Movie Guide

Sterritt * Sequel to "Meet the Parents," with an engaged couple hoping their respective parents - including a tough-as-nails CIA retiree on one side, a touchy-feely sex therapist on the other - will get along. De Niro and Hoffman almost give comic life to this farce.

Director: Clint Eastwood. With Clint Eastwood, Hilary Swank, Morgan Freeman, Margo Martindale. (129 min.)

Sterritt **** Eastwood gives his deepest performance ever as an aging gym owner who reluctantly agrees to train a female prizefighter, played by Swank in excellent form. Going all the way with both triumph and tragedy, it's as bold as it is engrossing.

Staff *** Poignant, masterpiece, tender moments.

Sex/Nudity: 1 scene of innuendo. Violence: 13 fight scenes, often grisly. Profanity: 48 profanities, often harsh. Drugs: 2 scenes with drinking.

Director: Joel Schumacher. With Gerard Butler, Minnie Driver, Simon Callow, Miranda Richardson. (141 min.)

Sterritt ** Hollywood adaptation of the Broadway smash about a demented fiend who skulks, slays, and sings in the Paris Opera's mysterious underbelly. The acting and crooning are uneven, making this a shaky comeback vehicle for the old-fashioned screen musical.

Director: Frederik du Chau. With Hayden Panettiere, voices of Dustin Hoffman, Whoopi Goldberg. (93 min.)

Sterritt ** The aptly named hero is a zebra who thinks he's a racehorse, and has the good fortune to be adopted by a teenage girl who's convinced he can outrun any thoroughbred on the track. Not as funny as it wants to be, and anthropomorphic in ways that are too simplistic for comfort.

Sex/Nudity: None. Violence: 5 mild scenes. Profanity: 2 mild profanities. Drugs: 1 scene with drinking.

Director: Alexander Payne. With Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church. (123 min.)

Sterritt **** Two friends, a recently divorced writer and a marriage-bound actor, spend a weekend together in rural California, running into more complications of the heart than they ever expected. This bittersweet comedy-drama positively crackles with wit, intelligence, and flair, and Giamatti cements his status as the smartest, savviest actor of his generation. Bravo.

Director: Taylor Hackford. With Jamie Foxx and Regina King. (153 min.)

Staff **** Director Hackford has said he considers this an original film, not just the theatrical release with some add-ons. The new material goes further into the difficult and contradictory side of Charles's personality. It shows, for example, his firing of a drugged-out band member after a performance, despite his own struggle with drugs. The extras are compelling, including a jam session between Foxx and Ray Charles himself before his death. Rated a very strong PG-13 for intense drug-related scenes and sexuality. By Gloria Goodale

Director: Mira Nair. With Reese Witherspoon and Gabriel Byrne. (137 min.)

Staff ** This adaptation of Thackeray's 19th-century novel fares better on DVD than it did in theaters. Thoughtful commentary adds depth, color, and context to a film that could be seen as merely another over-stuffed period piece. In the commentary portion, some straining is visible by the cast and crew to present this film as an archetypal "everyman" tale. Watch the clunky and awkward alternate ending if you're in the mood for a laugh. By Elizabeth Owuor

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