Movie Reviews

The Hendersonville Film Society will show Once Upon a Time in the West at 2 p.m. Sunday, June 13, in the Smoky Mountain Theater at Lake Pointe Landing Retirement Community (behind Epic Cinemas), 333 Thompson St., Hendersonville.

The Asheville Film Society will screen Manhattan Tuesday, June 15, at 8 p.m. in the Cinema Lounge of the Carolina Asheville. Hosted by Xpress movie critics Ken Hanke and Justin Souther.

The Thursday Horror Picture Show will screen The Gorgon Thursday, June 10, at 8 p.m. in the Cinema Lounge of the Carolina Asheville. Hosted by Xpress movie critics Ken Hanke and Justin Souther.

The Story: Documentary on Jack Abramoff: his rise and fall. The Lowdown: An overlong, but compelling and important film from the most well-respected documentary filmmaker of our time, Alex Gibney.

The Story: A pair of brilliant geneticists create an artificial life form using human DNA -- with potentially disastrous results. The Lowdown: Strong sci-fi horror that's somewhat in the vein of early David Cronenberg, but with an identity of its own. A few signficant flaws don't keep it from being a must-see for genre fans…

The Story: An inept intern must get an uncontrollable, drug-addled rock star from London to L.A. in three days. The Lowdown: An occasionally funny comedy that gets too bogged down in wayward plotting and a predilection towards tacked-on weightiness.

The Story: A husband and wife are pushed into the throes of danger after their idyllic marriage is threatened by the man's former life as a contract killer. The Lowdown: A flat-out dumb, cliché-riddled excuse for an action comedy that's miscast and pointless.

The Story: The comic-strip dog comes to the big screen to create havoc. The Lowdown: Don't even think about it. If you can read this, you're too old for this movie.

Classic Cinema From Around the World will present Simon of the Desert at 8 p.m. Friday, June 4, at Courtyard Gallery, 9 Walnut St., in downtown Asheville. Info: 273-3332.

The Hendersonville Film Society will show The Strange Love of Martha Ivers at 2 p.m. Sunday, June 6, in the Smoky Mountain Theater at Lake Pointe Landing Retirement Community (behind Epic Cinemas), 333 Thompson St., Hendersonville.

The Asheville Film Society will screen The Times of Harvey Milk Tuesday, June 8, at 8 p.m. in the Cinema Lounge of the Carolina Asheville. Hosted by Xpress movie critics Ken Hanke and Justin Souther.

The Story: A fantasticated myth that purports to be the story behind the creation of The Book of Kells. The Lowdown: There's not much to the plot and some of the animation is rudimentary, but once the film hits its stride, it provides imagery unlike any other.

The Story: An ancient Persian swashbuckling adventure involving a magical dagger and a royal family beset by a traitor. The Lowdown: Somewhat overlong and without a truly charismatic lead, but an agreeable enough romp with a lip-smacking villain and some nicely clichéd character parts.

The Story: The women of Sex and the City return to kvetch about shoes, relationships and other such pressing topics, all in exotic locales. The Lowdown: Way too long and way too shallow.

The Asheville Film Society will screen Rushmore Tuesday, June 1, at 8 p.m. in the Cinema Lounge of the Carolina Asheville. Hosted by Xpress movie critics Ken Hanke and Justin Souther.

The Hendersonville Film Society will show The Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle at 2 p.m. Sunday, May 30, in the Smoky Mountain Theater at Lake Pointe Landing Retirement Community (behind Epic Cinemas), 333 Thompson St., Hendersonville.

The Story: A man's mistress coerces him into undertaking an ill-advised crime with ever-increasing complications. The Lowdown: A great neo-noir thriller with a clever screenplay, stylish direction and real bite.

The Story: An action hero, long thought to be dead, returns to the fray in order to stop an evil mastermind from nuking Washington, D.C. The Lowdown: Eighties kitsch and a parade of juvenile humor traipsing around as innovative offensiveness make for a long, tedious slog.

The Story: A documentary about the making of a documentary that didn't work, which instead becomes a documentary about the man who made it -- maybe. The Lowdown: A wildly entertaining documentary -- if it is a documentary -- that also functions as a spoof of the art world and possibly more.