LISTINGS
Scroll down the page for Movie Reviews
Through Feb. 9
THE WOMAN IN BLACK, PG-13, Potsdam Roxy, 7, 9:15 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:30, 3 p.m.; Canton American, 7:10, 9:20 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:45, 3 p.m.; Massena Movieplex, 7, 9:15 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:45, 3 p.m.; Ogdensburg Cinemas, Fri. 7, 9 p.m., midnight, Saturday, 7, 9 p.m., Sun., Mon., Tues. 7 p.m., Wed., Thurs. 7, 9 p.m.
THE IRON LADY, PG-13, Potsdam Roxy, 6:50, 9:30 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:30, 3 p.m.; Massena Movieplex, 7, 9:15 pm. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:30, 3 p.m.
CHRONICLE, Canton American, 7, 9 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:45, 3 p.m.; Massena Movieplex, 7, 9 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:45, 3 p.m.
THE GREY, R, Potsdam Roxy, 7, 9:30 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:30, 3 p.m.; Massena Movieplex, 7, 9:30 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:30, 3 p.m.
THE DESCENDANTS, R, Canton American, 7, 9:20 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:45, 3 p.m.; Massena Movieplex, 7, 9:30 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:30, 3 p.m.
MAN ON A LEDGE, PG-13, Potsdam Roxy, 7, 9:15 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat. only 12:45, 3 p.m.; Massena Movieplex, 7, 9:20 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:30, 3 p.m.
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST IN 3D, G, Potsdam Roxy, 7:05 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 1, 3:15 p.m.
UNDERWORLD AWAKENING, R, Potsdam Roxy, in 3D, 9 p.m. nightly; Massena Movieplex, in 3D, 7:10, 9:10 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 1, 3:15 p.m.
EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE, PG-13, Potsdam Roxy, 6:50 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:30 p.m.; Ogdensburg Cinemas, Fri. 7 p.m., Sat., Sun. 1:30, 7 p.m., Mon. 7 p.m., Wed. 1:30, 7 p.m., Thurs. 7 p.m.
RED TAILS, PG-13, Canton American, 9:30 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 3 p.m.
ONE FOR THE MONEY, Canton American, 6:50, 9 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:30, 3 p.m.; Massena Movieplex, 7, 9:20 p.m. nightly & matinees Sat., Sun. 12:45, 3 p.m.
WAR HORSE, PG-13, Ogdensburg Cinemas, Fri. 9:15 p.m., Sat. 1:30 9:15 p.m., Sun. 1:30 p.m., Tues. 7 p.m., Wed. 1:30, 9:15 p.m., Thurs. 9:15 p.m.
Movie Reviews
The Woman in Black
Based on a novel by Susan Hill, this movie is a well-made throwback -- a handsome rendering of a ghost story set, of course, in Victorian England. Many viewers will revel in its rich atmosphere and shriek-inducing ghostly visits. In a chilling prologue, we see three little girls jump to their deaths from their playroom windows, seemingly hypnotized by the veiled, black-clad spirit of the title. Years later, mild-mannered attorney Arthur Kipps (Daniel Radcliffe, of "Harry Potter" fame) checks into that same room, now the attic of an inn, knowing nothing of what happened there. A grieving widower with a young son, Arthur has come to the village to go through the papers of a deceased dowager. Working in her musty manor, he glimpses the Woman in Black that the townsfolk fear. They believe whenever someone sees her, a child dies. This time a little girl succumbs after drinking lye, and the people blame Arthur. He is determined to get to the bottom of the ghostly mystery and is aided by the local rich man (Ciaran Hinds). The washed-out color and gorgeous settings lend great atmosphere, and Radcliffe is appropriately haunted by grief. PG-13
Chronicle
On a whim, three high-school guys explore an unusual cave in this cleverly made science fiction saga, and the telekinetic powers they develop after their exposure to the unearthly material they find there leads them first to fun and then to tragedy. A strong cast of young actors and clever visual effects created on a budget make "Chronicle" a totally absorbing adventure, but perhaps too violent and emotionally tortured for some. Andrew (Dane DeHaan) is a friendless, introverted kid whose unemployed father (Michael Kelly) drinks and beats him up, and whose mother (Bo Petersen) lies terminally ill. After Andrew explores the cave with his thoughtful cousin Matt (Alex Russell) and popular high-school celeb Steve (Michael B. Jordan), he reacts to their newly acquired powers differently. While Steve and Matt enjoy making Legos float in the air, or moving a lady's car from one parking spot to another, Andrew can't stop himself from using telekinesis to express his anger. Once the three guys realize they can fly into the clouds, the action takes a darker turn. PG-13
One for the Money
Katherine Heigl stars as bumbling bounty hunter Stephanie Plum in this comedy/crime thriller based on the first book in Janet Evanovich's popular 18-novel series about the blue-collar, New Jersey heroine. Viewers may find the "One for the Money" puzzling, as it never locks onto a particular tone. Director Julie Anne Robinson begins in a sort of offbeat Coen Brothers style, then lets it wander all over the place, into farce and back again. Heigl is fun as Stephanie, who's broke, jobless and dateless. She goes to work for a cousin as a bail bondsman/bounty hunter, though she has no training. A macho colleague (Daniel Sunjata) gives her some tips. Her target is handsome former vice cop Joe Morelli (Jason O'Mara), who's wanted for murder. Morelli and Stephanie have a history and Stephanie can't seem to decide whether to nab him or kiss him. Her nosy grandmother (Debbie Reynolds) has her own opinions, as does Stephanie's extended family. Had the film been directed with a surer sense of style it could've been a hoot instead of a dud, which is what it is. PG-13
The Iron Lady
This unusual, rather nonpolitical study of Britain's first female prime minister, Margaret Thatcher works. Viewers interested in the finer points of acting, however, can delight in Meryl Streep's infinitely detailed embodiment of the grande dame. Thatcher held office for a bit longer than a decade (1979 -- 1990) and became American president Ronald Reagan's Cold War partner. Told from the point of view of an elderly, widowed and ever more distracted Thatcher, the film will disappoint those who wanted more of a critique of her policies. Instead they get her history in fragmented flashbacks. This oblique approach taken by director Phyllida Lloyd and screenwriter Abi Morgan is an acquired taste. PG-13
Man on a Ledge
Viewers may lose patience with this irritatingly contrived, oddly miscast crime thriller long before it's over. A preoccupied mystery man (Sam Worthington, the Australian actor from "Avatar," PG-13, 2009, struggling here with an American accent) walks into the Roosevelt Hotel in New York City. He books a room on a high floor, has a nice room service meal, then steps out onto the window ledge. He won't say much to the tough-talking police negotiator (Edward Burns) sent to talk him in. He demands a female negotiator (Elizabeth Banks) who's currently in disgrace. She and her colleagues gradually learn the would-be suicide has a history with the NYPD and that he has escaped from prison and is determined to prove his innocence. Working secretly on his behalf in crime-caper mode are his brother (Jamie Bell) and his brother's hilariously vampy girlfriend (Genesis Rodriguez). Both Banks and Worthington seem wrong for their roles. The film gets what thrills it has from the supporting cast. PG-13
The Grey
Based on a short story by Ian Mackenzie Jeffers, who co-wrote the script with director Joe Carnahan, "The Grey" feels like a throwback to a Jack London adventure in which men test their mettle against whatever nature throws at them. Viewers with strong stomachs will find it mighty enthralling. Terrifically acted and handsomely made, "The Grey" is both a thriller and a dark night of the soul involving a tough group of men, led by Liam Neeson. He's Ottway, a sharpshooter who protects the crews at an oil drilling station in a remote part of Alaska from marauding packs of huge wolves. Ottway himself is suicidal, alone in the world without his ex- (or late?) wife. When he and a group of the boisterous oil workers are flying south from their remote site, their plane crashes (a truly intense sequence). Ottway is thrown clear and begins finding survivors. He becomes their de facto leader, though some of the criminally inclined among them push back. The wolf attacks start right away and Ottway organizes the men to defend themselves. The wolves pick some of them off and others lose the will to live. It becomes clear that Ottway has a Capt. Ahab-like obsession with the beasts. "The Grey" is an unusually cool piece of work. R
Underworld: Awakening
Viewers who enjoy vampire sagas of a more violent strain than the PG-13-rated "Twilight Saga" films will have plenty to chew on in "Underworld: Awakening." The melding of live-action and special effects, subtly intensified in 3-D, works handsomely in this instance. In a prologue, the three previous films are quickly summarized, but the new film is still tough to follow. The vampire heroine Selene (Kate Beckinsale) recalls in voice-over narration how she was captured while trying to save her hybrid human/Lycan (werewolf) lover from the humans bent on killing all "non-human" species. She learns that she was frozen for 12 years and allowed to escape from a lab run by a nefarious human doctor (Stephen Rea). A new, even more deadly form of werewolf, or Lycan, has somehow evolved and escaped annihilation. Selene impales, beheads, kicks and chops her way to the truth of what occurred while she was out of commission. She is helped by David (Theo James), the son of a vampire coven leader (Charles Dance), a human cop (Michael Ealy), and a mysterious hybrid girl (India Eisley). R
Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
Those who respond to strong drama and historic events will embrace this moving, pleasurably quirky film about the emotional fallout of the 9/11 attacks. Based on the novel by Jonathan Safran Foer, the film retains a literary touch in the voice-over narration by the central character. He is Oskar Schell (extraordinary newcomer Thomas Horn), a brilliant, anxiety-plagued 11-year-old who is trying to absorb the fact that his dad Thomas (Tom Hanks, in flashbacks) died in the attack on the World Trade Center. Oskar adored his father, a fun-loving jeweler who understood his son's emotional issues (Oskar tells us he may or may not have Asperger's syndrome) better than his mom (Sandra Bullock). Now, a year after 9/11, Oskar can't open up to his still-grieving mother. He connects better with his grandmother (Zoe Caldwell). But he doesn't tell anyone when he sets off on a quest: He has found a mysterious key in his father's closet, in an envelope with the name "Black" on it. He decides that finding what lock the key fits is crucial to his peace of mind. He sets off to meet everyone named "Black" in the phone book. Partway through his quest, Oskar starts bringing along his grandmother's mysterious "renter," a silent old man (wonderful Max von Sydow) who seems to understand Oskar well. PG-13
Red Tails
Viewers will absorb a slice of history about World War II and the pre-civil rights era in this unsubtle but highly involving action picture. Some of the dialogue is awfully clunky and full of pedantic exposition, but a strong cast and thrilling aerial-dogfight sequences largely overcome this. Though fictionalized, "Red Tails" is based on the fabled Tuskegee Airmen -- African-American pilots recruited from the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama during World War II, who were trained to fly fighters and protect American bomber squadrons on missions over Europe. The film follows the struggle of the pilots and their commanding officers to be taken seriously in a military stymied by racist attitudes. The title refers to the paint job on the P-51 Mustangs the Airmen flew. The leader of the squadron, Marty "Easy" Julian (Nate Parker), is a by-the-book guy in the air, but he tamps down his anxieties with drink. His buddy is a risk-taking hotdog of a pilot, Joe "Lightning" Little (David Oyelowo), who falls for a girl (Daniela Ruah) in the Italian town near their base. Their superior officers, Maj. Emanuelle Stance (Cuba Gooding Jr.) and Col. A.J. Bullard (Terrence Howard), work to get their pilots respect and better assignments. PG-13
Beauty and the Beast 3D
Ever ready to revive an old hit to bring in new money, Disney has digitally remastered its lovely 1991 animated musical classic, "Beauty and the Beast" (also rated G) in 3-D. The film remains a delight, but parents of kids under 8 should note that the wolves that surround Belle's father in the forest, and that later threaten her, are even more frightening in 3-D. In 1991, this was a groundbreaking film because it mixed hand-drawn animation with backgrounds created using computers. The result is still stunning. The songs are still great. Gaston is still a hilariously vain and stupid villain. The Beast is still pretty creepy at first. His servants, under the spell with him, are still funny and kind as Lumiere, the talking candelabra; Cogsworth, the talking clock; Mrs. Potts, the tea kettle; and her son Chip, the tea cup. G
Links to Local and Regional Theaters
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