Movie Guide

The Philadelphia Inquirer

Agora, 2 1/2 stars. Rachel Weisz stars as the philosopher/astronomer Hypatia in this vivid historical drama set in Roman Egypt of the late 4th century, where religious tumult and ideological zealotry ruled. (What else is new?) 2 hrs. No MPAA rating (violence, adult themes) -- Steven Rea

Despicable Me, 2 1/2 stars. Affable, inconsequential animated feature about an arch archvillain (voice of Steve Carell) whose hard heart is softened by a trio of orphans who interfere with his nefarious plan to steal the moon. With voicework by Jason Segel and Julie Andrews. 1 hr. 35 PG (cartoon violence) -- Carrie Rickey

The Girl Who Played with Fire, 3 stars. Not as accomplished a piece of filmmaking as the first adaptation of Stieg Larsson's Millennium books, but still featuring the formidable Noomi Rapace as the brooding, multi-pierced, computer-hacking waif, Lisbeth Salander. Probably not as easy to track for folks unfamiliar with the book. 2 hrs. 09 R (violence, sex, nudity, adult themes) -- Steven Rea

Grown Ups, 2 stars. A reunion comedy in both concept (school buddies come together 30 years later) and cast ("Saturday Night Live" confreres Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Rob Schneider and David Spade), full of humiliation jokes -- physical, emotional, sexual, and hairpiece-ial. Kevin James, Maria Bello and Salma Hayek also star. Dignity is not a priority. 1 hr. 42 PG-13 (crude humor, profanity, adult themes) -- Steven Rea

Inception, 2 1/2 stars. Christopher Nolan's noir stars Leonardo DiCaprio as an international dream thief who enters people's subconsciousesses and messes with their minds. The dazzling visuals, inspired by Escher and Magritte, can't hide the self-seriousness of it all, and the Freud for Dummies dialogue doesn't help, either. 2 hrs. 28 PG-13 (violence, action, adult themes) -- Steven Rea

Joan Rivers: A Piece of Work, 3 stars. Trangressively funny portrait of the septuagenarian comedienne as she strives to restart her stalled standup career. R (profanity, sexually explicit language) -- Carrie Rickey

The Karate Kid, 3 stars. An appealing reboot of the 1984 original about the new kid who faces down bullies with the help of a martial-arts master. Set in Beijing, in this one the martial art is kung fu, the master is Jackie Chan and the kid is Will's boy Jaden Smith. A winner in more ways than one. 2 hrs. 12 PG (martial arts action, bullying, mild profanity) -- Carrie Rickey

The Kids Area All Right, 3 1/2 stars. Deft social satire starring Annette Bening and Julianne Moore as a lesbian couple whose teenage children find their Sperm Dad (Mark Ruffalo). Mia Wakikowska and Josh Hutcherson are the kids in Lisa Cholodenko's film with five actors at the top of their games as five characters in search of what makes a family. 1 hr. 44 R (nudity, sexual content, drugs) -- Carrie Rickey

Knight and Day, 3 stars. Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz are an accidental couple on the run from spies and thugs in this slick but jaunty action thriller-romantic comedy-Hollywood question mark. (Question: Are its toothsome stars still box office gold, or has their audience moved on?) Not going to change the world, but not bad. 1 hr. 50 PG-13 (action, adult themes) -- Steven Rea

The Last Airbender, 2 stars. Blessed with enchanting visuals, blighted with clunky dialogue, M. Night Shyamalan's adaptation of the popular Nichelodeon Television cartoon is stunning in both senses of the word. 1 hr. 43 PG (fantasy action violence) -- Carrie Rickey

Predators, 2 stars. A group of elite warriors is brought together on a distant planet to serve as prey for a new breed of alien predators. Adrien Brody stars. 1 hr. 46 R (extreme violence, gore, profanity, fluorescent green blood) -- Tirdad Derakhshani

Ramona and Beezus, 3 stars. Like the beloved Beverly Cleary books that inspired it, Elizabeth Allen's captivating film shows what the world looks like from the perspective of a scrappy 9-year-old who is neither as fearless as she thinks nor as hopeless as others peg her. Lovely performances from Selena Gomez as Beezus and Joey Lewis as Ramona. 1 hr. 44 G -- Carrie Rickey