This week at the movies brings only one new release: Playing for Keeps, a romantic comedy starring Gerard Butler, Jessica Biel, and Uma Thurman. What do the critics have to say?
Some bad movies are aggressive in their awfulness, while others are simply uninspired or clichéd. Critics say Playing for Keeps falls into the latter category, squandering an attractive cast on a script that offers plenty of jarring tonal shifts but no surprises. Gerard Butler stars as a washed-up soccer pro who decides that coaching his kid’s soccer team will help make up for all the time he’s been out of his son’s life. However, the other players’ moms immediately take a shine to the hunky new coach, and complications ensue. The pundits say Playing for Keeps is slavishly devoted to the romantic comedy playbook without exuding much personality of its own, and at times it’s surprisingly sexist. (Check out this week’s Total Recall, in which we count down Butler’s best-reviewed movies.)
The Rabbi’s Cat, an animated feature about an irreverent talking feline in 1930s Algeria, is at 100 percent.
Tchoupitoulas, a fiction/documentary hybrid that follows three teenage brothers on a wild night in New Orleans, is at 86 percent.
Wagner & Me, a doc in which Stephen Fry looks at the life and legacy of the great composer, is at 75 percent.
The Fitzgerald Family Christmas, starring Edward Burns in a drama about a group of adult siblings whose long-estranged father plans to attend the family Christmas celebration, is at 54 percent.
Waiting For Lightning, a doc about professional skateboarder Danny Way, is at 60 percent.
In Our Nature, starring Jena Malone and John Slattery in a drama about a tense reunion at a family summer house, is at 55 percent.
Cheerful Weather For The Wedding, starring Felicity Jones and Elizabeth McGovern in a period dramedy about a woman who is visited by her ex on her wedding day, is at 46 percent.
Hyde Park on Hudson, starring Bill Murray and Laura Linney in a historical drama about FDR hosting the King and Queen of England at his summer house, is at 44 percent.
Deadfall, starring Eric Bana and Olivia Wilde in a thriller about a pair of criminals attempting to traverse an inhospitable wilderness after a casino heist, is at 31 percent.
Lay the Favorite, starring Rebecca Hall and Bruce Willis in a comedy about an aspiring stripper who becomes a sports betting wiz, is at 21 percent.
Delhi Safari, an animated film about a group of animals who are afraid of losing their native habitat, is at 17 percent.
