These are Maui Scene Editor Rick Chatenever's mini-reviews, excerpts of wire service reviews and previews provided by studios and other sources.
New this week
"The Back Up Plan" PG-13, 1:59, opens Friday at Maui Mall Megaplex and Lahaina Wharf Cinemas.
Article Photos
A cameraman swims through a maze of jellyfish in “Oceans.”
Disney photo via AP
See review at left.
"The Losers" PG-13, 1:52, opens Friday at Maui Mall Megaplex and Front Street Theaters.
Adapted from a comic book, the title refers to a good-hearted black-ops team on a secret mission in Bolivia who get in trouble with their CIA boss when they save a bunch of innocent kids. This puts them on his hit list, and they spend the rest of the action-packed adventure - joined by the lovely Zoe Saldana - trying to avoid getting killed while setting matters right back at the agency. Jeffrey Dean Morgan, Chris Evans, Idris Elba, Columbus Short, Oscar Jaenada and Jason Patric co-star; Sulvain White directs the action.
Fact Box
It's Showtime
Times in the movie ads are subject to change on the weekend. It's a good idea to call the theater, just to be sure. For showtimes at Kaahumanu 6 and Kukui Mall 4, call 1 (800) -FANDANGO visit www.consolidatedtheatres.com.
For showtimes at Lahaina Wharf Cinemas, Front Street Theatres and Maui Mall Megaplex call 249-2222 or check www.gohollywood.com.
"Nobody But Juan" NR, 1:50, opens Friday at Kukui Mall 4.
Filipino star Dolphy stars in this comedy playing a former Filipino vaudevillian now living in the U.S. in a retirement home run by his son and daughter-in-law. When his major pleasure in life - watching "Wowowee" on the Filipino Channel - is banned in the home, he sets off on an odyssey to return to his home, and his past. Eddie Garcia, Gloria Romero, Pokwang and Eugene Domingo co-star; Enrico S. Quizon directs in Filipino/ Tagalog.
"Oceans" G, 1:26, opens today at Maui Mall Megaplex.
Opening on Earth Day, this undersea documentary from "Winged Migration" filmmakers Jacques Perrin and Jacques Cluzard reportedly shares the same mix of dazzling, how'd-they-get-that? shots with a powerful emotional message about the amazing sea creatures who share our planet. Pierce Brosnan, who's been doing a lot of good work at the movies lately, narrates this new production from the Disneynature label. It's rated G, but undoubtedly has much to say to everyone in the family as well as the human family.
Still playing
"Alice in Wonderland" (3-D) PG, 1:49, Kaahumanu 6.
Whimsical visionary Tim Burton gives a modern and darker spin to Lewis Carroll's beloved Alice, making her a 19-year-old on the brink of marriage. Lured back to Wonderland, with lots also borrowed from "Through the Looking Glass," Alice (nicely done by Mia Wasikowska) is less a confused child than a girl-powered heroine. She matches wits with the familiar menagerie of weirdos - led by Burton favorites Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter - while entertaining doubts about what she's doing here and whether she might be the wrong Alice. Anne Hathaway, Crispin Glover and the voices of Michael Sheen, Alan Rickman and Stephen Fry co-star. While Burton sometimes seems to have Alice confused with Joan of Arc and throws in one big monster as though the Red Queen weren't menacing enough, his "Alice" still strikes a nice balance between whimsy and more tender stuff. His stars all shine, especially Depp who turns the Hatter into a hero with a tender heart, guiding the comedy to more than $300 million already. Despite what other critics might say, it's recommended by this one.
"The Bounty Hunter" PG-13, 2:06, Kaahumanu 6.
Jennifer Aniston plays the journalistic ex-wife of down-on-his-luck bounty hunter Gerard Butler in this action comedy directed by Andy Tennant. How convenient when he gets assigned to bring her in for jumping bail. How inconvenient when she keeps outfoxing him, raising the eternal question, who wears the handcuffs in this family? Christine Baranski co-stars, but the results fall flat, as the contrived screenplay squanders whatever chemistry the two appealing stars brought to the project.
"Clash of the Titans" PG-13 2:01, Maui Mall Megaplex (in 3-D with a ticket surcharge and 2-D), Kukui Mall 4 and Lahaina Wharf Cinemas.
"Avatar's" Sam Worthington stars as Perseus in this remake of a 1981 cult classic about the mythical gods on Mount Olympus. Basically sharing the characters and storyline of the currently running "Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Lightning Thief," this clash claims it's not that much fun being a god, especially when the humans get uppity. Liam Neeson is Zeus, sending his brother Hades (Ralph Fiennes) to destroy the city of Argos to remind the humans who's in charge. Louis Leterrier directs, with thoroughly disappointing results.
"Date Night" PG-13, 1:27, Kaahumanu 6, Kukui Mall 4 and Front Street Theaters.
Steve Carrel and Tina Fey take the leap from TV, where they top NBC's funny scale, to the big screen for this madcap comedy. They play a New Jersey couple trying to escape the blahs of their relationship with a night on the town in Manhattan. Trying to put a spark in their lives, they get more of an explosion when they are mistaken for blackmailers by a gangster and his goons. Showing up as friends, foes and strange distractions as they flee across the Big Apple are Mark Wahlberg, Ray Liotta, Taraji P. Henson, James Franco and Mila Kunis. Shawn Levy directs. Story is predictable, but the likable stars generate plenty of chemistry and some great laughs.
"Death at a Funeral" R, 1:47, Maui Mall Megaplex and Front Street Theaters.
Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence and Tracy Morgan head the cast in director Neil Labute's remake of the recent black comedy from England. Revolving around the funeral of the patriarch of an extended family, this version moves the story to a family of black brothers in Los Angeles. It turns out to be an occasion where everything that can possibly go wrong does go wrong, from the wrong body in the casket to misadventures with prescription drugs to a little guest with a big secret. The laughs head for the dark, raunchy side, delivered by an all-star cast who thrive in that territory. Peter Dinklage, Regina Hall, Zoe Saldana, James Marsden and a wheelchair-ridden, order-barking Danny Glover co-star.
"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" PG, 1:48, Kaahumanu 6.
Middle school is a major challenge for even well-adjusted kids; for nerds, it's torture 24/7. Zachary Gordon stars in this live-action adaptation of Jeff Kinney's illustrated novel as the wisecracking protagonist who turns his geeky misfortunes into a journal, sharing observations, advice and triumphs, even if they're figments of his imagination. Robert Capron, Rachael Harris and Steve Zahn co-star; Thor Freudenthal directs.
"Hot Tub Time Machine" R, 1:54, ends tonight at Maui Mall Megaplex and Front Street Theaters.
John Cusack and his dorky pals Rob Corddry and Craig Robinson happen onto an escape from their midlife blues with the device named in the title. Bringing Cusack's dweeby nephews (Clark Duke) along, they wind up back in the 1980s, trying to make better choices the second time around. Steve Pink directs. Even with Cusack bringing his patented cool to this basically raunchy project, the title is as funny as it gets - not to mention, shorter and less painful to sit through.
"How to Train Your Dragon" PG, 1:53, Maui Mall Megaplex (3-D, with additional charge, and 2-D), Kukui Mall 4 and Lahaina Wharf Cinemas.
Set in Viking days of yore, Jay Baruchel gives voice to a youth named Hiccup, a major disappointment to his dragon-slaying dad, Viking chief Stoick the Vast (voiced by Gerard Butler). Setting out to gain some respect by slaying a fierce Night Fury dragon, he finds he can't finish that job, either, but instead nurses the wounded creature back to health, names it "Toothless," and figures out how to fly on its back. Like "Avatar" for kids, it features spectacular flying action above the mythical Norse scenery below. Craig Ferguson, America Ferrera, Jonah Hill, Kristen Wiig and Christopher Mintz-Plasse add their voices to the smart-aleck but touching script, written and directed by "Lilo and Stitch's" Chris Sanders and Dean DeBlois.
"Kick-Ass" R, 2:13, Maui Mall Megaplex, Kukui Mall 4 and Front Street Theaters.
Taking aim on movie audiences' obsessions with superheroes and comic-book-style violence, this over-the-top satire features normal but weird characters putting on the capes and getting into the action-hero business. Young Chloe Grace Moretz reportedly shines as an 11-year-old masked vigilante with Nicolas Cage as her wacky dad and Aaron Johnson as the bumbling teen who puts on a wetsuit as the third leg of their trio. Matthew Vaughn directs, heaping on the blood, violence, questionable taste and over-the-top stunts that target family values with reckless abandon.
"The Last Song" PG, 2:02, Maui Mall Megaplex; ends tonight at Lahaina Wharf Cinemas.
Following on the heels of Nicholas Sparks' "Dear John," this one walks the same path, littered with Kleenex, as Miley Cyrus tries to grow out of Hannah Montana territory and into more sullen teendom. She plays a girl still smoldering about her parents' divorce who spends the summer with her dad (Greg Kinnear) at his Georgia beach house where she makes the acquaintance of the just-about-perfect Liam Hemsworth. While Liam finds ways of heating up her cold heart, this being a Nicholas Sparks story, you know better than to expect a happy ending. Bobby Coleman co-stars; Julie Ann Robinson directs.
"Letters to God" PG, 1:50, Kaahumanu 6.
A boy fighting cancer writes letters to God, becoming a source of inspiration to those around him in this Christian-themed adaptation of a true story. Lisa Curtis, Christopher Schmidt, Lyanna Tumaneng, Tanner Maguire, Ralph Waite, Dennis Neal, Robyn Lively and Michael Bolten co-star. Writer Patrick Doughtie shares the directing dutes with David Nixon.
"Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too" PG-13, 2:16, ends tonight at Maui Mall Megaplex.
Tyler I'd-Rather-Do-It-Myself Perry returns as writer, director, producer and actor in this second look at the challenges and temptations facing married couples, even when they're beautiful, rich and successful. Cast in the Bahamas where four couples have come for their once-a-year reunion, it co-stars Janet Jackson, Jill Scott, Sharon Leal, Malik Yoba, Richard T. Jones, Tasha Smith, Lamman Rucker, Michael Jai White, Louis Gossett Jr. and Cicely Tyson.
"The Warlords" R, 1:50, Kaahumanu 6.
Based on a historical tale from the Qing Dynasty, this heroic epic stars Jet Li as a general thrust into a power struggle with three blood brothers. Jinglei Xu, Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro co-star. Peter Chan and Wai Man Yip co-direct the costumed drama and violent action.
