Movie Reviews

The Story: A fact-based account of the wanderings of Christopher McCandless, who rejected society and went in search of himself in nature. The Lowdown: Fine direction by Sean Penn and a top-drawer cast largely overcome a script (also by Penn) that veers too close to worshipfulness for comfort.

The Story: A small-time private investigator gets hired to help find a missing child. The Lowdown: An exceptional, though convoluted thriller that's aided by fine performances and an underlying theme of what constitutes right and wrong.

Black Mountain College Museum and the Fine Arts Theatre present From the Inside: The Work of Karen Karnes for one-show only Thursday, Oct. 25, at 7 p.m. Filmmaker Lucy Phenix will be in attendance to answer questions after the screening. Admission is $12/$9 for members of Black Mountain College Museum and Arts Center and students…

The Story: A small group of humans in northernmost Alaska try to survive an invasion of vampires during the long night of winter. The Lowdown: An OK idea stymied by dull execution and a largely listless cast.

The Story: A failed coach takes on a job coaching college misfits in football for one last shot at glory. The Lowdown: A spoof in the vein of Date Movie (2006) and Epic Movie (2007), and it's every bit as overwhelmingly horrible as that sounds.

The Story: Four couples -- friends from college days -- go on a mountain getaway where the various problems with their marriages show through. The Lowdown: Yet another mediocre cinematic sermon from Tyler Perry. His fans will love it; everyone else should be very wary.

The Story: A nightclub manager with ties to the mob must help his brother and father, both cops, survive the Russian mafia. The Lowdown: A competently made film that unfortunately suffers from being too emotionless and too unaffecting.

Song of Summer and a second Ken Russell film are part of a series of Classic Cinema From Around the World being presented at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 19, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St. in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332

The Hendersonville Film Society will show Robinson Crusoe at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 21, 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…

The Story: A series of offbeat, often surreal comedic vignettes strung together only by physical connections between the scenes. The Lowdown: A very worthy first attempt by Joe Change to make a different kind of movie. Locals and local filmmakers take note of this truly Asheville production.

The Story: George Clooney stars as the "fixer" at a powerful law firm. He is handed the toughest job of his career when a top litigator threatens to undermine a huge case. The Lowdown: Intelligent dialogue and top performances highlight this occasionally hard-to-swallow, but constantly entertaining, legal thriller.

The Story: An overview of the Apollo space program and America's trip to the moon. The Lowdown: A simple, eloquent, occasionally fascinating documentary that focuses more on the humanity of America's space program as opposed to its political aspects.

The Story: A high-school baseball team with a long tradition of excellence has one final season together before they will be assimilated into a larger school. The Lowdown: An adequate movie, but it's yet just another uplifting sports movie, nothing more, nothing less.

The Story: Queen Elizabeth I fights court intrigue, romantic longings and Philip of Spain's Armada in order to keep England free. The Lowdown: Shaky history and overblown filmmaking that's fun if not approached as more than it is.

The Story: A sprawling portrait of the 1960s anchored to a love affair between two young people and 32 Beatles songs. The Lowdown: An incredibly ambitious undertaking by filmmaker Julie Taymor that hits the target most of the time and is never less than fascinating.

The Story: A 14-year-old boy must help the forces of good overcome the forces of evil. The Lowdown: Generic fantasy that wants to be the next Harry Potter, but fails due to a lackluster script, a bland lead and fussy direction.

The Story: After getting into trouble with the mob, a young rapper is forced by his mother to move to Puerto Rico to live with his estranged father. There he enters the world of reggaeton music. The Lowdown: A sloppy, clichéd, dull, humorless, low-budget movie that never seems to have any purpose or spark.

Blood for Dracula, part of a series of Classic Cinema From Around the World, will be presented at 8 p.m. Friday, Oct. 12, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St. in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332.

The Hendersonville Film Society will show The Taming of the Shrew at 2 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 14, 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: A documentary centering on ancient sea life. The Lowdown: Short and to the point, the film gets high marks for some good 3-D effects, but is a bit slight, and in the end is not much more than a glorified TV documentary.

The Story: A successful middle-aged man discovers he has no friends and sets out to correct that in order to win a bet with his business partner. The Lowdown: A gentle, humane, warmly funny movie from Patrice Leconte. It's all about friendship, and what better topic could there be?