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Rated PG13 for brief language, violence

Starring Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang, Giovanni Ribisi, Joel David Moore, Michelle Rodriguez, CCH Pounder

The year is 2154 and we send troops and scientists to Pandora - a moon of the planet Polyphemus - to study and hope to capture the rare substance Unobtainum which lies underneath the inhabitants home base. In order to walk on the planet and interact with the Na'vi inhabitants, we have developed avatars, that are tailored to it's crew member who plugs into it via brainwaves. After getting lost and separated from his team on the planet, paraplegic former Marine Jake Sully is taken in by the Na'vi and told that he will learn their ways. The administrator of the crew tells Jake that he has 3 months to learn and gain the Na'vi's trust, as bulldozers will be coming to mine the Unobtainum and the Na'vi will need to peacefully leave or face war.

Jake grows fond of the Na'vi though and feels more at home among their world.

This film by James Cameron took 15 years to make and visually it is amazing, as Pandora is a CGI world, yet seems real. While the story isn't the absolute greatest ever, the characters are likable and despite its run time of nearly 3 hours, it doesn't feel long at all. While it does have a message built into it, it doesn't come off as preachy - basically it comes down to good guys vs greedy guys.

If you're looking for a good sci-fi action film that the whole family can enjoy look plug into Avatar this holiday season.

The Twilight Saga: New Moon

Starring Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner

Rated PG13 for violence, brief language

Picking up in the months after Twilight left off, Bella Swan is starting her senior year of high school and just turning 18. However, after an incident involving a paper cut she gets at the Cullen's house (the local vampire clan, who lives off the blood of animals rather than humans and sparkle in the sunlight rather than turn to dust), her boyfriend, vampire Edward Cullen tells her she'd be better off without them around and breaks up with her in the middle of the woods.

Bella goes into a deep depression for several months and it isn't until she starts hanging around former childhood pal Jacob that she is brought out of her funk. However, Jacob has a secret of his own and suddenly starts acting strange - lying to Bella about being sick and avoiding her.

She also learns that acting reckless and getting adrenaline rushes makes her see visions of Edward, who in these visions tells her to stop it and be careful. In addition to all this, Victoria, the redheaded "bad" vampire from the first film returns once the Cullens leave town. She is still upset over Edward killing her lover, James, in the first film and plans to kill Bella in an attempt at revenge.

Honestly, I was pretty disappointed by the first film, as the cinematography was horrible. Despite all the hype and talk about how this one was done much better than the first, I still think New Moon is pretty much just as bad as the first and I was pretty bored the entire time - keep in mind, I thought the books were alright and will admit they were a pretty entertaining, mindless read. The only entertaining and interesting part of the whole movie was the end, where we are introduced to The Volturi - who act as the governing vampire coven in the world - in which Michael Sheen plays the leader Aro (personally, I much prefer him as lycan Lucian in the Underworld vampire series). This film also clearly caters to the ladies, as Jacob and his pack run around shirtless for a good portion of the film, as does Edward at the end.

Unless you're a Twilight fangirl, save yourself your time and money and just skip this one.

DVD Review: Obsessed

Rated PG13 for sexuality, brief nudity, innuendo, brief language

Starring Idris Elba, Ali Larter, Beyonce Knowles, Jerry O'Connell

Derek Charles seems to have it all - a great job, a supportive wife, a young, healthy son, and they just bought a new house. But his perfect life seems to get turned upside when he meets new office temp Lisa. His first encounter with Lisa takes place in the office elevator, as she drops her stack of files and he kindly helps her pick them up. Upon learning who Derek is, Lisa stops by his office to chat. Next thing Derek knows, she is filling in for his sick assistant. Derek, being the nice guy that he is, treats Lisa kindly like he would any of his office employees.

But Lisa takes his kindness for being something more. At the office Christmas party, Lisa attempts to seduce him and make her move on him in the bathroom. Explaining to her later that they were drunk and her behavior was wrong and that he's not interested in her like that, as a relationship with her would jeopardize his job and marriage, Lisa quits.

However it is not the last time Derek will run into her, as Lisa begins stalking him on a work retreat and creating problems for him at home.

How will he deal with this annoying temptress without his wife thinking something more is going on?

This was another movie that was a lot better than I was expecting it to be. It's a bit of a Fatal Attraction for a new generation - the only difference being that in this one, the husband didn't do anything wrong. While Beyonce gets top billing to bring in the crowd, this is really Larter and Elba's film - Larter has really got the slutty temptress role down (think back to her roles in Varsity Blues and on Heroes) and Elba is quite believable as the nice guy who gets stuck in a bad situation.

DVD Review: Paul Blart: Mall Cop

Rated PG for brief violence, some crude humor and innuendo, mild language

Starring: Kevin James, Jayma Mays, Keir O'Donnell

Paul Blart is a Jersey mall cop who takes his job seriously and aspires to be on the local police force, however one thing holds him back from that dream - he is severely hypoglycemic and when it hits, if he doesn't have a candy bar nearby he instantly passes out. He lives at home with his mother and pre-teen daughter, who both try to set him up with online dating, as his wife left him soon after their daughter was born and she acquired her green card.

One day, the mall is taken over by a group planning on wiping out the credit machines to get rich and held hostage inside are Blart's daughter and his love interest Amy among a handful of others. Distracted at the time the mall was taken over, Blart is the lone man on the inside and the local force's only hope at stopping the crooks and safely getting the hostages. Is he up for the job?

This film is oddly similar to another film that came out this year that we reviewed - Observe and Report starring Seth Rogen - as both films deal with mall cops who aspire to be something more than just that as well them bothing having to defend their malls. Buth while Rogen's film is dark and depressing, James' is amusing and heartwarming. This film was actually a lot better than I was expecting it to be.

If you're looking for a fun film the whole family can laugh at and enjoy together, be sure to check this one out.

The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day

Rated R for violence, language, brief nudity

Starring Billy Connolly, Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus, Julie Benz, Judd Nelson, Peter Fonda

Taking place 8 years after the events in of first film, the MacManus brothers have fled to Ireland and have laid low in a farmhouse with Papa MacManus. However, news reaches them that someone in Boston has killed an innocent priest using the same stylized execution rituals that the brothers are known for, framing them - after all these years, someone is trying to bring them out of hiding, and the wrong-doers of the city are nervous that this someone may succeed in bringing The Saints back.

Detectives Dolly, Duffy, and Greenly are back on the case as well to determine if this really was the work of The Saints, or just a copycat. Special Agent Eunice Bloom, who is the protege of former Agent Paul Smecker of the first film (we are told that Smecker had passed away in recent years) also steps in to put a Smecker-esque touch on determining whodunit.

"BDS2: All Saints Day" gives the audience some insight as to why the MacManus family does what they do and how they got their start. They also made this film as a segway to a third with the way it ended, making The Boondock Saints into a trilogy or maybe even a saga.

Also, Julie Benz's Special Agent Bloom, while a character in her own right and entertaining to watch in her retellings of how it happened, just doesn't do the part as well as William Dafoe's Special Agent Smecker did in the first film.

If you enjoyed the original, you'll probably either love this one, hate it, or leave the theater curious as to how the next will play out. 10 years in the making, while it was still entertaining, this one could have been a lot better.

DVD Review: Public Enemies

Rated R for violence, brief language, brief sexuality

Starring Johnny Depp, Christian Bale, Marion Cottilard, Billy Crudup, Stephen Graham

Taking place in the 1930s, and mostly in Chicago, "Public Enemies" is an excellent retelling of the late life of John Dillinger and his band of men who robbed various banks and escaped capture and from jail and several times, often times right under the authorities noses. It also shows the beginnings of J. Edgar Hoover's FBI, as they desperately try to track Dillinger after naming him Public Enemy Number 1 in order to make a name for the Bureau, as many have their doubts about Hoover's ability to lead an investigation.

While I hadn't heard too much about Dillinger prior to this film, I did find it to be very educational. It was also amusing to see just how well organized Dillinger and his crew were when it came to breaking out of jail at various times. It's easy to see why people liked him - him and his crew only stole from the banks and never the people - he was sort of Robin Hood for that era.

Personally, I think this film should have been rated PG13, as you see more revealing sex scenes on network tv than you do here, the language was pretty tame, and the violence was to be expected, as the majority of it takes place at either the banks and the streets outside and during other shootouts.

For anyone who wants to know more about John Dillinger or wants a history lesson, be sure to check out Public Enemies.

DVD Review: Night at the Museum 2: Battle of the Smithsonian

Rated PG for brief sexual innuendo, slapstick violence

Starring Ben Stiller, Robin Williams, Amy Adams, Owen Wilson, Hank Azaria, Bill Hader

Taking place several years after the first film, Larry Daley is now a successful inventor of random household gadgets based off things he came up with to do his job in the first movie (ie: glow in the dark flashlight, unloseable keyring, etc) and hasn't visited the Museum of Natural History for some time. Upon revisiting, he learns that they are renovating the museum, replacing many of the exhibits with interactive holograms. Larry is told by Teddy Roosevelt that while he and a few select others will be staying at the museum, the rest will be moved to the Smithsonian Archives in Washington DC, and they will be going without the magical Golden Tablet Of Ahkmenrah which makes them all come alive at night.

Soon after the move to the Smithsonian, Larry receives a frantic phonecall from tiny Jedediah - apparently Dexter the monkey stole the tablet from the Museum of Natural History and everything is coming alive at the Smithsonian - including Pharaoh Ahkmenrah's not so nice older brother Kahmunrah who seeks the tablet to raise his army of the dead with the help of other classic bad guys such as Ivan the Terrible, Napoleon, and a young Al Capone. War is breaking out among the historical characters and Larry must get to Washington in time before Kahmunrah gets his hands on the tablet!

Since the one mostly takes place at the Smithsonian and it's multiple museums, we are introduced to a plethora of more historical characters than the first, one of the major ones being free-spirited Amelia Earhart.

This is a great adventure film for the whole family, as kids will learn about more history and adults will appreciate the humor and maybe even learn some history even they didn't know! If you enjoyed the first one, don't miss this one!

DVD Review: Trick R Treat

Rated R for violence, gore, language, scary elements, brief nudity and sexuality

Starring Anna Paquin, Leslie Bibb, Brian Cox, Lauren Lee Smith, Moneca Delain, Dylan Baker, Britt McKillp, Tohmah Penikett

Trick R Treat is a film that takes place on Halloween night in a fictional town that takes their Halloween traditions very seriously. While the film is split into several different stories, they are all linked together, as you'll see characters from one story passing by in another. Also tying the stories together is the constant presence of a small trick or treater wearing a burlap costume with a giant pumpkin head known as Sam. Sam (who I thought of as "the spirit of Halloween") sort of oversees that the Halloween traditions are being kept and teaches a lesson to those that break them.

The first story, we meet a widowed school principal and his young son, however this principal is one you wouldn't want to get stuck with in detention, as he also moonlights as... something else.

Next we meet a group of teens who are collecting pumpkins. One of the girls tells us a story about a school bus driver who drove his bus and the 8 disturbed kids in it, off a nearby cliff, into an abandoned quarry, drowning in the lake. They plan on going to the bottom of the quarry and leaving the pumpkins as a tribute to the deceased, however, after playing a horrible prank a strange girl who tagged along with the group, something goes awry...

Throughout the first half of the film, we are introduced to a group of girls in their early 20s who are wearing  sexy storybook character outfits and looking for dates to take with them to a Halloween party in the woods. One girl, Laurie, however, has trouble finding a date for herself and tells her friends to go ahead to the party and she'll meet them there when she finds someone. Not having much luck, she gives up and starts heading to the woods by herself. A man, dressed as a vampire, who we see bit and kill a woman in a previous scene, has noticed Laurie though and begins to stalk her... will she make it to the party alive?

And finally, we visit the next door neighbor of the principal in the first story. This story actually takes place during the time frame of the first one, as we briefly catch a glimpse of events that occur in this one happening in the first one. The cranky old man neighbor lives alone with his dog and rather than pass out candy, he scares any trick or treater that comes to the door with his dog in a scary mask. Sam however does not approve of this and decides to pay the old man a visit...

Book-ending the movie is a quick tale about a couple. After attending the Halloween parade, the woman decides it would be best to take down all their Halloween decorations tonight, rather than in the morning, as her mother is coming to visit and it won't get done until later. Her partner begs her not to break tradition by taking the decorations down early, but she talks him into letting her. As you can imagine, this is a big no-no!

If you're in for a good, original Halloween-based movie and don't mind a little gore and some frights, be sure to check this one out!