MARSHMALLOWS, REJOICE! Veronica Mars , starring Kristen Bell, screens at I.V. Theater on Friday, May 30.
SCREENINGS Cold in July (109 mins.; NR) A protective father and a murderous excon find themselves entrenched in a web of violence and lies. Michael C. Hall and Sam Shepard star. Wed., June 4, 7:30pm, Plaza de Oro
✯ The Invisible Woman
(111 mins.; R:
some sexual content)
This historical drama recounts the longterm love affair between author Charles Dickens and his much-younger mistress. Were it a more tawdry or tabloid-y film, one might feel proper indulging the temptation to say The Invisible Woman puts the (ahem) back in Dickens. But this film, directed by and featuring Ralph Fiennes as the 19th-century British author, is unexpectedly graceful, a gauzily sensuous period piece that goes light on the scandal. (JW) Sat., May 31, 4:30pm, Ojai Playhouse, 145 E. Ojai Ave., Ojai
✯ The Jewish Cardinal
(96 mins.; NR)
This made-for-TV biography tells the story of Jean-Marie Lustiger, who maintained his cultural identity as a Jew even after converting to Catholicism and joining the priesthood. Sun., June 1, 4:30pm, Ojai Playhouse, 145 E. Ojai Ave., Ojai
✯ Veronica Mars (107 mins.; PG-13: sexuality, drug content, violence, some strong language)
Years after leaving her life as a teenage private eye, Veronica Mars is pulled back to her hometown to help her ex-boyfriend, who’s caught in the middle of a murder case. Fri., May 30, 7pm, Isla Vista Theater, 960 Embarcadero del Norte
NOW SHOWING ✯ The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (142 mins.; PG-13: sequences of sci-fi action and violence)
Peter Parker goes head-to-head with a new collection of villains who are sent by the evil Oscorp Industries to destroy him. Andrew Garfield stars. There’s a lot of movie here: Most of it is dazzling; some of it is touching. (DJP) Fiesta 5 (2-D)
✯ Belle
(104 mins.; PG: thematic elements, some language, brief smoking images)
The illegitimate, mixed-race daughter of a Royal Navy Admiral is taken in by her aristocratic great-uncle. After a while, you stop caring whether this “based on true incidents” story is even accurately conveyed by costume, script, and camera. It’s touching and eloquent, and you would be a churl if it didn’t mist you up a bit. (DJP) Paseo Nuevo
Blended (117 mins.; PG-13: crude and sexual content, language)
Following a bad blind date, a single mom and a single dad find themselves stranded
together at a resort for families. Drew Barrymore and Adam Sandler star. Fairview/Metro 4
✯ Godzilla (123 mins.; PG-13: intense sequences of destruction, mayhem, creature violence) The famous monster is pitted against malevolent creatures who threaten to wipe out humanity. Bryan Cranston and Elizabeth Olsen star. Gareth Edwards’s reimagining of Ishirô Honda’s masterful, sad Gojira (1954) manages the impossible. It’s both impressive and cheesy without resorting to soupy camp. (DJP) Camino Real (2- D)/Metro 4 (2-D)
✯ The Grand Budapest Hotel (100 mins.; R: language, some sexual content, violence)
Wes Anderson’s latest chronicles the adventures of Gustave H., a concierge at a famous European hotel, and the lobby boy he forges a lifelong friendship with. Grand Budapest is beautiful in all the right ways, but the whimsical plot is all quirks and turns of comic phrase. You will laugh and maybe cry, but it’s no Rushmore or Moonrise Kingdom. (DJP) Plaza de Oro
Sustainable Heart
Million Dollar Arm (124 mins.; PG: mild language, some suggestive content)
Jon Hamm stars as an unconventional sports agent who tries to recruit Indian cricket players to baseball’s major leagues. Fairview/Paseo Nuevo
Neighbors (96 mins.; R: pervasive language, strong crude and sexual content, graphic nudity, drug use throughout)
Two new parents struggle when they are forced to live next door to a frat house. Seth Rogen, Rose Byrne, and Zac Efron star. It may take too long to get funny, and feels like pieces are missing, but the slapstick moments work just fine. Better still, in a film about two dudes, it’s really all about Byrne here. (DJP) Fairview/Metro 4
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The Other Woman (109 mins.; PG-13: some sexual references)
A man’s wife teams up with his two mistresses to enact revenge. Cameron Diaz, Leslie Mann, and Kate Upton star. The Other Woman bogs itself down in aimless set pieces; it gives us jokes about getting drunk, or pooping, or dogs pooping, or nattering verbal fights that only make its female victims seem dumb. (DJP) Fiesta 5
COUPLES
Therapeutic Coaching
Only certified therapist in the Tri-County area for the Real Relational Solutions Program Are You In Pain About Your Marriage?
Palo Alto (100 mins.; R: strong sexual content, drug and alcohol use, pervasive language — all involving teens)
A shy high schooler (Emma Roberts) is torn between her slacker boy crush and an illicit affair with her soccer coach. Stylistically, Palo Alto benefits from a solid soundtrack (Blood Orange’s Dev Hynes sets the perfect psuedo-sultry mood) but suffers from a weird half-appropriation of a multitude of indie-film tropes. (AC) Plaza de Oro
MARRIAGE
Is Your Marriage in Crisis?
WENDY ALLEN,
Ph.D, MFT 1207 De La Vina SANTA BARBARA 805-962-2212 WWW.WENDYPHD.COM #MFC21158
From Marriage Tune-up to Last Chance Intensive Therapy
Learn the New Rules of Marriage: Marriage in the 21st Century June 7, 9-12pm www.sbcc.edu/cll may 29, 2014
THE INDEPENDENt
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