Due Date (R)
It’s birth and death in this road-show romp that partners two opposites: the urbane, tightly wired, frantic Peter (Robert Downey Jr.), who is trying to get home in time for his first child’s birth, and the annoying, slovenly nerd Ethan (Zach Galifianakis), who looks for a place to scatter his recently departed father’s ashes. After both wind up on a no-fly list, the mismatched two rent a car to drive cross-country, and it’s one calamity after another. But just when you’re starting to get annoyed, sympathies develop.
3 shells
Mao’s Last Dancer (R)
The true story of Li Cunxin and his rise from poverty in China to international stardom as a world-class ballet dancer in the 1980s. Li participates in a summer exchange program with the Houston Ballet, falls in love and fights to remain in the States.
2 shells
Megamind (PG)
It’s a good guy-bad guy role reversal in this smart DreamWorks 3-D animation. The evil Megamind (Will Ferrell), always bested by the caped hero Metro Man (Brad Pitt), finds himself having to defend rather than destroy Metro City. Tina Fey is Roxanne, the sexy TV reporter who gets involved when a disgruntled cameraman (Jonah Hill) plots destruction.
4 shells
Secretariat (PG)
Predictable, but wonderfully polished. It’s Diane Lane who’s the winner in her portrayal of Penny Chenery, the poised, confident, subtly nuanced housewife who battles gender discrimination to take over her father’s (Scott Glenn) New Rochelle American thoroughbred farm, and discovers a champion. Clichés are avoided, and the last half hour is devoted to the thundering, suspenseful Triple Crown races. With John Malkovich, Nelsan Ellis, Dylan Baker, Dylan Walsh, and a perfectly matched score of old standards.
3.5 shells
The Social Network (PG-13)
Compelling film written by Aaron Sorkin about Harvard student Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) and Eduardo Saverin (Andrew Garfield) who created Facebook in 2003. Justin Timberlake is perfect as Sean Parker, the flash and dash Napster creator who burrows in on Zuckerberg’s success.
5 shells
The Town (R)
Ben Affleck (bank robber). Jon Hamm (FBI). Boston (the tightly knit Hood of Charlestown). Romance (Rebecca Hall). Loyalty and betrayal. Powerful.
4.5 shells
Ratings are based on a consensus of published reviews.
