(The following five movies have all been in the top 20 of box office earnings over the last two weeks.)

SAW VI

One of the taglines for this movie: The Game Comes Full Circle. This installment concludes the second trilogy of the series which dealt with the posthumous effects of Jigsaw and the rise of his successor. We see the FBI trailing the last known living Jigsaw accomplice suspect as the actual accomplices set new traps to test unwitting victims. Will the accomplices unlock the potential in their victims and will the actual accomplices be able to pass their own private tests?

John Kramer aka Jigsaw is dead and gone, but his legacy lives on as he tests his wife devotion to him by showing her the extent of his devotion to her and his ideals of what the human spirit is capable of when tested. Doctor Jill Tuck is John's ex-wife and the person given the burden of controlling the chess board as his true successor with his proposed successor as one of the chess pieces. Detective Mark Hoffman successfully over came the trap of the last film to become more than an apprentice but a successor to the Jigsaw mantel, but his actions in the past may have doomed him to fully realizing his potential as his victims lose the point lesson of the ordeal due to the scars they are left to live with. Agent Lindsey Perez was thought dead after being injured by shrapnel from a Jigsaw puppet but is very much alive and active on the FBI case to find the Jigsaw apprentice who is believed to be her former partner Agent Peter Strahm.

This is a fitting installment to the Saw franchise and it can be watched for fans of the 5 previous films or someone being introduced to the Saw world of traps and trickery. Of course it is still a sequel and because of this it does not have the visceral potency of the original and being a victim of its own success it feels watered down when compared to alot of the Saw movie pretenders. I commend the movie makers for updating the Reverse Bear Trap and for the tight plotting of this film with an emphasis on the economic struggle of people stuck with health care regulation by insurance companies who only care about the bottom line. However, this is a horror movie franchise and you stop being scary it may be time to moth ball the old toys and the social commentary. I rate this a Rated B.

The Stepfather

One of the taglines for this movie: This Fall, Do You Know Who Your Family Is?  A seemingly normal man wants nothing but to marry into what he thinks is the perfect family. However, when they don't measure up, he eliminates them and moves on to another supposedly perfect family. A troubled teen returns from a year of military school to find his divorced mother in love with his soon-to-be stepfather, who has moved into their home. As strange events become more frequent, the teen tells his mother and girlfriend of his suspicions. The only problem is that his presence has made the family dynamic less than perfect.

David Harris is a resourceful salesman who has been able to become an important father figure in many families, but when is own imperfections are seen in the families he has attached himself to he finds that he most destroy the host family before moving on like the parasite he truly is. Michael Harding just wants to move past his year in military school and his divorced parents squabbling and move on to his longtime girlfriend and senior year at his old high school, but David may complicate matters with his ideas of what family is.  Susan Harding is the mother of Michael, Skyler and Sean with a need to make her relationship with David work, but that may be harder than she thinks when Michael returns and her youngest son feeling more comfortable talking to his biological father about problems with his soon-to-be stepfather.  Kelly Porter is happy to have her boyfriend Michael back from military school and can't wait to make college plans with him, but his obsession with David's past may threaten their relationship that has already suffered the strain of being long distance.

I am a fan of the original Stepfather movie and even though I was hesitant of this remake I most say that it won me over with its modern interpretation. This production has been thoughtfully crafted with a mounting sense of dread that is generated by believable dialogue and confident performances. I will admit that the style seems to be heavily influenced by Disturbia, but it works for the film and the soundtrack really helps give it a slick edge over other movies in the genre. I rate this movie a Rated B.  

The Fourth Kind

One of the taglines for this movie: There Are Four Kinds Of Alien Encounters. The Fourth Kind Is Abduction. This film claims to be based on actual case studies and is supposedly a documentary reenactment. Set in Nome Alaska a psychologist unwittingly discovered disturbing identical details in sessions with unconnected patients which leads to some of the most alarming evidence of alien abduction documented. The validity of these startling revelations are investigated throughout the production.

Doctor Abigail Tyler is a mother of two dealing with the death of her husband when she stumbled upon matching accounts in different patients which seem to share similarities with stories of alien abductees. Doctor Abel Campos is a friend of Abigail and does not share her belief in the phenomena she thinks she has uncovered. Doctor Awolowa Odusami is an authority on alien encounters in ancient civilizations and had been contacted by Abigail's husband before his death and agrees to meet with her at her home. Sheriff August is the law in the small town and feels that Abigail's methods in her sessions may be the cause of the harm coming to her patients.

The title of the the film is derived from the classifications of close encounters with extraterrestrials created in 1972 by J. Allen Hynek. The controversy surrounding this movie is whether any of it really happened or whether the whole thing is a fabrication. The film is well made and the never-before-seen archival footage which has been seamlessly integrated with the re-enactment no matter how real does have an unnerving effect. I liked how they treated shot this alien abduction story in the style of a demonic possession motion picture. I rate this movie a Rated B.

P.S. During the end credits there are recordings of 911 calls from around the United States of different people giving their accounts of what they believe to be sighting of Unidentified Flying Objects.

Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs

The tagline for this movie: Prepare To Get Served. A scientist trying to solve the food problem of a town that only eats sardines finds that success is not all it's cracked up to be. When his invention starts making food weather, the miracle that was meant to save the town soon turns into the nightmare that may destroy it. It is up to the scientist and his friends to find a way to stop his invention before it causes a catastrophe of global proportions.

Flint Lockwood is a young inventor who dreams of creating something that will improve everyone's life and make his father proud of him, but so far all of his inventions have just done the exact opposite.  Sam Sparks is a weather girl on her first location shoot who hides her meteorological intelligence and cute nerdiness behind a perky exterior of average layman's terms. Officer Earl Devereaux is the town athletic near superhuman cop who loves his wife and son and thinks that Flint is mischief-maker and rabble-rouser. Mayor Shelbourne is the selfish mayor of Swallow Falls who is unhappy with his size and thinks that Flint's new invention can put the town, and more importantly himself, on the map.

This is a fun movie for the whole family while being smart, insightful and packed with fast-paced action that will delight the senses. The movie is meant to be a explanation to the events in the book book of the same name by Judi & Ron Barrett on which it is based. The CGI animation style can best be described as Muppet style human caricatures and adds to the charm that this movie is just full to the brim with.  The voice acting is makes the clever dialogue that much better and nicely touches on the host of relationship dynamics on display in the movie. I rate this a Rated T.

Couples Retreat

One of the taglines for this movie: It May Be Paradise... But It's No Vacation. That pretty much sums up this comedy which is centered around four couples who settle into a tropical-island resort for a vacation. One of the couples got the other three couples to join into the vacation so they could get the group rate and work on their marriage. What they all fail to realize is that participation in the resorts therapy sessions is mandatory if you wish to remain and not optional.

Dave and Ronnie are the parents of two young boys who look at this vacation as the honeymoon they never had and can't wait to have some romantic alone time with each other for a change. Joey and Lucy are a couple with a teenage daughter who are on the verge of separation once she leaves for college in the Fall who see this as a chance to explore what time away from each other in paradise might be like. Jason and Cynthia are planning to divorce each other due to the fact that they are not able to conceive and see this weekend as a chance to save their marriage or just make a clean break from each other. Shane is recently divorced and brings his new girlfriend Trudy on the vacation in hopes of forming a bond with her that can overcome the glaring age gap which is the crux of their relationship and the fact that he is still in love with his wife who divorced him.

This movie is probably more relate-able for couples who watch it than singles who watch it, but it can be predictable at times. The one-liners are done with expert timing by the cast, but the movie raises issues only to gloss over them in the end with the obligatory reconciliation. You know its a Hollywood concoction when middle-aged average looking men, have young above average looking wives and girlfriends as the disrobing sequence on the beach so clearly displays. Its escapism for people who need to escape their 'better half'...lol. I rate this a Rated B.

P.S.
After the end credits is a funny out-take of the four men having a little discussion while relieving themselves in the bushes.