RATINGS
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OPENING
Playing for Keeps
(Empire Capitol 6, SilverCity) To get his life back on track, a floundering former soccer star returns home to rebuild his relationship with his son and ex-wife and gets roped into coaching the boy's soccer team. With Gerard Butler, Jessica Biel, Uma Thurman and Catherine Zeta-Jones. PG
CONTINUING
Anna Karenina
??1/2
(Cineplex Odeon Victoria) Joe Wright's lovely adaptation of the Tolstoy opus stars the filmmaker's Pride & Prejudice and Atonement muse, Keira Knightley, as the Russian princess who tumbles into a passionate affair, jeopardizing her marriage and social standing. - Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune. PG
Argo
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(Caprice, SilverCity) Ben Affleck's wildly entertaining thriller takes one of Canada's proudest legends - the rescue of six American embassy workers by our diplomats during the 1979 Iranian hostage crisis - and recasts it into a U.S. cavalry charge. With Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin and John Goodman. - Jay Stone. PG
Cloud Atlas
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(Caprice, Cineplex Odeon Victoria) David Mitchell's sprawling novel becomes an ungainly film spanning centuries, including everything from 18th-century sailing vessels to a future apocalypse. Tom Hanks, Halle Berry and others play multiple roles in a sci-fi extravaganza with a message - we are all connected - that hardly seems worth it. - Jay Stone. 14A
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days
(Caprice) An adolescent boy tries to survive summer misadventures in such fraught situations as swimming at the public pool and going camping.With Zachary Gordon and Devon Bostick. G
Flight
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(Cineplex Odeon Victoria, Empire University 4, SilverCity) Sharing similarities with his earlier film Cast Away, this Robert Zemeckis feature offers up a spectacular start to what amounts to a survival story. The only difference is where Tom Hanks was seeking a way to get off a deserted island in Cast Away, Flight features Denzel Washington as a commercial pilot struggling to come clean after a tragic crash. Washington is nothing short of tremendous as the boozy flyboy Whip Whitaker, but the script moves in circles as it tries to separate the idea of personal responsibility from perceived heroism without success. - Katherine Monk. 14A
Frankenweenie
(Caprice) When his dog unexpectedly dies, a boy does some tinkering and uses science to bring his beloved pooch back to life. With the voices of Catherine O'Hara, Martin Short, Martin Landau and Charlie Tahan. Written by John August. Directed by Tim Burton. G
Hotel Transylvania
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(Caprice, Roxy) Adam Sandler stars as a vampire who runs a hotel for monsters, where he can keep his daughter safe. Kids will find the 3-D razzle-dazzle and animation seductive, but grown-ups may tire of the dirty diaper theme. - Katherine Monk. G
Ice Age: Continental Drift 3D
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(Caprice) A group of Paleolithic animal pals tries to survive a continental cataclysm in the fourth instalment of the Ice Age series. The script has a cheap habit of copying other cartoon material, but the results are both entertaining and life-affirming. With the voices of Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary and Queen Latifah. - Katherine Monk. G
Killing Them Softly
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(Empire Capitol 6, SilverCity) Writer-director Andrew Dominik tries to be relevant in this incredibly stylish gangster film by setting it in the days before the 2008 U.S. presidential election. When a couple of idiots rob a mob-protected card game, the corporate types at the top hire Jackie Cogan, an enforcer played by Brad Pitt, to go after the perpetrators. Pitt puts in an effortless performance that shows how he manages to be both a serious actor and a superstar. - Christy Lemire, The Associated Press. 14A
Life Of Pi
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(Cineplex Odeon Victoria, Empire University 4, SilverCity, Star) Oscar-winner Ang Lee adapts the like-named bestselling novel by Yann Martel to the big screen in stunning, high-def 3-D. While the movie never works as well as we might want it to, as a result of some stilted scenes and some forced drama, Lee still manages to conjure enough cinematic magic to pull off this heavy mix of soul-searching and action-survival. - Katherine Monk. G
Lincoln
???1/2
(Cineplex Odeon Victoria) Daniel Day-Lewis is quietly persuasive as the Great Emancipator in Steven Spielberg's high-quality biopic about the last few months of the president's life. There's a tone of reverence even as Lincoln is shown making underhanded deals (and extending the Civil War) in order to free the slaves, political machinations that give the film its intrigue. - Jay Stone. PG
Looper
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(Caprice, Cinecenta, Roxy) In the future, a low-level hired gun who disposes of mob targets sent back in time has to chase down an escaped target - a future version of himself. With Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Bruce Willis and Emily Blunt. - Jay Stone. 14A
The Master
(Caprice) A young drifter is taken under the wing of a charismatic intellectual whose new spiritual organization is catching on in postwar America. With Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Joaquin Phoenix and Amy Adams. 14A
Midnight's Children
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(Cineplex Odeon Victoria) Deepa Mehta takes on Salman Rushdie's Booker Prize-winning novel about the birth of an independent India, and one boy who can conjure the voice of his generation through his large nose. Mehta creates a dreamlike feel that accommodates the book's chaotic plot and magical mood. - Katherine Monk. PG
ParaNorman
???1/2
(Roxy) An expertly designed stop-motion animated film about a boy who sees the dead, particularly the witches who were hanged 300 years earlier. - Jay Stone. PG
Pitch Perfect
(Roxy) An introverted college freshman is persuaded to join an all-girls a cappella group and helps enliven their old-fashioned approach to performing. With Anna Kendrick and Brittany Snow. PG
Red Dawn
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(Cineplex Odeon Westshore SilverCity) A group of teenagers looks to save Spokane, Washington, from an invasion of North Korean soldiers in this remake of a 1984 Cold War fantasy with the same name. By the end, we appreciate the wisdom of the character who says: "Dude, we're living Call of Duty. And it sucks." Stars Chris Hemsworth. - Jay Stone. PG
Rise Of the Guardians
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(Cineplex Odeon Westshore, Empire Capitol 6, Empire University 4, SilverCity, Star) The wrapping is all primary colours, but beneath this slick, shiny and frequently frantic piece of holiday fantasy is a deeper message about the importance of personal responsibility. Jack Frost struggles with his new duty as a Guardian - a supernatural force that cares for all children in exchange for faith. A complex and often funny piece of computer-generated escapism, the movie fails to find enough heart to move us at an emotional level - but it will dazzle the optic nerve for the duration. - Katherine Monk. G
Searching for Sugar Man
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(Empire Capitol 6) Malik Bendjelloul's movie about a little-known folk singer named Rodriguez is easily the feel-good movie of the season and promises to surprise even the most jaded cynic with its heart, humour and historical significance. I'd tell you more, but I'd spoil the sweet sense of surprise. - Katherine Monk. PG
The Sessions
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(Cineplex Odeon Victoria) John Hawkes stars as real-life poet Mark O'Brien, a polio survivor confined to an iron lung. Mark wants to lose his virginity and hires sex surrogate Cheryl (Helen Hunt) to facilitate his quest. But sex and emotions always get tangled, even in this grown-up take on physical communion. Katherine Monk. 18A
Silver Linings Playbook
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(Cineplex Odeon Victoria) Bradley Cooper stars as a man who returns from a stint at a mental hospital and tries to resume his life, and hopefully his marriage. Yet his wife has a restraining order against him and he's not entirely stable. A far cry from your meat-and-potato hero, Pat (Cooper) is a raging loner who may - or may not - be redeemed by the love of a pretty good, but not entirely predictable, woman played by Jennifer Lawrence. Director David O. Russell sells the screwball side, and holds up the dramatic side as well, but together it makes for an awkward and emotionally uneven mix. - Katherine Monk. 14A
Skyfall
???1/2
(Cineplex Odeon Westshore, Empire Capitol 6, Empire University 4, SilverCity Imax, Star) Daniel Craig returns as 007 in this Sam Mendes-directed thriller that also stars Javier Bardem as the baddie. When the names of embedded agents fall into the wrong hands, James Bond must find a way to retrieve the information and destroy the vendor. The only problem is, the villain may be working on the inside. Despite a script that pays homage to all the Bonds that went before, the movie feels trapped inside its own wrapping as it offers nods to everything from the Aston Martin with the ejection seat to Q's endless inventiveness. The film is highly entertaining, and Daniel Craig is consistently compelling. Yet, for all its emotional ambition, the film has one too many winks to make us weep. - Katherine Monk. PG
Taken 2
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(Caprice) Having saved his daughter from a European sex-slave ring, an ex-CIA agent is targeted for revenge and must once again fight to protect his family. Even when the dialogue feels a little lacking, this film has so much understated machismo fuelling the central character that we can't help but be seduced by the constant car crashes and gunplay. With Liam Neeson, Famke Janssen and Maggie Grace. - Katherine Monk. PG
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2
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(Cineplex Odeon Westshore, Empire Capitol 6, SilverCity) The last instalment in the five-film franchise finds Bella (Kristen Stewart) learning how to be a vampire, while the evil Volturi threaten her half-immortal newborn. Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner return as vampire and werewolf, respectively. A treat for the fans, at least. - Chris Knight. 14A
Wreck-It Ralph 3D
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(Cineplex Odeon Westshore, SilverCity) A 3-D animated film about a video game villain (voiced by John C. Reilly) who wants to be a hero. He migrates to another game - a children's candyland fantasy - and helps a little girl (Sarah Silverman) find herself. It's a familiar plot, helped by ingenious design. - Jay Stone. G
SPECIAL SCREENINGS
The Metropolitan Opera: Un Ballo In Maschera Live
(Saturday, Cineplex Odeon Victoria, Cineplex Odeon Westshore, SilverCity, Star)
A Christmas Story (Saturday, Cineplex Odeon Westshore)
Miracle on 34th Street (Sunday and Wednesday, SilverCity)
Royal Opera House: The Nutcracker (Thursday, SilverCity)
CINECENTA
Looper - 14A (Fri. and Sat., 3, 7 and 9: 10 p.m.)
Samsara - G (Sun. and Mon., 7 and 9 p.m.)
The Birds - (Tue., 7 and 9: 15 p.m.)
Side By Side - (Wed., Thur., 7 and 9 p.m.)
IMAX FILMS
Go to imaxvictoria.com for showtimes.
The Polar Express: The Imax Experience
Mysteries Of Egypt
The Last Reef: Cities Beneath the Sea
Air Racers
To the Arctic
Hubble
