Movie Reviews

The Story: A seemingly ordinary man takes revenge on the justice system that let the murderer of his wife and daughter walk free. The Lowdown: Pointlessly gory and patently absurd, the movie might have worked as pulp, except that it’s too full of itself to even work as mindless entertainment.

The Story: A serial killer marries into "perfect" families, and when his plans go awry, resorts to murder. The Lowdown: Idiotic, unpardonably slow and totally lacking in thrills.

The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover, part of a series of Classic Cinema From Around the World, will be presented at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 16, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St. in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332.

The Story: A group of couples head off for a vacation in a tropical paradise only to be bamboozled into couples counseling. The Lowdown: An uninspiring romcom centered around more of the same from Vince Vaughn that’s short on insight and overlong.

The Story: An aging widower takes a group of young boys under his wing to teach them about the Bible. The Lowdown: Heavy-handed Bible-thumping mixed with amateurish filmmaking make for a movie that will test your credulity and your endurance.

The Hendersonville Film Society will show North by Northwest at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 18, in the Smoky Mountain Theater at Lake Pointe Landing Retirement Community, 333 Thompson St., Hendersonville. (From Asheville, take I-26 to U.S. 64 West, turn right at the third light onto Thompson Street. Follow to the Lake Point Landing entrance and…

The Story: A former cellist ends up taking a job for an outfit that prepares the dead for cremation. The Lowdown: Pleasurable, perceptive drama with an unusual, thought-provoking premise that’s used to explore some universal themes.

The Story: An Albanian immigrant becomes involved in a plot to obtain money that involves citizenship papers, convenient marriages and possibly murder. The Lowdown: A deep-dish drama about human nature that works as a kind of crime thriller -- one that's held together by the performance of Albanian actress Arta Dobroshi.

The Ninth Gate, part of a series of Classic Cinema From Around the World, will be presented at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 9, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St. in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332.

The Hendersonville Film Society will show The Gods Must Be Crazy at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 11, in the Smoky Mountain Theater at Lake Pointe Landing Retirement Community, 333 Thompson St., Hendersonville. (From Asheville, take I-26 to U.S. 64 West, turn right at the third light onto Thompson Street. Follow to the Lake Point Landing…

The Story: In a world where no one can lie, one man discovers he has this ability -- altering both his life and the lives of everyone else. The Lowdown: What could have been a fairly standard high-concept comedy is transformed into something much more intriguing because of the philosophical questions it raises.

The Story: A group of anthropomorphic toys -- who come to life when no one is looking -- go on various adventures. The Lowdown: The same sweet, solid family entertainment that you remember, now polished with some not-so-exciting 3-D work and packaged as a double feature.

The Story: A look inside the world of Anna Wintour and Vogue magazine as she masterminds their all-important title issue. The Lowdown: A nicely made documentary that suffers from an impenetrable central character, but scores points with its portrait of that character's creative visionary associate.

The Story: After a zombie plague, a group of mismatched survivors make their way through what remains of the world in search of a safe place. The Lowdown: A pretty funny zombie comedy that gets points for reveling in its gruesomeness, decent characterizations and clever touches along the way.

The Story: A teenage girl finds herself when she lies about her age and joins a roller-derby team. The Lowdown: Thoroughly predictable and completely successful at doing what you want such a movie to do -- but with good performances and without insulting your intelligence.

Pierrot le Fou, part of a series of Classic Cinema From Around the World, will be presented at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 2, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St. in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332.

The Hendersonville Film Society will show Basquiat at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 4, in the Smoky Mountain Theater at Lake Pointe Landing Retirement Community, 333 Thompson St., Hendersonville. (From Asheville, take I-26 to U.S. 64 West, turn right at the third light onto Thompson Street. Follow to the Lake Point Landing entrance and park in…

The Story: Two old college buddies decide to make a gay porn film, despite not being gay. The Lowdown: A bold and potentially illuminating idea that fails due to sketchy characterizations and a seeming lack of conviction.

The Story: Michael Moore takes aim at the concept of capitalism and the meltdown of the economy. The Lowdown: Is it propaganda? Sure. All activist documentaries are. But it's entertaining, thought-provoking, conversation-starting propaganda. That's the difference.

The Story: In a futuristic world where people live vicariously through robotic counterparts, murders begin to take place, and it’s up to a hard-nosed detective to solve the case. The Lowdown: A cobbled-together mix of sci-fi’s greatest hits wrapped inside a murder mystery that never quite adds up, creating one mediocre film.

The Story: Awakened from deep sleep on a spaceship, a couple travelers try to discover what happened, remember their mission and complete it. The Lowdown: Incredibly derivative sci-fi horror that's never very horrifying, but occasionally unintentionally funny.