Now Showing Wednesday, February 8, through Tuesday, February 14

Key: Recommended, New and Free

The Adventures of Tintin 3D Whenever Steven Spielberg works in his self-conscious blockbuster mode—as in the Indiana Jones or Jurassic Park movies--his action sequences are staged with such precision that … City North 14

Albert Nobbs Glenn Close finally succeeds in mounting a screen version of the cross-dressing play she starred in on Broadway in 1982, about a meek, impoverished woman … Century 12 and CineArts 6, Landmark's Century Centre and River East 21

Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked The singing rodents fall off a cruise ship and wash up on a seemingly deserted island. Mike Mitchell directed. Chatham 14, City North 14, Ford City, Lawndale 10 and Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings

The Artist French director Michel Hazanavicius takes a break from his OSS 117 spy spoofs to pay loving tribute to the silent cinema, re-creating its luminous black-and-white … Century 12 and CineArts 6, Crown Village 18, Davis, Lake, Landmark's Century Centre, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings, Showplace ICON and Wilmette

Au Hasard Balthazar "Everyone who sees this film will be absolutely astonished," Jean-Luc Godard once said, "because this film is really the world in an hour and a … Gene Siskel Film Center

Back Street Directed by John M. Stahl, this 1932 feature is the first (and, by reputation, the best) of three film versions of Fannie Hurst's novel. Irene … Portage Theater

Beauty and the Beast Despite some excessive narrative streamlining, this 1991 release was Disney's best animated feature in years, full of charm and humor. It seems to have benefited … Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings

Beauty and the Beast 3D Despite some excessive narrative streamlining, this 1991 release was Disney's best animated feature in years, full of charm and humor. It seems to have benefited … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings, Showplace ICON and Webster Place 11

A Better Life In this soulful drama, an illegal immigrant from Mexico (Demian Bichir) borrows $12,000 to buy a used truck so he can start his own upscale … Music Box

Big Miracle This above-average children's drama from Universal manages to hit all the right notes as an inspirational story while providing a savvy, even cynical account of … Century 12 and CineArts 6, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings, Showplace ICON and Webster Place 11

The Black Power Mixtape 1967-1975 Directed by Goran Hugo Olsson, this Swedish documentary draws on a treasure trove of film footage brought back from the United States by TV reporters … Chatham 14

Breakfast at Tiffany's Blake Edwards's 1961 film of Truman Capote's novel is one of his best-known efforts but far from his best—it's one of the few that he … Music Box

Bridesmaids The brilliant Saturday Night Live player Kristen Wiig finally gets the big-screen vehicle she deserves. This raucous comedy was produced by Judd Apatow (The 40-Year-Old … Music Box

Call Northside 777 Chicago newspaperman James Stewart investigates a murder in this 1948 feature. Director Henry Hathaway specialized in these true-life dramas in the late 40s and early …

Carnage After a school bully assaults a classmate, the victim's parents (Jodie Foster, John C. Reilly) invite the aggressor's parents (Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz) over for … Landmark's Century Centre and Wilmette

Casablanca Part of what makes this wartime Hollywood drama (1942) about love and political commitment so fondly remembered is its evocation of a time when the … Northwestern University Block Museum of Art

Chronicle Three teenage boys in a Seattle suburb gain the powers of telekinesis and super strength after encountering a mysterious alien life force, but instead of … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, Lawndale 10, New 400, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings, Showplace ICON and Webster Place 11

The City Dark Ian Cheney's 2011 documentary considers the starless urban sky and the ill effects of artificial light on people and animals. Gene Siskel Film Center

Contraband This no-frills heist thriller isn’t completely devoid of merit: director Baltasar Kormákur (best known for the Icelandic comedy 101 Reykjavik) brings a keen eye to … 600 N. Michigan, Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings, Showplace ICON and Webster Place 11

Coriolanus Shakespeare's tragedy Coriolanus is seldom staged, yet its story of a professional warrior who proves unfit for democratic society seems as pertinent as ever. Ralph … Landmark's Century Centre

A Dangerous Method John Kerr's nonfiction book A Most Dangerous Method details the scintillating but ultimately fractious professional friendship between Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud, as well as … River East 21

Deadly Impact An Italian thriller (1984) filmed in the U.S. and directed by Fabrizio De Angelis (aka Larry Ludman), with Bo Svenson and Fred Williamson. In Italian … Delilah's

The Descendants Alexander Payne has won an Oscar for best adapted screenplay (Sideways), but you'd never guess that from this clumsily written drama: characters keep explaining things … Century 12 and CineArts 6, Crown Village 18, Davis, Landmark's Century Centre, New 400, River East 21 and Showplace ICON

The Devil Inside Almost competent but not quite watchable, this cheapie horror item blatantly steals from The Exorcist and The Blair Witch Project then cheapens its models by … Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14 and Ford City

Drive Danish director Nicolas Winding Refn made a name for himself with the brutal, proudly amoral Pusher trilogy, then successfully exported his personal brand of mayhem … Music Box

El Bulli: Cooking in Progress German documentary maker Gereon Wetzel chronicles a year in the life of El Bulli, the legendary modernist-cuisine restaurant in Spain that served its final 30-course … Gene Siskel Film Center

Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close With feel-good icons Sandra Bullock and Tom Hanks on board, you know this 9/11 drama will travel a safe emotional arc: loss, grief, confrontation, healing, … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Lake, River East 21, Showplace ICON and Webster Place 11

Fallen Angel Dana Andrews, an advance man for a touring spiritualist, decides to stay on in a small California town when he gets a look at the … Northbrook Public Library

Footloose In this remake of the 1984 teenpic, a brooding city kid (Kenny Wormald) moves to a conservative village where dancing's been outlawed. The movie … the Vic

Foxes Adrian Lyne (Flashdance, Fatal Attraction) made his directing debut with this 1980 drama about teenage girls in the San Fernando Valley. With Jodie Foster, Cherie … Univ. of Chicago Doc Films

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo David Fincher's adaptation of the international best-seller is a triumph of craftsmanship over material. Though Steven Zallian's screenplay preserves the ugly details and underlying puritanism … 600 N. Michigan, Crown Village 18, Davis, River East 21, Showplace ICON and Webster Place 11

The Grey A great leap forward for the talented action director Joe Carnahan, this old-fashioned suspense tale builds on and yet subtly criticizes the slick violence of … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, Lake, Lawndale 10, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings, Showplace ICON, Webster Place 11 and Wilmette

Guy and Madeline on a Park Bench This novel debut feature by writer-director Damien Chazelle combines the low-key naturalism of early John Cassavetes with the heightened artificiality of an MGM musical, and … Tivoli

The Happy Hooker: Portrait of a Sexual Revolutionary Archival footage and assorted testimonials tell the story of Xaviera Hollander, a prominent figure in feminist movement of the 1970s. Jane Addams Hull-House Museum

Hart's War At the heart of this drama, a mildly psychological suspense thriller with military trappings, a white lieutenant and law student represents a black lieutenant on … Pritzker Military Library

Haywire Steven Soderbergh has announced that he'll soon retire from directing to become a painter, and this international thriller—his 23rd feature since 1989—registers as the work … Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings and Showplace ICON

Hugo "The movies are our special place," remarks the title character, and his words go a long way toward explaining how Martin Scorsese came to make … Showplace ICON

Hugo 3D "The movies are our special place," remarks the title character, and his words go a long way toward explaining how Martin Scorsese came to make … Century 12 and CineArts 6, Crown Village 18, River East 21, Showplace ICON and Webster Place 11

I'm Not There Todd Haynes's multilinear treatment of Bob Dylan's early career encompasses no less than six actors and characters: an 11-year-old black musician calling himself Woody Guthrie … Gene Siskel Film Center

The Innkeepers Ti West made his name with The House of the Devil (2009), a 70s-style shocker about a college student hired to mind a spooky old … Music Box

The Iron Lady My hopes for this biopic of Margaret Thatcher dimmed when I learned that the director was Phyllida Lloyd, perpetrator of Mamma Mia! But the other … Century 12 and CineArts 6, Davis, Lake, River East 21 and Webster Place 11

J. Edgar Leonardo DiCaprio packs on the pounds and the prosthetics to play J. Edgar Hoover over a span of more than 50 years, and his feverish … Beverly Arts Center

Joyful Noise Everyone onscreen (including Dolly Parton, Queen Latifah, and the lesser-known supporting players) seems to be having a good time in this cheesy musical comedy, even … Chatham 14, Crown Village 18, Lawndale 10 and Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings

The Kids Are All Right Plenty of movies strive for topicality, but occasionally something like The Kids Are All Right slaps you in the face with the world you're actually …

Knock on Any Door Nicholas Ray wrestles with his social consciousness and loses in this drab 1949 drama about a slum punk (John Derek, of Bo fame) on trial … Univ. of Chicago Doc Films

Leap Year A materialistic, Type-A career gal (Amy Adams), desperate to marry handsome but shallow cardiologist boyfriend (Adam Scott), is prompted by her doting dad (John Lithgow) … Music Box

Life, Above All Adapted from a novel by Allan Straton, this 2010 feature combines deftly executed melodrama with an eye-opening look at the ills confronting poor rural women … Chatham 14

Lipstick & Dynamite If you thought the dramatics of professional wrestling were all in the ring, check out the stories told by female wrestlers in this enjoyable 2004 … Madison Street Theatre

Lou Reed and John Cale: Songs for Drella Reed and Cale, former bandmates in the Velvet Underground, reunite at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 1989 to perform a musical tribute to their … Delilah's

Love Streams John Cassavetes's career of risk taking comes to a climax in this rich, original, emotionally magnificent 1984 film about a brother who is unable to … Northwestern University Block Museum of Art

Les Lutins (French shorts) Four contemporary French short films. In French with subtitles. Alliance Francaise

Magnolia A wonderful mess. Writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson's third feature (1999), over three hours long, represents a quantum leap in ambition from Hard Eight and Boogie … Univ. of Chicago Doc Films

Man on a Ledge Asger Leth, best known for the political documentary Ghosts of Cité Soleil (2006), isn't someone I expected to revive the taut, unpretentious crime filmmaking that … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, Lake, New 400, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings, Showplace ICON and Webster Place 11

Martha Marcy May Marlene The horror aesthetic of B-movie producer Val Lewton—that the unseen is more frightening than the seen—is carried to a merciless extreme in this unnerving debut … Northbrook Public Library

Mission: Impossible -- Ghost Protocol: The IMAX Experience The Mission: Impossible franchise is easy to dismiss as Tom Cruise's zillion-dollar plaything, but he deserves some credit for handing each installment over to a … Navy Pier IMAX

Mission: Impossible—Ghost Protocol The Mission: Impossible franchise is easy to dismiss as Tom Cruise's zillion-dollar plaything, but he deserves some credit for handing each installment over to a … Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings and Showplace ICON

The Muppets A recent appearance by Kermit the Frog on Saturday Night Live's "Weekend Update" reminds one that the Muppets owe their enduring popularity at least partly … the Vic

My Grandmother The filmmakers of Soviet Georgia seem always to have enjoyed a certain independence from the stylistic and ideological lines of Moscow. This 1929 film, directed … Univ. of Chicago Film Studies Center

My Piece of the Pie The once-promising director Cédric Klapisch follows up Russian Dolls (2005) and Paris (2008) with another glossy coffee-table book of a film, presenting familiar content through … Gene Siskel Film Center

My Week With Marilyn Adapted from a memoir by Colin Clark, this British feature recounts his brief friendship with Marilyn Monroe in 1957, when he was a lowly assistant … Landmark's Century Centre

Navajo Joe A lanky young Burt Reynolds, in his second movie lead, plays a Navajo who rides down from the mountains to help some white townspeople drive …

New Year's Eve Director Garry Marshall and screenwriter Katherine Fugate return to the formula of their rom-com hit Valentine's Day, putting another demographically chosen ensemble of stars through … the Vic

One for the Money Katherine Heigl starts up as a bail bondswoman, and her first task is to track down—who else?—an ex. Julie Anne Robinson directed this crime-comedy. 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, Lake, Lawndale 10, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings, Showplace ICON and Webster Place 11

The Palm Beach Story Rudy Vallee turns in his best performance as a gentle, puny millionaire named Hackensacker in this brilliant, simultaneously tender and scalding 1942 screwball comedy by … Transistor

Papagordo: En casa de Raimundo Amador Flamenco artist Raimundo Amador is the subject of this 2011 documentary by Laura Llamas and Victor Morilla. In Spanish with subtitles. Instituto Cervantes

Pickpocket Robert Bresson made this short electrifying study in 1959; it's one of his greatest and purest films, full of hushed transgression and sudden grace. A … Gene Siskel Film Center

Pina German choreographer Pina Bausch died suddenly in 2009, days before she was to codirect this documentary with longtime friend Wim Wenders. The movie he went … Century 12 and CineArts 6 and River East 21

The Princess Bride Rob Reiner's friendly 1987 fairy-tale adventure delicately mines the irony inherent in its make-believe without ever undermining the effectiveness of the fantasy. The framing device … Music Box

The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes Billy Wilder, in an exceedingly mellow mood, portrays Holmes as a tortured man, trapped by his own legend and paying the price for his reputation …

Red Tails George Lucas served as executive producer for this effects-heavy action film about the Tuskegee Airmen, and it feels as synthetic and dull as The Phantom … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, Lawndale 10, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings and Showplace ICON

Senna Formula One racing champion Ayrton Senna, who died in a 1994 crash, is the subject of this documentary by Asif Kapadia, which is most interesting …

A Separation A tale of two families linked by tragedy, this extraordinary drama by Iranian writer-director Asghar Farhadi (Fireworks Wednesday) is hugely compelling on a moral and … Century 12 and CineArts 6 and Music Box

Shame The second feature by filmmaker and visual artist Steve McQueen indulges in the same chic, gallery-ready aesthetic as his first, Hunger (2008); but whereas that … Landmark's Century Centre

Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows I found this sequel more tolerable than Sherlock Holmes (2009), though I'm not sure whether it's actually better or I've just accepted the putrid idea … the Vic

The Sitter A suburban slacker (Jonah Hill, just prior to his dramatic weight loss) agrees to babysit three spoiled kids, then drags them into the city so … the Vic

Star Wars: Episode I -- The Phantom Menace 3D Not bad for a toy commercial, and the SF settings, however familiar, are even more impressive than the gadgets and beasties. The casualties are narrative … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, Lake, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings, Showplace ICON and Webster Place 11

Sunday, Bloody Sunday Overwrought in refined, British ways—little touches that weigh a ton. Penelope Gilliatt's screenplay is about a bisexual sculptor (Murray Head) carrying on simultaneous affairs with … Univ. of Chicago Doc Films

The Taking of Pelham 123 Superior exercise in urban paranoia (1974); the superb location work of director Joseph Sargent goes a long way toward tempering the artificialities of the plot, … Univ. of Chicago Doc Films

Taking Root: The Vision of Wangari Maathai Documentarians Lisa Merton and Alan Dater profile Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai, who spurred a movement across his native Kenya to address environmental problems … DuSable Museum of African American History

The Third Man It once was praised as a sharply realistic study of American idealism (in the person of pulp novelist Joseph Cotten) crushed by European cynicism (embodied … Loyola University Lake Shore Campus

Thunder Soul A precious scrap of American history, this documentary by Mark Landsman tells the story of Conrad Johnson, an inspiring music teacher at Houston's predominantly black … Lawndale 10

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy Tomas Alfredson, best known for the Swedish vampire classic Let the Right One In (2008), adapts the John le Carre novel about British intelligence agents … Landmark's Century Centre and River East 21

Toots A documentary about the legendary bar owner Toots Shor, whose drinking establishment in midtown Manhattan was a social magnet in the 40s and 50s and … Madison Street Theatre

The Tree of Life A masterpiece, this fifth feature by Terrence Malick manages to reconcile the emotional force of his 70s classics, Badlands and Days of Heaven, with the … Music Box

12 Angry Men Sidney Lumet's first film (1957) adapts a Reginald Rose TV play about a serious-minded juror (Henry Fonda, naturally) who gradually convinces his 11 colleagues to … Music Box

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me The 1992 prequel to David Lynch and Mark Frost's famous but short-lived TV series, this deals with the events leading up to the murder of … Delilah's

Twin Peaks The original 1990 pilot for David Lynch's mystery series, with 15 minutes of extra footage, including a "solution" of sorts. It's a lot better than … Delilah's

Underworld: Awakening Kate Beckinsale returns for the fourth installment of this franchise, leading a clan of vampires and werewolves in a war against the human race. Måns … Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Lawndale 10 and New 400

Underworld: Awakening -- An IMAX 3D Experience Kate Beckinsale returns for the fourth installment of this franchise, leading a clan of vampires and werewolves in a war against the human race. Måns … Crown Village 18

Underworld: Awakening 3D Kate Beckinsale returns for the fourth installment of this franchise, leading a clan of vampires and werewolves in a war against the human race. Måns … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings and Showplace ICON

War Horse Steven Spielberg draws on his three most important influences—John Ford, David Lean, and Walt Disney—for this epic pet movie set during World War I. The … River East 21

We Began by Measuring Distance Short works by female filmmakers with roots in Palestine, including Annemarie Jacir and Basma al-Sharif. Gene Siskel Film Center

When a Woman Ascends the Stairs A 1960 film by Mikio Naruse, perhaps the greatest Japanese director as yet unknown to American audiences. Where most directors begin with an anonymous style, … Univ. of Chicago Doc Films

Windfall A full-throated attack on wind energy, this feature by Laura Israel is one of the most surprising (and depressing) eco docs I've seen in years. … Facets Cinematheque

The Woman in Black In this Victorian-era ghost story, Daniel Radcliffe plays a young solicitor haunted by the title spirit while investigating an abandoned rural estate. The film belongs … Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero Showplace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, Lake, Lawndale 10, River East 21, Showplace 14 Galewood Crossings, Showplace ICON and Webster Place 11

World on a Wire Though it sometimes seems repetitive or predictable, Rainer Werner Fassbinder's 205-minute exploitation of SF and hard-boiled-detective cliches (1973) is so affecting it could induce a … Univ. of Chicago Doc Films

The World Was Ours Mira Jedwabnik Van Doren's 2007 history of the Jewish community of Vilna, before its destruction during World War II. Illinois Holocaust Museum & Education Center