MOTUS IMAGO: THE FILM USER'S GUIDE

The weekly rundown: by Shane Smith

don't miss:

Volver I'm not a big fan of Almodovar or Penelope, but this is a good one Cinema Village (Manhattan)

don't bother:

Music and Lyrics Hugh and Drew compete for Most Cloying Performance of the Year. cute soundtrack, though.

now showing:

300: The IMAX Experience I'm including this one against my better judgment because it looks so delicious. AMC Loews Lincoln Square (Manhattan)

After the Wedding strong performances elevate this danish melodrama. Angelika (Manhattan), Clearview Clairidge (Montclair), Lincoln Plaza (Manhattan)

Air Guitar Nation yes, it's a competitive sport; yes, someone made a doc about it. CC Village East (Manhattan)

*NEW* Aqua Teen Hunger Force Colon Movie Film for Theaters strictly for fans. AMC Empire (Manhattan), AMC Loews 19^th Street East (Manhattan), AMC Loews 84^th Street (Manhattan), AMC Loews Jersey Gardens (Elizabeth), AMC Loews New Brunswick, AMC Loews Village (Manhattan), Edgewater Multiplex, Regal Battery Park (Manhattan), Regal Commerce Center (North Brunswick), Regal Hadley Center (South Plainfield), UA All Staten Island

Avenue Montaigne comedy of manners set in the City of Lights. Quad Cinema (Manhattan)

Black Book stylish WWII melodrama. Lincoln Plaza (MANHATTAN), Regal E-Walk (Manhattan), Regal Union Square (Manhattan)

*NEW* Blind Shaft social commentary on China’s economic boom in the form of a very engaging murder story. Walter Reade (Manhattan): saturday and sunday

Breach average hollywood psych thriller with above-average cast. CC Village East (Manhattan)

Children of Men Alfonso Cuaron's cautionary thriller set in the future. CC Village East (Manhattan)

Day Night Day Night gripping account of a 19-year-old girl as she prepares to be a suicide bomber in Times Square BAM Rose Cinemas (Brooklyn): friday

*NEW* The Dog Pound this glacial navelgazer promises some rewards for those willing to sit through it. Quad Cinema (Manhattan)

Eklavya bollywood gem. Cine Plaza Columbia Park (North Bergen)

*NEW* Everything’s Gone Green it’s not easy slacking in Vancouver. Landmark Sunshine (Manhattan)

First Snow noir is the new black. Cinema Village (Manhattan)

Grindhouse an experience made for movie geeks, by movie geeks (with lots of pretty animated flesh props). Access Digital Pavilion (Brooklyn), AMC Clifton Commons, AMC Empire (Manhattan), AMC Essex Green (West Orange), AMC Loews 34^th Street (Manhattan), AMC Loews Jersey Gardens (Elizabeth), AMC Loews Lincoln Square (Manhattan), AMC Loews Meadow 6 (Secaucus), AMC Loews Menlo Park (Edison), AMC Loews Mountainside, AMC Loews New Brunswick, AMC Loews Newport Center (Jersey City), AMC Loews Paramus Route 4, AMC Loews Ridgefield Park, AMC Magic Johnson Harlem, Atrium Cinemas (Staten Island), BAM Rose Cinemas (Brooklyn), Clearview Beacon Hill (Summit), Clearview Bergenfield, Clearview Chelsea (Manhattan), Cobble Hill Cinemas (Brooklyn), Edgewater Multiplex, Frank Theatres South Cove (Bayonne), Hawthorne Theaters, Maplewood Theaters, Mayfair Triplex (West New York), MEGA Movies at Brunswick Square (East Brunswick), Reading Cinemas Manville, Regal Battery Park (Manhattan), Regal Commerce Center (North Brunswick), Regal Hadley Center (South Plainfield), Regal Union Square (Manhattan), Rialto Westfield, UA All Staten Island, UA Court Street (Brooklyn)

The Hoax Richard Gere keeps it real playing a con artist. AMC Clifton Commons, AMC Empire (Manhattan), AMC Loews Lincoln Square (Manhattan), Clearview Clairidge (Montclair), Clearview South Orange, Edgewater Multiplex, Reading Cinemas Manville, Regal Union Square (Manhattan), UA All Staten Island

The Host this korean creature feature was the talk of Cannes. Brooklyn Heights Cinema, Clearview Chelsea (Manhattan), Landmark Sunshine (Manhattan)

Into Great Silence less is more. Film Forum (Manhattan)

*NEW* Jack Smith and the Destruction of Atlantis a documentary about “the inventor of performance art” that fans will enjoy and serves as a good introduction for those unfamiliar. Film Forum (Manhattan)

Last King of Scotland Forest Whitaker's game eye gives the performance of a lifetime. Cedar Lane Cinemas (Teaneck)

The Lives of Others unsentimental german political drama. Angelika (Manhattan), BAM Rose Cinemas (Brooklyn), Brooklyn Heights Cinema, Cedar Lane Cinemas (Teaneck), Clearview Chelsea (Manhattan), Clearview South Orange, Cobble Hill Cinemas (Brooklyn), Lincoln Plaza (Manhattan)

*NEW* Lonely Hearts could be a great true-crime drama, but the lack of publicity for such an all-star cast doesn’t bode well. Clearview Clairidge (Montclair), Clearview Tenafly, Clearview Warner Quad (Ridgewood), Cobble Hill Cinemas (Brooklyn), Quad Cinema (Manhattan)

The Lookout the kid from "3rd Rock" grows up and gets genre. AMC Empire (Manhattan), AMC Loews 19^th Street East (Manhattan), CC Village East (Manhattan)

La Maldición del padre Cardona when was the last time you saw a dominican comedy in the theater? that’s what I thought. Coliseum Cinemas (Manhattan)

Miss Potter charming, stiff, and doesn’t quite go anywhere: the perfect Renée Zellweger vehicle. Cedar Lane Cinemas (Teaneck)

The Namesake safe but beautifully shot generational drama with great performances (including that hottie from Harold and Kumar). AMC Empire (Manhattan), Angelika (Manhattan), BAM Rose Cinemas (Brooklyn), Clearview Chelsea (Manhattan), Clearview Clairidge (Montclair), Clearview Washington Township, Cobble Hill Cinemas (Brooklyn), Edgewater Multiplex, Maplewood Theaters, Paris Theatre (Manhattan), Regal Commerce Center (North Brunswick), Rialto Theatre (Ridgefield Park), Rialto Westfield

Notes on a Scandal Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett tear it up. CC Village East (Manhattan)

The Page Turner tight little french thriller about tight little french people. CC Village East (Manhattan)

Pan's Labyrinth visually breathtaking fairy tale for adults. AMC Loews Lincoln Square (Manhattan), Landmark Sunshine (Manhattan)

*NEW* Private Fears in Public Places Resnais is showing signs of age, but still worth seeing. IFC Center (Manhattan), Lincoln Plaza (Manhattan)

*NEW* Red Road very strong feature debut from the director of the (relatively) famous short film “Wasp”. Landmark Sunshine (Manhattan), Lincoln Plaza (Manhattan)

Rock the Bells doc about Wu-Tang’s final performance is not just for hip-hop fans. Two Boots (Manhattan)

*NEW*¡Salud! pointed doc about the state of the world’s health system, using Cuba as a point of departure. Quad Cinema (Manhattan)

Sweet Land poetic, gorgeous, and stellar performances. Cedar Lane Cinemas (Teaneck): saturday

The TV Set David Duchovny and Sigourney Weaver, together again for the first time since Working Girl! Landmark Sunshine (Manhattan)

Whole New Thing coming-of-age story that's earnest, if a bit too canadian. Quad Cinema (Manhattan)

The Wind That Shakes the Barley they make seasonal movies for St. Paddy's now? Brooklyn Heights Cinema, Clearview 62^nd & Broadway (Manhattan), Clearview Clairidge (Montclair), IFC Center (Manhattan)

*NEW* Year of the Dog I don’t care if it’s bad or good; it stars Molly Shannon and it’s about dogs. AMC Loews Lincoln Square (Manhattan), Angelika (Manhattan), Clearview Chelsea (Manhattan)

Zodiac another solid thriller from David Fincher. AMC Empire (Manhattan), AMC Loews 19^th Street East (Manhattan), CC Village East (Manhattan)

delightful dusties:

The Bamboo Blonde (1946) charming lesser-known musical comedy. Film Forum (Manhattan): saturday

The Birds (1963) yeah, that The Birds. Museum of Modern Art (Manhattan): saturday

Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964) yeah, that Dr. Strangelove. Museum of Modern Art (Manhattan): sunday

Duck Soup (1933) yeah, that Duck Soup. Museum of Modern Art (Manhattan): saturday

Killer of Sheep (1977) seminal indie treasure or overrated student film? only one way to find out! IFC Center (Manhattan)

Midnight (1939) star-studded screwball classic. IFC Center (Manhattan): friday, saturday, and sunday

Mildred Pierce (1945) the ultimate Crawford noir, yet Candis Cayne hasn’t started using it in her live act. Museum of Modern Art (Manhattan): monday

Nanook of the North (1922) one of the earliest documentaries, and still a triumph. Anthology Film Archives (Manhattan): saturday

Orphan of Anyang (2002) arresting, perhaps excessively patient chinese drama. Walter Reade (Manhattan): friday and saturday

Police Beat (2005) everyday surrealism in Seattle. BAM Rose Cinemas (Brooklyn): sunday

The Strip (1951) the musical that gave us “A Kiss to Build a Dream On”, with Mickey Rooney on drums! Film Forum (Manhattan): saturday

Wild at Heart (1990) not his best, but Lynch is always, at minimum, Lynch. Museum of Modern Art (Manhattan): saturday

Wildwood Days (2005) a doc for the truly NJ-obsessed. Rutgers Film Co-op (New Brunswick)

The World (2005) sensitive treatment of the quiet tragedy of ennui. Walter Reade (Manhattan): saturday and sunday

Zorn’s Lemma (1970) absorbing surrealist experimental. Anthology Film Archives (Manhattan): friday only

the midnight shows:

Hedwig and the Angry Inch (2001) “How did some slip of a girly boy from communist East Berlin become the internationally ignored song stylist barely standing before you?” IFC Center (Manhattan): friday and saturday

Mona Lisa (1986) one of Neil Jordan’s earliest, and one of his best. IFC Center (Manhattan): friday and saturday

Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975) may the time warp never end. Clearview Chelsea (Manhattan): friday and saurday

Shaun of the Dead (2004) bloody. funny. Landmark Sunshine (Manhattan): friday

cheap seats! $2 all shows! Columbia Park 12 (North Bergen)

Happy Feet dancing penguins!

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