Seeking Justice A husband seeks revenge with the help of vigilantes after his wife is brutally assaulted. Nicolas Cage and January Jones star.
21 Jump Street See Steven Rea's preview on this page.
Reviewed by critics Carrie Rickey (C.R.), Steven Rea (S.R.), Dan DeLuca (D.D.), and David Hiltbrand (D.H.). W.S. denotes a wire service review.
The Artist Everything old is new again in this deft, delightful, black-and-white silent film set in late-1920s Hollywood, as the industry transitions to talking pictures - leaving some of its biggest stars behind. The Oscar winner stars best-actor Jean Dujardin as a screen idol and Bérénice Bejo as the ingenue he mentors and falls for, as her career takes off, and his plummets. 1 hr. 40 PG-13 (adult themes) - S.R.
The Descendants George Clooney
in one of the most satisfying performances of his career - angry, sad, vulnerable, loving, foolish, comically discombobulated - as a Hawaiian lawyer coping with a family crisis and a daunting inheritance. From Alexander Payne, of Sideways and About Schmidt fame. Satisfying on every level. 1 hr. 55 R (profanity, drugs, adult themes) - S.R.
The Secret World of Arrietty This captivating animation from Japan's Studio Ghibli is based on The Borrowers, Mary Norton's children's fantasy about micro-beings who live beneath the floorboards. As lovingly written as it is beautifully rendered. 1 hr. 35 G - C.R.
Chronicle Smart, fun, and increasingly dark, this reality- grounded sci-fi tale finds three high school friends climbing into a hole and emerging with telekinetic powers. But instead of using their newfound abilities to fight crime, they just do what guys in high school would do if they could levitate stuff and crush stuff and hurl stuff through the air. 1 hr. 23 PG-13 (violence, adult themes) - S.R.
Coriolanus A visceral, vital modern- dress interpretation of one of Shakespeare's lesser-known plays, about a Roman general and his rise, fall, and revenge. Ralph Fiennes takes the title role with command, and is commanding behind the camera in his directorial debut, too. With Gerard Butler, Brian Cox, Jessica Chastain, and a formidable Vanessa Redgrave. 2 hrs. 02 R (violence, adult themes) - S.R.
Dr. Seuss' The Lorax Animated family feature that intertwines the story of a boy out to impress the girl of his dreams with a pro-environmental message. Zac Efron, Taylor Swift, Betty White, and Danny DeVito provide their voices. 1 hr. 34 PG (brief mild profanity) - W.S.
Friends With Kids Jennifer Westfeldt (Kissing Jessica Stein), who also writes and directs, and Adam Scott star as longtime friends who decide to beat "the system" by having a baby without the pitfalls of being in a relationship. 1 hr. 46 R (sexual content and profanity) - W.S.
Last Days Here Documentary on the road to redemption for underground heavy-metal musician Bobby Liebling. 1 hr. 30 No MPAA rating (profanity, drug use) - D.D.
A Separation The foreign-language Oscar winner from Iran is an understated, complicated tale of legal and familial strife, as a middle-class, secular Tehran couple in the throes of breaking up are pitted against a poor, devout couple full of rage and righteousness. 2 hrs. 03 PG-13 (adult themes) - S.R.
Act of Valor *1/2 Active-duty Navy SEALs wipe out hordes of bad guys in clinical strikes in this action shoot-'em-up. Intended as a salute to the military, it slides into a bloodbath. 1 hr. 41 R (intense violence, scenes of torture, profanity) - D.H.
John Carter **1/2 A sci-fi sword- and-sandals saga, adapted from the first installment of Edgar Rice Burroughs "Barsoom" books, about a Confederate cowboy transported from post-Civil War Arizona to war-torn Mars, where towering, six-limbed green guys are battling with various beasts and humanlike species. Over-the-top pulp, cool to look at, but kind of uninspiring. 2 hrs. 12 PG-13 (violence, icky aliens, scary green Tharks, mild Barsoomian profanity) - S.R.
Project X ** Three teens try to enhance their sagging reputations by throwing a party that will be the talk of their high school class. 1 hr. 28 R (crude and sexual content, nudity, drugs, drinking, pervasive profanity, reckless behavior, and mayhem - all involving teens) - W.S.
Safe House *** Denzel Washington is a former top op gone rogue, and Ryan Reynolds is the CIA newbie assigned to keep watch over him, when all heck breaks loose. A smart, propulsive espionage thriller, with jolting chase sequences (shot in Cape Town), even if it eventually falls back on spy-movie conventions. 1 hr. 55 R (violence, profanity, adult themes) - S.R.
Silent House **1/2 A young woman (Elizabeth Olsen) trapped inside her parents' secluded vacation home experiences a night of terror. 1 hr. 26 R (disturbing violent content and terror) - W.S.
Tyler Perry's Good Deeds *1/2 A wealthy corporate chief (Perry) about to marry falls for a single mom instead. 1 hr. 48 PG-13 PG-13 (sexual content, profanity, some violence and thematic material) - W.S.
The Vow **1/2 Rachel McAdams is a perky, artsy spouse who flies through a car window and awakens from her coma with no memory of the man she loves. That would be Channing Tatum, who cries man tears and does everything in his power to make his amnesiac wife remember who he is. PG-13 (nudity, adult themes) - S.R.
Theater
Reviewed by critics Wendy Rosenfield (W.R.), Howard Shapiro (H.S.), and Toby Zinman (T.Z.).Cyrano (Arden Theatre Company) Edmond Rostand's great love story (and a great nose) in a new translation. In previews, opens Wednesday.
Curse of the Starving Class (Wilma Theater) Sam Shepard's beleaguered Tate clan tries to keep it together. In previews, opens Wednesday.
God of Carnage (Walnut Street Theatre) Two sets of parents exhibit terrible playground behavior. Previews Tuesday-March 20, opens March 21.
Hope Street and Other Lonely Places (Azuka Theatre) Five Philadelphians search for love, comfort, and acceptance. Previews Thursday-March 20, opens
March 21.
Shatner's World (Merriam Theater) From Capt. Kirk to Denny Crane and beyond, the Kimmel Center presents one night of Bill. Tuesday.
Travesties (McCarter Theatre) Tom Stoppard riffs on Zurich, 1917 - Joyce, Lenin, Dada. Previews Tuesday-Thursday, opens Friday.
Antigone (Quintessence Theatre Group) A slightly stiff version of Jean Anouilh's adaptation of Sophocles' tragedy, but with a royal family worth watching. Through March 25. - W.R.
Clybourne Park (Arden Theatre Company) A bitter, funny satire indicting racist America, using Lorraine Hansberry's A Raisin in the Sun as a springboard. Excellent cast. Through March 25. - T.Z.
Educating Rita (Hedgerow Theatre) An alcoholic prof meets Rita, brash and street-smart, and it's Pygmalion all over again - this time in Liverpool, and with A-1 portrayals by Meredith Beck and Michael Hagan. Ends Sunday. - H.S.
Ethel! (Walnut Street Theatre's Independence Studio) Terry Burrell delivers a time-warped Ethel Waters in a haughty contemporary tone, but Burrell's world-premiere script is accurate, and her singing is on the mark. Ends Sunday. - H.S.
Fool for Love (Iron Age Theater) Sam Shepard's not-so-wild-western love story needs some fuel for its fire, but still tells. Through March 25. - W.R.
The House of Blue Leaves (Walnut Street Theatre Studio 5) An odd play about madness and disappointment. Drama or comedy? Kitchen-sink realism or goofy absurdism? Strong cast makes it more moving than the script deserves. Through March 25.
- T.Z.
Let's Pretend We're Famous (1812 Productions) Some small gems in this comedy cabaret, but with such stale material, Jennifer Childs and Tony Braithwaite will have to keep on pretending. Through March 25. - W.R.
Motherhood the Musical (Society Hill Playhouse) Twenty great songs and a lively four-woman cast make this a fun outing for moms (dads, too). Extended to May 20. - H.S.
Of Mice and Men (People's Light & Theatre Company) A solid production with a massive, forceful Lennie that also takes time to focus on its peripheral characters. Through March 25. - W.R.
Romeo and Juliet (Lantern Theater Company) A solid, moving production of the sad story of two teenagers in love who wind up dead. Nicole Erb is a lovely Juliet in a strong cast. Through April 1.
- T.Z.
Terrorism (New City Stage) Six linked vignettes about varieties of terrorism make for an intriguing but heavy-handed show. Too many inexperienced actors plus Slavic "humor" make the going slow as well as grim. Through March 25.
- T.Z.
Time Stands Still (Act II Playhouse) Two journalists, a couple, deal with fallout in the Mideast and their differing visions of their future in this engrossing play, in a beautifully wrought coproduction with Delaware Theatre Company. Ends Sunday.
- H.S.
Video
Melancholia ***1/2 Lars von Trier's storm-tossed meditation on depression begins with a comically elaborate wedding reception and ends with a newly discovered planet on a collision course for Earth. Kirsten Dunst is simply remarkable, and the great, eccentric cast includes Charlotte Gainsbourg, Charlotte Rampling, John Hurt, Stellan Skarsgård, Alexander Skarsgård, and Kiefer Sutherland. 2 hrs. 15
R (profanity, sex, nudity, adult themes) -
S.R.
