The Bucket List (PG-13) **: The point of Rob Reiner's latest movie is not to explore how we cope with impending death but the concept of throwing together two cinematic lions (Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman) into reliably comfortable roles and seeing if the mix is potent enough to lure audiences. Nicholson plays a rich guy who ends up in his own hospital; Freeman is the wise sage in the next bed who helps them both come to terms with mortality. Not all that funny, and not all that special, either. -- Ogle (language, a sexual reference) 97 minutes.

Funny Games (R) *** ½: The only thing wrong with director Michael Haneke's shot-for-shot remake of his 1997 German-language thriller -- aside from being nowhere as amusing as its title implies -- is that it can't possibly recreate the experience of watching the original for the first time. But this exceedingly nasty and vicious exercise in cinematic manipulation, about a married couple (Tim Roth and Naomi Watts) and their young son (Devon Gearhart) held hostage in their home by a pair of polite, well-spoken psychopaths (Michael Pitt and Brady Corbet), remains an unforgettable experience, regardless of whether you buy into Haneke's meta-commentary about the relationship between the audience and sadistic entertainment. -- Rodriguez (vulgar language, violence, gore, strong adult themes) 112 minutes.

Join the discussion

Note: If this is your first time using our NEW commenting system, you will have to LOG OUT and then LOG BACK IN.

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. In order to post comments, you must be a registered user of MiamiHerald.com. Your username will show along with the comments you post. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

     Showing: Oldest first Newest first Most-recommended first Least-recommended first

@Nyx.AuthorDisplayName@ wrote on @Nyx.PostedAtTime@:

@Nyx.CommentBody@

@Nyx.Recommender@ @Nyx.AbuseReporter@