Mini reviews

For an online film guide, see augustachronicle.com/movies:

NEW THIS WEEK

Couples retreat (PG-13): Evans, Aiken, Augusta Exchange

ONGOING

9 (PG-13): The survivors of the apocalypse battle the machines trying to exterminate them. Evans

ALIENS IN THE ATTIC ( **, PG): A family discovers exactly what the title promises. Masters

ALL ABOUT STEVE (PG-13): A lonely oddball (Sandra Bullock) goes on a blind date with a TV cameraman (Bradley Cooper) and decides he's The One. The catch? He doesn't feel the same way. Evans

CAPITALISM: A LOVE STORY (R): Michael Moore's most impassioned cinematic plea for activism yet explores the recent banking and housing collapse and the increasingly larger -- and more destructive -- role corporations have played in the U.S. government since the Reagan era. Augusta Exchange

CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS ( ****, PG): Animated adaptation of the beloved children's book about a town where food rains from the sky. Aiken, Augusta Exchange, Evans

FAME (PG): Influential 1980 musical about the New York City's High School of the Performing Arts gets a toning-down of the original R-rating to a High School Musical-friendly PG-13. Augusta Exchange, Evans, ends today at Aiken

G-FORCE (PG): Guinea pigs become mini James Bonds. Begins Friday at Masters

G.I. JOE: THE RISE OF COBRA ( **, PG-13): An elite military squad fights the evil COBRA. Begins Friday at Masters

THE GOODS: LIVE HARD, SELL HARD (R): A used-car liquidator is hired by an auto dealership. Augusta Exchange

THE HANGOVER (R): Four friends retrace their steps the morning after a night of hard partying in Las Vegas . Masters

HARRY POTTER AND THE HALF-BLOOD PRINCE ( ***1/2, PG): The sixth movie in J.K. Rowling's series is the franchise's best so far. Augusta Exchange, begins Friday at Masters

THE INVENTION OF LYING (PG-13): In an alternate universe in which the concept of lying does not yet exist, a man (Ricky Gervais) develops the ability to fudge the truth and discovers what countless politicians and CEOs have learned: Dishonesty can make you rich and powerful. Evans, Augusta Exchange

THE INFORMANT! ( ***, R): Director Steven Soderbergh returns to the mainstream with this comic drama about a corporate whistleblower (Matt Damon) working with the FBI to expose a price-fixing conspiracy. Augusta Exchange, Evans, begins Friday at Aiken

INGLOURIOUS BASTERDS ( *, R): Quentin Tarantino's dumb and violent shoot-'em-up. Augusta Exchange, Evans

JENNIFER'S BODY ( **, R): JUNO screenwriter Diablo Cody returns with a horror comedy starring Megan Fox. Evans, ends today at Aiken, Augusta Exchange

LOVE HAPPENS (PG-13): A self-help guru writes a book about mourning, then falls for one of his readers (Jennifer Aniston). Augusta Exchange, Evans, begins Friday at Masters

PANDORUM (R): Astronauts awaken from cryogenic sleep aboard a spaceship and can't remember who they are or what their mission is. They even forgot to screen the movie in advance for critics. Now that's scary! Augusta Exchange, Evans, ends today at Aiken

PONYO ( ***1/2, G): Ponyo will defy her father, fall in love with a human boy and trade fins for feet. Augusta Exchange

THE PROPOSAL (PG-13): Romantic comedy with Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds. Masters

SHORTS ( ***, PG): Robert Rodriguez channels his inner 11-year-old. Augusta Exchange

STAR TREK: THE IMAX EXPERIENCE ( **1/2, PG-13): The original crew of the Enterprise returns to the big screen. Augusta Exchange

SURROGATES (PG-13): FBI agents (Bruce Willis and Radha Mitchell) investigate a murder involving artificial "surrogates," robotic aliases used by recluses to represent them in the outside world. Augusta Exchange, Evans, Aiken

TOY STORY 1 & 2 IN 3D (G): Converting Pixar's history-changing cartoons Toy Story and Toy Story 2 into 3-D and pairing them, in theaters, for a double feature reminds us how very good these movies were and remain, how great the computer animation and how witty and sentimental the scripts. Evans

TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN (PG-13): Robots in disguise return to unleash more destruction. Masters

TYLER PERRY'S I CAN DO BAD ALL BY MYSELF **, PG-13): Madea (Tyler Perry) entrusts young delinquents to their aunt (Taraji P. Henson). Augusta Exchange, Evans, Aiken

WHIP IT (PG-13): Drew Barrymore's smashing directorial debut is thoroughly predictable and formulaic, but it's still one of the most enjoyable crowd pleasers of the year. Ellen Page stars in this story of a small-town beauty queen turned roller-derby ruffian. Augusta Exchange, Aiken

ZOMBIELAND (R): A gun-toting Woody Harrelson and a wuss scared of his shadow (Jesse Eisenberg) join forces to survive in a world overrun by flesh-eating zombies in this derivative but still entertaining horror comedy from first-time director Ruben Fleischer. Evans, Augusta Exchange, Aiken

END TODAY

ICE AGE: DAWN OF THE DINOSAURS ( **, PG): Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary and Queen Latifah return to provide the voices for the various prehistoric critters in the third installment of the popular computer-animated franchise. Masters

ORPHAN (R): A tyke isn't quite as innocent as she seems. Masters

SORORITY ROW ( **, R): Sorority sisters get picked off by the ghost of their past sins. Augusta Exchange

THE UGLY TRUTH ( **, R): The battle of the sexes. Again. Masters