ARE WE THERE YET? Ten minutes into this hapless family c omedy, you’ll be wishing you were any where but there. Starring: Ice Cube, Nia Long COACH CARTER Succeeds thanks to an inspirational st ory, some highly realistic and exciting basketball action, and a winning p erformance from Samuel L. Jackson. Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Rob Brow n, Ashanti RACING STRIPES There’s only so much referential hum or, genre conventions and excrement gags a reasonable human being can tolerate, and here we get too much of all that plus some middling talent. Starring: Frankie Muniz, David Spade WHITE NOISE There are a few moments that’ll make you jump – none more so than the one when the final credits begin to roll and it’s time to get the heck outta the theater. Starring: Michael Keaton THE AVIATOR The second-best biopic Scorsese has h elmed, behind the exalted “Raging Bul l.” DiCaprio’s portrayal of Hughes stan ds out as the finest work of his career. Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Bla nchett LEMONY SNICKET’S A SERIES OF U NFORTUNATE EVENTS Inspired adaptation of the wildly popular kids’ book series that ‘tis a hell of a lot more naughty than nice. Starring: Jim Carrey, Meryl Streep SPANGLISH James Brooks is one of the best in the business at harvesting fresh perspectives on the human condition. Starring: Adam Sandler, Tea Leoni MILLION DOLLAR BABY At its core, this is a heart-wrenching st ory about overcoming impossible odd s and realizing dreams. Starring: Hilary Swank, Clint Eastwoo d, Morgan Freeman FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX This one’s all about the action and the actors have grasped that and have fun with it. Starring: Dennis Quaid, Giovanni Ribi si THE LIFE AQUATIC WITH STEVE ZIS SOU Filmmaker Wes Anderson’s fourth fea ture is the ne plus ultra of whimsical cerebration, and fans of his work will no doubt be lifted into the empyre an. Starring: Bill Murray, Angelica Huston, Owen Wilson, Cate Blanchett OCEAN’S TWELVE When taken – not too seriously – as a p astiche of beautiful people, exotic plac es, groovy tunes, and loosely comic set pieces, this sequel is a snazzy delight. Starring: Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt, Geor ge Clooney, Catherine Zeta-Jones BLADE: TRINITY Third installment in a series running two films too long is the latest cac ophonous calamity to roll off the actio n flick assembly line. Starring: Wesley Snipes, Jessica Biel CLOSER The sum of this tragicomedy’s competing parts adds up to the best-looking portrait of moral depravity on the big screen this year. Starring: Julia Roberts, Jude Law, Nata lie Portman, Clive Owen THE INCREDIBLES Boasts the total package: Great cast, in vigorating storytelling, state-of-the-art 3-D animation and, best of all, that elu sive quality known as movie magic. Starring: Holly Hunter, Craig T. Nelson RAY An instant inductee into the pantheon of great biographic movies. The re isn’t a moment in the entire picture in which we’re not convinced Fox x IS Ray Charles. Starring: Jamie Foxx, Regina King, Ker ry Washington SIDEWAYS A fantastic movie from Alexander Pay ne, who may very well be America’s m ost provocative cinematic storyteller. Starring: Paul Giamatti, Virginia Mads en
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 28, 2005. Read the original PDF.