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THE YEAR OF THE DOG: I’m sorry to say that this is a dog of a movie. Fortunately, it doesn’t last a year—it just seems like it. Mike White writes very strange films. His first, Chuck and Buck was about a man obsessed with his friend. We liked the film with Jennifer Anniston titled, The Good Girl, but it, too, was rather odd. This film, White’s directorial debut, is about a lonely woman who, when her beloved pet dog dies, becomes obsessed with animals. Molly Shannon is good as Peggy, a 40-something single woman who has difficulty making connections with adults and only seems comfortable with children and animals. I think White may have felt the ending was upbeat: self-discovery through the love of animals. However, by the time the film ended, we had already tuned out. All the people in the film are obsessed: Peggy’s brother and sister-in-law are obsessed with themselves and their children; Peggy’s boss is obsessed with being on the top team at work; Peggy’s neighbor (John C. Reilly) is obsessed with hunting; Peggy’s best friend at work is obsessed with her boyfriend. All the performances are good, but there wasn’t anyone in the film that we liked or cared about. We went to see it because it got some glowing reviews as a "bittersweet comedy." There were some amusing moments, and a couple of touching moments, but for us it was a downer. GRADE C-

YOU CAN COUNT ON ME: This is a must see movie and one of the best films of the year. If Laura Linney doesn't get an Academy Award nomination for her work in this film there is no justice in Hollywood. Mark Ruffalo, who plays Linney's brother, should also be recognized. Linney did get a Golden Globe nomination, but Ruffalo did not. The movie is a labor of love for Kenneth Lonergan who wrote, directed and acted in this family drama. Sammy Precott (Linney) is a single mother living in the small town in which she grew up and is working as a loan officer in the local bank. Her mother and father were killed in an automobile accident when she was young, leaving Sammy and her younger brother, Terry, orphaned. Terry couldn't wait to get out of town, and has wandered from place to place, occasionally getting into trouble and never finding himself. Sammy is thrilled when Terry comes home for a visit, but the reality of living with her brother creates not a little stress. She is pleased when her 8-year-old son (Rory Culkin and Terry begin to form a relationship, but she questions some of their activities--playing pool in the local bar, for example. At the same time, Sammy is trying to adjust to a new boss, a manager who is driving everyone crazy. Matthew Broderick is letter-perfect as Brian, the obsessive-compulsive bank manager, and Culkin is equally natural playing Sammy's son, Rudy. This film has what you rarely get in a Hollywood movie--real people, not sterotypes, in real situations, who act with honest emotions. There is nothing contrived or consciously "dramatic" about the dialogue or the acting. This is Lonergan's first directing effort and he is skillful and subtle in the way he tells the story. And he is delightful as the Priest Sammy goes to for advice. If YOU CAN COUNT ON ME doesn't come to a theater near you, be sure to put it on your video list. GRADE: A

YOU KILL ME: In an interview, Tea Leoni once said that it wasn’t worth leaving her children for an ordinary role: she was only interested in out-of-the ordinary parts. Out-of-the ordinary certainly describes this film and all the characters in it. Ben Kingsley is Frank, an alcoholic hit man whose drinking is starting to interfere with his work. His Buffalo crime family sends him to San Francisco, where they have a friend who will keep an eye on him. They insist that he dry out. He obediently attends an AA meeting, but it’s obvious his heart isn’t in it. He also reluctantly takes a job in a funeral parlor, and it is there that he meets an intriguing woman, the wonderful Tea Leoni, who eventually becomes his girl friend. It goes without saying that Kingsley is terrific: he always is. He is ably supported by Bill Pullman as his local watchdog, Luke Wilson as his AA sponsor, Phillip Baker Hall as his uncle and the head of the Polish crime family, and Dennis Farina, as a Irish crime lord trying to muscle in on Polish territory. So, it’s sort of a romantic/comedy/crime story. The dialogue is sharp and the comedy is witty, but definitely not ordinary. Variety said that the movie should appeal "to those who like their humor (and love stories) quietly outrageous." Readers Diane and Lee U, AZ, saw this one, liked it, and recommended it to us. We’re glad they did. GRADE B

YOU, ME AND DUPREE: Our local critic hated this movie. Apparently he doesn’t like Owen Wilson and doesn’t think Kate Hudson is much of an actress. If you, like us, think Wilson is funny and charming and that Hudson is adorable and charming, then, like us, you will find this movie a pleasant way to spend a hot afternoon. Granted, it’s not a great movie. The plot is contrived and doesn’t always make much sense. However, Matt Dillon and Hudson as newlyweds, Owen Wilson as their unwanted house guest, and Michael Douglas as Dillon’s boss and Hudson’s possessive father, bring it off with a fair degree of style. And you’ll probably get a few laughs out of it. We took grandson Nathan with us and he thought it was funny. GRADE B-

YOUNG AT HEART: Delightful! Heartwarming! Funny! Touching! All these words apply to this documentary about the Young at Heart Chorus from Northampton, MA. Comprised of senior citizens with an average age of 80, this chorus has delighted audiences worldwide with their versions of every one from James Brown to Coldplay. The chorus was started as a collective arts project in 1982 at a center for the elderly, but they have developed into a singing group with an international reputation. The chorus has made 12 tours of Australia, Europe and Canada and has serenaded Norwegian royalty. The documentary focuses on the two-month preparations for a 2006 concert in Northhampton. A solid group of professional musicians accompany the chorus as they work to learn such songs as "Yes We Can Can," Sonic Youth’s "Schizophrenia," and the Coldplay ballad "Fix You." As our local critic pointed out, the lyrics of these songs bring a very different message when sung by people in their so-called golden years. For instance, "Staying Alive" and The Ramones hit "I Wanna Be Sedated" definitely take on new meaning when the Young@Heart Chorus sings them. You will laugh, you will cry, and you will be entertained. GRADE B+

Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN: If your Spanish is a little rusty, the title translates to And Your Mama Too. I went to this film with high expectations. Roger Ebert was highly complimentary and gave it four stars. The New York Times compared it to Jules & Jim, high praise. Holly V. from Carol Stream, IL liked it. I didn't dislike the film, but I didn't love it either. This is a "coming of age" story is about two teenage boys learning to cope with high levels of testosterone and low levels of confidence which plague most teen aged boys. They meet an "older woman" (six or seven years older than seventeen anyway) and embark on a madcap trip across Mexico looking for a dream beach. The sex is plentiful and graphic and might put off even some of our independent film lovers. But the maturity and wisdom of Luisa, the older woman, acts as a catalyst. Of course they all find far more than the beach and change in profound ways. This change and the serious ending raises the film above soft porn or a teen sex romp. C+ (Despite all the sex scenes, I had trouble staying awake in this one, so Gary did the reviewing. GRADE C+

ZATHURA: In this film, two squabbling brothers—a 4th grader and a 1st grader—play an old board game and are plunged into a outer space adventure complete with a defective robot, a stranded astronaut, and voracious alien lizards called Zorgons. In the course of their adventure, they learn to appreciate each other. The movie is based on a book by Chris Van Allsburg who also wrote the book Jumanji which was made into a feature film in 1995. Jon Favreau directed the film. He also directed Elf, another appealing family film and I think he demonstrates a talent for making films that almost all ages can enjoy. I never saw Jumani, but most critics seem to think this is the better of the two movies. I know I enjoyed it and so did Nathan, although Nathan got a bit annoyed by the brothers incessant bickering. Some critics thought the special effects were not special enough, but I think they are completely appropriate for the intended audience and definitely frightening enough for younger kids. Tim Robbins appears in the early scenes as the boy’s father, and Kristen Stewart is their older teen-aged sister. I was touched by the ending scenes, but then I’m easily touched by sentimentality involving kids. GRADE B

ZODIAC: This is a true-life crime movie about the search for a serial killer self-named Zodiac. Director David Fincher does an excellent job maintaining attention and interest for 2 hours and 36 minutes in spite of the fact that there are no gun fights, no car chases, remarkably little violence and the killer is never caught. He keeps the film visually interesting with some memorable camera techniques, and it keep it emotionally interesting by exploring the personalities of the men whose search for the Zodiac killer took over their lives. Mark Ruffalo is especially good as a detective, who, along with his partner (Anthony Edwards) works the case of a murdered cab driver in San Francisco. The San Francisco detectives soon learn that the killer has killed twice before in two separate Northern California counties. The jurisdictional problems cause difficulties for all the detectives working Zodia cases. Robert Downey Jr. is outstanding as a reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle, the newspaper that receives a series of cryptic letters from Zodiac. We thought Jake Gyllenhaal was interesting and credible as Robert Graysmith, a young cartoonist for the paper who discovers the code used in Zodiac’s letters. Graysmith becomes so obsessed with finding the killer that he loses his wife and, eventually, his job. The film is based on Graysmith’s book, Zodiac Unmasked. Chloe Sevigny appears as Graysmith’s wife, and the ubiquitous Brian Cox appears as Melvin Belli. We decided on a grade of B+. GRADE B+