Opening Friday

Mission to Mars — Gary Sinise, Don Cheadle and Val Kilmer star in this movie where the secrets of life on Earth are found on the Red Planet. Rated PG-13.

Now Playing

American Beauty — I saw this film for a second time last weekend and enjoyed it even more. Nominated for eight Academy Awards, this is a great film. American Beauty has a sparkling script and knockout performances from Kevin Spacey and Annette Bening. Rated R.

Boiler Room — A drama about shady stockbrokers starring Ben Affleck and Giovanni Ribisi. Like Wall Street but without the Sheens. This was the only film to come out last weekend that got good reviews across the board. Rated R.

Drowning Mona — Danny Devito and Bette Midler star in this film about the murder of the meanest woman in town. This looks pretty funny. Rated PG-13.

Green Mile — Stephen King's serial novel comes to the screen. This is not a horror film, but more of a spiritual drama. It is getting high praise all around, despite its length and the brutality of an execution scene. Rated R.

Hanging Up — Lisa Kudrow, Meg Ryan and Diane Keaton star in this movie about a family with a wild elderly father played by Walter Matthau. Rated PG-13.

My Dog Skip — The hottest smart alecky tv kid of the moment, Frankie Munz (Malcolm) stars in this nice family film about a boy and his dog. Rated PG.

Next Best Thing — A woman and her gay friend have a baby and raise the child as their own. This looks vaguely familiar. Rated PG.

Pitch Black — A crew of a spaceship is terrorized by a species of aliens that attack in the dark. Hooray, another “blow up the aliens” movie! Rated R.

Reindeer Games — Ben Affleck stars in this new action film from John Frankenheimer. The film focuses on an ex-con who gets dragged back into a life of crime by his girlfriend's brother. This looks pretty cool. Rated R.

Scream 3 — This is not just a cash cow film. The producers and directors intended on making this a trilogy from the beginning. I loved the first two installments. In fact, I am an extra in Scream 2. I look forward to this movie and hope that they end the series on a good note, meaning that it is both funny and scary. Rated R.

Simpatico — Based on Sam Shepard's play about horse racing, Simpatico has a great cast (Stone, Nolte, Bridges) and obviously a good script. Rated R.

Snow Day — This movie is getting panned, but maybe it is as good as Good Burger, Give it a shot, I guess. Rated PG.

Stuart Little — Based on E.B. White's children's story, Stuart is a small mouse that lives with a normal sized human family. It looks like lots of new stuff was added for the kids and the traditional plot elements have fallen by the wayside. We shall see though. Rated PG.

The Beach — Want a hit? Sprinkle a bit of Leonardo DiCaprio among some other beautiful people and just add water. This film is based on the popular novel by Alex Garland and is very reminiscient of “Lord of the Flies.” This is not lighthearted Leo fare. Rated R.

The Cider House Rules — John Irving penned the screenplay based on his novel and has been nominated for an Oscar. The film deals with an orphan named Homer and his life in St. Cloud, Maine. The movie was very good and could be a surprise come Oscar time. Bring some tissues.Rated R.

The Tigger Movie — This is obviously about Tigger, Winnie the Pooh's friend.If you love Pooh, you'll love the movie. Rated R.

What Planet Are You From — Mike Nichols directed this film based on Garry Shandling screenplay. The film deals with the fact that men and women are from different planets, literally. Rated R.

Whole Nine Yards — This is the number one movie in America. Bruce Willis is the hitman and Matthew Perry is the frightened, sarcastic guy. There may be too many movies about hitmen these days but Willis is always good for a laugh. Rated R.

Wonder Boys — Mr. Catherine Zeta Jones (Michael Douglas) stars as an author in this quirky comedy drama. The film also stars Frances McDormand, Tobey Maguire and Katie Holmes. The advanced buzz is good. Rated R.

Also Playing

Anna and the King — Jodie Foster and Chow Yun Fat star in this movie based on “The King and I.” This is not a musical. The sets look lavish, the actors look right and their big push for Oscar might be worthwhile. Rated PG-13.

Anywhere But Here — Susan Sarandon and Natalie Portman play mother and daughter in this sentimental movie for women. The film “Tumbleweeds” tells the same tale and got better reviews and a few awards. Rated PG-13.

The Bachelor — Chris O'Donnell stars in this movie about a man who will only get his inheritance if he is married. Nothing like tying love and grred together for an entertaining time. I mean, look at how successful “Who Wants to Marry a Millionaire” was. Rated R.

Blue Streak — Martin Lawrence plays a jewel thief who passes as a detective. If Eddie Murphy can do police comedy, Martin can do police comedy. I hear this is pretty good. Rated PG-13.

The Bone Collector — This was a great book, so be careful of the film. Denzel Washington plays a paralyzed man who was formerly a detective. He helps a rookie cop track down a serial killer. It has been out for awhile, so it has to be pretty good. Rated R.

Double Jeopardy — This was the movie with Ashley Judd and Tommy Lee Jones. She went to jail for the murder of her husband, but he's not dead. You can't be convicted twice for the same crime, so what will happen? For a buck, this might be worth it. Rated R.

Deuce Bigelowe: Male Gigolo — This is a funny movie and you shouldn't expect much more than a stupid comedy. Rob Schneider is better than Norm McDonald was in Dirty Work and there are more hits than misses. Rated R.

End of Days — Arnold Schwarzenegger returns to the big screen as a cop battling the forces of evil. How much you want to bet the story takes place in Los Angeles? Rated R.

The Messenger — Luc Besson's stylish retelling of the story of Joan of Arc. The film has a good cast and great visual effects, but the story is a bit slow. Rated R.

Tarzan — A very good Disney movie about our favorite king of the jungle. The animation is out of this world and it was refreshing to hear a soundtrack that did not feature Peabo Bryson. A great movie for the whole family and only a dollar right now. Rated G.

Three Kings — Set in the Gulf War, this is the story of four soldiers who go on a mission to recover some stolen gold. Starring Ice Cube, George Clooney, Spike Jonze and Mark Wahlberg, Three Kings got solid reviews and may pop up at the Oscars. Rated R.

Back to the Top of the PageBack to the Weekend Home Page