The Ruins ***
Cast: Jonathan Tucker, Jena Malone, Shawn Ashmore, Laura Ramsey, Joe Anderson
Director: Carter Smith
Running Length: 1:31
MPAA Classification: R

Four friends on spring break in Mexico,; Jeff (Tucker), Amy (Malone), Stacy (Ramsey), and Eric (Ashmore); meet Mathias (Anderson) while lounging around the hotel pool. Mathias tells them of a pyramid that has just been discovered, and they all decide to go exploring. In the middle of nowhere, cut off from civilization, they find the temple. Once there, they are surrounded by the locals wo make it clear that they will kill them if they try to leave. They head up to the top of the pyramid with their meager supplies to figure out what to do, but soon find that the villagers below are the least of their problems.

“The Ruins” is a great horror story of survival. Death lurks on top of the pyramid for the characters, and is very much a character itself. The sense of having no way out permeates the film. Adapted by the author himself from the great novel, Scott Smith has rearranged the kills and story elements to keep everything fresh for the readers of the book. Despite that, the film is faithful to the spirit of his book. The cast effectively handles the mental deterioration that their characters endure. The film is tense and suspenseful and one of the better horror movies to come out in the last few years. I recommend this film.

Leatherheads ***
Cast: George Clooney, Renée Zellweger, Jonathan Pryce, John Krasinski
Director: George Clooney
Running Length: 1:54
MPAA Classification: PG-13

In 1925, professional football is struggling to survive. They play where they can, in front of few people. There is no future for someone who wants to play after graduation from college. Dodge Connelly (Clooney), an aging player has a plan. He wants to recruit college star Carter Rutherford (Krasinski) with the help of C.C. Frazier (Pryce), a sports promoter. Rutherford is a war hero, and is offered $10,000 per game. With the deal made, football becomes suddenly important. But there is a problem. Newswoman Lexie Littleton (Zellweger) is digging into Carter’s past to uncover the truth about his service in WWI, which may have been embellished.

“Leatherheads” is an amusing film that is a throwback to older screwball comedies. It is not perfect, but it does have its moments. Clooney and Zellweger play off of each other well, with quick witty dialogue. Krasinski is also credible as the young hero whose star is on the rise. Finally, the film is not all fluff, as it explores the making of a hero and the turning of a sport from being just for fun into being a business. The movie is always light and enjoyable.

21 ***
Cast: Jim Sturgess, Kevin Spacey, Kate Bosworth, Aaron Yoo, Liza Lapira, Jacob Pitts, Laurence Fishburne, Jack McGee
Director: Robert Luketic
Running Length: 2:03
MPAA Classification: PG-13

Ben Campbell (Sturgess) has a problem. He is graduating from MIT and has been accepted to Harvard Med School, but he doesn’t have the $300,000 it will cost him to attend. Then, along comes Professor Micky Ross (Spacey). Mickey offers him a place on his “team”. This team visits Las Vegas on weekends, and by counting cards makes a lot of money. After initially refusing, Ben is swayed by the need for money and the affections of Jill Taylor (Bosworth), a member of the team. In Vegas, Cole Williams (Fishburne), the head of security of one of the casinos is about to figure out the team’s scheme. Ben may be in for more than he bargained for.

“21” is the fictionalized account of college kids who really did beat one of the most sophisticated anti-crime systems in Las Vegas. The story is interesting, even if it has been Hollywoodized. The plot points toward the end are predictable, but the fact that these kids were able to get away with this for so long sustains the interest for the majority of the movie. Kevin Spacey is good as always, radiating intenseness. Sturgess and Bosworth get the job done, while not providing memorable performances. “21” is an interesting, enjoyable film.

Drillbit Taylor ***
Cast: Owen Wilson, Nate Hartley, Troy Gentile, David Dorfman, Alex Frost, Leslie Mann, Valerie Tian
Director: Steven Brill
Running Length: 1:40
MPAA Classification: PG-13

Wade (Hartley), Ryan (Gentile), and Emmitt (Dorfman) are three nerdy kids in need of protection. School bully Filkins (Frost) has decided to make their lives a living hell. After about a week of dealing with this, they decide to hire a bodyguard. Constrained by money, they opt for Drillbit Taylor (Wilson), an ex-military man who is currently homeless and trying to make enough money to get to Canada. Drillbit is less than impressive though, and has to come up with a plan quickly if he wants to help the kids and himself as well.

“Drillbit Taylor” fits the mold of the Judd Apatow-produced films, albeit in PG-13 form. Think of it as Judd Apatow-light, and that is fine because he knows what makes good movies. Sweetness, likeable characters, and raunchy comedy make up the mix, and for “Drillbit Taylor”, the raunchiness is toned back to give it a PG-13 rating. Wilson is very good as Drillbit, a con-man of sorts that really isn’t that good at things. “Drillbit Taylor” is an amusing addition to the Apatow family of films.