Seen and reviewed (June 4)
New films in theaters this week:
– “Get Him to the Greek” (rated R), a music-industry spoof starring Russell Brand as a hard-partying rock star.
– “Harry Brown” (rated R), a revenge-thriller from Britain, starring Michael Caine.
– “Killers” (rated PG-13), an action-comedy starring Katherine Heigl as the wife of a CIA agent (Ashton Kutcher).
– “Marmaduke” (rated PG), a live-action comedy based on the long-running comic strip.
– “Splice” (rated R), a science-fiction thriller/horror movie about genetic experimentation. Adrien Brody stars.
– “When You’re Strange: A Film About the Doors” (rated R), Tom DiCillo’s documentary feature about the rock band.
Poster art courtesy Lionsgate
“Killers” was not pre-screened for critics, which, despite the studio’s claims about marketing it via social networking, is not a good sign. Also, the film looks like a cheaper knock-off of the upcoming Tom Cruise vehicle, “Night and Day.”
And due to other commitments, I was unable to see “When You’re Strange.” Word of mouth on the film, from the 2009 Sundance Film Festival, was not very encouraging.
The week’s other releases aren’t any better. The violent “Harry Brown” wastes Caine’s talents, especially when it turns into yet another “Death Wish”-style revenge tale. And “Splice” starts out smart but gets progressively dumber. There are also several poor-taste elements along the way, including the laughably bad final third.
Speaking of laughs, there are a few of them in the raunchy, inconsistent “Greek.” But the music-business parodies become tiresome, and neither Brand nor Jonah Hill are very likable.
Poster art courtesy Twentieth-Century Fox
The one, supposedly family-friendly release this week is “Marmaduke,” which gives a voice to its title character — who doesn’t have one in the comic strip. The fact that the voice is provided by a bored-sounding Owen Wilson doesn’t help, though really young audiences might like some of the sillier, slapstick moments.
Which, if any, of these movies fit into your weekend viewing plans?