NEW FILMS FRIDAY
HUMPDAY — ★★★ — It's offensive, but there's something perceptive about the way this comedy looks at male relationships. Running time: 94 minutes, R (profanity, vulgarity, sex, nudity, slurs, brief drugs, violence)
INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS — ★★★ — Those who enjoy Quentin Tarantino's brand of off-the-wall filmmaking will enjoy this World War II thriller. With subtitles, running time: 153 minutes, R (violence, gore, profanity, slurs, torture, brief drugs, brief sex, vulgarity)
IN THE LOOP — ★★★ — The way this foul-mouthed satire depicts governmental "war rooms" is positively enlightening. R (profanity, vulgarity, violence, slurs, brief sex, brief drugs)
THE MERRY GENTLEMAN — ★★ — A confused muddle, which is really unfortunate, considering the talented cast. Michael Keaton stars. Running time: 97 minutes, R (profanity, violence, brief drugs, slurs, brief gore, brief sex)
POST GRAD — ★½ — College graduate Alexis Bledel is forced to move back home in this comedy. Running time: 89 minutes, PG-13 (sex, profanity)
SHORTS — ★ — A brightly colored headache of a movie with lowbrow humor and obnoxious characters. Running time: 89 minutes, PG (violence, vulgarity, slurs, brief drugs)
X-GAMES 3D: THE MOVIE — ★★ — A 90-minute commercial for the "extreme-sports" games, lacking much in the line of drama. Shown in 3D, running time: 92 minutes, PG (violence) — Roger Moore, The Orlando Sentinel
MIDNIGHT MOVIE
TOWER AT MIDNIGHT SERIES — This week's movie is "Rushmore" (1998). A schedule is available at www.towertheatre.com. (Aug. 21 and 22: Tower; also Aug. 23, noon)
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
BREWVIES SPECIAL SCREENINGS — This week's film is "The Jerk" (1979). A schedule is available at www.brewvies.com. (Aug. 26, 8 p.m.: Brewvies, must be 21 or older)
G-FORCE 3D — The new kids film, shown in the Disney Digital 3D format. (Century Sandy, Century South Salt Lake, Cinemark American Fork, Gateway, Jordan Commons, Jordan Landing, Junction, Provo Towne Centre, Thanksgiving Point, Tinseltown Layton, Tinseltown Ogden, University Mall)
ICE AGE 3 3D — Fox's animated "three-quel," shown in the 3D format. (Ritz)
PEERY'S EGYPTIAN THEATER SPECIAL SCREENINGS — This week's films include the original "Star Wars" trilogy and "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" (1989). A schedule is available at www.peerysegyptiantheater.com. (Aug. 21, 22 and 27, 7 and 10 p.m.: Peery's Egyptian Theater, Ogden)
PIONEER PARK PICTURE SHOW — This week's film is "2001: A Space Odyssey" (1968). A schedule is available at www.slcfilmcenter.org. (Aug. 21, 8 p.m.: Pioneer Park)
UP 3D — The new Disney-Pixar animated feature, shown in the Disney Digital 3D format. (Carmike 12, Ritz, Wynnsong)
LARGE-FORMAT
AFRICAN ADVENTURE: SAFARI IN THE OKAVANGO — Ranger Liesl Eichenberg and a camera crew take audiences on a "photo safari" in Africa. Shown in 3D, running time: 40 minutes, not rated, probable G (nothing offensive) (Thanksgiving Point)
BUGS! — ★★★ — This British-made documentary about insects has plenty of "wow" moments. Shown in 3D, running time: 40 minutes, not rated, probable G (violence) (Clark Planetarium)
DINOSAURS 3D: GIANTS OF PATAGONIA — ★★★ — The makers of this IMAX science film get us about as close as we'd ever want to be to these enormous creatures. Shown in 3D, running time: 48 minutes, not rated, probable PG (violence) (Clark Planetarium, Thanksgiving Point) — Jeff Strickler, Star-Tribune (Minneapolis)
DOLPHINS AND WHALES 3D: TRIBES OF THE OCEAN — Large-screen documentary that examines "tribes" of sea mammals. Shown in 3D, running time: 42 minutes, not rated, probable PG (violence) (Thanksgiving Point)
FIGHTER PILOT: OPERATION RED FLAG — Large-screen documentary, from 2004, showing pilots in combat training. Running time: 40 minutes, G (violence) (Clark Planetarium)
HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE IMAX — The sixth film in the successful fantasy series, shown in the 70mm format. (Jordan Commons)
SPACE STATION 3D — Tom Cruise narrates this documentary short about the International Space Station crew. Shown in 3D, running time: 47 minutes, not rated, probable G (nothing offensive) (July 24, 25 and 30, 8:45 p.m.: Clark Planetarium)
UNDER THE SEA 3D — ★★★ — This "sequel" to the 2006, large-screen hit "Deep Sea 3D" holds our interest just fine. Narrated by Jim Carrey. Shown in 3D, running time: 40 minutes, G (violence) (Clark Planetarium)
CONTINUING FILMS
(500) DAYS OF SUMMER — ★★★★ — A simple, refreshingly honest comedy. Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Zooey Deschanel star. Running time: 95 minutes, PG-13 (vulgarity, profanity, brief sex, slurs, violence, nude art)
ALIENS IN THE ATTIC — ★★ — Stupid movie. But kid-friendly. Running time: 86 minutes, PG (violence, vulgarity, profanity) — Roger Moore, The Orlando Sentinel
ANGELS & DEMONS — ★½ — A thriller so far-fetched that it makes the "National Treasure" movies look plausible. Tom Hanks stars. Running time: 138 minutes, PG-13 (violence, gore, drugs, nude art, profanity)
AWAY WE GO — ★★★ — What saves this amiable comedy-drama is that we come to know and care about its characters. Running time: 94 minutes, R (vulgarity, profanity, sex, nude art, slurs, brief drugs)
BANDSLAM — ★★ — This musical comedy takes itself a little too seriously. Running time: 111 minutes, PG (violence, slurs, vulgarity, brief drugs)
BRUNO — ★★ — Too much of the same thing from "Borat" creator and star Sacha Baron Cohen. Running time: 82 minutes, R (vulgarity, profanity, nudity, sex, violence, slurs, brief drugs)
THE COLLECTOR — ★ — A soulless slice of "torture-porn," from some of the "Saw" creators. Running time: 88 minutes, R (violence, gore, profanity, sex, nudity) — Roger Moore, The Orlando Sentinel
THE COVE — ★★★½ — A hard-to-shake story that will make you think twice about holding certain animal species in captivity. Running time: 92 minutes, PG-13 (violence, gore, profanity, vulgarity)
DISTRICT 9 — ★★★ — The "Blair Witch Project" of alien invasion movies is cerebral but gets dumb toward the end. Running time: 112 minutes, R (violence, gore, profanity, torture, drugs, vulgarity, slurs)
FOOD, INC. — ★★★ — The documentary expose of America's food industry is powerful, disturbing stuff. Running time: 94 minutes, PG (drugs, vulgarity)
FUNNY PEOPLE — ★★½ — A really good little movie trying to get out of a crude, oversized format. Adam Sandler stars. Running time: 145 minutes, R (profanity, vulgarity, sex, drugs, brief nudity, slurs, violence)
G-FORCE — ★½ — Despite a committed voice cast that includes two Oscar winners, these jokes aren't all that. Running time: 90 minutes, PG (violence, vulgarity) — Roger Moore, The Orlando Sentinel
G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA — ★½ — The action-figure thriller is so silly it almost comes across as a live-action cartoon. Running time: 118 minutes, PG-13 (violence, profanity, drugs, gore, torture, vulgarity, slurs, nude art)
THE GOODS: LIVE HARD. SELL HARD. — ★★ — A raunchy comedy that should have been subtitled "Starts Fast. Dies Slowly." Running time: 90 minutes, R (vulgarity, profanity, sex, violence, nudity, drugs, slurs)
THE HANGOVER — ★★★ — Given how sick and wrong this comedy is, you may feel guilty for laughing. Running time: 100 minutes, R (profanity, vulgarity, violence, drugs, nudity, slurs, sex, brief gore)
HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE — ★★★½ — The sixth adventure feels fresher and looser and is much more enjoyable. Running time: 153 minutes, PG (violence, brief gore, vulgarity, slurs, mild profanity, drugs)
THE HURT LOCKER — ★★★★ — A tense thriller that is arguably the best feature film made about the Iraq War so far. Running time: 131 minutes, R (violence, profanity, gore, vulgarity, slurs, brief drugs)
ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS — ★★½ — The third installment is considerably less fresh than the original, 2002 hit. Running time: 94 minutes, PG (violence, vulgarity, slurs, brief drugs)
I LOVE YOU, BETH COOPER — ★ — An unfunny comedy that unsuccessfully tries to re-create the classic John Hughes comedies. Running time: 104 minutes, PG-13 (vulgarity, profanity, violence, brief sex, slurs, brief drugs, nudity, brief gore)
IMAGINE THAT — ★ — A movie so deprived of humor it almost defies categorization as a comedy. Running time: 107 minutes, PG (vulgarity, violence, mild profanity, slurs, brief drugs)
JULIE & JULIA — ★★★— Meryl Streep (as Julia Child) shines in this winning comedy-drama, "based on two true stories." Running time: 123 minutes, PG-13 (profanity, vulgarity, brief sex, slurs, brief drugs, nude artwork)
LAND OF THE LOST — ★★ — The big-screen adaptation of the kids show is full of lowest common denominator humor. Running time: 100 minutes, PG-13 (violence, vulgarity, profanity, drugs, brief sex, slurs, brief gore, nude art)
MONSTERS VS. ALIENS — ★★★½ — An animated, science-fiction/comedy with considerable charms and excitement. Running time: 94 minutes, PG (violence, vulgarity, brief drugs, mild profanity, slurs)
MOON — ★★★ — A well-acted sci-fi/thriller with numerous nods to its equally heady predecessors. Sam Rockwell stars. Running time: 97 minutes, R (profanity, violence, gore, brief sex, brief partial nudity, brief drugs, vulgarity)
MY LIFE IN RUINS — ★½ — Big, fat Greek stereotypes and some even-more-questionable humor. Running time: 96 minutes, PG-13 (vulgarity, profanity, slurs, brief sex, nude art, violence, brief drugs)
NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: BATTLE OF THE SMITHSONIAN — ★★ — An unnecessary sequel to Ben Stiller's 2006 smash "Night at the Museum." Running time: 105 minutes, PG (violence, profanity, vulgarity, slurs, nude artwork)
ORPHAN — ★★ — A parental nightmare painted in standard horror strokes. Running time: 123 minutes, R (violence, sex, profanity) — Roger Moore, The Orlando Sentinel
PAPER HEART — ★★ — Actress Charlyne Yi's mockumentary about love is more cutesy than cute — more self-indulgent than self-aware. Running time: 88 minutes, PG-13 (vulgarity, profanity, violence, brief drugs, nude art)
A PERFECT GETAWAY — ★★ — This suspense-thriller may not be good. But it's sort of entertaining. Running time: 98 minutes, R (violence, gore, profanity, drugs, brief nudity, vulgarity, brief sex)
PONYO — ★★★ — Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki's latest animated fantasy is not career defining work, it's only merely good. Dubbed, running time: 100 minutes, G (violence, slurs)
THE PROPOSAL — ★★★ — More fun than earlier clunkers like "Ghosts of Girlfriends Past" and "My Life in Ruins." Sandra Bullock stars. Running time: 108 minutes, PG-13 (vulgarity, profanity, brief sex, brief partial nudity, slurs, violence)
PUBLIC ENEMIES — ★★★½ — Director Michael Mann's engrossing gangster tale is a cut above most other current movies. Running time: 143 minutes, R (violence, gore, profanity, torture, brief sex, brief drugs, vulgarity, brief partial nudity)
STAR TREK — ★★★½ — An exciting, constantly entertaining reboot of the supposedly exhausted Trek concept. Running time: 126 minutes, PG-13 (violence, vulgarity, profanity, brief sex, slurs, brief drugs, brief gore)
THE TAKING OF PELHAM 1 2 3 — ★★ — This version of the subway hijacking tale is pretty messy. Denzel Washington stars. Running time: 106 minutes, R (violence, profanity, gore, vulgarity, slurs, brief drugs)
TERMINATOR SALVATION — ★★½ — McG's "Terminator" prequel/sequel is basically two hours of computer-generated robots blowing up things. Running time: 115 minutes, PG-13 (violence, profanity, gore, brief drugs, vulgarity)
THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE — ★★ — The adaptation of the best-selling novel too busy trying to tug at our hearts. Eric Bana stars. Running time: 107 minutes, PG-13 (violence, nudity, sex) — Christy Lemire, Associated Press
TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN — ★★ — Michael Bay's action sequel to the 2007 hit is too convoluted and too juvenile. Running time: 147 minutes, PG-13 (violence, vulgarity, profanity, drugs, torture, brief sex, slurs, nude art)
THE UGLY TRUTH — ★★ — A crude comedy so predictable you could set your clock to its story "beats." Katherine Heigl stars. Running time: 101 minutes, R (vulgarity, profanity, sex, slurs, violence, brief partial nudity)
UP — ★★★★ — Disney-Pixar's latest cartoon feature strikes a good balance between humor and necessary character drama. Running time: 96 minutes, PG (violence, mild vulgarity, slurs)
X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE — ★★½ — The long-awaited Wolverine solo feature is as conflicted and confused as its title character. Running time: 107 minutes, PG-13 (violence, profanity, drugs, brief gore, brief nudity, slurs, vulgarity)
YEAR ONE — ★ — Michael Cera and Jack Black play cavemen in this simple-minded, unfunny comedy. Running time: 96 minutes, PG-13 (vulgarity, violence, profanity, slurs, brief sex, brief drugs, torture, brief gore, nude artwork)