Your three pre-Christmas wide releases are varying degrees of so-so. ‘Tis the season to be middle-of-the-road!
“Yes Man” (review at Film.com) is the best of them, and it’s only OK. Jim Carrey keeps it fairly reined in as a man who decides to accept every single opportunity that comes to him, no matter how irresponsible or dangerous. I believe this condition is also known as “college.”
“The Tale of Despereaux,” an animated fairy tale with the voices of Matthew Broderick, Dustin Hoffman, Emma Watson, and Tracey Ullman, among others, is kinda cute in places but overall mediocre. If your kids haven’t heard of it, don’t mention it to them.
Finally, “Seven Pounds,” starring Will Smith and Rosario Dawson, is seven pounds of fail in a six-pound bag. It’s hard to like a movie that won’t tell you what it’s about until it’s almost over.
Lots of movies opening on Christmas Day to help people escape from their families, and I’ll have reviews of most of them. Enjoy your last weekend of pre-holiday capitalism!
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