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By The Tampa Tribune | The Tampa Tribune

Published: February 14, 2008

BECOMING JANE

The Jane Austen juggernaut rolls on, only this time instead of adapting one of her novels, the subject matter is the author's life — speculatively tarted up with bodice-ripper trappings. Anne Hathaway is a not-so-plain Jane, while "Atonement's" James McAvoy is Irish lawyer Tom Lefroy, whom we are to believe is the one who got away. Maggie Smith and James Cromwell also appear.

PG; 120 minutes

GONE BABY GONE

For his solid, serious directorial debut, an adaptation of a Dennis Lehane ("Mystic River") novel about a murky case of child abduction, Ben Affleck returns to his Boston roots — including casting his brother, Casey, as the lead. Strong performances all around include bravura turns by Michelle Monaghan, Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris and Amy Ryan, Oscar-nominated for her role as the missing girl's junkie mom.

R; 114 minutes

MARTIAN CHILD

Although it does feature Amanda Peet as a "free spirit," complete with Hollywood hippie wardrobe, this film about a widowed sci-fi writer (John Cusack) trying to adopt a troubled little boy is not quite as schmaltzy as it could have been. The twist on the usual tale of an unlikely dad bonding with a sad kid is that said boy believes himself to be a Martian.

PG; 108 minutes

NO RESERVATIONS

Not to be confused with the Anthony Bourdain program of the same name, this kitchen-themed rom-com stars Catherine Zeta-Jones as an uptight chef whose regimented life is thrown into disarray by the arrival of her orphaned niece, Abigail Breslin ("Little Miss Sunshine"). Aaron Eckhart is the obligatory romantic foil, a laidback fellow chef with important life lessons to impart, like so much parsley.

PG; 104 minutes

WHY DID I GET MARRIED?

Tyler Perry's latest play-turned-movie is a Madea-free exploration of four troubled upper middle-class marriages. From infidelity to body image and on through grief and workaholic tendencies, this group of college friends is like a Noah's ark of dysfunction. Livening up the obvious plot points are performances by Tasha Smith and singers Janet Jackson and Jill Scott (though the songs from the stage version are not included).

PG-13; 111 minutes

WE OWN THE NIGHT

Joaquin Phoenix and Mark Wahlberg are brothers who find themselves on opposite sides of the law in late-'80s Brooklyn in this crime drama from cult director James Gray ("The Yards"). Phoenix is the bad seed who breaks with the family tradition of joining the local police force, instead working at a club run by the Russian mafia. Inevitably, his loyalties are tested. Robert Duvall plays the scenery-chewing dad.

R; 117 minutes

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