Movie Reviews
While it conveys a worthwhile lesson about adapting to circumstances, director John Schultz's screen version of Megan McDonald's best-selling series of children's books feels as meandering and ultimately pointless as the search for Sasquatch to which too much of its screen time is devoted. And, though really objectionable material is absent, a childish potty gag does get carried to briefly queasy extremes. Some scatological humor, a few mildly crass terms. (A-II, PG)
The Tree of Life (Fox Searchlight)
Terrence Malick's metaphysical rumination weaves together sequences featuring a married couple (Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain) raising three boys in Texas in the 1950s with special-effects-laden passages depicting the origins of the universe and change in the natural world. Consistently beautiful and frequently moving, the lyrical work ultimately proves unsatisfying due to its overly schematic starting point —- the juxtaposition of nature and grace — and its glancing endorsement of New Age spirituality rather than belief in God. Although free of any morally objectionable content, the film's mature subject matter and eschewal of plot and dialogue in favor of mood and imagery make it a better fit for cinephiles than mainstream audiences. (A-II, PG-13)
X-Men: First Class (Fox)
In this Camelot-era prequel to the "X-Men" franchise of comic-book adaptations, young mutants with assorted superpowers —- most prominently Charles, aka Professor X (James McAvoy), and Erik, alias Magneto (Michael Fassbender) — team up to avert nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. Director and co-writer Matthew Vaughn keeps the pace brisk. But some provocative costuming, along with the titular warriors' unfortunate propensity for coarse talk, makes this an inappropriate offering for youngsters. Considerable, though nongraphic, gun violence, a couple of uses of profanity, a few instances of rough language, fleeting sexual references, some mild sexual banter. (A-III, PG-13)
—CNS
Catholic News Service classifications: A-I — general patronage; A-II — adults and adolescents; A-III — adults; L — limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling; O — morally offensive. More reviews online: www.usccb.org/movies.
The Tree of Life (Fox Searchlight)
Terrence Malick's metaphysical rumination weaves together sequences featuring a married couple (Brad Pitt and Jessica Chastain) raising three boys in Texas in the 1950s with special-effects-laden passages depicting the origins of the universe and change in the natural world. Consistently beautiful and frequently moving, the lyrical work ultimately proves unsatisfying due to its overly schematic starting point —- the juxtaposition of nature and grace — and its glancing endorsement of New Age spirituality rather than belief in God. Although free of any morally objectionable content, the film's mature subject matter and eschewal of plot and dialogue in favor of mood and imagery make it a better fit for cinephiles than mainstream audiences. (A-II, PG-13)
X-Men: First Class (Fox)
In this Camelot-era prequel to the "X-Men" franchise of comic-book adaptations, young mutants with assorted superpowers —- most prominently Charles, aka Professor X (James McAvoy), and Erik, alias Magneto (Michael Fassbender) — team up to avert nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union during the 1962 Cuban missile crisis. Director and co-writer Matthew Vaughn keeps the pace brisk. But some provocative costuming, along with the titular warriors' unfortunate propensity for coarse talk, makes this an inappropriate offering for youngsters. Considerable, though nongraphic, gun violence, a couple of uses of profanity, a few instances of rough language, fleeting sexual references, some mild sexual banter. (A-III, PG-13)
—CNS
Catholic News Service classifications: A-I — general patronage; A-II — adults and adolescents; A-III — adults; L — limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling; O — morally offensive. More reviews online: www.usccb.org/movies.
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