United 93

**** Stars

"United 93" is a monumental film. It is a brutally stunning visual that will stand among the crowning achievements of 2006.

We all know what happen on the horrific day five years ago. It was shocking, horrifying, disturbing, and most important...heroic. Director Paul Greengass completely honors the tragic victims of the day the world stop turning. United 93 is a visualized account of the fourth hijacked plane on 9/11. It begins as an ordinary day at an airport. The pilots discuss their flight routes, the attendants discuss their upcoming schedules, and the passenger’s board a routine flight for work, vacation, family visits etc. What happens next is nothing close to ordinary.

Four hijackers take over United 93, along with three other planes. They kill the pilots, hold the plane hostage and change course to a different location. The crew and passengers begin to understand about the World Trade Center and The Pentagon through their cell phones and their families. They realize that their only chance of survival and to prevent another attack is to try to tack back the plane. You know the rest.

Greengrass is a respectable and honorable filmmaker. This is a documentary like film that has no time for Hollywood waste or political garbage. It is simply a tale of heroism and how those in the air and those on the ground made the best decisions possible to prevent more devastation. Families of the victims are encouraging all Americans to see this film. They want us not to mourn those who died, but to celebrate their lives and their acts of true heroism. Shouldn't we honor that? Paul Greengass and the cast and crew of "United 93" sure do. This is a film to remember.

Stick It

** Stars

The Sentinel

*** Stars

Pete Garrison (Michael Douglas, in his first role since 2003's The In Laws) has been a Secret Service agent to the president for as long as he can remember. He's been trying to protect the president from any threat that comes his way, which ironically becomes himself. He is set up to take the fall for an assassination attempt on the president after one his loyal agents and friend is killed. Garrison desperately attempts to prove his innocence by searching for the real criminal behind this operation. While doing this, he is tracked by his former best friend David Breckenridge (24's Kiefer Sutherland)

The performances and script are solid. I can't ever imagine the president going to Toronto for a public speech right after the presidential helicopter is shot down. Still, this is an entertaining and well-crafted thriller.

Friends With Money

*** Stars
Friends with Money gets one thing perfectly right. When you are not with your friends, you talk about them. You mock, question, and discuss their acts with someone else. Very sad, but very true.

Four life-long friends (Olivia, Christine, Jane, and Franny) are all grown, and three of them are married and rich. The other (Olivia played by Jennifer Aniston) is single and scrubbing toilets for a living. Christine, Jane, and Franny begin to realize that their money is slowly tearing away their friendship with Olivia as they all begin to experience the hard-aches and troubles of growing up. This is Jennifer Aniston's best film since The Good Girl. I really hope she turns in an awarding winning performance sometime in the not so distant future. Thankfully, she is one her way with Friends with Money.

Scary Movie 4

*1/2 Star

This is the fourth installment of the Scary Movie Franchise and by far the worst. With an 80 minute or so run-time, it began to struggle from the very beginning. What the hell is Dr. Phil doing in a movie?

Thank You for Smoking

***1/2 Stars This satirical comedy follows the machinations of Big Tobacco's chief spokesman, Nick Naylor (Eackhart), who spins on behalf of cigarettes while trying to remain a role model for his twelve-year-old son. Aaron Eackhart is a smoking hit has Naylor. He is at the top of his game.

The Weather Man

*** Stars
Nicholas Cage is very good at playing down-on-his-luck characters and he ads another credit with The Weather Man. He may be at the top for his professional career, but he is rock bottom with his personal life. He's divorced, he barely knows his kids, and his father is dying from Lymphoma (Michael Caine). He regrets the decisions he made about his marriage and doesn't seem to care that his career has made him famous (even though many people throw fast food at him for wrongly predicting the weather).

This is a depressing and emotional story of one man suffering from his mistakes. Nicholas Cage is dynamite for this role. He covers the plot holes and brings his character into focus. This is a very underrated performance.

The Inside Man

*** Stars

The Libertine

**1/2 Stars

For what it is, it's well done. There is two reasons to see this movie: 1. If you enjoy the study of hedonism and 2. Johnny Depp. His performance is deeply disturbing, yet surprisingly touching. He plays John Wilmot, the second Earl of Rochester, in London of the 17th century. He has a passionate romance with a young actress, Elizabeth Barry, and he writes a rebellious play which lampoons the monarch who commissioned it, Charles II, leading to the Earl's banishment and eventual downfall. It's a total blast to watch Depp, especially in an opening dialogue where he explains that you will not like him throughout the entire film. Well done Johnny.