Movie Reviews

Troll 2 is being shown by TV Eye's Weird Wednesdays on Wednesday, July 23, at 9:30 p.m. at Asheville Brewing Company on Coxe Avenue.

Cemetery Man, part of a series of Classic Cinema From Around the World, will be presented at 8 p.m. Friday, July 25, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St. in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332.

The Story: Ham III and two other chimps are sent on a mission into space in search of a missing space probe. The Lowdown: Harmless, adequate kiddie fodder that's at least a little odd.

The Butcher Boy, part of a series of Classic Cinema From Around the World, will be presented at 8 p.m. Friday, July 18, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St. in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332.

The Hendersonville Film Society will show The Big Sleep at 2 p.m. Sunday, July 20, 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 woman is being interrogated for an unspecified crime, while sometime in the past another woman finds herself asking a stranger to pose as her fiancé. How is this related and who are these people -- in fact, which of them is real and which is a fabrication? The Lowdown: A splendidly entertaining…

The Story: A scientist in search of his lost brother finds himself on his way to the center of the earth. The Lowdown: OK family entertainment that's made more amusing by 3-D effects.

The Story: Hellboy and company are called into action to thwart an attempt to awaken a mythical army of robotic warriors that would destroy all human life. The Lowdown: Spellbinding visuals, breathtaking feats of imagination and fully rounded characters make this comic-book film a must-see.

The Story: A group of very tiny aliens travel to Earth in a human-shaped spaceship in an effort to save their own planet from an impending energy crisis. The Lowdown: An attempt at a high-concept, special-effects comedy extravaganza that goes absolutely nowhere due to its own pointless, unfunny lameness. It is an Eddie Murphy movie…

The Story: A foulmouthed superhero with an attitude problem gets a remake from a gung ho PR man and discovers not only his inner good guy, but also the key to his past. The Lowdown: A potentially good concept is squandered in a variety of jarring shifts of tone, dubious directorial choices and messy plotting.

Walk-In Theater, sponsored by the merchants of the Bledsoe Building in West Asheville, will present Golden Blade III on Friday, July 11, at dusk in the parking lot behind the building. Admission is free, and as usual, patrons are asked to leave pets and coolers at home, but to bring lawn chairs.

8 1/2 Women, part of a series of Classic Cinema From Around the World, will be presented at 8 p.m. Friday, July 11, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St. in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332.

The Hendersonville Film Society will show Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood at 2 p.m. Sunday, July 13, 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…

The Story: A young girl who dreams of becoming a reporter in 1934 Cincinnati finds herself having to face up to the realities of the Great Depression. The Lowdown: A surprisingly good children's movie that raises a lot of worthy issues within its fairly simplistic confines. Entertaining, if not overly exciting, and with more going…

The Story: Left on Earth to clean up the tons of waste left by humans, a robot develops a personality and falls in love with a visiting robot. The Lowdown: A brilliant first half and a more traditional second half result in an entertaining film that just never scales the heights intended.

The Story: An office drone discovers he's really a born assassin when he's recruited by a secret society of killers. The Lowdown: Visually appealing -- sometimes beautiful -- and the very definition of action-packed, Wanted is also too hip for its own good, and so nihilistic (and glum about it) that it's a bit of…

The Hendersonville Film Society will show Scorpio at 2 p.m. Sunday, July 6, 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…

Sophie Scholl: The Final Days, part of a series of Classic Cinema From Around the World, will be presented at 8 p.m. Friday, July 4, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St. in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332.

The Story: The story of Genghis Khan’s rise to power, from the days of his youth to becoming the ruler of the Mongols. The Lowdown: A methodical, often beautiful film about how Genghis Khan might have come into power that separates itself from most historical epics by focusing on the characters as opposed to the…

The Story: Working for top-secret government agency CONTROL, agent Maxwell Smart must foil the plans of the evil terrorist organization KAOS and their plot to ransom the world with threats of nuclear war. The Lowdown: While it may not satisfy fans of the original TV show, Get Smart works as simple summer entertainment, even if…

The Story: A 39-year-old woman on the verge of a new romance finds that she's pregnant by the husband who deserted her -- and that's just the tip of the iceberg. The Lowdown: A witty, insightful and very clever comedy-drama that suffers a bit due to an unreasonably glammed-down star and some typical indie-formula drawbacks.…