Dawn of the Dead ***1/2

Cast: Sarah Polley, Ving Rhames, Jake Weber, Mekhi Phifer, Ty Burrell, Michael Kelly, Kevin Zegers, Lindy Booth
Director: Zack Snyder

"When there's no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth." And that is just the problem facing a handful of the living in the remake of this horror classic. They take refuge in a mall, and baracade themselves in as the world around them becomes more and more zombie-filled. I have not seen the original, so I cannot offer an opion as to which is better, but I do know that I never expected to enjoy a zombie movie as much as I did with this one. The fast moving (and hungry) undead are exceptionally creepy as they strive for just a bite of the survivors. And that is all it takes to set about changing someone from a happy-go-lucky human to flesh-eating zombie. The bigger the bite, the quicker the change. Soon the survivors, led by Ana (Polley) and Kenneth (Rhames), decide they need to make a break for a (hopefully) uninhabited island in the lake. Will they make it? I'm not saying, but be sure to stay through the closing credits where the real end of the story takes place. Filled with horror, action, and even humor, "Dawn of the Dead" is a great escape for those craving a horror-fix.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind ***

Cast: Jim Carrey, Kate Winslet, Kirsten Dunst, Tom Wilkinson, Elijah Wood, Mark Ruffalo
Director: Michel Gondry

When introverted Joel (Carrey) meets extroverted Clementine (Winslet), sparks fly and romance blooms quickly. But their differences eventually divide them and the relationship ends abruptly in an explosion of meanness. Clementine decides to have Joel removed from her memory, and seeks the assistance of Dr. Mierzqwiak (Wilkinson) and his less than professional assistants (Wood and Ruffalo). When Joel discovers this, he decides to follow suit and remove Clementine from his mind. But Joel's memory is a tangled place, and soon he discovers that he does not want to lose the memories that he has. What follows is a foreword and backward journey through Joel's mind as he tries to hide his memories of Clementine from the "erasers". As usual, screenwriter Charlie Kaufman has produced an offbeat movie. Those looking for a typical Jim Carrey movie will be sorely disappointed. If you are looking for an off the wall romance in which almost anything can happen (after all, a good portion of the movie takes place in Joel's head), you will walk away with a smile on your face and the realization that all memories are a part of who we are and should never be forgotten.

Spartan ***

Cast: Val Kilmer, Derek Luke, Tia Texada, William H. Macy, Ed O'Neill, Kristen Bell
Director: David Mamet

Marine operative Scott (Kilmer) is selected to help find the kidnapped daughter of a politician. He is given 48 hours to do this before the media gets wind of the story and runs with it. Aided by Curtis (Luke), he dives into an investigation that takes new twists and turns with each new bit of data they recover. It seems that the reason for the kidnapping might not be what everyone thinks, but that doesn't mean the the girl is not in danger. And as he draws closer to finding her, other forces begin to work against him to actively prevent him from succeeding. Director David Mamet has constructed an interesting tale with motivations that are sadly believeable in today's age. Spartan is an interesting film that is not afraid to slam the politics of today's world.

Secret Window ***1/2

Cast: Johnny Depp, John Turturro, Maria Bello, Timothy Hutton, Charles S. Dutton
Director: David Koepp

Author Mort Rainey (Depp) is on the brink of a divorce and living a deeply depressed life in his cabin in the woods, trading everyday interaction with people for a comfy sleeping spot on his sofa. Every once and a while he might even write something. One day, his life is disrupted by the appearance of a stranger, John Shooter (Turturro), who claims that Rainey stole his story, and he wants Rainey to "make it right". Initially dismissing this claim, Rainey soon finds that his story and Shooter's story are almost identical, and Shooter will not be ignored. Shooter begins to turn up the heat, and Rainey finds himself racing against time to prove himself. Depp, fresh off of Pirates of the Caribbean, is back in a Johnny Depp-like role in the quirky, unkempt Mort Rainey. Turturro, who is always good playing the weirdo does an excellent job as the mysterious Shooter. Well directed by Koepp, with subtle clues as to the answer of Rainey's delimna, this adaptation of a Stephen King story is very well done. And for those who have read the story, the movie actually improves (in my opinion) on the ending.

Hidalgo ***

Cast: Viggo Mortensen, Omar Sharif, Zuleikha Robinson, Adam Alexi-Malle, Louise Lombard, Saïd Taghmaoui, Adoni Maropis
Director: Joe Johnston

Hidalgo is the story of Frank T. Hopkins (Mortensen), his horse Hidalgo, and a long distance race across the Arabian desert. Hopkins was known as the world's greatest long distance rider, and when an Arab challenges that title, he finds himselftravelingg halfway around the world to participate in a 3000-mile race across the Arabian desert. Along the way, they will battle the heat, fight some bad guys, and maybe even save a woman in distress. While based on the real life Hopkins' memoirs, he was known as a bit of abraggartd, and the level of truthfulness of the story comes into question. That being said, the story being told is highly entertaing and full of adventure. Mortensen, in his first post-Lord of the Rings role, shows that he can carry a lead role and without the help of Tolkien and Peter Jackson. Hidalgo is an enjoyable movie for the whole family.

Starsky and Hutch ***

Cast: Ben Stiller, Owen Wilson, Vince Vaughn, Juliette Lewis, Snoop Dogg, Chris Penn, Terry Crews, Will Ferrell
Director: Todd Phillips

Starsky & Hutch is the latest 70's television show to receive an upgrade to the movie screen. Was this necessary? Probably not, but the result is a really funny movie. Taking the "Brady Bunch" approach, and placing their tongues firmly in cheek, Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson assume the roles made popular on the small screen so many years ago. Ben Stiller is the somewhat anal Starsky and Owen Wilson is the laid back Hutch. And while there is a plot somewhere in there, the movie's focus is the relationship between the two. After being teamed together, they are out to bust a drug dealer, played by Vince Vaughn, who has developed cocain that cannot be detected by narcotics dogs. The plot allows them to go undercover, get some girls, and have some action scenes. I firmly believe that there will be a sequel to this, especially if the film does well (which I think it will). Stiller and Wilson have a comroderie that has worked well in previous movies, and is even more evident here. If you are looking for a laugh, check out Starsky & Hutch.

The Passion of the Christ ****

Cast: James Caviezel, Maia Morgenstern, Monica Bellucci, Hristo Jivkov, Hristo Naumov Shopov, Mattia Sbragia
Director: Mel Gibson

As everyone knows, Mel Gibson's film focuses on the last 12 hours of the life of Jesus. From the Garden of Gethsemenie to turture to crucifixion to resurrection, Mel Gibson's movie is a emotional journey through the heart of Christian belief. Is it bloody? Yes. Is it violent? Yes. Does that diminish its value? Not in the least. This movie is an unflinching view of Jesus' final hours that is powerful and moving. mes Caviezel, Maia Morgenstern, and Monica Bellucci give stunning performances as Jesus, Mary, and Mary Magdeline respectively. The emotions that they convey on their faces is heartbeaking. As for the anti-Semitism, I did not see any. I think that you will see what you want to see in this regard, although I do not believe contains any anti-Semitic views. I recommend that everyone (Christian or not) take in a viewing of this amazing film.

Eurotrip **

Cast: Scott Mechlowicz, Jacob Pitts, Michelle Trachtenberg, Travis Wester, Jessica Boehrs
Director: Jeff Schaffer

This predictable but sometimes funny movie finds Scott and some friends heading to Europe for the summer to find his e-mail pal Mieke and to declare his love for her. Oh yeah...he had previously mistook her for a guy and told her off, so there is somewhat of a time factor involved, but that doesn't seem to speed things up too much for the gang. They find themselves travelling pretty much all over Europe, getting into bad situations that include a nude beach, an anal probe, and a brother and sister make-out session. This movie does not work enough for me to recommend seeing in the theaters. It is about middle of the road for road trip-gross out movies.

OSCAR PREDICTIONS RESULTS
WILL WIN -- 6/9 -- Not too bad...I was optimistic about my best actor and best supporting actress picks and went against the favorites. Gotta take a chance sometimes!
SHOULD WIN -- 2/9 -- Clearly the Academy was wrong more often than not.

The show gets pretty boring when all the favorites in all the major categories win. Same goes for LOTR winning every category it was up for. Just remember: the best movie/person does not always win!!!