Movie Guide
Directors: Ross Kauffman, Zana Briski. With Zana Briski, children of Calcutta. (85 min.)
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Sterritt *** Briski visited Calcutta to photograph sad children in the city's red-light district and stayed to become their friend and benefactor. This is a stirring documentary, and would be more so if it focused more on social problems than on Briski's own work.
Director: Wes Anderson. With Bill Murray, Cate Blanchett, Owen Wilson, Anjelica Huston. (118 min.)
Sterritt **** A media-minded oceanographer (Murray) and his could-be illegitimate son (Wilson) begin a "Moby-Dick"-style hunt for a so-called jaguar shark, running into everything from a rival operation to a gang of murderous pirates before they're through. What might have a self-consciously quirky comedy is deepened and humanized by its rich performances, especially from Murray, who keeps getting better and better. The director of "Rushmore" and "The Royal Tenenbaums" scores his most funny-sad movie to date.
Director: Steven Soderbergh. With George Clooney, Julia Roberts, Matt Damon, Catherine Zeta-Jones. (123 min.)
Sterritt *** See review.
Directors: Lorca Shepperd, Cabot Philbrick. With photograph collectors in New York. (56 min.)
Sterritt *** Documentary about people who collect snapshots they find in flea markets and similar venues. Modest, informative, engaging.
Director: Manoel de Oliveira. With John Malkovich, Catherine Deneuve, Irene Pappas. (93 min.)
Sterritt **** A respected Portuguese history professor takes her young son on a European cruise to teach him about the past; the movie's first half is dominated by her on-the-spot lessons, the second half by conversation among the ship's captain and three glamorous women from three different countries. As a nonagenarian, de Oliveira is the world's oldest working filmmaker, and still one of the best. This is a lovely, lively, timely treat for the eyes and mind. In English, Portuguese, French, and Italian, with subtitles.
Director: Oliver Stone. With Colin Farrell, Angelina Jolie, Anthony Hopkins, Jared Leto. (172 min.)
Sterritt * The story of Alexander the Great, who wept when he realized there were no more realms for him to conquer. Stone may do the same when he realizes what a dull movie he's directed. It's astounding that the ingenious creator of "JFK" and "Wall Street" could make an epic on war and empire that's so utterly simplistic and unreflective.
Sex/Nudity: 8 instances. Violence: 21 Profanity: 3 mild expressions. Drugs: 10 scenes with drinking.
Director: Beeban Kidron. With Renée Zellweger, Colin Firth, Hugh Grant, Gemma Jones. (108 min.)
Sterritt ** The sequel to the 2001 hit "Bridget Jones's Diary" is basically more of the same, with our weight-conscious heroine caught between snooty attorney Firth, cheeky journalist Grant, and her own indecisive nature. The movie catches occasional fire when Bridget suddenly says what's really on her mind. The rest is silliness.
Sex/Nudity: 12 instances. Violence: 1 Profanity: 58 expressions, mostly mild. Drugs: 16 instances of drinking and smoking, and 2 references to illegal substances.
