Ratings as appeared in Beacon Journal film critic and wire-service reviews:♥=Weak
♥♥=Mediocre
♥♥♥=Worth Seeing
♥♥♥♥=Shouldn't Be Missed
Opened Wednesday
MICHAEL JACKSON'S THIS IS IT — ♥♥♥1/2
(PG — some suggestive choreography, scary images) A compilation of interviews, rehearsals and backstage footage of Michael Jackson shortly before his death as he prepared for his series of sold-out shows in London. 1 hour, 42 minutes.
Carnation Cinema, Cinemark Aurora 10, Garrettsville Cinemas, Hickory Ridge Cinema 8, Hudson Cinema 10, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Independence 10, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Kent Plaza Theatre, Lake Cinemas 8, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Montrose 12, Shaker Square Cinemas, Tinseltown USA, Tower City Cinemas, Valley View 24, Wooster Movies 10
Opening Friday
COCO BEFORE CHANEL — ♥♥
(PG-13 — sexual content, smoking) The story of Gabrielle Chanel, from poor orphan girl to the brink of becoming the most influential figure of 20th-century fashion. Audrey Tautou stars as an independent, strong-willed young woman who from behind the clouds of her cigarettes regards the world with unforgiving realism and stubborn ambition. Director Anne Fontaine avoids any effort to make Coco Chanel nice, or soft, or particularly sympathetic. That has the effect of making her just that much more interesting. 1 hour, 50 minutes.
Cedar Lee
YOO-HOO MRS. GOLDBERG — ♥♥♥
(No industry rating — some mature themes) A documentary on television pioneer Gertrude Berg. She was the creator, principal writer and star of The Goldbergs, a popular radio show for 17 years, which became television's very first character-driven domestic sitcom in 1949. Berg received the first best actress Emmy in history, and paved the way for women in the entertainment industry. 1 hour, 32 minutes.
Cedar Lee
Playing Friday
through
next week
A SERIOUS MAN — ♥♥♥♥
(R — language, some sexuality/nudity, brief violence) The darkly comic new Coen brothers film. Larry teaches advanced physics, but his life is a medieval tragedy. In a 1960s Minneapolis suburb, the Coens restage the Book of Job as rich human comedy. 1 hour, 44 minutes.
Cedar Lee
AMELIA — No star rating
(PG — some sensuality, language, thematic elements, smoking) Hilary Swank is an ideal embodiment of Amelia Earhart, who was strong, brave and true, and looked fabulous in a flight suit. The second person to fly solo across the Atlantic was a born feminist who pioneered aviation for women and wed George Putnam (Richard Gere) after informing him their marriage would have ''dual controls.'' 1 hour, 48 minutes.
Cedar Lee, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Kent Plaza Theatre, Montrose 12, Tinseltown USA, Valley View 24
ASTRO BOY — ♥♥
(PG — some action and peril, brief mild language) Somewhere in the future, Toby's dad (Nicolas Cage) has invented the unlimited Blue energy. But the warmonger president (Donald Sutherland) snatches the dangerous Red energy, Toby dies in an accident and his memories are transferred by his dad into the little robot Astro Boy. 1 hour, 30 minutes.
Cinemark Aurora 10, Great Oaks Cinema, Hudson Cinema 10, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Independence 10, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Kent Plaza Theatre, Lake Cinemas 8, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Montrose 12, Tinseltown USA, Tower City Cinemas, Valley View 24, Wooster Movies 10
BRIGHT STAR — ♥♥♥1/2
(PG — some sensuality, brief language, smoking) Drama is based on the three-year romance between 19th-century poet John Keats and Fanny Brawne, which was cut short by Keats' untimely death at age 25. Distinguished by superb ensemble acting, intelligent writing and stunning design, but its best quality is the tact with which it tells the tragic story. 1 hour, 51 minutes.
Cedar Lee, Plaza Cinemas at Chapel Hill
CAPITALISM: A LOVE STORY — ♥♥♥
(R — language) Michael Moore comes home to the issue he's been examining throughout his career: the disastrous impact of corporate dominance on the everyday lives of Americans. 2 hours.
Interstate Park Cinemas 18
CIRQUE DU FREAK: THE VAMPIRE'S ASSISTANT — ♥♥
(PG-13 — sequences of intense supernatural violence and action, disturbing images, thematic elements and some language) A traveling freak show's most mysterious attraction recruits teenager Darren Shan as his assistant, though the young man soon finds himself used as a pawn in a battle between vampires and their deadlier counterparts. 1 hour, 48 minutes.
Cinemark Aurora 10, Hudson Cinema 10, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Independence 10, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Kent Plaza Theatre, Lake Cinemas 8, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Montrose 12, Tinseltown USA, Tower City Cinemas, Valley View 24, Wooster Movies 10
CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS — ♥♥♥
(PG — brief mild language) An animated comedy about a kid who invents a machine that will turn water into food. It goes wild, floods his island with food, and attacks it with a spaghetti and meatballs tornado. In 3-D in some theaters. 1 hour, 30 minutes.
Big Picture, Cinemark Aurora 10, Hudson Cinema 10, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Plaza Cinemas at Chapel Hill, Tinseltown USA, Valley View 24
COUPLES RETREAT — ♥1/2
( PG-13 — sexual content, language) Four couples settle into a tropical-island resort for a vacation. While one of the couples is there to work on their marriage, the others fail to realize that participation in the resort's therapy sessions is not optional. With Vince Vaughn, Jon Favreau, Kristen Bell, Malin Akerman, Faizon Love, Jason Bateman and Kristin Davis. 1 hour, 53 minutes.
Carnation Cinema, Cinemark Aurora 10, Hudson Cinema 10, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Kent Plaza Theatre, Lake Cinemas 8, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Montrose 12, Plaza Cinemas at Chapel Hill, Shaker Square Cinemas, Tinseltown USA, Tower City Cinemas, Valley View 24, Wooster Movies 10,
DISTRICT 9 — ♥♥♥1/2
(R — bloody violence, pervasive strong language) An alien spaceship hovers over Johannesburg, South Africa, its occupants stranded and starving. They're placed in a fenced-in district, where the locals fear and resent them. Looking like a cross between lobsters and grasshoppers, they're sort of loathsome, but one human and one alien work together, in a mockumentary with apartheid parallels. 1 hour, 52 minutes.
Jackson Township Movies 10
FAME — ♥1/2
(PG-13 — thematic material including teen drinking, a sexual situation, language) Alan Parker's 1980 musical about the students at New York City's High School of Performing Arts gets a ''reimagining'' that includes a toning-down of the original R-rating to a High School Musical-friendly PG-13. Yes, New York has changed a lot since the 1980s. But still. Asher Book, Kristy Flores, Paul McGill and Naturi Naughton are among the talented kids who hope to live forever and learn how to fly high. 2 hours.
Macedonia Cinemark 15
THE FINAL DESTINATION — ♥
(R — strong violent/gruesome accidents, language, a scene of sexuality) After Hunt's (Nick Zano) premonition of a deadly race-car crash helps save the lives of his peers, Death sets out to collect those who evaded their fate. In 3-D in some theaters. 1 hour, 21 minutes.
Jackson Township Movies 10
G-FORCE — ♥1/2
(PG — some mild action, rude humor) A specially trained squad of guinea pigs is dispatched to stop a diabolical billionaire from taking over the world. 1 hour, 30 minutes.
Jackson Township Movies 10
GAMER — ♥
(R — frenetic sequences of strong brutal violence throughout, sexual content, nudity, language) Set in a future-world where humans can control other humans in mass-scale, multiplayer online gaming environments, a star player (Gerald Butler) from a game called Slayers looks to regain his independence while taking down the game's mastermind (Michael C. Hall). 1 hour, 35 minutes.
Jackson Township Movies 10
G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA — ♥1/2
(PG-13 — Strong sequences of action violence and mayhem throughout) An elite military unit made up of operatives known as the Global Integrated Joint Operating Entity look to dismantle Cobra, an organization headed by a Scottish arms dealer. 1 hour, 58 minutes.
Jackson Township Movies 10
GOOD HAIR — ♥♥♥
(PG-13 — some language, including sex and drug references) Chris Rock hosts and narrates this documentary about the hair of black women. He quizzes a lot of celebs and visits beauty shops and the Atlanta headquarters of a hair products empire and a famous hair fashion show. It's warm and entertaining. 1 hour, 35 minutes.
Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Plaza Cinemas at Chapel Hill, Valley View 24
HALLOWEEN II — ♥
(R — horror movie violence, language) Laurie Strode (Scout Taylor-Compton) struggles to come to terms with her brother Michael's deadly return to Haddonfield, Ill.; meanwhile, Michael prepares for another reunion with his sister. 1 hour, 41 minutes.
Huntington Street Cinema 16, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Plaza Cinemas at Chapel Hill, Valley View 24
THE HANGOVER — ♥♥1/2
(R — pervasive language, sexual content including nudity, some drug material) A raunchy comedy about a disastrous bachelor party in Las Vegas. When the bridegroom (Justin Bartha) disappears, his buddies (Zach Galifianakis, Bradley Cooper and Ed Helms) search for him, starting with such questions as: How in the world do you wake up in a $4,200-a-night suite with a tiger, a chicken, a crying baby and a missing tooth? 1 hour, 39 minutes.
Jackson Township Movies 10
HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE — ♥♥
(PG — scary images, some violence, language, mild sensuality) In his sixth year at Hogwarts, Harry Potter discovers even more about the evil Lord Voldemort's past, thanks to his mentor Dumbledore and a mysterious textbook marked ''This book is the property of the Half-Blood Prince.'' 2 hours, 33 minutes.
Jackson Township Movies 10
THE INFORMANT! — ♥♥1/2
(R — strong language) Matt Damon stars as the highest-ranking executive in U.S. history to blow the whistle in a case of corporate fraud. He exposed global price-fixing by Archer Daniels Midland, the Decatur, Ill., agribusiness conglomerate, after wearing an FBI wire for 30 months. Directed by Steven Soderbergh. 1 hour, 48 minutes.
Big Picture
THE INVENTION OF LYING — ♥♥1/2
(PG-13 — language including some sexual material and a drug reference) Comedy set in a world where no one has ever lied, until writer Mark Bellison (Ricky Gervais) seizes the opportunity for personal gain. 1 hour, 40 minutes.
Huntington Street Cinema 16, Interstate Park Cinemas 18
LAW ABIDING CITIZEN — ♥1/2
(R — strong bloody violence and torture, a scene of rape and pervasive language) A brutal and preposterous revenge fantasy that taps into fears about the American legal system. Gerard Butler plays the victim; Jamie Foxx is the prosecutor who's the ultimate target of Butler's elaborate vengeance plan. 1 hour, 47 minutes.
Carnation Cinema, Cinemark Aurora 10, Hudson Cinema 10, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Kent Plaza Theatre, Lake Cinemas 8, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Montrose 12, Plaza Cinemas at Chapel Hill, Shaker Square Cinemas, Tinseltown USA, Tower City Cinemas, Valley View 24, Wooster Movies 10
LOVE HAPPENS — ♥1/2
(PG-13 — some language, including sexual references) On a business trip to Seattle, a popular self-help guru (Aaron Eckhart) sparks with a woman (Jennifer Aniston) who attends one of his seminars. Their connection causes him to realize, however, that he hasn't truly confronted his wife's recent death. 1 hour, 47 minutes.
Interstate Park Cinemas 18
MOON — ♥♥♥
(R — language) Sam Rockwell plays a man serving the end of a three-year tour of duty on a lonely mining outpost on the far side of the moon. What kind of a man would volunteer for such duty? What kind of a corporation would ask him to? We find out. Superior hard science fiction. 1 hour, 37 minutes.
Jackson Township Movies 10
MORE THAN A GAME — ♥♥♥
(PG — brief mild language and incidental smoking) Documentary follows NBA superstar LeBron James and four of his talented teammates through the trials and tribulations of high school basketball in Akron and James' journey to fame. 1 hour, 45 minutes.
Cedar Lee, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Independence 10, Montrose 12, Tinseltown USA, Tower City Cinemas, Valley View 24, Wooster Movies 10
PANDORUM — ♥♥1/2
(R — strong horror violence, language) Astronauts (Dennis Quaid and Ben Foster) awaken from cryogenic sleep aboard a spaceship and can't remember who they are or what their mission is. 2 hours.
Jackson Township Movies 10
PARANORMAL ACTIVITY — ♥♥1/2
(R — language) A couple is haunted by a demonic spirit in the home. Low-budget horror film was shot with hand-held camera in the vein of Cloverfield and The Blair Witch Project. 1 hour, 26 minutes.
Cinemark Aurora 10, Hudson Cinema 10, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Independence 10, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Kent Plaza Theatre, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Montrose 12, Shaker Square Cinemas, Tinseltown USA, Tower City Cinemas, Valley View 24, Wooster Movies 10
THE PROPOSAL — ♥♥
(PG-13 — sexual content, nudity and language) A pushy boss forces her young assistant to marry her in order to keep her visa status in the United States and avoid deportation to Canada. With Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds. 1 hour, 44 minutes.
Jackson Township Movies 10
SAW VI — No star rating
(R — sequences of grisly bloody violence and torture, language) Special Agent Strahm is dead, and Detective Hoffman has emerged as the unchallenged successor to Jigsaw's legacy. However, when the FBI draws closer to Hoffman, he is forced to set a game into motion, and Jigsaw's grand scheme is finally understood. 1 hour, 30 minutes.
Carnation Cinema, Cinemark Aurora 10, Hudson Cinema 10, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Independence 10, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Kent Plaza Theatre, Lake Cinemas 8, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Montrose 12, Shaker Square Cinemas, Tinseltown USA, Tower City Cinemas, Valley View 24, Wooster Movies 10
THE SECRETS OF JONATHAN SPERRY — No star rating
(PG — mild thematic elements) Best buddies Dustin, Albert and Mark are 12-year-old boys looking forward to a summer of fun in 1970. Dustin has a crush on a girl and wants to ask her out on a date, something he has never done before. His main obstacle, though, is the town bully, Nick, who also likes her. When Dustin mows the lawn of 75-year-old Jonathan Sperry (Gavin MacLeod), a man he has seen at church, a unique friendship develops. 1 hour, 36 minutes.
Interstate Park Cinemas 18
THE SEPTEMBER ISSUE — ♥♥♥
(PG-13 — brief strong language) A documentary chronicling Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour's preparations for the 2007 fall-fashion issue. 1 hour, 28 minutes.
Cedar Lee
THE STEPFATHER — No star rating
(PG-13 — intense sequences of violence, disturbing images, mature thematic material and brief sensuality) Michael comes home from military school and meets his new stepfather, but soon becomes suspicious that the man who's always there to lend a hand is hiding a dark side. 1 hour, 41 minutes.
Carnation Cinema, Cinemark Aurora 10, Hudson Cinema 10, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Kent Plaza Theatre, Lake Cinemas 8, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Montrose 12, Plaza Cinemas at Chapel Hill, Tinseltown USA, Tower City Cinemas, Valley View 24, Wooster Movies 10
SURROGATES — ♥♥
(PG-13 — intense sequences of violence, disturbing images, language, sexuality, a drug-related scene) In the near future, FBI agents (Bruce Willis and Radha Mitchell) investigate a murder involving artificial ''surrogates,'' robotic aliases used by recluses to represent them in the outside world. Directed by Jonathan Mostow (Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines). 1 hour, 40 minutes.
Huntington Street Cinema 16, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Macedonia Cinemark 15
THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE — ♥♥
(PG-13 — thematic elements, brief disturbing images, nudity, sexuality) A romantic drama about a Chicago librarian (Eric Bana) with a gene that causes him to involuntarily time travel, and the complications it creates in his marriage. With Rachel McAdams. 1 hour, 47 minutes.
Jackson Township Movies 10
TOY STORY/TOY STORY 2 IN 3D — ♥♥♥♥
(G) Disney re-release of the classic Toy Story and Toy Story 2 movies in 3-D. Follows the adventures of a boy's collection of toys that come to life. 2 hours, 53 minutes not including intermission.
Independence 10, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Tinseltown USA
UP — ♥♥♥1/2
(PG — some peril and action) In this Disney/Pixar animated film, 78-year-old balloon salesman Carl Fredricksen finally fulfills his lifelong dream of a great adventure when he ties thousands of balloons to his house and flies away to the wilds of South America — but discovers too late that he has a stowaway, an overly optimistic 8-year-old Wilderness Explorer named Russell. In 3-D in some theaters. 1 hour, 30 minutes.
Jackson Township Movies 10
WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE — ♥♥♥1/2
(PG — mild violence and language) Maurice Sendak's much-loved 1963 children's book becomes a big-budget fantasy from director Spike Jonze and writer Dave Eggers. After an argument with his mother, a small boy (Max Records) visits the Wild Things, creatures on an island in his imagination. 1 hour, 42 minutes.
Carnation Cinema, Cinemark Aurora 10, Great Oaks Cinema, Hudson Cinema 10, Huntington Street Cinema 16, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Kent Plaza Theatre, Lake Cinemas 8, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Montrose 12, Plaza Cinemas at Chapel Hill, Shaker Square Cinemas, Tinseltown USA, Tower City Cinemas, Valley View 24, Wooster Movies 10
ZOMBIELAND — ♥♥♥♥
(R — horror violence/gore and language) Zombieland focuses on two men who have found a way to survive a world overrun by zombies. 1 hour, 22 minutes.
Huntington Street Cinema 16, Independence 10, Interstate Park Cinemas 18, Kent Plaza Theatre, Macedonia Cinemark 15, Massillon 12, Montrose 12, Tinseltown USA, Tower City Cinemas, Valley View 24