originally published October 3, 2007

Attention:

Due to a printer error, some copies of the current print edition of Flagpole listed incorrect movie information on pp. 16-17. A reprint with the correct information was distributed on Wednesday afternoon. We apologize for any inconvenience to our readers. All information on the website is up to date.

3:10 TO YUMA

(R) A remake of the 1957 classic, the film meanders a bit on its way to the appointed train but ultimately arrives at a conclusion as stunning as it is graceful. Outlaw Ben Wade (Russell Crowe) and desperate rancher Dan Evans (Christian Bale) bond on the way to meeting that fateful train. Ends Thursday (Beechwood, Carmike)

ACROSS THE UNIVERSE

(PG-13) See Flick Skinny. Director Julie Taymor's latest film follows a group of young people (Evan Rachel Wood as Lucy, Jim Sturgess as Jude, Joe Anderson as Max, Dana Fuchs as Sadie - get it? They all have names of characters from Beatles songs. And no, Max is not a serial killer) finding their way during the turmoil of the late 1960s - while frequently and randomly breaking into song. Remember the counter-cultural musical Hair? This film is Hair (same basic story, even) where all the hippies are cleaner and more attractive - and only sing Beatles songs. One can't help thinking, why did they make this movie? Or why wasn't it made 30 years ago when it might have been relevant? Hardcore Beatles fans tend to be pretty picky about cover versions of the songs, and most of the arrangements featured in the soundtrack are pretty tame (with the exception on the tunes Fuchs sings as a Janis Joplin-esque rock singer). Stay home and watch Hair while listening to Let It Be. Why settle for a modern imitation, when you can have the real thing? [Margaret Moore] (Beechwood)

AN AMERICAN WEREWOLF IN LONDON

(R) 1981. Writer-director John Landis’ blackly comic horror film travels through the English countryside with a couple of American tourists (David Naughton and Griffin Dunne). After being attacked by a werewolf, the survivor is haunted by nightmares the ghosts of his mauled victims. Shows Friday, 10/5 & Saturday, 10/6 (Ciné)

BECOMING JANE

(PG) Jane Austen spent the majority of her short life in obscurity. Her nearest brush with romance was a short flirtation with Tom LeFroy, an Irish lawyer. The chemistry between Anne Hathaway and James McAvoy is engaging, the supporting cast is strong, and the cinematography pleasing. [Jesslyn Shields] Ends Thursday (Georgia Square 5)

THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM

(PG-13) Director Paul Greengrass returns with a third entry that elevates the series’ threat level to midnight. Shot and edited at a breakneck pace, Ultimatum is bursting with brutal beatings, deadly double crosses and revelations about Bourne’s (Matt Damon) past. Starts Friday (Georgia Square 5)

THE BRAVE ONE

(R) The Brave One dares to question vigilantism’s godlike arrogance more than any film in the genre’s history. Radio personality Erica Bain (Jodie Foster) simultaneously rebuilds and loses herself to an empowering killing spree after her fiancé is murdered. Directed by Neil Jordan (The Crying Game). Ends Thursday (Beechwood, Carmike)

COMO AGUA PARA CHOCOLATE

(R) 1992. Director Alfonso Arau’s Golden Globe-nominated fable is rich with food, love and loss. Victims of an older time, Tita and Pedro are kept apart as Pedro marries Tita’s older sister and Tita must care for her mother in the same house where her sister and former love reside. Shows Wednesday, 10/3 (GMOA)

DADDY DAY CAMP

(PG) This sequel to Daddy Day Care replaces Eddie Murphy with Cuba Gooding, Jr. as he runs a day camp. I’d rather go back to summer camp than this tripe again, and I hated summer camp. (Georgia Square 5)

DEATH WISH 3

(R) 1985. Paul Kersey (Charles Bronson) returns to New York and ends up in the middle of a gang war. Hosted by DJ Mahogany. See ABC. Shows Thursday, 10/4 (Flicker)

EASTERN PROMISES

(R) The plot of David Cronenberg's latest is centered on a midwife (Naomi Watts), the baby girl she delivers in the opening scenes of the film - and a diary. The child (and the diary) belong to a young Russian prostitute who dies during childbirth. From this point on, Anna is reluctantly pulled into London's Russian mafia. A clue in the diary leads her to the seemingly kind and fatherly Semyon (Armin Mueller-Stahl), who is really a ruthless mob boss. She also crosses paths with the crime ring's newest driver/ butcher, Nikolai Luzhin (Viggo Mortensen). Despite seeing someone get their throat cut in the opening scenes, there is surprisingly little gore for a David Cronenberg film about the notoriously violent Russian mob. However, the fight scene where Nikolai gets jumped in a public bath is painfully realistic. Bloodied nudity aside, the film is filled with award-worthy performances, especially from Mortensen and Watts. [Alex Moore] (Beechwood); Ends Thursday (Carmike)

EVAN ALMIGHTY

(PG) Evan Baxter (Steve Carell) has just won a seat in Congress when God shows up with Ark Building for Dummies. A weak attempt to co-opt religion for box office gain, Evan Almighty is errantly, inherently unfunny. (Highway 17 Theatres)

EXILED

(R) 2006. As Portugal readies to return the colony of Macau to China in 1999, four hitmen consider what the future holds for them while preparing to protect and/ or assassinate a former associate. Exiled snagged a Golden Lion nom for Hong Kong director Johnny To. Starts Friday (Ciné)

FEAST OF LOVE

(R) Robert Benton (Kramer vs. Kramer, Places in the Heart) directs this adaptation of Charles Baxter’s novel. Bradley (Greg Kinnear) has recently lost his wife (Selma Blair) to another woman; Chloe and Oscar (Alexa Davalos and Toby Hemingway) are young, poor, but in love; and Diana (Radha Mitchell) is having an affair with a married man (Billy Burke). All of this love is overseen by Professor Harry Stevenson (Morgan Freeman) and his wife (Jane Alexander). In flashes rather than scenes, clichés and platitudes masquerade as deep, philosophical meditations on the various states of love. Misedited and clunkily written, Feast of Love is almost creepy in its earnest sexual frankness. (Beechwood, Carmike)

FEEL THE NOISE

(PG-13) Produced by J-Lo, Feel the Noise stars Omarion Grandberry (You Got Served) as a wannabe rapper who, after running afoul of local thugs, escapes to Puerto Rico to live with the father he never knew. Opens Friday (Carmike)

THE FOOD OF THE GODS

(PG) 1976. Writer-director Bert I. Gordon (Empire of the Ants) adapted H.G. Wells’ novel for this cheesy hunk of low-budget horror science fiction. A group of people hunting on a remote Canadian island are terrorized by giant animals. Shows Tuesday, 10/9 (Flicker)

THE GAME PLAN

(PG) Professional football player Joe Kingman (Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson) has only one thing in mind - winning a championship ring - until his daughter, sweet little Peyton (Madison Pettis), is left on his doorstep by his ex. With shallow teammates delineated as the family man, the idiot, and the childless mega-agent (poor Kyra Sedgwick), The Game Plan needs an MVP. While Johnson - buffing his family friendly image to a workable, box office shine - should be it, Joe Kingman isn’t. Blasé characterization does not a winning lead create. Kids will love The Game Plan for two hours and promptly forget it; parents could do worse. (Beechwood, Carmike)

GOOD LUCK CHUCK

(R) More soft-core porn than actual comedy, Good Luck Chuck fails in everything it attempts. Chuck (Dane Cook) has been cursed since middle school: every girl he sleeps with falls in love with the next man she dates. This is all well and good until he meets the clumsy-yet-gorgeous Cam (Jessica Alba), the girl of his dreams, and thus, must find a way to break the curse. Riddled with vulgar sex jokes and raunchy scenes, Chuck leaves its audience feeling more violated than amused. [Maggie Summers] (Beechwood, Carmike)

HAIRSPRAY

(PG) This charming picture is powered by the contagious bounce of big-haired, big-boned newcomer Nikki Blonsky, and catchy songs. In 1960s Baltimore, Tracy Turnblad (Blonsky) shows everyone some new steps when she integrates “The Corny Collins Show.” With John Travolta. Ends Thursday (Georgia Square 5)

HARRY POTTER & THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX

(PG-13) HP5 begins with more danger and intrigue than any previous Potter outing. Voldemort’s resurrection has Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) fighting for his life. A solid, if not quite dazzling, transition from HP4 to HP6, HP5 will not disappoint hardcore Potterheads. Starts Friday (Georgia Square 5)

THE HEARTBREAK KID

(R) The Farrelly Brothers try bawdy romantic comedy again with an adaptation of Neil Simon and Elaine May’s 1972 Oscar nominee. Ben Stiller is Eddie Cantrow, a newlywed who falls in love with another woman (Michelle Monaghan) after discovering his perfect wife (Malin Ackerman) isn’t so perfect. Opens Friday (Beechwood, Carmike)

I NOW PRONOUNCE YOU CHUCK AND LARRY

(PG-13) Adam Sandler’s latest comedy fails at pretty much everything it attempts: humor, characters, message, you name it. Sandler and Kevin James ("King of Queens") are Chuck and Larry, two NYC firefighters who get married to solve Larry’s pension problem. (Highway 17 Theatres); Ends Thursday (Georgia Square 5)

IN THE VALLEY OF ELAH

(R) Overrated Oscar winning writer-director Paul Haggis (Crash) swings another message-laden mallet upside the heads of moviegoers. Retired military policeman and investigative savant Hank Deerfield (Tommy Lee Jones) and a local police detective (Charlize Theron) look into the brutal murder of Deerfield's son, a soldier recently returned from Iraq. An anti-war picture that, while indicting the military for the war crime of turning our young men and women into soulless, indiscriminate killing machines, veers surprisingly anti-soldier. (The system might be responsible for the orders, but America’s youngsters are still carrying them out.) Superbly acted by Jones, Theron, Jason Patric and the young men portraying the soldiers, it’s Haggis’ shockingly formulaic setup that weakens the case. Elah is an episode of “Criminal Minds” dressed up in the intelligent clothing of serious cinema. Elah manipulates base emotion by attacking soldiers to make its anti-war point. (Beechwood)

INTERVIEW

(R) A political journalist (Steve Buscemi, who also wrote the screenplay and directed) whose star is falling must interview America’s biggest soap actress (Sienna Miller). Ends Thursday (Ciné)

THE JANE AUSTEN BOOK CLUB

(PG-13) After six Californians form a club to discuss the author’s works, they discover their lives beginning to resemble modern-day versions of those classic romances. Starring Kathy Baker, Maria Bello, Emily Blunt, Amy Brenneman, Jimmy Smits and Lynn Redgrave. Opens Friday (Beechwood)

THE KING OF KONG: A FISTFUL OF QUARTERS

(PG-13) Watch as 35-year-old Steve Wiebe assaults “Gamer of the Century” Billy Mitchell’s high score on the classic arcade title, "Donkey Kong," in a cross-country duel for inclusion in the Guinness Book of World Records. Ends Thursday (Ciné)

THE KINGDOM

(R) See Movie Pick. (Beechwood, Carmike)

LA MALA EDUCACIÓN

(R) 2004. Spanish auteur Pedro Almodóvar’s Bad Education stars Gael García Bernal as Ángel, Juan and Zahara in this examination of Franco-era religious schooling. Two boys discover love, movies and fear with the assistance and hindrance of the school’s principal and literature teacher. A perplexing, beautiful film. Shows Wednesday, 10/10 (UGA SLC)

MISS NAVAJO

(NR) Prior to its national broadcast on PBS’ “Independent Lens,” director Billy Luther’s documentary gets its premiere in Athens. Miss Navajo explores the place of the feminine in Native American culture as one woman seeks to become the new holder of the Miss Navajo crown. The screening will be followed by a discussion. Part of the ACC Library’s iFilms series. Shows Thursday, 10/3 (ACC Library)

MR. WOODCOCK

(PG-13) When bestselling self-help author John Farley (Seann William Scott) returns to his hometown, he discovers his mother (Susan Sarandon) is engaged to his nemesis, sadistic gym teacher Mr. Woodcock (Billy Bob Thornton). Director Craig Gillespie delivers a movie that has more of an independent spirit than its dumb dude comedy trailer betrays. Ends Thursday (Beechwood, Carmike)

NIGHT OF THE DEMONS

(R) 1988. A group of teens decide to party on Halloween night at an abandoned funeral parlor and end up awakening demons. Hosted by DJ Mahogany. See ABC. Shows Thursday, 10/4 (Flicker)

PAPRIKA

(R) 2006. This twisted anime tale blurs the line between dreams and reality. When prototypes of a machine used by doctors to enter the dreams of mental patients are stolen, members of the development team begin to experience lucid dreams as someone broadcasts the same nightmare into their minds. In Japanese with English subtitles. [Margaret Moore] Starts Friday (Carmike)

POLTERGEIST

(PG) 1982. This modern-day haunted house flick will be most remembered the iconic quote, “They’re here.” The film itself, a spooky combination of special effects and old-fashioned haunted house chills, is worth at least another look on the big screen if you haven’t seen it in a few years. This special 25th anniversary screening includes a never-before-seen featurette on paranormal activity. Shows Thursday, 10/4 (Beechwood)

PULP FICTION

(R) 1994. With what was inarguably the most influential film of the 1990s, cinematic junkie Quentin Tarantino established himself as the auteur of a generation. Two hitmen (John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson) wax philosophic in some of the tightest non-linear storytelling ever to be peppered with enough pop culture ammo to win World War II. Shows Thursday, 10/4 (Tate)

RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK: THE ADAPTATION

(NR) 1989. After watching Steven Spielberg’s classic film, three kids decided to film their own shot-for-shot reenactment. Read all about it here. Shows Friday, 10/5–Sunday, 10/7 (Ciné)

RATATOUILLE

(G) Remy the rat (Patton Oswalt) dreams of being a top chef. Garbage boy Linguine (Lou Romano) doesn’t want to lose another job. Together they become the gastronomic sensation of Paris. Ratatouille again proves Pixar is king. Directed by Brad Bird (The Incredibles). Starts Friday (Georgia Square 5)

RESCUE DAWN

(PG-13) Acclaimed filmmaker Werner Herzog turns his 1997 documentary, Little Dieter Needs to Fly, into a feature starring Christian Bale. Early in the Vietnam War, U.S. fighter pilot Dieter Dengler (Bale) is shot down over Laos and imprisoned. What follows is the daring jungle escape executed by Dieter and his band of bound brothers. With Steve Zahn and Jeremy Davies. Shows Friday, 10/5, Saturday, 10/6, and Sunday, 10/7 (Tate)

RESIDENT EVIL: EXTINCTION

(R) Milla Jovovich returns as the ass-kicking, DNA-modified Alice in the third installment of the Resident Evil franchise. Extinction picks up the story as Alice, having escaped from the evil clutches of the Umbrella Corp. yet again, roams the desert of the American Southwest. She hooks up with a ragtag caravan led by Ali Larter ("Heroes") and they attempt to get to Alaska to safety. Meanwhile, an evil Umbrella Corp. doctor has been experimenting on the infected. Chaos, of course, ensues. At least the franchise has something going for it: no wimpy PG-13 rating here![Margaret Moore] (Beechwood, Carmike)

RUSH HOUR 3

(PG-13) Rush Hour 3 is a pleasant enough diversion that never achieves the giddy fun of the first two installments. RH3 displaces Chris Tucker’s Detective James Carter and Jackie Chan’s Chief Inspector Lee in the City of Lights, where they must bring the Chinese Triad to its knees. Ends Thursday (Carmike)

SEA MONSTERS: A PREHISTORIC ADVENTURE

(NR) Carmike hosts its first National Geographic Giant Screen 3-D film, a documentary about prehistoric sea creatures. Photo-realistic, high-resolution computer graphics with a run time of 40 minutes. Narrated by Liev Schreiber. Opens Friday (Carmike)

THE SEEKER: DARK IS RISING

(PG) A young boy, Will Stanton (Alexander Ludwig), the last of a line of immortal warriors, must learn how to fight the forces of darkness in order to save the world. With Ian McShane and Christopher Eccleston. Opens Friday (Beechwood, Carmike)

THE SIMPSONS MOVIE

(PG-13) I can’t help but greet the feature version of this cultural institution with a single, “D’oh!” As “South Park” presciently declared, “Simpsons did it.” Every surreal plot turn and nonsensical gag are recycled. (Georgia Square 5)

STEAMBOAT BILL, JR.

(NR) 1928. Legendary silent comedian Buster Keaton is the weakling son of a burly riverboat captain. When he arrives from Boston, he falls in love with the daughter (Marion Byron) of his father’s rival (Tom McGuire) before having to rescue his father during a hurricane. Scored live by Kenosha Kid. See feature here. Shows Thursday, 10/4 (Ciné)

SYDNEY WHITE

(PG-13) Amanda Bynes continues her cutesy teen roles with her turn as Sydney White (as in Snow White, get it?), an anti-sorority girl who likes comic books and wears Converse sneakers. The movie doesn't take itself too seriously; it's a cute comedy for teen girls. [Maggie Summers] (Beechwood); Ends Thursday (Carmike)

TOPPER

(NR) 1937. After dying in an automobile accident, the fun-loving Kerbys (Constance Bennett and Cary Grant), try to reform stuffy buddy Cosmo Topper (Roland Young). The screening includes a special needs narration track. Shows Thursday, 10/4 (ACC Library)

TRANSFORMERS

(PG-13) The good-guy Autobots befriend young Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf), who aids them in their quest to stop the evil Decepticons from eradicating mankind. Transformers is the best adaptation of a cartoon ever. (Georgia Square 5)

VALENTÍN

(PG-13) 2003. In Buenos Aires, an eight-year-old boy (Silver Condor winner Rodrigo Noya) is being raised by his grandmother. When she dies, young Valentín must solve all of his family’s problems on his own. Written and directed by The Lake House’s Alejandro Agresti. Shows Wednesday, 10/10 (GMOA)

THE WILD BUNCH

(R) 1969. One of Sam Peckinpah’s many masterpieces, The Wild Bunch is an aging gang of outlaws, led by Pike (William Holden) and Dutch (Ernest Borgnine), whose way of life is doomed by America’s booming expansion and industrialization. With a posse spearheaded by former pal Deke (Robert Ryan) on their tail, the gang head for one of Hollywood’s most famous shootouts. Starts Monday (Ciné)

Drew Wheeler