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The grieving yet bloodthirsty antihero played by Gerard Butler in "Law Abiding Citizen" is a movie avenger who might have been produced by gene-splicing the Charles Bronson of "Death Wish" with Jigsaw, the mastermind of the "Saw" franchise, or perhaps — for those with longer memories — Vincent Price as "The Abominable Dr. Phibes." Full story »

Capsule descriptions and starred mini-reviews by The Commercial Appeal movie writer John Beifuss. Full story »

Destined to be a favorite of artists, folkies, hipsters, cultists, therapists, film theorists and depressives, if not necessarily children, "Where the Wild Things Are" is a distinctive, perhaps unprecedented, project. It uses its 1963 picture-book inspiration to probe and illuminate the themes of loneliness, insecurity and love embedded within the crosshatch patterns of Maurice Sendak's drawings of furry monsters, magical trees and cozy bedrooms. Full story »

"Couples Retreat" was made because of its sunny, sandy location: scenic Bora Bora. Judging from the light, cast members slept late and took it pretty easy, even in the "We rise at dawn" scenes. Pals Vince Vaughn and Jon Favreau team up again. They co-wrote this and still love working together, even though their banter isn't what it was in their "Swingers" days. Full story »

Capsule descriptions and starred mini-reviews by The Commercial Appeal movie writer John Beifuss. Full story »

“Pandorum” plays like the best movie based on a video game to not actually have a video game to base it on, ever. More to the point, it’s a tight, minimalist “Alien”-esque “something is loose and hunting people on our space ship” picture that is as claustrophobic as you’d expect, if not quite as paranoid as you might hope. Ben Foster (“3:10 to Yuma”) and Dennis Quaid play two members of the crew of the Elysium, a vast colonizer ship sent from a fatally overcrowded Earth to an Earth-like planet. Full story »

The “reinvention” of the 1980 high school musical “Fame” — please, people, don’t call it a remake — stays faithful to the spirit and structure of Alan Parker’s original while sucking out all the raciness. There’s no nudity in this PG-rated version, no one gets an abortion. No one even lights a single cigarette. So no, it’s not exactly the most realistic depiction of modern high-school life. Full story »

Imagine a future in which you can sit in the comfort of your reclining chair, virtually experiencing the world through an idealized pleasure-bot version of yourself. If only the makers of “Surrogates” had. Instead they’ve crafted a superficial sci-fi film loaded with inconsistencies and cranial scratchers. For instance, if the whole point of this surrogate society is to appear as a perfectly beautiful avatar, why would Bruce Willis choose that ludicrous blonde wig? Full story »

Love supposedly happens in “Love Happens.” We’ll have to take their word for it. Aaron Eckhart and Jennifer Aniston are so utterly lacking in chemistry with each other (and they’re both pretty bland individually) that it’s hard to discern any genuine emotion. What first-time director Brandon Camp gives us instead is a cliche-addled romantic drama that’s short on both romance and drama, one that’s filled with soggy platitudes and contrived catharsis. Full story »

They should put Wite-Out on the script and try again. It has been a while since we have seen a misfire on the scale of “Whiteout.” This Antarctic cop story flows like molasses in January, its plodding pace underscoring the cast’s lack of chemistry, the monotonous visuals and TV-level plotting. Trading her sexy shrink-wrap latex outfit from the “Underworld” series for a hooded winter coat, Kate Beckinsale plays Carrie Stetko, a U.S. marshal investigating the continent’s first recorded murder. Full story »

It's bad enough that the usually enjoyable Sandra Bullock has found a way to star in not one but two flat romantic comedies this summer, between "The Proposal" in June and now "All About Steve." But what's truly baffling -- disheartening, really -- is the fact that this latest one was written by a woman. Full story »

Ten years ago, Mike Judge satirized the absurdities of the workplace experience from the perspective of put-upon employees with "Office Space." It didn't do much when it came out but, as we all know by now, it became a cult favorite on cable and home video. Now, Judge is back to the daily grind with "Extract," but this time the writer-director tells his wacky working tales from the boss' point of view. Full story »

Quentin Tarantino's "Inglourious Basterds" may be the most inventive, outrageous film of the year, a Hebrew revenge fantasy in which Jewish commandos bring WWII to an abrupt end by targeting the German high command. That isn't the way the history books tell it, but after seeing this overripe wonder you may prefer Tarantino's take. From the very first frame, this movie is about a filmmaker strutting his stuff. Full story »

Robert Rodriguez channels his inner 11-year-old with “Shorts,” a childish but fun wish fulfillment-fantasy for kids that’s equal parts boogers, big messages and product placement. It’s a connected collection of “shorts” — short films about kids (and adults) who encounter a magical wishing rock deep in the heart of Texas. It mocks America’s Crackberry (and iPhone, etc.) epidemic in a kid-friendly farce about being careful what you wish. Full story »

“The X-Games,” Disney subsidiary ESPN’s expo of free-style skateboarding, snowboarding, motocross and closed-course car road rallies, makes a dandy proving ground for 3D film. The depth of field, the skateboards flying into your face and dirt kicked off the screen is novel and actually helps you see all the way-cool stuff these stuntmen-by-another-name do as they “create new ways to fly.” Full story »