Somewhere between potboiler and polemic, this overripe melodrama signals every one of its plot twists as hamhandedly as it bangs out its message.

Kevin Spacey plays Texas philosophy professor turned death row inmate David Gale, who agrees to his first interview just days before he is to be executed for a brutal rape/murder. David and the murder victim, Constance (Laura Linney) had been co-leaders of a group that opposed the death penalty.

He will speak to only one journalist, a reporter for a weekly news magazine named Bitsy (Kate Winslet) who herself has just been released after serving a week in prison for refusing to reveal a source.

The terms of the interview are that David will be paid half a million dollars in cash and that Bitsy will see him for two hours a day on the last three days before the execution.

Is the evidence against David overwhelming? Does Bitsy come to believe he is innocent? Does possibly exonerating evidence show up at almost the last minute? Does the car break down so that Bitsy has to run to the prison at the real last minute? Do people in this movie continually behave in the dopiest possible way in an unsuccessful attempt to create some suspense and conceal the “surprise” ending? Oh, yes. Does it work? Oh, no.

Spacey and Winslet give their weakest performances ever. Linney manages one brief believable moment when she is discussing Dr. Elizabeth Kubler-Ross’ stages in confronting death (though she gets them in the wrong order). The best performance is by Matt Craven as another opponent of the death penalty. He has almost no lines but manages to bring a little dignity to his moments on screen.

Parents should know that the movie includes very mature material. There are sexual references and explicit sexual situations, including rape charges. A student offers a teacher sex for a passing grade (he declines). There is also non-sexual nudity and footage that may show a murder. Characters use strong language and one abuses alcohol, ultimately becoming an alcoholic. The movie also features suicide in what could be seen as an approving manner.

Families who see this movie should talk about the death penalty. They might want to look at information on sites like Death Penalty Info and Pro Death Penalty to learn more about the current debate on that issue. Families should also talk about how David’s choices relate to the lecture he gave his class. Is our greatest happiness in dreaming of future happpiness? What must we do to make our lives meaningful? How do our values inform our choices? What will David’s son think about his choices?

Families who enjoy this movie will appreciate the far better Dead Man Walking and The Green Mile.

Brazil’s nomination for Oscar consideration, “Cidade de Deus“ (“City of God”) is a blood-spattered, non-stop ride as much into the life of a ‘favela’ (squatter settlement) as it is into the lives of the youths who inhabit it. There is no self-pity, no soul searching, no explicitly stated social commentary in this mesmerizing and vibrant movie, what is there is a story told by a child, full of sound and fury, but signifying life instead of the nothingness you could expect.

City of God, the favela for which the movie is named, is one of Rio de Janeiro’s most notorious slums and the story is largely based on Paulo Lin’s epic book, in which he describes over 350 of the characters who move among the settlement’s walls. Our narrator is a young boy named Rocket who leads us from the late ‘60’s, when the favela comprises sun-drenched, orderly rows of pre-fab housing for those who had no where else to go, into the early ‘80’s when the City of God has become a warren of bleak apartment blocks for those who cannot escape.

As young Rocket (Luis Otavio, as a boy, Alexandre Rodrigues, as a teen) watches, the favela becomes a petri dish for conditions conducive to crime, the rule of the gun, and, eventually, full-blown turf war. The young favela sports such low grade hoods as the “Tender Trio,” comprising Rocket’s older brother, Goose (Renato de Souza), Clipper (Jefechander Suplino) and idea-man Shaggy (Jonathan Haagensen). The Trio’s antics do not extend beyond stealing fuel from the delivery trucks and, after a robbery goes awry, one boy turns to the church while another is taken firmly in hand by his father. That this incidence is the last intervention into a child’s life by a parent in the movie says much about the future of the favela.

The Tender Trio are soon replaced as the hoods in power by the malevolent Lil’ Dic (Douglas Silva, as a boy, Leandro Firmino da Hora, as a teen) and his side-kick, the forgiving Benny (Phellipe Haagensen). When Lil’ Dic (now renamed “Lil’ Zé”), decides to take over City of God as the resident drug dealer and hood baron, a series of small scale coups escalate into turf war with Carrot (Matheus Nachtergaele) and “good” man turned vigilante, Knockout Ned (Seu Jorge).

It is Rocket, dreaming of becoming a photographer, who fittingly serves as our Virgil, leading us through a world which no outsiders dare enter. The other inhabitants of this favela may be living their own quiet lives, however Rocket is on the periphery of the action and lives through the turf wars in a deeply personal way. From his first crush (Alice Braga) to his first camera, Rocket shares experiences both touching and humorous (his charmingly inept attempts at becoming a hood are not to be missed) as well as his losses.

Although the bulk of the movie narrates the all-out turf wars between two rival drug dealers, the story is deliberately told with the energy, liveliness and digressions of a child’s tale, somehow managing to leave us hope amongst the corpses as the credits roll.

Parents should know that this movie contains non-stop violence and frequent deaths, including the murders of main characters. In this 130-minute long film, there are only a handful of scenes where the characters are safe from peril and the audience can relax with them. There are explicit references to sexual intercourse and a non explicit but deeply disturbing rape scene which should not be viewed by children.

Families should discuss the evolution of the characters from children into adults. When the boy nicknamed “Steak & Fries” (Darlan Cunha) argues to a crowd of drug dealers that because he has smoked, snorted, killed and robbed, he is a man, the crowd bawls with laughter. It does not matter that the boy, perhaps 10 years old, is only slightly younger than these teenagers. What, besides chronology, does make someone an adult? What choices does Knockout Ned make that turn him from a local hero to just another gangster?

The rise of a younger generation of hoods in the form of the gun-toting pre-teens known as “the Runts” presents us with the specter of never-ending violence. What is the future of the favela at the end of the movie? What could stop the vicious circle? What decision does Rocket make about his photographs at the end? Is this what you would have done?

Where the odd, little-kids-turned-mobsters flick “Bugsy Malone“ (1976) meets the wanton destruction of “Scarface” (1983), “City of God” touches on the theme of children becoming killers in the never ending spiral of retribution. “Boyz in the Hood” (1991) did a powerful job at capturing another young man on the cusp of gang warfare. The rule of children without mercy is much in evidence in the “Lord of the Flies” (1963, 1990). Families who enjoy this movie should not miss the less bloody but beautifully moving “Central Station” (1998).

There are no surprises in “Shanghai Knights,” but that’s only because it delivers exactly what we came to see: a cheerfully anachronistic buddy/action/comedy movie starring Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson. Every few minutes it throws in either a classic pop standard, an impossibly agile fight scene, some offbeat surfer cowboy comments, some fish out of water humor, or some combination of all of the above. In other words, it’s everything that made their last movie, “Shanghai Noon” a hit, except that it’s set in London.

Chan and Wilson reprise their roles as serious Chinese Imperial Guard turned sheriff Chon Wang (say it out loud) and amiable bandit turned waiter/giglo Roy O’Bannon. In case anyone bothered to remember the details of the last film, the princess and the treasure the heroes won at the happy end are swiftly dispatched and Roy and Chon are off to London to avenge the murder of Chon’s father and retrieve the great seal that has been stolen from the emperor of China. They arrive just as the celebration of Queen Victoria’s 50 years on the throne is about to begin. Chon’s sister Lin (Fann Wong) is in jail for attempting to kill Rathbone (Aiden Gillen),the Queen’s favorite cousin. Our heroes have to get Lin out of jail, get back the seal, and stop the plots to kill off the nine people between Rathbone and the crown and usurp the emperor of China.

This leaves plenty of time for comedy in encounters with policemen, prostitutes, Jack the Ripper, a street urchin/pickpocket, and a newfangled contraption called the automobile that has a run-in (literally) with an old-fangled contraption called Stonehenge.

The action scenes are ably staged, especially a marvelous battle with Keystone Cops-style policemen in a revolving door, a fight in a fruit market, and some masterful acrobatics with that most British of props, the umbrella. The comedy is more uneven, though Wilson’s way with a line is always deliciously offbeat. Newcomer (to the US) Wong has a dazzling smile and a lethal kick, always a good combination to have on hand.

Parents should know that the movie has some raunchy humor, including scenes in brothels. There is a nude pillow fight (nothing shown) and there are some brief sexual situations. Roy, who happily makes a living having sex with women for money at the beginning of the film, turns down an offer to have sex when he falls in love with Lin, even though he does not know how she feels about him. Characters smoke and drink with a lot of enjoyment. They also cheat, lie, and steal without any remorse. As with all Chan movies, there is a lot of action violence and peril, but only the bad guys get seriously hurt.

Families who see this movie should talk about the puzzle box Wang’s father sent him, and why it was important to show patience before receiving the message. Why was that particular message so important to him? They may want to find out more about Charlie Chaplin, Jack the Ripper, Queen Victoria, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and his famous creations, Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson.

Families who enjoy this movie will also enjoy Shanghai Noon and Rush Hour. They should be sure to watch some of Chan’s earlier Hong Kong movies like Legend of the Drunken Master which show him at his prime. And they should see some of the movies that this one pays sly tribute to, from Singin’ in the Rain to Safety Last.

There is almost nothing positive to say about “Darkness Falls,” the new slapped-together horror movie hitting theaters. It’s filmed so poorly that it is almost impossible to see. The editing is so bad that what you can see comes at you too fast to follow. The acting is laughably amateurish. And the story is so idiotic that it makes the cheesiest of basic cable look intelligent.

The film starts with a prologue about an old woman who inhabited the town of Darkness Falls back in the days before color film existed. This woman loved children, but two missing kids were thought to have died in her care. So, the town hanged her, only to then realize that they were mistaken. As she died, she cursed the town by saying she would visit children on the night they lost their last baby tooth. If they saw her, she would hunt them and their loved ones. This earned her the nickname, “The Tooth Fairy.”

From that charming premise, we see Kyle Walsh who, as a young boy, saw the Tooth Fairy. She kills his mother, but the Tooth Fairy can’t stand the light, so young Kyle is saved by hiding in the brightly-lit bathroom. Flash-forward to the present. Kyle is a flashlight-obsessed psychotic living in Las Vegas. He is drawn back to Darkness Falls, because Michael, the brother of his childhood sweetheart, has also seen the Tooth Fairy and is being stalked by her wicked ways.

That’s basically the story, a terrible combination of “The Blair Witch Project,” “The Ring,” and every bad horror cliché in the book. “Darkness Falls” is one of the new breed of horror movies, ones that are not very gory so they can secure a PG-13 rating. To qualify for a PG-13, they emphasize suspense rather than gore. This makes sense for talented filmmakers, but the makers of “Darkness Falls” fail so mierably that their attempts are both boring and painful. The terrible acting, the awful pacing, and laughable special effects make the horror of watching this movie all too unintentional.

Parents should know that the film contains countless sequences of children in jeopardy, not to mention many (mostly bloodless) onscreen deaths. It also features some kissing between two rather young children, as well as the unpleasant sight of young kids ripping out their last baby teeth. There are jump-out-at-you surprises, suspenseful fake-outs, and also numerous scenes in which the Tooth Fairy appears and lets out a high-pitched scream.

Families who see this movie should discuss why people should not jump to conclusions about others, such as the way the townspeople did about the old woman. Why is she terrorizing the children? They should also discuss why kids should not forcibly remove their teeth.

Families who enjoyed this movie should seek out last year’s “The Ring” and John Carpenter’s horror classic, “Halloween.”

This movie may be too scary for kids under six, but older children and their families, particularly fans of the Roald Dahl book, will love this spectacular musical fantasy from Tim Burton and Henry Selick (“The Nightmare Before Christmas”).
James has a blissful life with loving parents until they are both killed by a rhinoceros. He then goes to live with his horribly mean aunts, until a mysterious stranger brings him a bag of magical crocodile tongues.
James trips and spills them on the ground, near a tree that then grows a giant peach. When James climbs inside, he meets a collection of human-sized insects, including the lovely Polish-accented spider (voice of Susan Sarandon) and violin-playing grasshopper (voice of Simon Callow). The peach takes off, and, tethered to 300 seagulls and flies to New York.
Exquisite stop-motion claymation, computer animation, and special effects combine to create real movie magic and an instant classic.
Kids who love Dahl will also enjoy the films of his other books, “Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory” and “The Witches” and Children will also enjoy Dahl’s “Matilda,” another story of a child overcoming cruel adults.