The following are capsule reviews of movies recently reviewed by the Office for Film & Broadcasting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Because I Said So (Universal/Gold Circle)
Mediocre and unfunny comedy about an overbearing mother (Diane Keaton) who tries to match up her single daughter (Mandy Moore) with a shallow architect (Tom Everett Scott), while the daughter is more sensibly drawn to a decent single father (Gabriel Macht), but nonetheless engages in a sexual relationship with both. Director Michael Lehmann's appalling chick flick pushes the contemporary acceptance of premarital sex to new lows, as the permissive Keaton character and her three daughters blithely discuss their sexual experiences at every opportunity. Keaton's comic prowess, appealing performances from Moore, Macht and Stephen Collins, the absence of graphic sex, minimal expletives, and a reasonably moral tie-up fail to balance a script that is morally --- and dramatically --- askew at every turn. Several nongraphic sexual encounters, permissive sexual mores, much sexual banter, innuendo and other questionable elements, casual acceptance of porn and an instance of profanity. (O, PG-13)

Epic Movie (Fox)
Tired spinoff of the "Scary Movie" franchise which here spoofs blockbusters such as "The Chronicles of Narnia," "X-Men," "The Da Vinci Code" and "Pirates of the Caribbean," while it follows four orphans (Kal Penn, Adam Campbell, Jayma Mays and Faune A. Chambers) battling to free a Narnia-like realm from an evil witch (Jennifer Coolidge). Directors Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer elicit few chuckles amid a mostly witless slog of sophomoric slapstick and lowbrow humor, amounting to an epic waste of time. Pervasive crass and sexual humor, lewd and irreverent sight gags, innuendo, comic violence, an instance of rough language and recurring crude language, as well as some profanity. (O, PG-13)

Factory Girl (Weinstein/MGM)
The sad, sordid rise and fall of socialite Edie Sedgwick (Sienna Miller), who shone briefly in the spotlight as part of Andy Warhol's (Guy Pearce) artistic center, the Factory, in the 1960s, appearing in his underground movies until the pop artist tired of her, showing how the over-the-top lifestyle led to her eventual burnout despite a nurturing interlude with a legendary singer (Hayden Christensen). Director George Hickenlooper's film takes an episodic approach in telling the story as Sedgwick, near the end of her short life (which ended at 28 from a drug overdose), relates her experiences to a psychiatrist. The milieu is downbeat and often seamy, but presented with relative restraint, and Miller is immensely appealing in her sensitive portrait of the trusting, vulnerable waif. Nongraphic premarital sexual encounters, upper female and partial nudity, brief sexual banter and innuendo, drug use, some rough and crude language, gay references, references to child abuse and suicide. (L, R)

The Messengers (Columbia)
Supernatural thriller about a husband (Dylan McDermott) and his wife (Penelope Ann Miller) who relocate their family from Chicago to a creepy North Dakota farmhouse haunted by ghosts of its murdered former residents visible only to the couple's toddler son and teenage daughter (Kristen Stewart), who tries to unravel the property's violent past. Directing brothers Oxide and Danny Pang bring their less-is-more Asian horror sensibilities to the standard haunted house genre, but while adroit at creating eerie visuals, they fail to generate much sustained suspense, mustering only modest chills as they navigate a predictable plot capped by a ludicrous climax. Horror images, violence, sequences of terror and menace with blood, including a disturbing but nongraphic scene of murder, an instance of mild sexual innuendo, as well as some crude language and profanity. (A-III, PG-13)

The Office for Film & Broadcasting classifications of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops rates movies on the basis of moral suitability. The classifications are: A-I --- general patronage; A-II --- adults and adolescents; A-III --- adults; L --- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling; O --- morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America ratings are: G --- general audiences. All ages admitted; PG --- parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children; PG-13 --- parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13; R --- restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian; NC-17 --- no one 17 and under admitted.