Josh Tate

In yet another blow to the human race, Dwayne Johnson's The Game Plan was this weekend's box-office champ, taking in a richly undeserved 22.6 million dollars in its debut. You know what that means--an even worse sequel (assuming that's possible) is virtually certain to be made. Let's hope it goes straight to DVD and doesn't rob theater space from better, less life-affirming movies. In second place, also in its first weekend, was Peter Berg's...

Though it opens Wednesday, I'm including The Darjeeling Limited in this guide because Wes Anderson is a director whose films you just automatically have to see and the more advance warning, the better. His latest jewel box follows three brothers (Wilson, Brody, Schwartzman) who decide to travel together across India in an effort to mend the rift that has grown between them all. Expect fantastical plot twists and plenty of whimsy. Though many critics...

With a title almost as long as its 160-minute running time, The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford is one of those movies that just seems destined to fail at the box office which is too bad really because if you make the time to see this movie you will be treated to a somber, revisionist Western that is both tender and violent in its portrayal of an era that is...

As if Wes Anderson didn't already have the undying respect of fanboys across the world for directing Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums and The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, he has now done the ultimate: convinced Natalie Portman to do her first nude scene for his short, The Hotel Chevalier. The film is a companion piece to Anderson's forthcoming The Darjeeling Limited and stars Portman and Jason Schwartzman. They are ex-lovers who meet...

First of all, if you haven't seen the wonderful Into the Wild make plans to do so right away. It is one of the rare films that exploits the full power of cinema to transport you into another world and into the consciousness of another person (my enthusiastic review of it is here, tickets here, preview here, music here). After seeing it, I imagine you'll be ready to go on a little adventure of...

So is anyone NOT buying Knocked Up this week? There's something like 5 different versions in Amazon's top 25 bestsellers right now. Wow. The TV Set is a great movie that about 400 people saw when it was in theaters. I had a near-private screening one afternoon at the Santa Monica Laemmle. Next is really only interesting if you're a Nicholas Cage hairpiece connoisseur (like myself). Evening has an incredibly raunchy nude scene with...

To no one's surprise, the awful Resident Evil: Extinction claimed the weekend box office crown, debuting with a surprisingly robust 24 million dollars and spanking the equally vapid Good Luck Chuck ($14M). While discerning patriots were sad to see Paul W.S. Anderson's "vision" further validated, they were somewhat cheered by the continued deterioration of "comedian" Dane Cook's film career. Also, failed starlet Jessica Alba is one flop closer to what now seems an inevitable,...

It's rare that a movie can change a hardened opinion and yet that's exactly what Sean Penn has done with his sublime adaptation of Jon Krakauer's Into the Wild. When I originally read the book in 1997, my view of Christopher McCandless was essentially in-line with those--largely Alaskans--who considered him an ill-prepared, arrogant fool who died needlessly. The romance of his life and death was entirely lost on me. But no longer. Penn's film...

The fall tradition of releasing prestige films continues tomorrow as Resident Evil: Extinction opens wide. Milla Jovovich stars as the beneficent Alice, a latter-day Tess of the d'Urbervilles who is charged with the stygian task of killing armies of the undead--and the joke is now over. Anyone dumb enough to see the latest chapter of this awful series probably didn't notice anyway. At least there's nudity. But not from Ali Larter. Dang! Into the...

Those of you who didn't get enough of Death Proof at the theater (and that would be 37 of you) now have the chance to experience Quentin Tarantino's complete and unedited cinematic vision--oh, whatever. Matthew McConaughey almost refused to do We Are Marshall because he thought his character should always be shirtless. Would Carly Schroeder turn 18 already so I can stop feeling so creepy (Kristen Stewart, too). Lucky You deserved better. Daniel Auteuil...