The following are capsule reviews of movies recently reviewed by the Office for Film & Broadcasting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
Chandni Chowk to China (Warner Bros.)
In this flavorful yet prolix fusion of Bollywood cinema and Hong Kong martial arts, a clownish cook (Akshay Kumar) from Delhi travels to China to vanquish a gangster exploiting villagers near the Great Wall. He crosses paths with a set of female twins and is transformed into a fighter by their father, a kung fu master. Director Nikhil Advani blends music and melodrama, cartoonish humor and stylized action into a colorful spectacle that proves to be too much of too many things, destined to test the patience of uninitiated moviegoers as well as ardent fans of both genres. Frequent martial arts violence that is occasionally intense and pervasive broad, if generally chaste, humor characteristic of the Bollywood idiom. (A-III, PG-13)
Hotel for Dogs (Dreamworks/Nickelodeon)
Wholesomely enjoyable canine caper in which an orphaned brother and sister (Jake T. Austin and Emma Roberts) shelter their dog, along with a motley group of strays, in an abandoned hotel, outwitting their neglectful foster parents (Lisa Kudrow and Kevin Dillon) and causing complications for their genuinely caring social worker (Don Cheadle). Director Thor Freudenthal's cuddly adaptation of Lois Duncan's 1971 children's book, his feature debut, sees the affectionate siblings working together and with friends to care for their expanding pack and improvising a part-human, part-animal surrogate family. A couple of crass words. (A-I, PG)
My Bloody Valentine 3-D (Lionsgate)
Risible, gore-saturated horror tale in which the sheriff (Kerr Smith) of a small mining town suspects his wife's (Jaime King) old flame (Jensen Ackles) of committing a series of ax murders around Valentine's Day. Director Patrick Lussier's slipshod updating of the "O"-classified 1981 film of the same title (minus the 3-D) puts current technology to questionable use, with body parts and blood flying off the screen willy-nilly. Pervasive gory violence, strong sexual content, including brief but graphic nonmarital sexual activity, one scene of extensive full female nudity, frequent rough and crass language, and some use of profanity. (O, R)
Notorious (Fox Searchlight)
Gritty but powerful biography of rapper Christopher Wallace, aka Notorious BIG (gifted newcomer Jamal Woolard) from his working-class childhood under the care of his stern but devoted mother (Angela Bassett) and his sudden rise from streetwise drug dealer to musical star, to his tangled personal life and the events leading up to his murder at age 24. Director George Tillman Jr.'s warts-and-all portrait shows the excesses of its subject's lifestyle, but also his efforts to become a responsible father and to reconcile with friend turned violent rival Tupac Shakur (Anthony Mackie). Strong sexual content, including brief but graphic nonmarital sexual activity, adultery, full female nudity, drug use, pervasive rough and crude language, and at least one profanity. (L, R)
Paul Blart: Mall Cop (Columbia)
Largely good-natured slapstick comedy relies on the physicality of Kevin James, who, in addition to co-writing the script, portrays the titular plus-size security guard defending a New Jersey mall from a pack of acrobatic thieves on the busiest shopping day of the year. Because the loveably hapless hero embodies numerous qualities infrequently championed on-screen nowadays --- including chivalry, diligence and honesty --- any moderately untoward moments in director Steve Carr's effort are eclipsed by a positive message concerning respect for those not usually deemed successful or attractive, particularly those who don't fit the ideal body mold in our looks-conscious society. Frequent violence of a slapstick nature, some suggestive humor, several instances of crude and crass language, and one sequence involving alcohol use. (A-II, PG) ---CNS
USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classifications: 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. |