Capsule reviews of films opening this week:
"Kingdom of Heaven" - Ridley Scott's tale of love, honor and intrigue during the Crusades is as impressively vast and immaculately detailed as you'd expect from the Oscar-nominated director of "Gladiator." The cinematography from Scott's frequent collaborator, John Mathieson, is exquisite - almost painterly. But the film feels like it's lurching interminably from one visceral combat sequence to the next, until they all blend together. Beneath the long, scraggly hair and patchy facial scruff, Orlando Bloom is all doe-eyed romantic idealism as a blacksmith-turned-reluctant-warrior, though you'd scarcely know from watching this movie - which takes place between the Second and Third Crusades - that the warring was over anything remotely religious. R for strong violence and epic warfare. 144 min. Two and a half stars out of four.
- Christy Lemire, AP Movie Critic
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"Crash" - Paul Haggis delivers a knockout punch that rivals the one he leveled with his Oscar-nominated "Million Dollar Baby" script. As both writer and director, he weaves a tale of disparate, disconnected Los Angeles residents whose paths cross over a 36-hour period. The encounters expose their prejudices and frailties, but Haggis judges none of them and offers no easy answers; rather, everyone is to blame equally, simply for being human and imperfect. Think of it as a multicultural "Magnolia," only without the histrionics. Strong performances abound from an excellent, eclectic cast, including surprising work from Sandra Bullock, Matt Dillon, Michael Pena (from "The Shield") and rapper Chris "Ludacris" Bridges. R for language, sexual content and some violence. 107 min. Three and a half stars out of four.
- Christy Lemire, AP Movie Critic
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"Jiminy Glick in Lalawood" - Martin Short's big-screen take on his "Primetime Glick" TV character is crude without being funny, Hollywood-insiderish without being satiric or insightful. This could have been a nice spoof of celebrity journalism and the collusion of star-struck reporters who become willing participants in studio marketing machines. Instead, it's a painful bore with leaden, improvised dialogue by Short and co-stars including Jan Hooks, Elizabeth Perkins, Janeane Garofalo and Linda Cardellini. Tucked in a fat suit, Short plays a small-time entertainment critic who makes a splash at the Toronto film festival and finds himself caught in a possible murder scandal involving a fading actress. The only thing remotely of interest are the many celebrity cameos. R for language and crude sexual content. 90 min. One and a half stars out of four.
- David Germain, AP Movie Writer
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"Brothers" - Danish director Susanne Bier's drama is an unforgettable portrait of an average family torn apart by outside reality. The film flits seamlessly from sweet, quiet domestic scenes to stark moments of brutality among U.N. forces in Afghanistan, eventually presenting greater horrors that erupt on the home front. Ulrich Thomsen, Connie Nielsen and Nikolaj Lie Kaas star in the story of a soldier who returns home alive after being declared dead, heartsick with guilt over a brutal action forced on him in captivity and finding his black-sheep brother has become the de facto man of the house. The movie boldly explores the lengths to which a good man might go so he can come home to wife and children, and the unnerving consequences that arise from such choices. R for violence, language and brief nudity. 110 min. Three and a half stars out of four.
- David Germain, AP Movie Writer
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