“Clash of the Titans” _ Who wants to be a god, anyway? That’s the principle twist inserted into the remake of the sometimes fondly recalled, technologically dated 1981 film about the fury of the gods of Mount Olympus and the rise of the young, earthly demigod Perseus. This time, Perseus (Sam Worthington) bears a distaste for his godlike nature. He fights a serpentine Medusa, the sea monster Kraken and other mythical beasts for mankind, not for the deities. Liam Neeson plays the angry god Zeus, while Ralph Fiennes, in a cloud of black smog, plays Hades. Directed by Louis Leterrier (2008’s “The Incredible Hulk”), “Titans” will lure moviegoers chiefly by its digital effects (which are good but forgettable) and its promise of 3-D spectacle (which, having been converted from 2-D to 3-D in post, disappoints altogether). Worthington, the Australian star of “Avatar,” doesn’t supply the charisma the movie needs and the whole thing feels like a joyless slog. PG-13 for fantasy action violence, some frightening images and brief sensuality. 106 minutes. Two stars out of four.
_ Jake Coyle, AP Entertainment Writer
“Don McKay” _ First-time writer-director Jake Goldberger delivers plenty of wicked humor with his “Blood Simple”-style film noir. It works to a degree thanks to the eager cast led by Thomas Haden Church, Elisabeth Shue and Melissa Leo. But the laughs are disjointed as each character one-ups the next with crazier and crazier revelations. Haden Church stars as a lonely janitor reunited with his dying high school sweetie (Shue), with Leo as the woman’s stern, suspicious nurse. Nothing and no one is quite who they seem among this threesome and their odd associates. Goldberger is stingy about revealing anything for much of the way, the movie becoming an endless tease. When the movie finally spills its secrets, they come in a torrent, the story lapsing into silliness just as the suspense is supposedly peaking. The climax remains very entertaining, but it’s more of a film-noir spoof ending that feels too madcap after the long, nearly static setup Goldberger maintained early on. R for language and some violence. 90 minutes. Two stars out of four.
_ David Germain, AP Movie Writer
“The Greatest” _ This see-how-we-mourn melodrama shows us the sloppy, lingering process of grieving can play out on a neat and tidy timetable, where everybody gets a catharsis and returns home healed. First-time writer-director Shana Feste yanks and claws shamelessly at those proverbial heartstrings, the story made tearily tolerable by intense though sometimes excessive performances from Pierce Brosnan and Susan Sarandon as parents grieving over the death of their son and Carey Mulligan as a teenager pregnant with the youth’s child. The movie might have resonated more if it threw out some of the grief-counseling cliches and let the idiosyncrasies of the characters dictate more of the drama. But if all you want is a good cry, “The Greatest” will comply. Tears are infectious, so when actors this good bawl their eyes out, more than a few people in the audience will sniffle and sob along with them. R for language, some sexual content and drug use. 100 minutes. Two and a half stars out of four.
_ David Germain, AP Movie Writer
“The Last Song” _ Have you heard the one about the two photogenic kids who meet cute in a Southern beach town, overcome differences in class and temperament and fall madly in love only to find that, in this cruel, cruel world, tragedy finds a way of trumping hormones? Dear God, it’s “Dear John,” right? Yes. But it’s also “The Last Song,” the second Nicholas Sparks movie to hit theaters in the past two months, a development only moonstruck teen girls and the facial tissue industry will welcome. Sparks wrote “The Last Song” at the behest of Miley Cyrus, the Disney Channel star who will soon end her run on the “Hannah Montana” TV series and wants to expand her brand into movies. Her young female fan base will likely be OK with her first try. Others might be tiring of Sparks’ use of death as a plot device. With Greg Kinnear and Liam Hemsworth. PG for thematic material, some violence, sensuality and mild language. 101 minutes. Two stars out of four.
_ Glenn Whipp, for The Associated Press
“The Thorn in the Heart” _ For anyone who has seen a Michel Gondry movie (“Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” “Science of Sleep”) and wondered about the brain that could have created such a thing, this film is an interesting window into the French director. It’s his intimate portrait of the family matriarch, his aunt Suzette Gondry. Through casual interviews and old home movies, Gondry traces Suzette’s life as an elementary school teacher in rural France and as the mother of her now adult son, Jean-Yves, with whom she has a strained relationship. There are sporadic hints at Gondry’s magical, organic technique, but the general style is a verite documentary that shows a family where Super 8 is as much a part of the diet as carrots. But the only real audience for a film like this is its maker and his relatives. Not rated by the MPAA. 86 minutes. Two stars out of four.
_ Jake Coyle, AP Entertainment Writer
“The Warlords” _ Jet Li shows new and richer acting moves in his latest Chinese historical epic that teams him to good effect with fellow Asian superstars Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro. In “Fearless” and especially “Hero,” Li already proved he’s more than just an action master, and this one gives him the chance to play two sides _ not only the unadulterated idol, but also the hero after he’s been corrupted by ambition, envy and more than a trace of megalomania. Director Peter Chan handles the often spectacular battle sequences far more artfully than quiet human drama. But Li, Lau and Kaneshiro bring warmth, humor and pathos to their roles as warriors who swear a blood oath of brotherhood during the mid-19th century Taiping Rebellion. They pledge their loyalty with an act of barbarity that acclimates viewers to startling brutality to come; the film adheres without compromise to a crusader code that’s not for the squeamish. R for sequences of strong violence. 110 minutes. Two and a half stars out of four.
_ David Germain, AP Movie Writer
Copyright 2010 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed
