Showtimes are through Thursday unless otherwise indicated. Openings and times are subject to change.

Opens today

Because I Said So (D-)

Everything about this movie screams out generic chick flick - and we mean scream, literally - from the forgettable title to the excruciatingly corny ending. In between, director Michael Lehmann runs through a veritable checklist of clichés. (Is it possible this man made the deliciously vicious "Heathers" nearly 20 years ago?) There are the unbelievable characters who say and do contrived, sitcommy things. The montages of shopping and furniture rearranging. The caffeinated score to punctuate all those wacky moments (Diane Keaton discovering online porn). The gaggle of women graphically discussing their sexual high jinks. And of course, the repeated cutaways to a cute dog reacting to all this shrill nonsense. Rated PG-13 for sexual content including dialogue, some mature thematic material and partial nudity; 111 min.

Century Downtown 12:50, 3:50, 6:50, 9:25

Century Rio Daily: 11:30, 12:45, 2, 3:15, 4:30, 5:45, 7, 8:15, 9:30; F-Sa: 10:50

Cottonwood 12, 2:20, 4:50, 7:20, 10

Four Hills 1:25, 4:05, 7, 9:35

Winrock 12:30, 3:45, 7, 9:40

The Messengers

Hong Kong horror auteurs the Pang Brothers, best known for the creepy "The Eye," make their American debut with this supernatural thriller. City folks move to the country and find their new house is haunted. Stars Dylan McDermott, Penelope Ann Miller and John Corbett. Rated PG-13 for mature thematic material, disturbing violence and terror; 84 min.

Century Downtown 1:20, 4:10, 7, 9:20

Century Rio Daily: 11:40, 12:50, 2, 3:10, 4:20, 5:30, 6:40, 7:50, 9, 10:10; F-Sa: 11:20 p.m.

Cottonwood 12:15, 2:45, 5:15, 7:45, 10:15

Four Hills 1:15, 3:40, 6:50, 9:20

Winrock 1:30, 4, 7:30, 9:50

Sisters in Law

A documentary about a group of female lawyers in Cameroon who fight domestic violence.

Southwest Film Center F: 6, 9; Sa: 3, 6, 9; Su: 1, 3:30

Venus (B+)

Aging actor Maurice (Peter O'Toole) falls for a colleague's grandniece (Jodie Whittaker). "Venus" is rollickingly funny at times, but there's an undercurrent of extraordinarily cleareyed sadness. Maurice may pity himself, but the movie is pitiless toward him while still managing to love him very much. The filmmakers (who made 2003's "The Mother," a similar tale told from an older woman's perspective) and O'Toole are all attuned to the ick factor. "Venus" is about old age, and O'Toole confronts every bit of pain and fear to be found there. On a technical level he's astounding, but the role is most affecting for what it says about a legend, an actor and a man. Rated R for language, sexual content and nudity; 95 min.

Century Downtown 12:45, 3:10, 5:40, 8

High Ridge Daily: 12:15, 3:50, 7; F-Su: 9:30 p.m.

Opens Saturday

The Net

This 2004 German documentary explores the shady side of the birth of the Internet, including a foray into the story of the Unabomber, Ted Kaczynski. Not rated; 115 min.

Guild Sa: 2

Opens Monday

Our Daily Bread

Dispensing with commentary, this documentary relies on a series of images to show how food is prepared in U.S. factories. This draws raves and scores a 95 from critics at Rotten Tomatoes online. Not rated; 92 min.

Guild M-W: 4:30, 6:30, 8:30

Opens Thursday

Italian Film Festival

Federico Fellini's "La Strada" kicks off this four-day, six-movie mix of classic Italian films, a fund-raiser for University of New Mexico Children's Hospital. See Italian Film Festival for details.

Jonestown: The Life and Death of People's Temple (A-)

This is a movie to make you shudder. It tells the harrowing story of the mass suicide of cult leader Jim Jones and more than 900 followers in British Guyana in 1978. Not rated; 86 min.

Southwest Film Center Th: 6, 9

Returning

Shortbus (A-)

An ode to the joy and sweet release of sex, the film manages to be a sincere, modest political venture that finds humor where you might least expect it. John Cameron Mitchell, who previously wrote, directed and starred in "Hedwig and the Angry Inch," has said he wanted to make a film in which sex wasn't negative or dreary. Unlike traditional hardcore features, the carnal interludes in "Shortbus" are integrated into the narrative. This integration goes a long way toward normalizing the sex. Not rated; 102 min.

Guild F-Su: 4:30, 6:45, 9

Continuing

Alpha Dog (B-)

In August 2000, allegedly at the behest of a drug dealer, a 15-year-old was kidnapped by some older teens. Things got out of control, but the ugliness of what happened came after he'd been partying with his abductors and their pals for a few days. Nick Cassavetes ("The Notebook," "John Q") does an excellent job of capturing the scene - the laid-back California cool of adults who'd rather hang with their children than parent them and the "whatever" aimlessness of the teens. But the tone is uneven, and the film can be confusing and wearing. The eclectic cast acquits itself well. With Bruce Willis, Sharon Stone, Emile Hirsch, Ben Foster and Justin Timberlake, who is a revelation. Rated R; 117 min.

Century Rio 3:20, 9:40

Apocalypto (B+)

Mel Gibson's visually ebullient action/comedy sojourn set within the decline of the Mayan empire, is bananas. The only point of the movie is to gross you out, pepper you with nonstop thrills and make you laugh. And if you call yourself an action fan, you'll have to see it. There's plenty of gore. Characters tear open each other's chests and pull out vital organs. The slim story involves a man whose village is decimated by a marauding tribe bent on sacrificing him to the gods to relieve famine and pestilence. Rated R; 129 min.

Century Rio 12:35, 3:40, 6:45, 9:50

Arthur and The Invincibles(C)

Crafted for a family audience, Luc Besson's live-action/animation combo might be more appropriate for the pothead crowd, given the movie's wildly jarring visuals and often incomprehensible action. For everyone else, this is a mishmash with a distinctive but disorderly animation palette whose top-notch voice cast - including Robert De Niro, Madonna, Snoop Dogg and David Bowie - gets lost in the muck. After opening with a live-action prologue, the movie sends its young hero on an adventure among tiny elves living in his grandma's garden, where he battles a nasty villain and hunts for treasure to save the family homestead. Mia Farrow co-stars. Rated PG; 94 min.

Century Rio 11:45, 2:15, 4:35

Cottonwood 11:05, 2:30, 4:45

Babel (A-)

The sheer reckless ardor of Alejandro Gonzalez Iñarritu's filmmaking suggests a virtually limitless confidence in the power of the medium to make connections out of apparent discontinuities. Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett play an American couple on a desultory vacation in Morocco, trying to repair the damage done to their marriage by the death of their infant son. In Tokyo, a deaf teenage girl named Chieko (Rinko Kikuchi) spins through the emotional upheavals of adolescence. Rated R; 143 min.

Four Hills 12:35, 3:45, 6:55, 10:05

Blood and Chocolate (C-)

Is the world ready for a werewolf-human romance? Perhaps, but this werewolf-human romance isn't quite ready for the world. Director Katja von Garnier's adaptation of Annette Curtis Klause's novel is as dull as watching werewolf hair grow. Olivier Martinez (the young temptation in "Unfaithful") stars. Rated PG-13; 98 min.

Century Rio Daily: 6:55, 9:25; F-Sa: 11:55 p.m.

Cottonwood 1:30, 4:30, 7:35, 10:25

Blood Diamond (B)

Edward Zwick's movie tries to mix raw violence with displays of social conscience. It's hard-core movie-making with a tortured soul. A routine story - an amoral diamond smuggler (Leonardo DiCaprio) faces a crisis of conscience - receives a boost from the lush African settings. Zwick delivers moments of blistering intensity as he builds his movie around Danny and Solomon (Djimon Hounsou), a victim of rebel violence. Rated R; 143 min.

Century Rio 12:15, 3:25, 6:40, 9:55

Casino Royale (A-)

The latest James Bond film is riveting, clever and well-choreographed, yet the appeal this time lies much heavier on Bond as a person, on his development as one of cinema's deadliest killers and most heartless womanizers. Daniel Craig has the spirit of the character, rascally yet dark, blithe yet brutish, amorous yet lethal. The film is based on the first of Ian Fleming's novels about the British agent. Bond is assigned to play in a high-stakes poker match. A Treasury official - beautiful, of course - is assigned to keep tabs on Bond's gambling stake. Eva Green's Vesper Lynd is everything most Bond girls are not - smart, sarcastic, willful and fiercely independent enough not to give in to Bond's charms. Rated PG-13; 144 min.

Century Rio 12:10, 6:30

Catch and Release (B)

Its construction defines it as a chick flick, yet it has a number of strong male roles. "Catch and Release" marks the feature-directing debut of Susannah Grant, who wrote the screenplays for "Charlotte's Web," "In Her Shoes" and "Erin Brockovich." Gray Wheeler (Jennifer Garner) did not expect to be greeting guests at her fianc‚'s funeral on the day they were to be married. She gradually discovers that there is a lot she didn't know about him, and about his friends. The biggest laughs, not surprisingly, come from Kevin Smith ("Clerks"). Rated PG-13; 124 min.

Century Downtown 12:55, 3:55, 6:55, 9:45

Century Rio 11:50, 2:25, 5:05, 7:40, 10:20

Cottonwood 1:20, 4:20, 7:15, 10:05

Four Hills 12:50, 3:25, 6:30, 9:15

Charlotte's Web (A-)

"Charlotte's Web" gives E.B. White's classic tale a spiffy cinematic update but leaves its core values intact. Visually accomplished and heartfelt, this G-rated gem is radiant. Like White's 1952 book, the picture serves as a moving testament to the power of friendship. Directed by Gary Winick (the indie favorites "Pieces of April," "Tadpole") and wittily adapted by screenwriters Susannah Grant and Karey Kirkpatrick, the picture bursts with vivid colors and a warm glow even before it truly wows, which occurs when live-action animals start gabbing in highly believable fashion, as in "Babe." With Dakota Fanning, Kevin Anderson and the voices of Dominic Scott Kay, Julia Roberts, John Cleese, Oprah Winfrey, Thomas Haden Church, Andre Benjamin and Steve Buscemi as Templeton the Rat. Rated G; 90 min.

Cottonwood 1:20, 3:55

Winrock 1:15, 4, 6:40, 9:25

The Departed (B+)

While this is an Americanized version of the 2002 Hong Kong hit "Infernal Affairs," it's vintage Martin Scorsese - for a while at least. The veteran director has made two-thirds of a great film about Boston cops and mobsters, with dazzlingly rich performances. Rated R; 150 min.

Century Rio Daily: 1:05, 4:20, 7:35; F-Sa: 10:50 p.m.

Cottonwood 12:20, 3:50, 8

Four Hills 12:20, 3:30, 6:40, 9:50

Dreamgirls (B+)

The dramatic and musical peak of "Dreamgirls" - the showstopper, the main reason to see the movie - comes around midpoint, when Jennifer Hudson, playing Effie White, sings "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going." That song has been this musical's calling card since the first Broadway production 25 years ago, but to see Hudson tear into it on screen nonetheless brings the goose-bumped thrill of witnessing something new, even historic. She upstages Eddie Murphy, Jamie Foxx and Beyonc‚ Knowles. The problem with "Dreamgirls" lies in the other songs, which are not just musically and lyrically pedestrian, but historically and idiomatically disastrous. Even though the chronology and the costumes march from doo-wop to disco, everything in "Dreamgirls" sounds more or less the same. Rated PG-13; 131 min.

Century Downtown 1, 4:15, 7:30

Century Rio 1:10, 4:10, 7:05, 10

Cottonwood 12:15, 3:15, 7:05, 10:15

Four Hills 1:10, 4, 6:55, 10

Epic Movie (D)

Crispin Glover alert! With the flimsiest of story lines, this spoof is more spliced-together mimicry. It was directed and written by Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer, who were among the "brains" behind the similar "Scary Movie" franchise and 2006's "Date Movie." One rapidly begins to miss the truly inspired slapstick of "Airplane" and "The Naked Gun," which knew to leave their source material in the dust. PG-13; 86 min.

Century Downtown 12:10, 2:30, 4:55, 7:15, 9:55

Century Rio Daily: 12:20, 2:40, 4:50, 7:10, 9:20; F-Sa: 11:35 p.m.

Cottonwood 12:10, 2:25, 4:50, 7:25, 9:50

Four Hills 12:45, 3, 7:05, 9:30

Winrock 1, 4:15, 7:20, 9:35

Freedom Writers (C)

The true story behind this Hilary Swank film is undeniably amazing and inspiring. Idealistic rookie teacher Erin Gruwell came into a Long Beach, Calif., high school soon after the Rodney King riots in Los Angeles, defused the rancor among black, white, Hispanic and Asian teens and injected hope, common ground and academic achievement into their lives. But this dramatization sadly presents the Cliffs Notes account. Despite occasional moments of inspiration, "Freedom Writers" simplistically focuses on maudlin highlights and glosses over the obstacles to rallying a dangerously disparate group of youths. There are powerful moments, but too much of "Freedom Writers" rings falsely hopeful. Rated PG-13; 123 min.

Century Rio 1:35, 4:30, 7:25, 10:15

Cottonwood 6:45, 9:40

Four Hills 3:35, 9:25

Happy Feet (A-)

Like the classic animated Disney movies from decades ago, this isn't afraid to mix in some substance with its style. You've got your all-star voice cast (Elijah Wood, Nicole Kidman, Robin Williams, Hugh Jackman), your soundtrack that's chock-full of pop tunes and your talking animals. The visuals can be both intimate and breathtakingly grand. The story has real meaning; it can be deeply poignant and isn't just a nonstop, madcap frenzy of color, noise and cutesy pop-culture references. Young Mumble (Wood) is incapable of belting out his own unique song, something inside every penguin. "Happy Feet" follows Mumble on a journey of discovery, of himself and the world, which can be both harrowing and thrilling. Rated PG; 98 min.

Cottonwood 1:10, 4:10

Four Hills 1, 6:35

The Hitcher (C+)

The 1986 original, starring C. Thomas Howell, was actually pretty scary, and this new one is, too. You do have to suspend all disbelief and assume that the menacing hitchhiker, played by Sean Bean, has the supernatural ability to be everywhere all the time, with increasing amounts of firepower. Still, if you choose to go with it, there are several good jumps and scares, and it's surprisingly tense the whole way through, not just gory and cheesy. Rated R; 83 min.

Century Rio 1:15, 3:30, 5:40, 8, 10:10

Cottonwood 7:35, 9:55

Last King of Scotland (B+)

This queasily enjoyable fiction film creates a portrait of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin from inside the palace walls. Furiously paced, with excellent performances by Forest Whitaker as Amin and James McAvoy as the foolish Scotsman who becomes the leader's personal physician, the film has texture, if not depth and enough intelligence to almost persuade you that it actually has something of note to say. Arriving in Uganda in the early 1970s, the young doctor evinces an understandable wide-eyed enthusiasm and wonderment at the sights and sounds around him. Rated R; 121 min.

Century Downtown 12:40, 3:40, 6:40, 9:30

High Ridge Daily: 12:10, 3:40, 6:50; F-Su: 9:55 p.m.

Letters from Iwo Jima (A-)

Clint Eastwood's flawless epic, which observes the lives and deaths of Japanese soldiers in the battle for Iwo Jima, adheres to some conventions of the war-movie genre even as it quietly dismantles them. It is utterly original, even radical in its methods and insights. "Letters From Iwo Jima" is not a chronicle of victory against the odds, but rather of inevitable defeat. The cruelty of this notion of military discipline is perhaps less startling than the sympathy Eastwood extends to his characters. It is hard to think of another war movie that has gone so deeply, so sensitively, into the mind-set of the opposing side. As Lt. Gen. Tadamichi Kuribayashi, Ken Watanabe is all the more heartbreaking for his crisp, unsentimental dignity. Rated R; 141 min.

Century Rio 12:30, 4, 7:15, 10:30

High Ridge Daily: 12, 3:20, 6:30; F-Su: 9:40 p.m.

Night at the Museum (D+)

Young kids will find some laughs in this loud, dopey tale of Ben Stiller as a museum night watchman dealing with exhibits that come alive at night. The movie mainly is a collection of slapstick vignettes as Stiller battles Attila the Hun, a mischievous monkey, tiny cowboys and Roman soldiers and other figures from museum exhibits. The comedy is unimaginative and often annoying, wasting the comic talents of co-stars Steve Coogan, Ricky Gervais, Dick Van Dyke and Mickey Rooney. Robin Williams provides a few chuckles as a wax figure of Teddy Roosevelt that's among the exhibits that come alive. The special effects are the stars of the film, though even they aren't that special. Rated PG; 108 min.

Century Downtown 12, 2:35, 5:10, 7:55

Century Rio Daily: 11:35, 12:55, 2:20, 3:35, 4:55, 6:15, 7:30, 8:55, 10:05; F-Sa: 11:30 p.m.

Cottonwood 12, 2:35, 5:10, 7:45, 10:30

Four Hills 12:30, 3:15, 6:45, 9:45

Winrock 12:45, 3:30, 7:10, 9:45

Notes on a Scandal (B)

This pure-class take on "Single White Female" allows Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett to melt into their roles as London school teachers whose friendship carries a dangerous underpinning. Dench plays a desperately lonesome woman whose only friend is her cat - until a nervous new art teacher (Blanchett) joins the staff. Their budding camaraderie turns sinister after Dench's character discovers her new pal is having an affair with a teenage student. The film loses some punch in the homestretch, but director Richard Eyre maintains intense momentum throughout. Rated R; 91 min.

Century Rio 12:05, 2:30, 4:55, 7:20, 9:45

High Ridge Daily: 12:35, 3, 7:30; F-Su: 10 p.m.

The Painted Veil (B)

This W. Somerset Maugham tale recounts the moral awakening of a vain, careless young woman, Kitty (Naomi Watts), who has been raised for a life of abject uselessness. Thrown into a panic after her younger sister marries, and encouraged by her revolting mother, Kitty hastily marries a bacteriologist, Walter Fane (Edward Norton), and moves with him to Shanghai. The marriage is unhappy, and in time Kitty falls into the arms of a married charmer, Charles Townsend (Liev Schreiber). This version of the story lulls you by turning Maugham's story into a fine romance. Even better, the film gives us ample opportunity to spend time with Watts, whose remarkable talent helps keep movie faith and love alive. Rated PG-13; 125 min.

Centiry Downtown 12:35, 6:35

High Ridge Daily: 121:05, 3:10, 6:45; F-Su: 9:35 p.m.

Pan's Labyrinth (A)

Guillermo del Toro has crafted a masterpiece with this terrifying, visually wondrous fairy tale for adults that blends fantasy and gloomy drama into one of the most magical films to come along in years. The story centers on a bookish girl (Ivana Baquero) existing among the mythic monsters in her fertile fantasies and the more petrifying ones in her real life in 1944 Fascist Spain. Living with her ailing mother (Ariadna Gil), evil stepfather (Sergei Lopez) and his compassionate housekeeper (Maribel Verdu), the girl steps into a netherland where the ancient satyr Pan (Doug Jones) gives her three tasks to complete so she can return to her true life as princess of the underworld. The images are visceral, surreal, bewildering, unnerving. The drama is passionate, profound, tragic, startling. It's a film of horrors and marvels. Rated R; 119 min.

Century Downtown 12:15, 2:55, 5:35, 8:15

Century Rio 1, 3:45, 6:50, 9:35

High Ridge Daily: 12:20, 4, 7:10; F-Su: 9:50 p.m.

The Pursuit of Happyness (B)

Will Smith brings the art of guyness to an apex of compassion and understanding; he blends into the part of a downtrodden single dad with such easy-bones naturalism that it's hard, for once, to remember that he's a movie star. This is based on Chris Gardner's memoir of scraping by in San Francisco while raising a son and pursuing a nonpaying stockbroker-trainee job for Dean Witter. This earnest, modest, sweet little ode to paternal love is meant to warm the cockles of our hearts in a season overrun with cockle-warming, and even a recalcitrant Scrooge may sniff back a few salty droplets. Rated PG-13; 116 min.

Century Rio 11:30, 2:15, 5, 7:45, 10:25

Cottonwood 1:15, 4:45, 7:30, 10:10

Winrock 12:30, 3:15, 6:50, 9:30

The Queen (A-)

Stephen Frears' marvelous film gets the details right because it puts aside satirical broadsides in favor of a psychologically precise look at the behavior of Britain's royal family in the week following Princess Diana's fatal car crash. Underneath its struggle between Queen Elizabeth's stiff-upper-lip, old-guard attitude and Tony Blair's misty-eyed emotiveness, "The Queen" is a tough-minded skewering of the House of Windsor, as well as an examination of the primacy of image over substance. Rated PG-13; 103 min.

Century Downtown 12:20, 2:50, 5:20, 7:45

Century Rio Daily: 11:35, 1:55, 4:15, 6:45, 9:05; F-Sa: 11:25 p.m.

Cottonwood 12:40, 3:30, 6:30, 9:15

High Ridge Daily: 12:25, 4:10, 7:15; F-Su: 9:45

Rocky Balboa (C)

This latest (and hopefully last) installment in the underdog saga of the Italian Stallion straddles the line between nostalgia and self-parody, and frequently teeters toward the latter. Rated PG; 98 min.

Century Rio

Cottonwood 7:15, 9:50

Seraphim Falls (C+)

This was shot on location in Santa Fe and Taos. It's all photographed with bleak beauty by John Toll, the Oscar-winning cinematographer of "Braveheart." The technically solid but dramatically unremarkable Western finds Liam Neeson chasing Pierce Brosnan through the snow-covered mountains and across the blinding desert after the Civil War, seeking revenge for an offense that isn't revealed until nearly the end. Along the way, characters are shot, stabbed, pierced through the skull, whacked in the face, sent plummeting down a waterfall and nearly frostbitten. Oh, and a horse gets disemboweled. Rated R; 117 min.

Century Downtown 12:05, 2:45, 5:25, 8:05

Cottonwood 12:30, 4, 7:10, 9:45

Smokin' Aces (B+)

Director Joe Carnahan follows up his sensational "Narc" with a funny, bloody killfest that only occasionally stops to take a breath. Aces (Jeremy Piven) is a Las Vegas magician turned mob heavyweight turned government snitch, with a $1 million bounty on his head. While "Narc" was a cop flick deeply rooted in the harsh realities of undercover police work, "Smokin' Aces" is a live-action cartoon. Wacky as it sounds, Carnahan doesn't let his flick devolve into overbuttered popcorn. The story's conclusion isn't quite so clever as it wants to be, but rarely are action films this satisfying. It's overcooked to perfection. Rated R; 105 min. (Reviewed by Phil Parker of the Tribune.)

Century Downtown 1:05, 4:05, 7:05, 9:50

Century Rio Daily: 11:55, 1:20, 2:35, 3:55, 5:15, 6:35, 7:55, 9:15, 10:35; F-Sa: 11:50 p.m.

Cottonwood 12:45, 3:45, 7:55, 10:30

High Ridge Daily: 12:30, 3:30, 7:20; F-Su: 10:05 p.m.

Stomp the Yard (C)

The main problem with "Stomp the Yard" is that it doesn't stomp enough. The filmmakers miss a prime opportunity to display black fraternities' practice of "stepping" - a combination of marching, dancing, body percussion and gymnastics that shows group unity and precision. The movie follows DJ (Columbus Short) a traditional black college. He meets April (Meagan Good), a gorgeous coed. There's some great dancing and stepping in the film, but the filmmakers do their best to disguise it, especially in the opening battle. Luckily, Short and Good are appealing actors with strong chemistry. Rated PG-13; 114 min.

Century Downtown 3:35, 9:40

Century Rio 11:40, 2:20, 5, 7:45, 10:35

Cottonwood 1, 4:35, 7:20, 10

Four Hills 12:40, 3:20, 7:20, 9:55

Volver (A-)

This is a smaller, simpler film than Pedro Almodóvar's recent "Talk to Her" or "Bad Education," but it is no less the work of a master. And it's a testament to the Spanish filmmaker's generosity of spirit that he effectively hands the movie over to its ensemble of lively and resourceful actresses, and in particular to its star, Penelope Cruz. Cruz plays Raimunda, a hard-working woman pulled in every direction by terrible events and by the needs of the women around her. Men tend to be malevolent, irrelevant or simply absent. Raimunda's troubles might be extreme, but she bustles through them with passionate determination, making room for every emotion except self-pity. With this role Cruz inscribes her name near the top of any credible list of present-day flesh-and-blood screen goddesses. The film is often dazzling in its artifice, but it is never false. Rated R; 121 min.

Century Downtown 12:30, 3:30, 6:45, 9:35