Gangster drags

You’ve got Crowe and Denzel — why not put them together?

(Nov. 8, 2007) Previews

Alas, the Christmas season is upon us. Opening Friday, Nov. 9, is Fred Claus , in which Paul Giamatti plays Santa, who hires his jealous and irascible older brother Fred (Vince Vaughn) as a worker in order to get him out of jail. Making toys is not what Fred is suited for. With a cast that also includes Miranda Richardson, Rachel Weisz and Kathy Bates, there may be hope here. Plus, there’s the killer set. Rated PG for some mild language and rude humor. 126 m. At the Broadway, Fortuna and Mill Creek.

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Director Robert Redford joins Meryl Streep and Tom Cruise in the cast of Lions for Lambs , the latest in the seemingly endless films dealing with U.S. involvement in overseas wars. Redford is a college professor who inspires students to make a difference. Two of them (Derek Luke and Michael Peña) sign up for duty in Afghanistan but trouble erupts when an ambitious senator (Cruise) tries to initiate a new war policy that will adversely affect the idealistic students. This is the first release for Cruise’s United Artists. Rated R for some war violence and language. 102 m. At the Broadway and Mill Creek

P2 is a horror film named after a parking garage level — the level where the latest horror film female victim (Rachel Nichols, The Woods ; Resurrecting the Champ ) is stranded on Christmas Eve. She’s about to discover that all work and no play makes a businesswoman a target for a psychopath. Written by The Hills Have Eyes team. Rated R for strong violence/gore, terror and language. 108 m. At The Movies and Mill Creek.

From Nov. 9 to 20, The After Dark Horrorfest: Eight Films to Die For will screen at the Broadway.Check with the theater for the screening schedule, or see the flyer available at any Coming Attractions Theatre.The festival is rated R.

Reviews

AMERICAN GANGSTER: Not “An American Gangster” but the more mythic and signifying American Gangster , which in turn roused in me memories of such classics as the truly mythic Godfather films, along with Goodfellas and The Untouchables and even the TV series The Sopranos . The producers certainly pulled out the big guns: director Ridley Scott and major A-List actors Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe.

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