Everybody's Fine? No, Everybody's Sappy

Filming slain writer's script a fine sentiment, poorly executed

(NEWSER) - When Waitress writer-director Adrienne Shelly was murdered, in 2006, she left behind the script for Serious Moonlight. Critics speculate that she might have made it work, but that hasn't happened:

• "A wife duct-tapes her husband to a chair and tells him that she will make him fall in love with her again (and if she doesn't, she'll never set him free)," Mick LaSalle summarizes in the San Francisco Chronicle . "The banter is insufferable. The situation is frustrating. Audiences may begin to feel as if they're duct-taped to a chair."

Woody Harrelson vehicle dethrones Meatballs in debut weekend

(NEWSER) - Zombieland raked in $25 million to dominate the box office in its debut weekend, easily dethroning Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, which had held the top spot the previous two weekends. The R-rated comic horror movie starring Woody Harrelson drew an overwhelmingly young audience, with 56% under 25, Variety reports. Director Drew Barrymore's Whip It disappointed, taking in just $4.85 million and tying for sixth place with Michael Moore's Capitalism: A Love Story. The top five: More»

Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones return for alien flick

(NEWSER) - Sure, no one was that desperate for a Men in Black 3—but it's actually a pretty good summer movie. Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones are back defending the planet from aliens, and this time, Josh Brolin's along for the ride as a young Jones.

• The movie "turns out to be so much fun," writes AO Scott in the New York Times . While it "carefully fulfills its blockbuster imperatives—with chases and explosions and elaborately contrived plot twists—it swerves into some marvelously silly, unexpectedly witty, and genuinely fresh territory."

Jason Segel, Emily Blunt star in truthful romantic comedy

(NEWSER) - The Five-Year Engagement clocks in at over two hours, which is a bit too long for many critics. But its honesty about relationships makes the Jason Segel-Emily Blunt rom-com stand out from the pack.

• "Because it's so willing to drill down into Tom and Violet's misery, The Five-Year Engagement involves a higher grim-to-grin ratio than its fluffier brethren," writes Ann Hornaday in the Washington Post . "But there's an unmistakable ring of truth to the couple's conflicts and mixed feelings."

Julia Roberts stars as evil queen in Snow White spectacle

(NEWSER) - The latest retelling of Snow White (before June's Snow White and the Huntsman) is a lot like its vain queen: visually stunning, but kind of shallow. Critics aren't particularly impressed with Mirror Mirror:

• Though director Tarsem Singh "knows how to make performers and sets look good, he has trouble putting them into vibrant, kinetic, meaningful play," notes Manohla Dargis in the New York Times . That "effectively means that he’s a better window dresser than a movie director."