Chuck Koplinski

With the success of Chicken Little, Disney Studios has shown that it is capable of competing in the computer-animated-film business, even if its wildly successful distribution deal with Pixar Animation is a thing of the past. In producing a big-screen adaptation of C.S. Lewis’ beloved The Chronicles of Narnia series, the Mouse Factory hopes to […]

In an era in which special effects drive big-budget films and human interaction is regarded as an annoyance, memorable screen teams are few and far between. However, there’s always an exception that proves the rule. Case in point: John Cusack and Billy Bob Thornton in The Ice Harvest. Having teamed up once before in the […]

Joe Wright’s masterful new adaptation of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice engages the viewer from the very first scene to the very last in such a way that you will begin missing the characters as the final credits roll. Such experiences are becoming all too rare at the movies, given that so many of today’s […]

The biggest surprise about the Harry Potter films? They just keep getting better. Instead of simply repeating elements that worked well the first time around, the sequels have expanded on the original situations and allowed their appealing characters to grow. Credit, of course, goes to the source material, the immensely popular novels by J.K. Rowling, […]

Chris Van Allsburg’s wildly imaginative, lavishly illustrated children’s books contain simple yet heart-warming messages that have wide appeal and are obvious candidates for adaptation to the big screen. Unfortunately, the first two — Jumanji (1995) and The Polar Express (2004) — misfired. The same cannot be said of Zathura. Here, finally, is a film that […]

George Clooney’s Good Night, and Good Luck tells the story of the famous over-the-air battle between newsman Edward R. Murrow and U.S. Sen. Joseph McCarthy, a confrontation that helped undermine political support for the demagogue. It’s a meticulous account that adheres closely to the facts and even includes film from the period to bolster its authenticity. […]

The action scenes — fancy swordfights and footwork — are dazzling but hardly enough to overcome the plodding, ponderous story that unfolds in The Legend of Zorro. Running more than two hours, this sequel to 1998’s The Mask of Zorro spends far too much time laying out its ridiculous story and far too little doing […]

OPENING Doom ShowPlace West [1:10, 1:50] 4:00, 4:40, 6:40, 7:20, 9: 10, 9:50 ShowPlace East 1:50, 4:50, 7:20 (Fri-Sun 10:00) Dreamer ShowPlace West [1:30, 2:10] 4:20, 5:00, 7:00, 7:40, 9: 30, 10:10 ShowPlace East 1:30, 4:30, 7:00 (Fri-Sun 9:20) Grizzly Man Parkway Pointe [1:30] 4:40, 7:20, 9:50 Kids in America ShowPlace West [2:40] 5:20, 8:00, […]

Cameron Crowe makes movies — Jerry Maguire, Almost Famous, Vanilla Sky — about honesty, loyalty, love and redemption. Accept them or reject them, but you can never accuse the filmmaker of being anything less than sincere. It is this very quality that makes his latest work, Elizabethtown, worthwhile. Though it is unquestionably a flawed film, […]

Cameron Diaz and Toni Collette play Maggie and Rose, the most unlikely pair of sisters you’re ever likely to meet, in this film adaptation of the popular novel by Jennifer Weiner. Getting by on her good looks and inherent charm, Maggie has never had to earn anything she’s ever needed and has come to rely […]

One thing you have to say about John Stockwell’s Into the Blue and that is, it sure is pretty.  With Jessica Alba prancing around most of its running time in a bikini, how could it not be?   But what proves to be even more stunning are the crisp, clear images of its Caribbean locale. […]

Based on a European folktale, Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride gets off to a rousing start as director Burton and co-director Mike Johnson’s camera bobs and floats through the gray village where the Van Dorts and Everglots live. There’s a great deal of scurrying about for the wedding of shy guy Victor Van Dort (voiced by […]