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The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 13, 2007

OPENING

Alvin and the Chipmunks

In this CGI/live action comedy, three homeless chipmunk brothers with helium voices find refuge in the home of a struggling songwriter (Jason Lee). Review, Page 5. 90 minutes (PG; for mild rude humor)

I Am Legend **½

A scientist (Will Smith) has his hands full battling carnivorous mutants in an eerily empty New York City while trying to reverse the effects of the virus that wiped out mankind. Review, Page 4. 100 minutes (PG-13; intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence)

Margot at the Wedding **

Sibling rivalry hits a fever pitch in this tale about razor-tongued Margot (Nicole Kidman) wreaking havoc at her unassuming sister's wedding. 97 minutes (R; sexual content and profanity)

The Perfect Holiday (not reviewed)

Romance blossoms when a girl asks a department store Santa Claus (Morris Chesnut) to pay her lonely single mother (Gabrielle Union) a compliment. 96 minutes (PG; brief profanity, suggestive humor)

TAMPA THEATRE

A historic film house at 711 Franklin St. in downtown Tampa; (813) 274-8981. Tickets for regular screenings: $9 adults, $8 students with ID, $7 seniors age 55 and older, military and children 12 and younger. Weekend matinees: $7. Admission includes pre-show Mighty Wurlitzer Theater Organ mini-concert.

I'm Not There

See Still in Town. 135 minutes (PG; profanity, sexuality and nudity)

Show times: 4:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, 7:30 p.m. Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday

White Christmas

Watch this 1954 holiday favorite and try - just try - to remain unmoved by the spirit of the season. Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney and a classic Irving Berlin score team up to save a failing Vermont inn. Feel good yet? Preceeded by a holiday sing-along with the Mighty Wurlitzer Theater Organ. 120 minutes. (PG)

Show times: 3 p.m. Sunday

Midnight Clear

Depressed strangers cross paths and change each other's lives forever in this holiday-themed parable about the profound effects of small acts of kindness. Star Stephen Baldwin, director Dallas Jenkins and writer Jerry Jenkins will be on hand for this Tampa-area premiere. 102 minutes (PG-13; mature themes)

Show times: 7:30 p.m. Tuesday

STILL IN TOWN

The Alps (not reviewed)

A mountain climber attempts to scale the Swiss mountain where his father died in this adventure-documentary, filmed in glorious Imax. 45 minutes. (Not rated)

American Gangster ***

Two of Hollywood's biggest stars go head-to-head in this tale about a New York cop (Russell Crowe) on the trail of a Harlem drug kingpin (Denzel Washington) in the 1970s. 157 minutes (R; violence, pervasive drug content and profanity, nudity and sexuality)

August Rush

1/2

A musical prodigy (Freddie Highmore) uses his talent (and help from a stranger played by Robin Williams) to search for his parents (Keri Russell and Jonathan Rhys-Meyers), who he's never met. 112 minutes (PG; mild violence and profanity)

Awake (not reviewed)

A psychological thriller, starring Hayden Christensen and Jessica Alba, about "anesthetic awareness," a horrifying phenomenon where failed anesthesia leaves a patient fully conscious but physically paralyzed during surgery. 84 minutes (R; profanity, disturbing situations and drug use)

Bee Movie **

Jerry Seinfeld and Renee Zellweger provide voices in this animated tale about a busy bee who sets off to sue the human race for stealing honey. 90 minutes (PG; mild suggestive humor)

Before the Devil Knows You're Dead **

Family dysfunction hits a new low when siblings (Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ethan Hawke) decide to rob the family jewelry store. 123 minutes (R; graphic sexuality, nudity, violence, drug use and profanity)

Bella (not reviewed)

An ex-professional soccer player (Eduardo Verastegui) goes to work in a restaurant and finds himself drawn to a waitress (Tammy Blanchard), who recently learned she is pregnant. 100 minutes (PG-13; disturbing images)

Beowulf **½

Using motion-capture animation, director Robert Zemeckis tells the tale of the young warrior Beowulf (Ray Winstone), who slays the monster Grendel. But then the hero must face a deadlier foe: Grendel's mother (Angelina Jolie), who seeks vengeance for the loss of her son. 113 minutes (PG-13; intense violence, disturbing images, sexual material and nudity)

The Bourne Ultimatum ***½

Amnesiac CIA assassin Jason Bourne (Matt Damon) gets closer to answering some burning questions about his murky past in this third installment of the series based on Robert Ludlum's novels. Despite the requisite car chases and fistfights, this is the rare action movie with a brain. 110 minutes. (PG-13; violence and intense action)

The Brave One **½

Jodie Foster channels Travis Bickle in this vigilante story of a woman who goes on a killing spree after thugs attack and kill her fiance (Naveen Andrews of "Lost"). 108 minutes (R violence, profanity, sexuality)

The Comebacks (not reviewed)

A comedy that spoofs the best inspirational sports movies including "Rocky," "Remember the Titans," and "Field of Dreams." 84 minutes (PG-13; sexual content, some drug use)

Dan in Real Life **

A widowed advice columnist (Steve Carell), struggling to raise his three daughters, complicates his life by falling for a woman (Juliette Binoche) who turns out to be his brother's girlfriend. 95 minutes (PG-13; innuendo)

The Darjeeling Limited **

Three disgruntled brothers (Owen Wilson, Adrian Brody and Jason Schwartzman) set off on a train trip across India to find themselves, renew their bond and make peace with their self-involved parents. 91 minutes (R; profanity)

Deep Sea 3D (not reviewed)

This 3-D exploration of the ocean's depths is filmed in Imax and narrated by Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet. 41 minutes. (Not rated)

Elizabeth: The Golden Age *½

Cate Blanchett reprises her regal role as Queen Elizabeth I for this lavish mixture of historical fact, romance-novel melodrama and ornate costumery. 115 minutes (PG-13; violence, sexuality and nudity)

Enchanted ***

Disney pokes fun at itself in this twisted fairy tale about a cartoon princess (Amy Adams) banished to a live-action New York City where she finds her prince charming (Patrick Dempsey), a divorce lawyer. 107 minutes (PG; scary images and mild innuendo)

Fred Claus *½

Christmas is in jeopardy when Santa (Paul Giamatti) gives his black-sheep brother (Vince Vaughn) a chance at redemption in the North Pole toy shop. 116 minutes. (PG; mild profanity and rude humor)

The Golden Compass *½

A 12-year-old girl (newcomer Dakota Blue Richards) tries to rescue a kidnapped friend and winds up on an epic quest to save her world. The movie also stars Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig. 114 minutes (PG-13; sequences of fantasy violence)

Gone Baby Gone ****

Two Boston private investigators get drawn into a complex child kidnapping case in actor Ben Affleck's directorial debut. 114 minutes (R; violence, drug content, profanity)

The Heartbreak Kid **

Days into his honeymoon, a man (Ben Stiller) discovers his new bride is a nightmare and begins wooing another - the girl of his dreams. 115 minutes (R; strong sexual content, crude humor, profanity and drug use)

Hitman (not reviewed)

Based on a popular video game, Agent 47 (Timothy Olyphant) is an assassin who carries out high-profile hits for a group called The Agency. 100 minutes (R; graphic violence, profanity, sexuality and nudity)

I'm Not There **

Unconventional biopic of Bob Dylan in which six different actors - including Cate Blanchett, Heath Ledger and Richard Gere - play characters based on the legendary singer. 135 minutes (PG; profanity, sexuality and nudity)

In the Valley of Elah **½

Vietnam vet Hank Deerfield (Tommy Lee Jones) joins forces with a police detective (Charlize Theron) to discover what happened to his son, a soldier who goes AWOL after returning from Iraq and is later found dead. 120 minutes (R; violent and disturbing content, profanity, sexuality and nudity)

The Kingdom **½

A team of FBI agents (Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Garner and Chris Cooper) travel to Saudi Arabia to determine who was behind a massive, deadly bombing at an American oil-company compound in Riyadh. 110 minutes (R; intense sequences of graphic brutal violence and profanity)

Love In The Time of Cholera *½

Based on the Nobel Prize-winning author Gabriel García Márquez's novel, a man bides his time for years while awaiting the day he can finally be with the woman he loves. 138 minutes (R; sexual content, nudity and brief profanity)

Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium *½

The 243-year-old owner (Dustin Hoffman) of a strange, yet wonderful toy store enlists the help of an eager young manger (Natalie Portman) to keep his Emporium going. 93 minutes (G)

Mr. Woodcock (not reviewed)

A self-help author (Seann William Scott) returns to his hometown to find his mom has fallen for his arch enemy - a junior high school gym teacher (Billy Bob Thornton) who tormented him mercilessly. 87 minutes. (PG-13; crude humor, sexual content, profanity, drug references)

Mummies: Secrets of the Pharaohs (not reviewed)

The DNA of a 3,000-year-old mummy may help researchers gain insight into human genetics and new medical treatments. 40 minutes (not rated)

No Country for Old Men ****

A man (Josh Brolin) stumbles across a drug deal gone bad, takes $2 million and sets off a violent chain reaction that includes a sheriff (Tommy Lee Jones) and a psychopathic bounty hunter (Javier Bardem). Directed by Ethan and Joel Coen ("Fargo"), based on the book by Cormac McCarthy. 122 minutes (R; graphic violence and profanity)

No Reservations **½

Kate (Catherine Zeta-Jones), a hotshot New York chef, has her carefully scheduled life thrown into disarray when a young niece, played by Abigail Breslin ("Little Miss Sunshine"), comes to stay. Things only go more askew when Kate falls for a hunky sous chef, played by Aaron Eckhart. 103 minutes. (PG; sexuality and profanity)

Ratatouille ***

A young rat with culinary aspirations and a cook desperate to keep his job team up to create the best ratatouille in Paris in this animated family film by Disney Pixar. Cast of voices includes Patton Oswalt, Ian Holm, Peter O'Toole and Janeane Garofalo. 110 minutes. (G)

Resident Evil: Extinction (not reviewed)

The third movie based on the popular video game has survivors of Raccoon City trying to get to Alaska when Alice (Mila Jovovich) joins their fight to stop the evil zombie virus. 95 minutes (R; strong horror violence and nudity)

Rush Hour 3 *½

Chris Tucker and Jackie Chan return to cash big, fat paychecks in the unnecessary third installment of this buddy-cop franchise. 91 minutes. (PG-13; action violence, sexual content, nudity and profanity)

Saw IV (not reviewed)

Demented killer Jigsaw (Tobin Bell) returns to inflict more pain and also target the last police officer to touch his case, SWAT commander Rigg (Lyriq Bent). 108 minutes (R; grisly violence, torture and profanity)

Superbad ***

A raucous comedy that follows one night in the lives of two co-dependent high school seniors (Jonah Hill and Michael Cera) trying to score beer and girls before going their separate ways and onto college. 92 minutes. (R; profanity, drug use)

Things We Lost in the Fire ***

A recent widow (Halle Berry) invites her husband's troubled friend (Benicio Del Toro) to live with her and her two children. As he turns his life around, he helps them cope with and confront their loss. 113 minutes (R; drug content and profanity)

This Christmas (not reviewed)

The Whitfield family (Chris Brown and Loretta Devine, among others) brings a lot of baggage home when they gather for the holidays. 117 minutes (PG-13; comic sexual content and violence)

3:10 to Yuma ***½

A rancher (Christian Bale) and an outlaw (Russell Crowe) form an unlikely alliance in this remake of the 1957 cult classic from director James Mangold ("Walk the Line"). 117 minutes (R; violence and profanity)

Transformers **

In this live-action film based on the popular 1980s cartoon, rival robotic clans the Autobots (good guys) and the Decepticons (bad guys) engage in a war that threatens all of mankind. Earth's only chance for survival lies in the hands of Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBoeuf), a young man whose first car turns out to be an Autobot in disguise. The cast includes Josh Duhamel, Megan Fox and John Voigt. 144 minutes. (PG-13; intense action violence, brief sexual humor and profanity)

Listing compiled from Tribune wires and staff reports; Associated Press critics' ratings are out of four stars.

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