Capsule reviews of new movie releases

[riky]

Capsule reviews of new movie releases

<p><a href="http://news.yahoo.com/capsule-reviews-movie-releases-215830964.html"><img src="http://l1.yimg.com/bt/api/res/1.2/QbiEOmNaCYthDyQiMLX8cw--/YXBwaWQ9eW5ld3M7Zmk9ZmlsbDtoPTg2O3E9ODU7dz0xMzA-/http://media.zenfs.com/en_us/News/ap_webfeeds/3e4ce304e53da2062a0f6a7067009143.jpg" width="130" height="86" alt="This film image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows Nicholas Hoult in a scene from &quot;Jack the Giant Slayer.&quot; (AP Photo/Warner Bros. Pictures)" align="left" title="This film image released by Warner Bros. Pictures shows Nicholas Hoult in a scene from &quot;Jack the Giant Slayer.&quot; (AP Photo/Warner Bros. Pictures)" border="0" /></a>&quot;Jack the Giant Slayer&quot; â€" A big-budget, 3-D retelling of the Jack and the Beanstalk legend may seem like the unlikeliest pairing yet of director Bryan Singer and writer Christopher McQuarrie, but this ends up being smart, thrilling and a whole lot of fun. Singer and McQuarrie's collaborations include, most famously, the twisty crime mystery &quot;The Usual Suspects&quot; and the Hitler assassination drama &quot;Valkyrie,&quot; featuring an eye patch-wearing Tom Cruise. They've sort of been all over the place together over the past couple decades â€" why not reinterpret a classic fairy tale? &quot;Jack the Giant Slayer&quot; is cheeky without being cutesy. While the look is medieval, the vibe seems more current, but it's not so anachronistic as to be subversive along the lines of a &quot;Shrek,&quot; for example. It actually ends up being pleasingly old-fashioned. Shot in 3-D â€" rather than one of those muddled 2-D re-dos â€" the film looks crisp and clean, much more so than the trailers and ads might suggest. The action sequences are cut in an unobtrusive way as to allow the intricacy of what's happening on screen to shine through. And once it bursts forth from the ground, the beanstalk itself is magnificent. There aren't many surprises here, though; if you know the story, you know what happens. Nicholas Hoult, Eleanor Tomlinson, Stanley Tucci and Bill Nighy star. PG-13 for intense scenes of fantasy action violence, some frightening images and brief language. 117 minutes. Three stars out of four.</p><br clear="all"/>

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