At area theaters
86 BAD WORDS, R Jason Bateman makes his directorial debut and plays a 40-year-old who exploits a loophole in the rules to hijack a national spelling bee. (89 minutes)
87 CAPTAIN AMERICA: THE WINTER SOLDIER, PG-13 When a S.H.I.E.L.D. colleague comes under attack, Steve Rogers, aka Captain America (Chris Evans), who has been living quietly in Washington, D.C., and trying to adjust to the modern world, must join forces with Black Widow and the Falcon against the unexpected and formidable Winter Soldier. With Scarlett Johansson, Samuel L. Jackson, Robert Redford, Anthony Mackie, Cobie Smulders, Sebastian Stan, Garry Shandling, Jenny Agutter; directed by Anthony and Joe Russo. (136 minutes)
85 DIVERGENT, PG-13 In a world where people are divided into distinct factions based on human virtues, a young misfit (Shailene Woodley) who’s been labeled a Divergent discovers a conspiracy to destroy her and everybody like her. (143 minutes)
79 THE FACE OF LOVE, PG-13 A widow(Annette Bening), five years after her husband’s death, meets a man who seems to be his exact duplicate and romance blossoms - but it isn’t a question of if the truth of what drew her to him will come out, but when. With Ed Harris, Robin Williams, Amy Brenneman, Jess Weixler; directed by Arie Posin. (92 minutes)
81 FRANKIE & ALICE, R Halle Berry plays a go-go dancer with multiple personalities who works with a psychotherapist (Stellan Skarsgard) to fight two alter egos: a 7-year-old child named Genius and a Southern white racist woman named Alice. With Phylicia Rashad, Chandra Wilson, Matt Frewer; directed by Geoffrey Sax. (101 minutes)
79 GOD’S NOT DEAD, PG A devoutly Christian college freshman who finds his faith challenged by a dogmatic philosophy professor. (113 minutes)
73 GOODBYE WORLD, not rated In the wake of a crippling, apocalyptic cyber attack, a couple and their young daughter who have been living off the grid turn their home from a peaceful refuge into a fortress. With Adrian Grenier, Gaby Hoffmann, Ben McKenzie, Mark Webber, Kerry Bishe; directed by Denis Hennelly. (101 minutes)
87 THE GRAND BUDAPEST HOTEL, R The legendary concierge at a famous European hotel between the wars and the lobby boy who becomes his most trusted friend become involved in the theft and recovery of a priceless Renaissance painting and the battle for an enormous family fortune. (100 minutes)
89 GRAVITY, PG-13 A horrific accident during a space walk strands a medical engineer (Sandra Bullock) on her first shuttle mission and a veteran astronaut (George Clooney)commanding his last flight, tethered to nothing but each other and spiraling out into the blackness with no apparent chance for rescue. (90 minutes)
89 THE LEGO MOVIE, PG An ordinary, rules-following, perfectly average Lego minifigure (voice of Chris Pratt), mistakenly identified as the key to saving the world, joins a fellowship of strangers on an epic quest to stop an evil tyrant. Computer animated in 3-D. (100 minutes)
84 THE MONUMENTS MEN, PG-13 George Clooney directs and plays the leader of a team of museum directors, curators and art historians assembled as a platoon and sent into Germany in the latter days of World War II to retrieve artistic masterpieces from the Nazis and return them to their rightful prewar owners. (118 minutes)
86 MR. PEABODY & SHERMAN, PG Super-genius canine Mr. Peabody and his mischievous boy, Sherman, took all kinds of time-travel adventures, via their “Wabac” machine, on the old Rocky & Bullwinkle & Friends show. But when Sherman and his friend Penny accidentally rip a hole in the universe, wreaking havoc on the most important events in world history, Mr. Peabody must come to their rescue. Animated. (90 minutes)
86 MUPPETS MOST WANTED, PG The Muppet gang, on a world tour and selling out grand theaters in several European capitals, find themselves entangled in an international crime caper headed by a master criminal who’s a dead ringer for Kermit. (112 minutes)
72 NEED FOR SPEED, PG-13 This latest video-game derivative involves a blue-collar mechanic (Aaron Paul), just out of prison on a manslaughter frame-up, who takes on his arrogant ex-partner in a cross-country race against time that begins as a mission for revenge but proves to be one of redemption. (130 minutes)
82 NOAH, PG-13 Russell Crowe plays the patriarch whom God chooses to save human and animal life. (138 minutes)
74 NON-STOP, PG-13 Liam Neeson plays an air marshal faced with cryptic text messages demanding that the airline transfer $150 million into an offshore account; until it happens, every 20 minutes a passenger on his flight will be killed. (106 minutes)
80 THE NUT JOB, PG An obnoxious squirrel (voice of Will Arnett) and his rat friend’s plans for a monster nut-store heist embroils them in a much more complicated adventure.Animated. (86 minutes)
89 PHILOMENA, R Judi Dench plays an Irish Catholic who, years after giving up her out-of-wedlock baby for adoption in the United States, sets out with the help of a crusty BBC reporter to search for her long-lost son. (98 minutes)
80 POMPEII, PG-13 A slave turned invincible gladiator races against time to save his true love as Mount Vesuvius erupts. (102 minutes)
70 RIDE ALONG, PG-13 A squad-car ride-along turns into 24 hours of insanity when a high-school security guard (Kevin Hart) enters the police academy. (100 minutes)
73 THE SINGLE MOMS CLUB, PG-13 Tyler Perry’s latest actor-director-screenwriter effort involves five struggling single moms who put aside their differences to form a support group. (111 minutes)
82 THOR: THE DARK WORLD, PG-13 Chris Hemsworth returns as Marvel Comics hero Thor. (120 minutes)
75 WALKING WITH DINOSAURS, PG An underdog dinosaur triumphs against all odds. Animated. (87 minutes)
Movie-rating point system
Movies are rated on a scale from 50 to 100. Guidelines for moviegoers:
96-100 Transcendent
90-95 Exceptional
80-89 Better than most to remarkable
70-79 Average
60-69 Awful to mediocre
50-59 Irredeemable
MovieStyle, Pages 35 on 04/11/2014