hand high. (1:28) Embarcadero, Smith Rafael. (Fear)

S.W.A.T. As formulaic and predictable as it gets, this assembly-line actioner gets the job done (car chases, gun battles, one-liners, dust-ups with the brass, etc.) but is so, well, so-so it's hardly memorable enough to recommend. Likable stars Samuel L. Jackson (as an "old-school" S.W.A.T. team leader), Colin Farrell (as a gifted officer with something to prove), the perma-snarling Michelle Rodriguez, and the ab-fab L.L. Cool J have their game faces on, but even the vaguely intriguing plot – after he's captured, an internationally notorious fugitive (Olivier Martinez) offers $100 million to whoever busts him out; gangsters of the world soon come calling – plays out utterly by rote. Fine for in-flight entertainment or for Farrell groupies; everyone else, there's still time to catch the truly ostentatious cops-a-go-go flick Bad Boys 2 instead. (1:56) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London, Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Eddy)

*Swimming Pool Charlotte Rampling plays Sarah Morton, an author in the Patricia Highsmith mold – with an emphasis on mold – who ventures to a vine-laced villa in the south of France to begin work on the latest addition to her musty mystery series. Ludivine Sagnier plays Julie, the slutty daughter of Sarah's publisher, and an unwelcome surprise guest at Sarah's writer's retreat. The two don't waste any time invading each other's privacy. Whether that privacy is typed on a laptop or penned in girlie cursive, it's a key to asserting power over the other. Swimming Pool's "secrets" tease audiences; ultimately, the film is a poison-lensed love letter to director François Ozon's producer. It's time for this mildly naughty boy to make a wildly rude film that pleases no one but himself. (1:54) Clay. (Huston)

*28 Days Later Early in Danny Boyle's 28 Days Later, a patient named Jim (Cillian Murphy) awakes from a coma only to find the hospital, the streets, the surrounding buildings, and possibly – probably – the entire world, completely, nightmarishly deserted. The culprit? "Rage," a highly contagious blood virus accidentally unleashed on London by a group of well-intentioned animal rights activists. Symptoms, which manifest in 20 seconds or less, include red eyes, projectile vomiting, and the uncontrollable urge to viciously attack everyone around you. Thanks to the use of digital video, a trembling pop soundtrack, and British slang, 28 Days Later is pretty arty for a genre film. Still, horror is the main event, and like all truly scary movies, this one neatly plays off current events (SARS, for one) to increase the oh-shit-this-might-really-happen vibe. Though this heavily Romero-influenced film isn't overflowing with original ideas, the timing of its release is impeccable. Who isn't afraid of catching a horrible disease, or of waking up to find an entire city wiped out by a scary, unknown event? (1:48) 1000 Van Ness. (Eddy)

Uptown Girls Molly Gunn (Brittany Murphy) is the coquettish daughter of a late rock legend. When her inheritance is swindled, Molly is forced to get a job as a nanny to an eerily mature eight-year-old (Dakota Fanning), whose mother is a neglectful record exec (Heather Locklear). The precocious tot is a lot savvier than any real-life third grader on the face of the planet, and the plot never grows beyond predictability: the child must learn to relish her youth, while the adult must ripen into maturity, etc. That said, Uptown Girls isn't as terrible as I expected it to be. My groans were often followed by begrudging chuckles, enabling intermittent suspension of disbelief. (1:33) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London, Kabuki, Metreon, 1000 Van Ness. (Pham)

*Whale Rider Director Niki Caro's adaptation of New Zealand author Witi Ihimaera's 1986 novel combines familiar coming-of-age elements with Maori mysticism to exceptionally engaging effect. Pubescent Pai (Keisha Castle-Hughes) has been raised by her strict but loving grandfather Koro (Rawiri Paratene) and more easygoing grandma (Vicky Haughton) since her artist dad left to travel the world. The latter (Cliff Curtis) was and is too grief-stricken to stay in the community – his wife died giving birth to Pai, and tribal chief Koro still pressures him to deliver a male grandchild who might one day "lead our people out of the darkness" that modern, Westernized life has imposed. But that ain't happening, so granddad opens a "sacred school" to educate local boys in "the old ways – the qualities of a chief." These involve everything from religious ritual to martial arts instruction. Koro is so rigidly tradition-minded that he insists girls are "worthless" in these capacities – though it's increasingly clear to everyone else that Pai possesses talent and discipline far beyond any male peers. The resulting, painful rift between child and grandparent reaches a climactic point of catastrophe and supernatural redemption that would be ludicrous in any less psychologically level-headed, stylistically astute context. A rare movie that should play just as well for eight-year-olds as it does for art-house grownups. (1:55) Four Star, Opera Plaza. (Harvey)

*Winged Migration Its unassuming title and topic (migratory birds) notwithstanding, Jacques Perrin's documentary Winged Migration is of a feather with the greatest of action movies: the only time the screen is not occupied with ambushes, crash landings, gunshots, daring escapes, murderous crustaceans, and crumbling icebergs, is when it follows the birds in pure, sensational flight. Five crews of more than 450 people, with 17 pilots and 14 cinematographers, were involved in filming these birds in flight, and still the resulting sequences are so close, so immediate, so lacking in artifice, that you would swear they were filmed by another bird. And it's a running theme that while the humans are so ingenious as to bring the film off – traveling across 40 countries in all seven continents, from the Eiffel Tower to Monument Valley, the Arctic to the Amazon – the indefatigable birds themselves are even more astounding. (1:29) Opera Plaza, Smith Rafael. (Amir Baghdachi)

Rep picks