WEEKEND PIC - Aug 21-23, 2009

YOUR GUIDE TO THE WEEKEND MOVIES

NEW THIS WEEK:

a) UP (animated fantasy with Ed Asner, Christopher Plummer, John Ratzenberger, Delroy Lindo and Jordan Nagai) Rating * * * (3 out of 4 stars): A captivating and engrossing odd-couple caper that will definitely entertain both the kids and adults. This cartoon is so universal that viewers will associate their friends and folks with the characters. Also in 3D at selected cinemas.

b) ORPHAN (psychological thriller with Vera Farmiga, Peter Sarsgaard, Isabelle Fuhrman, CCH Pounder and Jimmy Bennett) Rated * * 1/2 (2.5 stars): Somewhat like The Hand That Rocks The Cradle, this one is a long-drawn family affair until its climactic revelation or plot twist. Keep expectations low if you plan to catch this. (Reviewed below)

c) DANCE FLICK (comedy with Damon Wayans Jr., Craig Wayans, Shoshana Bush, Essence Atkins and Affion Crockett) Rating * * (2 stars): It's another Wayans Brothers spoof and you should know what to expect. Yeah, some hits, many misses but nothing spectacular.

d) I LOVE YOU, BETH COOPER (romantic comedy with Hayden Panettiere, Paul Rust, Jack Carpenter, Lauren London, Andrea Savage, Samm Levine, Alan Ruck, Lauren Storm and Cynthia Stevenson) Rated * * (2 stars): Panettiere plays another gutsy cheerleader in this uninspired comedy written in the vein of American Graffiti. (Reviewed below)

STILL GOING STRONG:

1. G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA (fantasy action thriller with Channing Tatum, Marlon Wayans, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Christopher Eccleston, Sienna Miller, Dennis Quaid and Rachel Nichols) Rated * * * 1/2 (3.5 out of 4 stars): Like Transformers, the movie is based on a Hasbro toy line but the action is even more intense and involving than 'Revenge Of The Fallen'. There is also a little love story embedded... (Reviewed below)

2. DISTRICT 9 (sci-fi thriller with Sharlto Copley, Jason Cope, David James, Mandla Gaduka, William Allen Young, Vanessa Haywood, Kenneth Nkosi and Devlin Brown) Rated * * * (3 out of 4 stars): This South African 'apartheid with aliens' film works like Cloverfield but it's special effects is top class. It is also a great feature debut for director Neill Blomkamp, a protege of Peter Jackson. (Reviewed below)

3. THE PROPOSAL (romantic comedy with Sandra Bullock, Ryan Reynolds, Mary Steenburgen, Craig T. Nelson, Betty White, Denis O'Hare and Malin Akerman) Rated * * 1/2 (2.5 stars): A serviceable by-the-book rom-com that works on the strength of its cast, especially Bullock and Reynolds. Don't expect anything more, though. (Reviewed below)

4. THE GHOSTS OF GIRLFRIENDS PAST (romantic comedy with Matthew McConaughey, Jennifer Garner, Michael Douglas, Breckin Meyer, Robert Forster and Anne Archer) Rated * * 1/2 (2.5 stars): Again McConaughey seems to ride rough-shod over the script adapted from Charles Dickens 'A Christmas Carol' as the modern anti-romantic Scrooge. A charmless effort. (Reviewed below)

5. ALIENS IN THE ATTIC (fantasy comedy with Ashley Tisdale, Robert Hoffman, Kevin Nealon, Tim Meadows, Austin Robert Butler, Doris Roberts, Gillian Vigman, Carter Jenkins, Ashley Boettcher, Henri Young and Regan Young) Rated * * 1/2 (2.5 stars): If District 9 is an alien film for the adult action fan, this one is for kids below 9. It has High School Musical alumni Tisdale in bikini and pesky gremlin-type aliens in combat with a bunch of children. (Reviewed below)