Ali
Michael Mann's sprawling biopic of legendary boxer Muhammad Ali only covers about 10 years of the Champ's life, from 1964 to 1974. It's long, frenetic and blessed with a great performance from Will Smith in the lead role. It's also largely superficial, providing no real insight into Ali as a human being. Mann captures the intensity of the major events in Ali's life, but these are the public moments, already well known to anyone with even a passing grasp of 20th century sports iconography. The private scenes -- the ones that could tell viewers something about Ali the man -- mostly serve to comment on the bigger moments, and reveal virtually nothing about who this person is once you strip away the trash-talk and swagger. The relationship between Ali and broadcaster Howard Cosell (played by a typically chameleonic Jon Voight) is the most interesting aspect of the film, but it's treated with the same superficiality as everything else. Mann is a talented filmmaker, and his energetic style is ideally suited to the story of such a charismatic figure. It's too bad he let that charisma overwhelm the person underneath. (R) -- LL
** 1/2 Southwind Twelve, 3433 Iowa.
Amelie
The latest entry from French director Jean-Pierre Jeunet ("Delicatessen," "City of Lost Children") is not so much a movie as it is a two-hour orgy of whimsy. Jeunet's already vivid imagination goes into overdrive on this one, but fortunately the characters are as delightful as the visual effects are stunning. The charming Audrey Tautou stars the title character, a waitress whose hyperactive fantasy life leads her to do secret favors for those around her. Fortunately, Jeunet and Tautou portray Amelie as someone who is more observant of things most people ignore than as somebody who's delusional. The film's conclusion that life is better when we think of others is simple and even a bit hackneyed, but the abundant wit and invention that run through the film make it remain vital. "Amelie" subdues its audience with a contagious optimism, and thanks to Jeunet's stylishness, that hope endures. (R) -- DL
*** 1/2 Liberty Hall Cinemas, 644 Mass.
A Beautiful Mind
Everyone questions reality at some point in their life, but with John Nash it's an everyday occurrence. The Nobel Prize-winning mathematician has struggled for years as a paranoid-schizophrenic, battling to keep his career, relationships and sanity from self-destructing. At the core of "A Beautiful Mind" is Russell Crowe, who is quite convincing as Nash, covering 50 years of his lifetime. The scholar first begins to succumb to his condition while working at the Pentagon in 1953, after an agent for the Department of Defense (Ed Harris) recruits him to help find coded messages in newspapers that might be forecasting a Soviet nuclear attack. Or maybe the real threat is only in Nash's head. This portion of "A Beautiful Mind" (adapted from the book by Sylvia Nasar) is really the most interesting, as Nash's mounting paranoia begins to gnaw at the audience as much as it does his friends and wife (Jennifer Connelly). Crowe and director Ron Howard should be commended for this impressive collaboration. The director could have further retreated into the pop crap-factory that helped "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" squeeze nearly $300 million from the domestic coffers. Instead, he tries to make a real movie here, not getting too caught up in the potential "Rain Man"-esque gimmickry of the plot. Likewise, Crowe might have followed up "Gladiator" with another mechanical action-adventure. But the actor again proves himself clever at choosing material that displays how remarkably chameleonic he can be onscreen. Despite the subject matter, his performance is never acting by the numbers. (PG-13) -- JN
*** 1/2 Southwind Twelve, 3433 Iowa.
Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
Arguably the most anticipated movie of the year, "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" is that rare effort that successfully breathes cinematic life into a children's classic. Even at a rump-numbing 152 minutes, director Chris Columbus ("Home Alone") manages to conjure enough visual flair and compelling performances to disguise the exposition-heavy nature of the source material. The deliberate pacing allows one to savor the mounting details of author J.K. Rowling's world. On the flip side, Columbus and screenwriter Steve Kloves ("Wonder Boys") opt to retain the novel's clunky prologue, while including certain fringe characters (such as the Bloody Baron and centaur Firenze) that don't add anything to the forward momentum of the plot. Surprisingly, the film is even less of a "kids story" than the print edition. Usually when Hollywood gets hold of this type of property, the result is a more sanitized account. But the movie, which follows the initial experiences of 11-year-old Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) as he comes to grips with the fact that he is a wizard by birth, is much darker, perhaps already establishing a tone more comparable to the latter books -- and inevitable sequels. There are moments of real fear in this PG-gauged endeavor, from a creepy forbidden forest to a menacing game featuring life-sized chess pieces (a scene more thrilling than the vaunted "Quidditch" match). Yet the most important thing that can be said for "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" is that it keeps the vision of the author intact, while crafting a picture that even those who are unfamiliar with the series can easily be sucked into. Given Hollywood's past track record, that's a fine trick indeed. (PG) -- JN
*** 1/2 Southwind Twelve, 3433 Iowa.
Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius
Most movies for children have jokes aimed at adults, but it's hard to find a film that will make both groups laugh at the same time. "Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius" is that rare creation, an effort that taps into childhood fantasies successfully enough to entertain anyone who's been there. Jimmy Neutron is the typical cartoon whiz kid, whose inventions include a robotic dog and a satellite that sends signals into outer space, searching for alien life. Like most of Jimmy's ideas, this one backfires, and the aliens who show up decide to steal all those tasty adults from Earth and take them home as entrees. Once the kids are through celebrating a parent-free planet, they start to miss mom and dad, and Jimmy leads a daring rescue across the galaxy. Writer-director John A. Davis and his co-screenwriters have fun taking viewers on the kind of sci-fi adventure any imaginative child-at-heart would relish. Even the animation style -- a computerized cross between Claymation and Rankin-Bass puppetry -- lends itself to the movie's playfully silly sensibilities. There's not a lot of substance to "Jimmy Neutron," but there is a sense of fun that will appeal to kids of all ages. Even the grown-up ones. (G) -- LL
*** Southwind Twelve, 3433 Iowa.
Joe Somebody
For much of its running time, the slight comedy "Joe Somebody" winds up being almost as anonymous as its title character. Tim Allen stars as Joe Scheffer, a low-key audiovisual specialist who works for a Minneapolis drug company. When an obnoxious thug of a co-worker (Patrick Warburton, a.k.a. "The Tick") swipes his parking spot and slugs him in front of his daughter (Hayden Panettiere), Joe picks a fight with him and in the process becomes unusually popular at the firm. KC-based writer John Scott Shepherd and director John Pasquin (who supervised Allen in "The Santa Clause") come up with a few sharp sequences that rise above the sitcomish attempts at wit. Jim Belushi is delightful as a has-been martial arts star who teaches Joe how to fight, and there are some amusingly accurate parodies of prescription drug ads ("Side effects include"). Had more elements like these been emphasized and less time been spent on lame crotch jokes, "Joe Somebody" would stand less chance of getting lost in the crowd. (PG) -- DL
** Southwind Twelve, 3433 Iowa.
Kate & Leopold
Some movies about time travel like "Back to the Future" or "Frequency" devote a great deal of care to how inadvertent alterations to the past can twist the present. Little of the energy devoted to "Kate & Leopold" is spent on trying to figure out how a man transported from the 1870s to the present can come up with enough contemporary currency to hire a street musician. Fortunately, Hugh Jackman, in a role diametrically opposed to his turn as Wolverine in "X-Men," is delightfully patrician as an expatriate English duke who finds himself lost in modern day New York and in the arms of an advertising executive (Meg Ryan). The typically perky Ryan and the prim Jackman have enough of a rapport to overcome a predictable storyline and some inconsistent banter. While "Kate & Leopold" is a generally pleasant trifle, you don't have to be a time traveler to think that you've seen this thing before. (PG-13) -- DL
** 1/2 Southwind Twelve, 3433 Iowa.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Just when it seemed like there would never be a decent sword and sorcery film made for this generation, "The Fellowship of the Ring" shows up in time to redeem the genre from being linked to duds like last year's "Dungeons & Dragons." Based on J.R.R. Tolkein's venerated "Ring" trilogy, "Fellowship" is utterly successful at creating a world that never existed. It pulls the viewer into the heat of battle and makes him really believe that the fate of the earth rests on the small shoulders (and furry feet) of an ordinary person. After an exposition-heavy prologue and a long first act set in the Shire, "Fellowship" kicks into a frenetic pace, as Frodo Baggins (Elisha Wood) and his hobbit friends find themselves pursued by dark forces intent on reclaiming his magic Ruling Ring. Forging a fellowship that includes dwarf, elf, wizard and ranger, the collective embarks on an increasingly menacing mission to destroy the cursed item by casting it into the fiery Mount Doom. Writer-director Peter Jackson ("Heavenly Creatures") proves himself a legitimate visionary with the project. The New Zealand-born filmmaker juggles the Atlas-like burden of integrating oppressive visual effects, large-scale battle scenes, international cast, allegiance to the revered source material and, most importantly, the "emotion" of the tale into an entertaining package -- one that pleases "LOR" novices and fanatics alike. Jackson does so without feeling the need to turn the show into a stylistic vanity project a la Tim Burton. This movie is bigger than its director, and he knows enough to not get in its way. From the casting to the look to the need-to-see-the-sequel-right-now finale, "Fellowship" is truly deserving of being called an epic. At the very least, it's the best sword and sorcery film ever made. (PG-13) -- JN
**** Southwind Twelve, 3433 Iowa.
The Majestic
Rubbery limbed comic Jim Carrey gives a surprisingly credible dramatic turn as a blacklisted Hollywood writer who finds a new lease on life after he wakes up with amnesia in a California coastal community. "The Majestic" itself has trouble following suit. Despite dealing with important and still relevant issues like freedom of speech and association, writer Michael Sloane and director Frank Darabont ("The Green Mile") sometimes undermine their story by sacrificing verisimilitude for mawkish sentiment. For example, it's hard to believe that the denizens of a conservative town in the 1950s would rally around a suspected Communist sympathizer or that a disillusioned screenwriter would find happiness running a movie theater. Darabont borrows extensively from Frank Capra's populist politics and idealized perspective on small-town life. But Capra wisely kept "Meet John Doe" and "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" short. The two-hour-plus running time and ponderously slow pacing of "The Majestic" keeps the film from living up to its title. (PG) -- DL
** Southwind Twelve, 3433 Iowa.
The Man Who Wasn't There
The latest offering from "O Brother Where Art Thou?" duo Joel and Ethan Coen is intriguing even though little seems to happen. Billy Bob Thornton stars as Ed Crane, a quiet, often-ignored barber who uses an affair his wife (Frances McDormand) is having with her boss (recent Emmy winner James Gandolfini) to finance his dream of starting a dry cleaning franchise. "The Man Who Wasn't There" imitates the look of '40s thrillers but lacks the tension associated with such flicks. Fortunately, Thornton's distinctive features and voice make him an oddly appropriate choice for the lead. He can mesmerize a viewer with the way he is overlooked by the other characters. The Coen brothers' usual quirkiness is well in force (they combine the dynamics of criminal law with the Heisenberg uncertainty principle). The Coen brothers may not achieve the alchemy of their previous efforts, but they thankfully never make flicks that fail to register an impression. (R) -- DL
*** Liberty Hall Cinemas, 644 Mass.
Novocaine
Because he left such an indelible impression as a gleefully sadistic tooth doctor in "Little Shop of Horrors," it's a little disconcerting to see Steve Martin rendering a much different type of dentist in "Novocaine." Playing it straight, he stars as a physician who makes the mistake of treating a drug addict (Helena Bonham Carter) and finds himself falsely charged with dope peddling and murder. Writer and first-time director David Atkins comes up with several nifty surprises (like a hysterical cameo by Kevin Bacon), but many of his twists seem arbitrary and forced -- like a bad set of dentures. With the talent involved, "Novocaine" never becomes quite as numbing as its title implies, even if some of the contrivances make one wonder if the treatment is essential. (R) -- DL
** 1/2 Liberty Hall Cinemas, 644 Mass.
Ocean's Eleven
Filmmaker Steven Soderbergh ("Traffic") seems to hit upon all the ingredients that worked in the 1960 Rat Pack classic, about a group of misogynistic martini buddies who knock off a collection of Vegas casinos. And his update of "Ocean's Eleven" is one that a viewer can wake up with in the morning and not feel a throbbing headache and the sting of guilt. George Clooney stars as the title character (the role that Frank Sinatra popularized), ably projecting the attitude of a polished con man whose charm doesn't necessarily keep him out of trouble. Clooney's compatriots in a scheme to rob The Bellagio, Mirage and MGM Grand, include Brad Pitt as a gambling playboy, Don Cheadle as a cockney explosives expert and Matt Damon as a talented pickpocket. As the owner of the casinos, Andy Garcia gives the self-assured air of a powerful "legitimate businessman" whose roots are probably much shadier. His initial meeting with Clooney offers the film's most crisp verbal jousting, as they try and one-up each other regarding a relationship with the same woman. (The Chairman of the Board would be proud). Others in the A-list cast don't fare quite as well. While still engaging, Julia Roberts is reduced to elegant window dressing. And as the crew's financier, Elliott Gould gives another performance in which every bit of dialogue sounds as if he were reading cue cards for a hearing-impaired dinner theater audience. It's clear Soderbergh knows that this is a movie about two things: star power and plot twists (admittedly, the latter of which are sometimes hard to swallow). The director keeps his flashy camerawork and scene-jumps to a minimum, allowing the audience to focus on the suspense-filled mechanics of the story and the multitude of characters that are drifting in and out of it. (PG-13) -- JN
*** 1/2 Southwind Twelve, 3433 Iowa.
Vanilla Sky
Tom Cruise's fondness for Alejandro Amenr's "Abre los ojos" led him to produce Amenr's creepy hit "The Others" and to bankroll and star in this muzzled English-language remake. As with the first flick, a handsome, spoiled playboy (Cruise) winds up paying the price for spurning his bitter girlfriend (Cameron Diaz). He becomes disfigured in a car accident, and his memory and sense of reality become lost as well. Writer-director Cameron Crowe (who won an Oscar for his "Almost Famous" script) fleshes out some of the characters nicely (Penelope Cruz, who played the same character in the first film, has more to do). Unfortunately, he lacks the faith in the material (and the audience) that Amenr had. Crowe's trippy visuals and pop culture references needlessly pad the material. He doesn't ruin the story, but "Vanilla" tastes better when it's fresh, not warmed over. (R) -- DL
** 1/2 Southwind Twelve, 3433 Iowa.
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