Like so many animated movies, director Gore Verbinski’s first foray into feature animation stars a whole bunch of anthropomorphized animals.  Yet unlike seemingly every other talking animals film, the critters in the gorgeously animated Rango are not cute in any conventional sense.  The film’s chock full of endearing characters, but they’re endearing through cracked teeth and gnarled, leathery lizard skin.  This is a testament not only to the film’s singular weirdness, but also to its technical success, and its unexpected status as a legitimate Western.

No one can create thrills, action, suspense, and wonder like director James Cameron. He's revolutionized film over and over again with everything from Terminator 2: Judgment Day and The Abyss toTitanic and Avatar. However, Cameron's Sanctum raises the bar for cinema once more. It's an intelligent, inspired, and invigorating thriller unlike anything that you've ever seen. Cameron probes the very depths of terror, and in the process helps create a modern classic. Having seen the film, ARTISTdirect.com is still drowning from how mindblowing it is.

Director Gregg Araki is a stylistic freak – whatever his budget , he will always color his films with a wide spectrum of shocking sights and sounds. Nothing is too delicate or controversial for the director.

In Kaboom, Smith (Thomas Dekker) is a regular bisexual college student: he lusts after his hunky blonde surfer roommate, Thor (Chris Zylka), and he hangs with his BFF, Stella (Haley Bennett). Everything is going well for him until Smith meets a girl named London (Juno Temple). The two quickly become more than just friends, and then suddenly chaos ensues when a mysterious red-head (Nicole LaLiberte) and a witch (Roxane Mesquida) – who becomes Stella’s love interest – appear.

Dekker is terrific in the role of the protagonist: he captures perfectly the vulnerability in his sexual ambiguity. As emotionally disturbed as the rest of the characters are, they are incredibly endearing. While the rebellious anti-heroes Araki idolized in the past still haunt his artistic vision, he now seems more enlightened and optimistic. Araki, however, still takes chances in his thematic work. He always finds a way to mix sexuality, violence, murder and nudity into the story. With Kaboom, the nudity and sex is prominently explored, yet the film isn’t nearly as violent as his The Doom Generation was. This is a story primarily of sexual awakening and embracing new experiences before our time on this earth is up.

One minor problem with the film is its much-too-quick final act. After focusing so extensively on character development throughout the strangeness, it would have been nice to slow down the action before the end credits. The final few minutes are too abrupt and explosive. I guess that’s why they call it… Kaboom!

Jason Statham is a reliable action star, always impressive kicking and smashing his way through armies of stuntmen. His deep, snarling voice is perfect for the tough guy roles he tends to take on. Yet with his latest, The Mechanic, he takes his tough guy image to a slightly tougher level.

Director Simon West’s heavy-duty remake of Michael Winner’s 1972 cult classic is, for all intents and purposes, a similar film. Both Statham and the legendary Charles Bronson personify Arthur Bishop with power and charisma. Yet Bronson keeps his emotions in check and only concerns himself with the job at hand – not so with Statham. Statham’s Bishop carries around a touch of regret after each successive kill.

After last summer’s Going the Distance, a trend seems to be developing within the romantic comedy genre: telling stories about women unafraid to get as bad as the boys. Ivan Reitman’s No Strings Attached, starring Natalie Portman and Ashton Kutcher, certainly embraces this new trend with its Elizabeth Meriwether-written script about a couple who start a relationship based only on sex.

Emma (Portman) and Adam (Kutcher) first meet at summer camp when they are teenagers. The two then happen to run into each other at a college party and become reacquainted, only to lose contact again. Later they meet for the third time after Emma has become a doctor and Adam starts work on a television show. The two become best friends – with benefits. Emma wants to keep it simple; to her, it’s just sex, nothing more. Adam, however, is not ready for the purely carnal relationship.

The Green Hornet opened on Friday, and while we usually write full reviews here at iamROGUE, we wanted to try something a little different. After all, this flick is an unusual little concoction. While Hornet may not offer the deep, dark complexities of The Dark Knight, or even the impressive wit of Iron Man, it is certainly infectiously fun.

Check out our video review of the latest feature directed by Michel Gondry and written by Superbad scribes, Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg. The segment was recorded while driving around in the actual Black Beauty (the famous Green Hornet vehicle).

Richard Levine’s Every Day is far from your every day experience at the cinema; the independent film doesn’t focus on a single life-changing moment or event, but explores the trials and tribulations that one family goes through every day.

Ned (Liev Schreiber) and Jeannie (Helen Hunt) are in a marriage that has stood the test of time, even if it has grown cold. When Jeannie brings her ailing father (Brian Dennehy) to live with them, she has to try to deal with the guilt of hating her dying father, which builds stress and frustration in the household. Equally difficult is Ned’s inability to truthfully accept their son Jonah’s sexuality. As Jonah (Ezra Miller) wants more freedom, Ned finds himself increasingly trapped in a job he hates.

Ron Howard’s newest film, The Dilemma, tells the darkly comedic story of a man who finds out his best friend’s wife is having an affair and must deal with the repercussions.

Ronny (Vince Vaughn) and Nick (Kevin James) are best friends who are completely honest with each other until Ronny finds that Nick’s wife, Geneva (Winona Ryder), is involved with an attractive young man named Zip (Channing Tatum). Ronny struggles with whether he should tell his oldest friend the truth. The problem is how honest should you be with someone you care about?

Blue Valentine is a powerful motion picture. It tells the story of a man and woman who were once in love but are now falling out of love. Michelle Williams and Ryan Gosling play Cindy and Dean (in Oscar worthy performances), a married couple with a daughter named Frankie (Faith Wladyka). Mom is the serious one who works at a hospital with the hopes of becoming a doctor. Dad is the fun one, a man of many talents, who has a tough time committing to anything (except his wife and daughter). Cindy and Dean could be your neighbors or friends, or even you or me. This sense of familiarity makes the film feel fresh and honest; it may even break your heart.

With True Grit, the Coen Brothers have given movie-goers a great American western that personifies the ways of the old and the trials and tribulations of what is to come. The story follows the aftermath of a murder committed by hired hand Tom Chaney (Josh Brolin), who has since fled into Indian Territory. The victim’s young daughter, Mattie Ross (Hailee Steinfeld), hires the toughest U.S. marshal she can find to apprehend the missing fugitive. She convinces Marshall Reuben J.“Rooster” Cogburn (Jeff Bridges) to pursue Chaney and bring him to justice. Cogburn and Ross are eventually joined by Texas Ranger, LaBoeuf (a marvelously good performance from Matt Damon), who is seeking Chaney for additional, unlawful activity. The unlikely trio then begins the arduous manhunt and the search for “true grit” inside of themselves.