King Kong ***
Cast: Naomi Watts, Jack Black, Adrien Brody, Andy Serkis, Jamie Bell, Kyle Chandler, Thomas Kretschmann
Director: Peter Jackson
Running Length: 3:07
MPAA Classification: PG-13

Carl Denham (Black) is a filmmaker who wants to get his film made. The problem is that creditors are after him and he is missing a leading lady. Ann Darrow (Watts) is an out of work actress who stumbles across Denham's path. When she agrees, they make a hasty retreat to the "Venture", the ship that will take them to the filming location. In the process, he manages to strand screenwriter Jack Driscoll (Brody) on board. Soon, they ae heading for Skull Island.
Once there, the filming begins, only to be interrupted by the natives, who have a tendency to remove the heads from their victims. Ann is offered up as a sacrifice to the dominant male of the island, a big ape by the name of Kong (Serkis). Instead of killing her, he develops a crush on her. After a long chase on the island, we go back to New York for the fateful ending.

"King Kong" is a good movie, full of action, special effects, and heart. Serkis gives Kong a realness that has not been seen before. The action is tense and unrelenting. Black and Brody do good jobs as their respective characters. Watts shows she can act convincingly with a green screen. The biggest drawback to this film is the running time. At over three hours, "King Kong" is at least an hour too long. This is not an epic tale, despite getting the epic treatment, and the film is hurt by it. Fans of Peter Jackson (and there are many) will no doubt be thrilled by everything in this movie, and for them I recommend this film highly. Otherwise, you may want to wait to DVD so you can have access to a pause button.

Syriana ***1/2
Cast: George Clooney, Jeffrey Wright, Matt Damon, Alexander Siddig, Chris Cooper, Christopher Plummer, Amanda Peet, William Hurt
Director: Stephen Gaghan
Running Length: 2:06
MPAA Classification: R

"Syriana" is a complex film about oil, terrorism, the government, and other related issues. It is so intricate, that it really cannot be described in a way to make it clear. There are, however, three main story lines. First, Bob Barnes (Clooney) is a Middle East CIA operative that is let go after he ceases to be helpful. Second, Connex and Killen are two oil companies that are merging. Third, Prince Nasir Al-Subaai (Siddig) is next in line to become Emir of his unnamed country, and believes that his country should not give in to the United States. These story lines, as well as the others, all come together in the end in a satisfying conclusion.

"Syriana" is a thinking person's movie. If you do not pay attention, you will get lost very quickly. But, if you pay attention, "Syriana" is highly satisfying. Structured like "Traffic" and "Crash", "Syriana" is a movie that makes you think. The cast is excellent all around, all providing their piece of the puzzle. Director Stephen Gaghan weaves the tale skillfully, bringing seemingly unrelated stories together for a fantastic finish. "Syriana" is definately not a movie for everyone, but I highly recommend this film.

The Chronicles of Natnia: The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe ***
Cast: Georgie Henley, Skandar Keynes, William Moseley, Anna Popplewell, Tilda Swinton, James McAvoy, Jim Broadbent, Liam Neeson (voice)
Director: Andrew Adamson
Running Length: 2:20
MPAA Classification: PG

During World War II, the Pevensie children - Peter (Moseley), Susan (Popplewell), Edmund (Keynes), and Lucy (Henley) - are sent from London to stay with Professor Kirke (Broadbent). One day, while playing hide and seek, Lucy hides in a wardrobe. She soon finds it is no ordinary wardrobe as it transports her to Narnia, a magical wintery world. She meets Mr. Rumnus (McAvoy), and finds out that it has been winter there for 100 years because of the rule of the Wite Witch (Swinton). After returning to her world, she brings her siblings back with her. Edmund disappears, having been tricked by the White Witch, and the rest must rescue him and save Narnia in the process.

On the heels of "The Lord of the Rings", it is no surprise that this movie has been made. There has been a surge in the popularity of fantasy epics as of late, and "Narnia" is a logical coice for the film treatment. The results are about the same as the "Rings" trilogy. The acting is solid all around. This is impressive since the film is carried by four kids with minimal acting experience. Swinton is menacing as the evil White Witch, and probably the standout performance of the movie. The special effects are good overall. Aslan the lion is impressive, and looks completely real. Some of the scenes look like they were definately filmed in front of a green screen though, and that is distracting. The story is given a good treatment by "Shrek" director Andrew Adamson, but I was not blown away like I hoped to be. The result is an entertaining and good film that falls short of greatness.

Good Night, and Good Luck ***
Cast: David Strathairn, Robert Downey Jr., Patricia Clarkson, Ray Wise, Frank Langella, Jeff Daniels, George Clooney
Director: George Clooney
Running Length: 1:33
MPAA Classification: PG

"Good Night, and Good Luck" is the true story of CBS newsman Edward R. Murrow (Strathairn) and Senator Joseph McCarthy. In 1953 and 1954, Murrow attempted to discredit McCarthy's hunt for communists on his television show. When McCarthy turned on him, Murrow was able to disprove the allegations, and soon the Senate would choose to investigate McCarthy, ending his hunt.

"Good Night, and Good Luck" is a solid movie with a solid cast. Strathairn is impressive as Murrow, portraying him as a man of integrity and a desire to expose the truth. He is not a household name, but he is the core of this movie, and it succeeds mostly because of him. The story itself is very interesting, mostly because it really happened. George Clooney's direction gets the job done, and shows that he has whet it takes to make serious films about important topics. This is not a fun movie, but it is very good and well worth seeing.

Aeon Flux *1/2

Cast: Charlize Theron, Marton Csokas, Jonny Lee Miller, Sophie Okonedo, Frances McDormand, Pete Poslethwaite, Amelia Warner
Director: Karyn Kusama
Running Length: 1:35
MPAA Classification: PG-13

400 years from now, 99% of the world's population has been wiped out by a virus. Those remaining are living in a walled city and led by the Goodchild regime. Five million people survived the plague in 2001, and five million still live in 2415. The Goodchild regime is a totalitarian government, and the Monicans are focused on removing him from power by any means necessary. The most dangerous Monican, Aeon Flux (Theron) accepts a specific mission from the Handler (McDormand) to kill Trevor Goodchild (Csokas). With the help of her sidekick, Sithandra (Okonedo), she ventures into his fortress. When the time comes to pull the trigger, something happens that will change their world forever.

"Aeon Flux" is the film version of some short cartoons aired on MTV in the 1990's, and is a mixed bag, sometimes working and sometimes not -- mostly not. There are a lot of nods to the cartoon, and they seem kind of silly when not in cartoon form. Theron is wrong for the role, and never really feels right to this fan of the cartoon. The story is moderately interesting, but poorly executed for the most part. "Aeon Flux" was a disappointment for me, and I can't help but think that with a different cast and crew, a better job could have been done.

The Ice Harvest **
Cast: John Cusack, Billy Bob Thornton, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Platt, Randy Quaid, Mike Starr
Director: Harold Ramis
Running Length: 1:28
MPAA Classification: R

Charlie Arglist (Cusack) and Vic (Thorton) are attorneys who steal $2 million from their boss, Bill Fuerrard (Quaid) on Christmas Eve. They just need to kill some time before meeting up later in the night to split the money. Charlie wants to take stripper Renata (Nielsen) with him, and tries to convince her to leave town with him. As he is doing this, one of Bill's enforcers shows up asking questions about Charlie and Vic. While dealing with this, he is hindered by his drunken buddy Pete (Platt). As things begin to accelerte, Charlie finds that he just might not get out of town alive after all.

"The Ice Harvest" was somewhat disappointing. I expected more, and while the film delivers here and there, overall it is missing something. Cusack, Thorton, and Platt give good performances (especially Platt who steals every scene he is in), but that is not enough to lift this film above average. I can only recommend to wait for the DVD.