The following are movie reviews of 'The Ladykillers," and 'Jersey Girl.

The Ladykillers
A quirky quintet of crooks meets its match in a God-fearin' granny with a nose for sniffing out sin, in the unevenly entertaining black comedy, "The Ladykillers" (Touchstone).

Based on the droll 1955 British gem of the same name which starred Alec Guinness and Peter Sellers, this adaptation by writers-directors Joel and Ethan Coen transplants the story from a London flat to a sleepy town on the Mississippi Delta --- the backdrop of their biggest domestic hit, 2001's "O Brother, Where Art Thou?"

Yet, while the film bears the unmistakable stamp of the Coens' off-kilter humor, it does not rank among their best work. Its deep-South setting is beautifully filmed but its obscenity-laced script may have some viewers singing the blues.

Returning to his comedic roots, Tom Hanks stars as Goldthwait Higginson Dorr, Ph.D., a charlatan professor with expertise in Latin, ancient Greek and good old-fashioned chicanery. Goateed and bedecked in a bow tie, the silver-tongued scam artist darkens the doorstep of Marva Munson (Irma P. Hall), a widowed Baptist bulldog with a low threshold for sass --- and an even lower one for the "hippity-hop" music her neighbor blasts on his radio.

Quickly ingratiating himself with sweet talk as highfalutin' as his name, he rents a room in Marva's house, taking special interest in her root cellar. The lettered lout seals the deal with the duplicitous disclaimer that he is "a man who is quiet, and yet not quiet."

But, as one of Hank's previous personas was fond of saying, "Life is like a box of chocolates; you never know what you're gonna get." And no sooner does Marva get a new tenant than he invites four of his "friends" to use her basement as a rehearsal space for their band, assuaging Marva's fears with the soothing assurance, "we play church music."

As it turns out, the only melody these guys are interested in is the metronomic rhythm of pickaxes, since what they are really doing is using her cellar as a base of operations for digging a tunnel to a vault where a nearby riverboat casino stashes its money.

Following the lead of the erudite impresario are Gawain (Marlon Wayans), the foul-mouthed inside man who works at the casino; sad-sack demolition expert Pancake (J.K. Simmons); the requisite dimwitted muscle, aptly named Lump (Ryan Hurst); and the silent but deadly General (Tzi Ma), a former South Vietnamese officer with expertise in burrowing underground.

The film spends so much time with the set-up and introduction of characters that the actual execution of the heist seems almost like an afterthought. The story gets back on track, however, when Marva uncovers their plot and threatens to call the police if they don't do the proper Christian thing and return the stolen money.

From this point on the comedy navigates darker waters, as Dorr's gang decides to kill the righteous landlady --- thus justifying the film's title. Each failed attempt to knock her off results in a series of backfiring consequences that are at once twisted and perversely funny.

Hanks is at the top of his game as the scholarly scoundrel. Hall's bulletproof Baptist is also pitch perfect.

Unfortunately, much of the dialogue contains unnecessarily raw language. The film at times also resorts to gross potty humor, as in the running gag involving Pancake's irritable bowel syndrome, which flairs up at the least opportune occasions. Some viewers may be put off by the use of violence to elicit laughter, especially during the film's gallows-humor climax.

Still, the movie is not without moral merit. "The Ladykillers" opens with a shot of a garbage barge trudging down the Mississippi underscored by Gospel music. And while the image will come into play later on, the overlaying of the sacred on the profane also cues viewers to the moral dilemma at the center of the narrative.

After she gums up their caper, Dorr tries to bribe Marva with a full cut of the loot, playing on her pious sensibilities, by explaining that the money was stolen from a "sinful" casino and could be used to do good. The not-so-little old lady comes through the ends-justifies-the-means temptation with a little help from the disapproving portrait of her dead husband, stating, "It's stealing. It's just plain wrong."

Like the majestic river it is set against, "The Ladykillers" is full of clever twists and turns, but its flow is slowed at times by some narrative sludge.

Due to some violence, a comedic treatment of larceny, as well as much rough and sexually crude language and humor, the USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

---David DiCerto

Jersey Girl
Writer-director Kevin Smith shows his sentimental side in "Jersey Girl" (Miramax), a mostly heartwarming comedic tale of a widower reconnecting with love and family priorities.

When Manhattan hotshot publicist Ollie (Ben Affleck) loses his adored wife (Jennifer Lopez) in childbirth, he moves back in with his crusty New Jersey dad (George Carlin), expecting "Grandpa" to take care of infant Gertie.

After a few weeks, Dad insists Ollie be a father and pushes the squealing baby back on Ollie as he's headed to a crucial press conference where the stressed-out publicist impulsively insults the press and his client on camera. In one stroke Ollie has irreparably destroyed his career.

Seven years later Gertie (Raquel Castro, looking for all the world like a pint-size Jennifer Lopez) is a happy Jersey girl, a first-grader at St. Maria Goretti Elementary School. Ollie has closed himself off to romance since his wife's death and is in a dead-end job alongside his dad in the local public works department as they raise the precocious Gertie together.

Enter grad student/video store clerk Maya (Liv Tyler), who's intrigued by Ollie helping Gertie find a kiddie video while secretly returning the triple-X video he's rented. She cajoles him to be part of her grad-student survey about porn users and when he admits he hasn't been intimate with anyone in seven years she drags him home for what she flippantly terms a "mercy jump." Gertie's unexpected arrival quashes the seduction and Ollie and Maya back off, instead beginning a tentative friendship.

Meanwhile, Gertie, inspired by the Broadway production of "Sweeney Todd" her dad took her to, is excited about doing a scene from it at the school play, with Dad and Grandpa taking part as well.

Conflict arises when Ollie finagles an interview at a top public relations firm, determined to get back his plush Manhattan lifestyle, complete with a live-in nanny for Gertie. The midtown interview, however, is at the same time as Gertie's big musical scene with him at the school play. Something's gotta give.

It's refreshing to see a movie open in a first-grade Catholic classroom which is depicted in such a positive way, without any cynical undertones. And the story is basically quite sweet-natured, about the value of family and loving relationships being far more important than career success, material goods and empty prestige.

Viewers rightly will not appreciate that Maya would have engaged in casual sex or the references to pornography and self-gratification, but the essential message of the movie is Christian, and the characters, including Dad's co-workers, are caring and love one another.

Marriage and fatherhood seem to have taken some of the coarse edge off Smith's humor in favor of more warmth and emotional maturity.

The movie's conclusion, while entirely predictable, is also too cut and dried as Ollie seems to see no middle road between a workaholic occupation and a boring blue-collar job when in reality workable compromises can be made to best use one's talents.

Handsomely lensed, the film's visuals are a definite upgrade from the director's previous efforts, and the sentimentality may just work as a crowd pleaser.

Due to recurring profanity, an instance of rough language, a few crass expressions and sexual references, the USCCB classification is A-III -- adults. The MPAA rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

---Gerri Pare

Gerri Pare is director and David DiCerto is on the staff of the Office for Film & Broadcasting of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.