32nd Student Academy Awards Regional Finals See "My, What A Busy Week!" on page 9.
Whitsell Auditorium

All About My Mother With his usual command of color and urgent flamboyancy, Pedro Almodóvar has created a heartbreaking work that pays tribute not only to his mother but to the art of cinema itself.
Guild

The Amityville Horror 1979's original Amityville suffered from a stupid family that withstood the antics of the terrifying house when anyone else would have ran for the hills within the first week of living there. The new Amityville's characters are equally moronic, but it has better special effects. (Justin Sanders)
Regal Cinemas, etc.

Bad Education If Hitchcock's Vertigo collided head-on with a drag queen variety show, the brilliant wreckage would be Pedro Almodóvar's Bad Education. (Ryan Dirks)
Hollywood Theatre

Ballad of Jack and Rose Taking up the thin line between familial and romantic love, The Ballad of Jack and Rose is not nearly as creepy or sordid as one might think. Inhabiting an old commune, the handsome, rugged father (Daniel Day-Lewis) and angel-faced adolescent daughter (Camilla Belle) toil in post-hippie paradise while classic folk rock accompanies them on the soundtrack. The ballad is rich with incident--it's touching, anguished, disturbing, strange, and occasionally hilarious. (Marjorie Skinner)
Fox Tower 10

Beautiful Boxer In Beautiful Boxer, a young Thai boy, Nong Toom (Asanee Suwan), becomes a professional boxer to earn money for a sex change operation. Ultimately, the best scenes in the film take place in the boxing ring--so when Nong Toom abandons boxing to become a woman, it's more disappointing than inspirational. (Alison Hallett)
Hollywood Theatre

Born Into Brothels Rare is the documentary that feels too short, but this wrenching look at kids growing up within the squalid red-light sector of India begs for a more detailed exploration. The film follows the efforts of co-director/photographer Zana Briski to save the children of Calcutta's sex workers, initially by encouraging their photographic skills, then by navigating through unbelievable levels of bureaucratic quicksand. (Andrew Wright)
Fox Tower 10

Breaking Away The greatest underdog movie ever. An 18-year-old cyclist from Indiana struggles with his identity as the son of a midwestern blue collar worker. The film is based on the true story of the young man and his ragged bunch of townies (including Dennis Quaid, in his breakout role) who are trying to figure out what the hell to do with their lives.
Fifth Avenue Cinemas

Bride & Prejudice Gurinder Chadha, the director of Bend It Like Beckham, has revamped Jane Austen's Pride & Prejudice with a Bollywood aesthetic. If the finger-snappin' music and over-the-top dance numbers aren't enough to distract you, there are also elephants, gospel singers, a cobra dance, and that chick from Gilmore Girls. (Alison Hallett)
Westgate , Kennedy School

The Chorus In The Chorus, the French take on a favorite American theme--dedicated teacher turns society's outcasts into the upright citizens of tomorrow (see: Sister Acts I and II, The Mighty Ducks I, II, and III, etc.). Sure, it's cheesy, but it's French cheese: Stinky, unpasteurized, and tasty, without the plastic, mass-produced quality of most American shit. (Alison Hallett)
Hollywood Theatre

Dark Habits In Pedro Almodóvar's 1983 film, nightclub singer Yolanda (Cristina Sánchez Pascual) seeks safety in a convent when her boyfriend ODs. There she finds nuns who are drug addicts, lesbians, romance novelists, fashion designers--oh, and they keep a tiger in the courtyard. (Ryan Dirks)
Guild

Dear Frankie The adjective "heartwarming" is pretty much a curse at this point, thanks to maudlin, simplistic tearjerkers targeted at the Oprah crowd--so it's a nice surprise that Dear Frankie is both "heartwarming" and "good." (Erik Henriksen)
Fox Tower 10

Deconstructing Supper & Deccan Films The "Think Globally, Eat Locally" film series wraps up with Deconstructing Supper: Is Your Food Safe? and films from the Deccan Development Society in India. [Insert joke about hippies and their goddamn tofu here.]
Fifth Avenue Cinemas

Double Dare See review this issue.
Hollywood Theatre

Downfall An epic film taking place in Hitler's Berlin bunker, in the last days before the end of the war and his suicide.
Fox Tower 10

Dust to Glory An uneven documentary about the no-holds-barred, off-road race the Baja 1000. As directed and narrated by Dana Brown, though, its highs (spectacular footage, moving stories of the racers) make up for its lows (overbearing narration, some sappy music that'd be more at home at the end of a Full House episode). Brown--whose previous film was the surfing doc Step Into Liquid--captures the grit, speed, and daring of the Baja 1000's racers, who race an ever-changing course in vehicles that range from multi-million dollar trophy trucks to unmodified, pre-1982 Volkswagen Beetles. (Erik Henriksen)
Westgate , Cinemagic

Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room See review this issue.
Cinema 21

Fever Pitch Ben (the incorrigibly grating Jimmy Fallon) is a teacher whose life is dominated by his love for the Red Sox. But when he hooks up with Lindsey (the ineffably angelic Drew Barrymore), things get rough--Lindsey's a baseball neophyte, and justifiably freaked out by Ben's fandom. Pretend you're a Red Sox fan, and think of Fever Pitch as one of the Sox's pre-'04 seasons: You have a bad hunch about how predictably disappointing it'll turn out, but that doesn't necessarily make it any less enjoyable. (Erik Henriksen)
Regal Cinemas, etc.

Gag Rules Every Wednesday, Portland's City Council has "open communications," in which anyone can step up and talk for three minutes about, well, almost anything. Local artist and activist Teresa Dulce took advantage of this loophole for an entire month to bring in her friends and talk about STDs, condoms, and hepatitis--Dulce even rapped out a strangely sexy poem that seemed to arouse councilmember Randy Leonard. Gag Rules captures these "performances" and the council's reactions on tape. At times, it's entertaining; at others, it screens like an inside joke that's more a low-key prank than civil disobedience. (Phil Busse)
XV

The Girl From Monday See review this issue.
Clinton Street Theater

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy See review this issue.
Regal Cinemas, etc.

House of D See review this issue.
Fox Tower 10 , City Center 12

The Interpreter Nicole Kidman plays a U.N. translator who accidentally overhears an ominous assassination plot; paranoia perfunctorily sets in, and she's paired with a reluctant FBI agent (Sean Penn). In The Interpreter's best moments, director Sydney Pollack channels the verve and momentum of his excellent Three Days of the Condor--but more often than not, the otherwise excellent Pollack, Kidman, and Penn trust in a tepid, uneven screenplay that's neither fluid nor convincing. (Erik Henriksen)
Regal Cinemas, etc.

The Jerk Steve Martin plays Navin R. Johnson, a complete and utter moron who hits it big. Easily the greatest film of Steve Martin's career, and maybe one of the greatest films ever. (Erik Henriksen)
Jones' Public House

King's Ransom This film was not screened for critics, which leads one to suspect it's going to be pretty horrible. Said suspicion is strengthened by the film's press release, which notes that Anthony Anderson plays "a successful and wealthy businessmen, [sic] with plenty of attitude to spare" who concocts some shitbrained kidnapping scheme.
Regal Cinemas, etc.

Kung Fu Hustle The latest from Hong Kong's superstar director and star Stephen Chow, Kung Fu Hustle is all over the map: It's part slapstick, part hokey drama, part action extravaganza, and part cartoon--and Chow blends all of these seemingly disparate parts to make a nearly perfect comedy. Hustle feels like the aftermath of an explosion made up of Looney Tunes shorts and classic kung fu flicks; the whole thing's ridiculous, sweet, and astonishingly entertaining. (Erik Henriksen)
Regal Cinemas, etc.

Look At Me With an easy, subtle humor and imperfect sympathy, director and screenwriter Agnès Jaoui manages to take a rather droll subject--the self conscious woes of a young woman--and avoid the annoyances and murderous impulses often inspired by two hours of a girl moaning about how fat she is. Then again, Lolita Cassard (Marilou Berry) has more complaints than just her weight. The daughter of a famous author, Lolita contends with his abrasive and often dismissive parenting, boys who use her to get to him, and the gorgeous, diet-obsessed stepmother who's barely older than herself. Gifted with a beautiful voice and an admiration for her voice instructor (played by Jaoui), it's a moving splendor to see Lolita's struggle for success and affection. (Marjorie Skinner)
Fox Tower 10

A Lot Like Love I can already hear the Ashton Kutcher apologists: "Take it easy, it's just an escape." But this film is no escape; it's Hell. And I'm talking about the first circle of Hell, way past the gnashing of teeth and the smell of burning flesh--this is the place where you're strapped to a chair and your eyes are held open by tiny metal fingers, all Clockwork Orange style. (Ryan Dirks)
Regal Cinemas, etc.

Ma Vie En Rose A seven-year-old boy decides he wants to grow up and be a woman.
Pix Patisserie

Mail Order Wife The most manipulative and profoundly irritating of films, Mail Order Wife is a mockumentary which--at least initially--tricks you into thinking it's a documentary. A creepy sex-obsessed doorman (Adrian Martinez) "orders" a Chinese woman (Eugenia Yuan), which the "documentarians" have paid for. She's meek and submissive, while he's a total asshole who makes her clean the toilet, feed rats to his giant pet snake, and of course, spread her legs in the bedroom. Once the "director" (Andrew Gurland) realizes what he's gotten this poor gal into, he valiantly rescues her from the doorman and starts fucking her himself. At this point it becomes obvious the film is a farce, and the story spirals off into a pointless nowhereville of boring conversations between a supposed documentarian and a supposed Chinese mail order bride who don't even speak the same language. (Katie Shimer)
Clinton Street Theater

Medea Lars von Trier does Euripedes for this TV movie. Medea (Kirsten Olesen) is brought to the court of Creon (Henning Jensen) by Jason (Udo Kier); ancient Greek-style tragedy ensues.
PSU Smith Memorial Union

Melinda and Melinda Woody Allen's latest has a promising premise: Two playwrights (Larry Pine and Wallace Shawn) discuss the situation of Melinda (Radha Mitchell), an unstable, travel-worn woman who unexpectedly arrives at her friends' Upper East Side apartment. One playwright envisions Melinda's background as a tragedy, while the other invents a comedy. Allen looks at both, and the film delineates the playwrights' respective takes, essentially making two films. Since he's been toying with comedies and tragedies for decades, Allen here has the perfect chance to capitalize on his proficiency in both genres. But while Melinda and Melinda is theoretically two Allen films for the price of one, its sum is far less than even one of Allen's past masterpieces. (Will Gardner)
Fox Tower 10

Millions Danny Boyle's tale of two young brothers (Alexander Nathan Etel and Lewis Owen McGibbon) who find a duffel bag stuffed with cash. Ultimately, Millions becomes less about the money and more about the boys' splintered family; despite a retarded subplot about a criminal looking for the cash and some unforgivably sappy moments, Millions is definitely worthwhile. (Erik Henriksen)
Fox Tower 10 , City Center 12

Moolad A film about Africa's female excision, Moolad focuses on Coll (Fatoumata Coulibaly), the wife of a village elder who refuses to have her daughter undergo the procedure.
Whitsell Auditorium

National Lampoon's Going the Distance Not only was this film not screened for critics, but critics weren't even told about it until it showed up on this week's movie times listings. Needless to say, this does not bode well for the film--but three other things are even more ominous. First, it has the phrase "National Lampoon's" attached to it, which has come to be synonymous with "painfully unfunny." Second, it came out in Canada last year. Canada! Last year! And third, it boasts a "special appearance" by Avril Lavigne. Jesus fucking Christ.
Movies on TV , Westgate , Lloyd Mall

Princess Mononoke As anyone who's seen a Hayao Miyazaki film will attest, the story you follow is secondary to the sights you behold. The craggy reality of his twisting tree trunks capped with windblown tufts of leaves; the weighty presence of the rocks, whether rough or slicked smooth by water; the breathtaking vividness of light when the clouds part; the crouched expectancy of animals at rest--all of these are rendered as gorgeously as any animation I've ever seen, and in fact make a better plea for ecological sanity than the sometimes heavy-handed script. (Proceeds from this screening benefit the Oregon Center for Environmental Health.) (Bruce Reid)
Laurelhurst

Schultze Gets the Blues Gently funny, this film is full of the sort of geriatric humor that ensues from putting a fat old German guy in an unfamiliar environment. (Marjorie Skinner)
Fox Tower 10

Special Advance Screening Century Eastport's keeping it a secret as to what film this is exactly. In other words, Regal Cinemas is asking you to give them good money for a movie that might be good or might really suck. If that sounds like a wise investment to you, then you are a a retard. (For more disparaging, prejudiced, and ill-informed comments about those with mental disabilities, see page 57. )
Century Eastport 16

Steamboy The latest from Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira), Steamboy isn't set in either of anime's clichd settings--there's no hint of a hyper-techy future, nor of an overly mythologized past. No--Steamboy's set in 19th-century London, with its characters fascinated by the then-modern concept of steam power. But after a few impressive action sequences at the start of the film, Steamboy crumbles under its overwrought scope and Otomo's fascination with grandiose visuals, which are at first striking, and then just get boring. (Erik Henriksen)
Hollywood Theatre

The Upside of Anger The Upside of Anger makes an all-too-blatant grab for the award-friendly glory road well plowed by the likes of American Beauty and Terms of Endearment, yet is nearly redeemed by a cast (including Joan Allen and Kevin Costner) that wrings out every last bit of potential from the formula. (Andrew Wright)
Regal Cinemas, etc.

Winter Solstice Jim (Anthony LaPaglia) lives with his two sons, Gabe (Aaron Stanford) and Pete (Mark Weber), in a fairly wealthy-looking suburb. His wife/their mother died a few years back, and the three of them are just kicking it, having reached the point of being able to cope with the tragedy, but still mired in a slightly depressed rut as they wait to completely move on. Other than that, there's no plot, really, and no one has any life-affirming realizations, which makes Josh Sternfeld's Winter Solstice a pretty accurate portrayal of how an upper-middle-class family would react to losing a loved one. It's like real life, and like real life, it's really, really boring. (Justin Sanders)
Fox Tower 10

XXX: State of the Union See review this issue.
Regal Cinemas, etc.