Film listings are edited by Cheryl Eddy. Reviewers are Robert Avila, Kimberly Chun, David Fear, Dina Gachman, Susan Gerhard, Dennis Harvey, Johnny Ray Huston, Laurie Koh, Patrick Macias, and Chuck Stephens. The film intern is Melissa McCartney. See Rep Clock and Movie Clock for theater information.

Opening

*Games People Play: New York If anyone has earned the right to invent another goofy reality TV series and place himself as the sadistic circusmaster handling the flaming hoops, it's James Ronald Whitney. Whitney's 2000 film, Just, Melvin: Just Evil, was the rawest confessional doc of its era, a film that revealed his grandfather to be child molester and possible murderer, while looking at the effect Grandpa Melvin had on ensuing generations – some of whom are just barely getting by, living in trailer parks and succumbing to heavy drinking. Whitney, who did a turn as a Chippendales dancer, put his own campy overachievements as a teen gymnast and quiz whiz under the microscope as well. He turns the camera outward this time, in a purported pilot for a reality show this time – offering aspiring actors and actresses the chance to win $10,000 if they out-expose each other in a series of exhibitionist trials that include confessing their most traumatic moments to the camera, collecting urine samples from passersby, and convincing strangers to have sex with them in four minutes or less. Who's playing, and who's getting played, is the real $10,000 question – and Whitney excellently maneuvers the manipulations to keep you guessing till the final credits roll. (1:37) Act I and II, Lumiere. (Gerhard)

Hellboy Guillermo Del Toro (Blade II) directs this comic book-adapted tale of a hell-spawned hero (Ron Perlman) who defends mankind with an X-Men like posse of unusual pals. (1:52) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London.

Home on the Range Rumor has it that Disney is planning to phase out traditionally animated features (as opposed to the computer-graphics likes of Toy Story), and this disappointing new film isn't likely to reverse that unfortunate decision. Their owners' debt-coagulated dairy farm threatened with foreclosure, three cows (voiced by Rosanne Barr, Dame Judi Dench, and Jennifer Tilly – together at last!) and a blustery stallion (Cuba Gooding Jr.) venture into the wide open prairie to hopefully capture cattle rustler-land baron Alameda Slim (Randy Quaid) and the reward money that comes with him. Curiously, the movie looks more like old Warner Brothers cartoons than anything from the Mouse House – you almost expect Wile E. Coyote, Foghorn Leghorn, and Yosemite Sam to peek from the sagebrush here. But memorable characters and slapstick vigor are missing from this innocuous baby-sitting creation, which isn't outright bad but falls short of the studio's otherwise high average in recent years. Singers deployed to croon Alan Menken's mock-country songs include k.d. lang, Tim McGraw, and Bonnie Raitt. (1:16) Century Plaza, Century 20, Grand Lake, Oaks, Orinda. (Harvey)

Latter Days The timing couldn't be better for a movie about a gay Mormon to open in San Francisco. Religious controversy and gay rights seem to be the topics of the year, and writer-director C. Jay Cox manages to cover both bases with his first feature. A closeted Mormon missionary (Steve Sandvoss) moves to L.A. to proselytize the bacchanalian Hollywooders, only to end up falling for a hunky queen named – ironic metaphor alert – Christian (Wes Ramsey). Drastic life changes and paradigm shifts ensue, but, as a line in a laundry room scene suggests, perhaps the two are like whites and colors: they just don't mix. Segregationist propaganda aside, you'll sob out your tear ducts if you're the type to program the VCR for daytime soaps, but the Mormon-bashing melodrama gets tiresome after a while. Forced monologues punctuate the story with rhythmic predictability, often taking time away from resolving the film's several unsettled conflicts. Cox's project boasts plenty of man-on-man action, but overall it's too much of a standard tearjerker to be controversial. (2:00) Embarcadero, California. (Kim)

Lonely Shadow Filmed in both San Francisco and Hong Kong, this drama is about a private detective who realizes the woman he is investigating is a dead ringer for his late wife. (1:20) Four Star.

*Monster Road Clay animator Bruce Bickford doesn't claim to be God, but considering he's been bringing clay figures to life for more than 40 years, the guy might as well be. Director Brett Ingram's feature-length documentary explores the intriguing, often macabre world of Bickford's art, while also delving into the artist's childhood and family background. The other major character is Bruce's father, George, a retired rocket scientist living with his son in a home studio outside Seattle. Intertwining a war-hungry U.S. culture, the Bickfords' philosophies, and the intricate beauty of claymation, Monster Road is at once a private and public history, told in a somewhat minor key. But gentle humor offsets the nostalgia and the younger Bickford's childlike inclinations prove to be just as charming to watch as his livelihood. Monster Road plays this week at Other Cinema, as well as part of the Hi/Lo Film Festival (see festival review in Rep Picks, below). (1:20) Artists Television Access, Red Vic. (Kim)

*Morning Sun Even folks with limited knowledge of Chinese history will be fascinated by Morning Sun, an eye-opening account of the Cultural Revolution (1966-76) as remembered by men and women who experienced it as high schoolers. With straightforward honesty, the interviewees – everyone from the daughter of a "bad family," meaning her parents were viewed suspiciously by high-ups in Chairman Mao's regime, to a founding member of the militant, revolution-obsessed Red Guards – recall a time of paranoia, brutality, conformity, fear, great hope and excitement, and confusion. News footage, family photographs, propaganda movie clips, and a filmed performance of the 1964 pro-Communism stage spectacle The East Is Red are used to illustrate the subjects' stories, illuminating why the time period still resonates so deeply with this particular generation. (1:57) Roxie. (Eddy)

The Prince and Me A brainy, med school-bound college student (Julia Stiles) is faced with a tough choice when she discovers her boyfriend is actually the crown prince of Denmark. (2:03) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London, Shattuck.

*The Return See Movie Clock. (1:45) Opera Plaza, Shattuck, Smith Rafael.

*Shaolin Soccer Finally – after multiple release-date changes, a dubbing vs. subtitles debate (subtitles won, thank goodness), the excising of some 20 minutes of footage, and a brief period when the title was rumored have been changed to Kung Fu Soccer – the 2001 Hong Kong smash opens stateside. And the wait was worth it: you'd be hard-pressed to find a more entertaining film, especially if you're already a fan of goofy Hong Kong comedies. With its many high-flying special effects, Shaolin Soccer could be dubbed Bend It like the Matrix: director-star Stephen Chow ("the Jim Carrey of the East") plays Sing, a.k.a. "Mighty Steel Leg," who believes Shaolin kung fu is the answer to everything (including tight parking spots). After meeting a disgraced former soccer star known as "Golden Leg," an inspired Sing rounds up his huge array of brothers, all of whom are gifted fighters who've fallen onto hard times (one's fat, one's depressed, one's unemployed, etc.) Under the leadership of Golden Leg, Team Shaolin trains with one goal in mind: to defeat the dreaded Team Evil in the championship match. Along the way, spontaneous dance routines, Bruce Lee homages, awesome on-field antics, and Chow's infectious energy elevate Shaolin Soccer far above the usual underdog sports tale, and into must-see territory. (1:40) Lumiere. (Eddy)

A Thousand Clouds of Peace See "A Walk in the Clouds," page 41. (1:23) Castro.

Walking Tall A retired soldier (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) returns to his hometown, only to find it's been overrun with crooks; serious ass-kicking ensues. (1:25) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London.

Wilbur Wants to Kill Himself In case anyone thinks the title of Danish filmmaker (and Dogme '95 cofounder) Lone Scherfig's new outing is merely metaphorical, just wait around: by the time the opening credits have finished rolling, we see our hero (Jamie Silves) prove – twice – that yes, indeed, that titular statement is as literal as literal can be. Luckily, his brother, who runs the family bookstore, is around to take care of him, even after his impulsive marriage to a withdrawn woman (the always great Shirley Henderson). Of course, no one could have predicted a growing attraction between Wilbur and his new sister-in-law, nor a surprise terminal illness, were both brewing on the horizon. Scherfig (Italian for Beginners) coasts on Silves's charm and resemblance to pop star Robbie Williams to automatically make him likable – oh, you irrepressible, suicidal scamp! – which works for a bit, but her penchant for mixing Glasgow-gray settings and pastel-toned sap doesn't sweeten the serio-comedy so much as clump it into an unnecessarily, uneven gooey mess. (1:49) Embarcadero, Shattuck. (Fear)

Ongoing

Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London (1:40) Century 20.

The Barbarian Invasions (2:03) Balboa.

The Big Animal (1:12) Castro.

*City of God (2:10) Four Star, Shattuck.

*Dawn of the Dead (1:40) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London, Kabuki, 1000 Van Ness.

The Dreamers (2:01) Four Star, Opera Plaza, Smith Rafael.

*Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (1:48) California, Century 20, Empire, Galaxy, Kabuki, Piedmont.

50 First Dates (1:36) Century 20, 1000 Van Ness.

*The Fog of War (1:46) Four Star, Opera Plaza, Shattuck.

*The Fourth World War (1:14) Victoria Theatre.

Girl with a Pearl Earring (1:39) Galaxy.

*Good Bye, Lenin! (1:58) Albany, Embarcadero, Empire, Piedmont.

*Hidalgo (2:13) Century 20, Grand Lake, Kabuki, Oaks, 1000 Van Ness.

*Hukkle (1:15) Castro, Smith Rafael.

In America (1:43) Galaxy.

*Intermission (1:46) Act I and II, Embarcadero.

Jersey Girl (1:43) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London, Kabuki, 1000 Van Ness, Orinda, Shattuck.

*The Ladykillers Subtlety is all but absent from this remake of Alexander Mackendrick's 1955 comedy, but modest cajolery is hardly appropriate when a British classic moves to the sweltering South. An unlikely team of thieves assembles in the basement of Gospel-loving Mrs. Munson (Irma P. Hall), convincing her that they're Rococo-period church musicians. But instead of making holy music, they tunnel their way to the bank reserves of a nearby casino boat and filch several million in cash. All goes according to plan until Mrs. Munson discovers their secret, so the blundering bandits spend the rest of the movie trying to silence her for good. Tom Hanks plays Professor Goldthwait Higginson Dorr, the delightfully prolix ringleader of the group, nailing his first comic role in over a decade with a nebulous Southern/British accent. The Coen brothers' grossly overstated characters provide most of the fun here, and while the writing-directing duo hasn't brought back its "A" game after last year's disappointing Intolerable Cruelty, this farce will have you in stitches nearly throughout. (1:56) Century 20, Empire, Grand Lake, Jack London, Orinda, Shattuck. (Kim)

*The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (3:21) 1000 Van Ness.

*Monsieur Ibrahim (1:35) Albany, Clay.

*Monster (1:51) Balboa, Opera Plaza.

Mystic River (2:20) Balboa, Piedmont.

NASCAR 3D: The Imax Experience (:48) Metreon IMAX.

Ned Kelly (1:49) 1000 Van Ness.

Never Die Alone (1:30) Century Plaza, Century 20, Jack London, 1000 Van Ness.

*Osama (1:22) Shattuck.

The Passion of the Christ (2:07) California, Century Plaza, Century 20, Galaxy, Jack London, Kabuki.

The Reckoning (1:40) Four Star.

Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (1:25) Century Plaza, Century 20, Grand Lake, Jack London, Kabuki, 1000 Van Ness.

Secret Window (1:45) Century 20, Jack London, Kabuki, 1000 Van Ness.

*Spartan (1:58) Bridge.

Starsky and Hutch (1:37) Century Plaza, Century 20, Grand Lake, Kabuki, 1000 Van Ness.

The Station Agent (1:28) Balboa.

Stupidity (1:10) Roxie.

Taking Lives (1:40) Century 20, 1000 Van Ness.

Touching the Void (1:46) Lumiere, Shattuck, Smith Rafael.

*The Tracker (1:38) Smith Rafael.

*The Triplets of Belleville (1:20) Embarcadero, Shattuck.

Twisted (1:37) 1000 Van Ness.

Rep Picks

*'The End of the Tether: Two Works by Shunichi Nagasaki' See "Heart, Darkness," page 46. Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.

*Hi/Lo Film Festival Proving that it doesn't take $100 million to make a decent movie, the seventh annual Hi/Lo Film Festival features three days of "high-concept, low-budget" shorts and features. There just aren't enough films out there like Roger Beebe's kitschy "Famous Irish Americans," a graphic lecture insisting that black celebrities with Irish last names really are Irish, or Judy Fiskin's "50 Ways to Set the Table," which highlights competitive "tablescaping." If you're into parodies, director Hanelle Culpepper replaces HBO's estrogen-powered coterie with curious toddlers in "Six and the City." Not surprisingly, quirky humor is a top priority in this event presented by San Francisco comedy collective Killing My Lobster, but expect smatterings of seriousness as well. Sonja Shah's "Something Between Her Hands" documents Cambodian sex-workers, and filmmaker Tom Putnam takes us on a mind trip with "Tom Hits His Head," in which a genteel office worker suffers from a nervous breakdown. Though a few works on the bill comply only with the "low-budget" part of the deal, most are good for at least a hearty laugh. See First Runs, above, for review of the festival's centerpiece feature, Monster Road. Parkway, Red Vic. (Kim)

'New Jewish Filmmaking Project Screening' See 8 Days a Week, page 52. Yerba Buena Center for the Arts.