Now Showing Thursday, March 18, through Wednesday, March 24

Key: Critic's Choice, Recommended, New and Free

Ajami Jewish filmmaker Yaron Shani and Palestinian filmmaker Scandar Copti collaborated on this gritty Israeli drama, which circles around chronologically in Pulp Fiction fashion to tell … Music Box

Alice in Wonderland Tim Burton has dropped the Mad Hatter's "clean cups" bit from this adaptation of Lewis Carroll, though he does find time for a leaden narrative … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero ShowPlace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Davis, Ford City, Gardens 7-13, New 400, Niles ShowPlace 12, Norridge, Pickwick, River East 21, Showplace 14 - Galewood Crossings and Webster Place 11

Alice in Wonderland 3D Tim Burton has dropped the Mad Hatter's "clean cups" bit from this adaptation of Lewis Carroll, though he does find time for a leaden narrative … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Cicero ShowPlace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Gardens 1-6, Lake, Niles ShowPlace 12, River East 21, Showplace 14 - Galewood Crossings, ShowPlace ICON and Webster Place 11

Alice in Wonderland An IMAX 3D Experience Tim Burton has dropped the Mad Hatter's "clean cup" bit from this adaptation of Lewis Carroll, though he does find time for a leaden narrative … Navy Pier IMAX

The Art of the Steal Philadelphia pharmaceutical baron Albert C. Barnes saw greatness in the canvases of Matisse and Van Gogh long before the curatorial caste caught on to post-Impressionism, … Landmark's Century Centre

Avatar 3D More than a decade in the making, James Cameron's 3-D fantasy about a colony of human astronauts hoping to plunder an alien rainforest represents a … Lake, River East 21 and ShowPlace ICON

Bitch Slap Rick Jacobson directed this 2009 action movie about three women who try to steal diamonds from a desert kingpin. With Julia Voth, Erin Cummings, and … Subterranean

The Blind Side Based on the nonfiction book by Michael Lewis, this potent tearjerker tells the story of Michael Oher, a gigantic black teenager from impoverished West Memphis … Gardens 1-6, Highland Park, Logan and Tivoli

The Bounty Hunter A bounty hunter (Gerard Butler) is charged with tracking down and bringing back his ex-wife (Jennifer Aniston). Andy Tennant directed, following up his wretched 2008 …

Broken Embraces Another Pedro Almodovar movie, another blast of critical hyperbole hailing his Cukor-style alchemy with star Penelope Cruz. Normally I would just cover my head and … Highland Park

Brooklyn's Finest If there were any more cops on the edge in this arrhythmic, ham-fisted crime drama, Brooklyn would need a bigger edge. Ethan Hawke is a … Chatham 14, Cicero ShowPlace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, River East 21 and Showplace 14 - Galewood Crossings

A Chemical Reaction Brett Plymale directed this 2009 documentary about a Quebec town's efforts to ban toxic lawn and garden pesticides. 79 min. Columbia College, Ferguson Auditorium

Cop Out Nothing to see here, keep moving. Bruce Willis and Tracy Morgan are New York cops whose commander relieves them of their guns and badges after … 600 N. Michigan, Chatham 14, City North 14, Ford City, Niles ShowPlace 12 and Showplace 14 - Galewood Crossings

The Crazies George A. Romero's Night of the Living Dead (1968) ended with a crushingly ironic scene in which the lone survivor of a zombie onslaught is … Chatham 14, Cicero ShowPlace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, River East 21 and Showplace 14 - Galewood Crossings

Crazy Heart Jeff Bridges finds the perfect vehicle for his lazy charm and bitter irony in the role of Bad Blake, a washed-up country star trying to … Davis, Landmark's Century Centre, Niles ShowPlace 12, Renaissance Place, River East 21 and Wilmette Theatre

Diary of a Wimpy Kid I did a double take at the end of this kids comedy when the PG rating advised me that "some material may be unsuitable for …

Dirt! The Movie Bill Benenson, Gene Rosow, and Eleonore Dailly directed this 2009 documentary that explores the importance of dirt as a natural resource and the ill effects … Chicago Cultural Center and Claudia Cassidy Theater, Chicago Cultural Center

Django In this 1966 spaghetti western, the title character arrives in a border town dragging a coffin behind him and gets mixed up in a feud … Delilah's

An Education In London during the early 60s, a precocious 16-year-old schoolgirl (Carey Mulligan) is seduced by a middle-aged grifter (Peter Sarsgaard) so good at his game … Highland Park, Landmark's Century Centre and Northbrook Public Library

Fuego Latin American sex symbol Isabella Sarli stars as a sexually ravenous woman in this 1969 exploitation film from Argentina. Armando Bo directed. In Spanish with … Facets Cinematheque

The Getaway It's too bad they didn't really film Jim Thompson's novel, which remains one of the most astonishing pieces of pulp fiction ever written, yet Sam … Delilah's

The Ghost Writer Because this suspense film was directed by Roman Polanski and centers on a character who's fighting extradition for past crimes, it's bound to get more …

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo An award winner in its native Sweden, this jumbo-size mystery is adapted from the first novel in Stieg Larsson’s “Millennium Trilogy” and explores the various … Landmark's Century Centre and Renaissance Place

God's Little Acre Erskine Caldwell's steamy 1933 novel had to wait a quarter century to be filmed and even then came out under the aegis of an independent … Bank of America Cinema

The Good Guy Any movie that name-checks Ford Maddox Ford's novel The Good Soldier is OK by me, and clearly writer-director Julio DePietro has made a careful study … Pipers Alley

Grand Canyon Adventure: River at Risk in 3D A raft journey down the Colorado River is the focus of this large-format documentary, which touches on global water issues. Greg MacGillivray directed, and Robert … Navy Pier IMAX

Green Zone Director Paul Greengrass has applied his jumpy, tumbling visual style to action blockbusters with Matt Damon (The Bourne Supremacy, The Bourne Ultimatum) and serious dramatizations … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero ShowPlace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, Gardens 7-13, Lake, Niles ShowPlace 12, Norridge, Pickwick, River East 21, Showplace 14 - Galewood Crossings, ShowPlace ICON and Webster Place 11

Gun Crazy One of the most distinguished works of art to emerge from the B movie swamp, Joseph H. Lewis's 1949 film is a proto-Bonnie and Clyde … Gene Siskel Film Center

Handmade Nation Milwaukee author and documentarian Faythe Levine celebrates artists, craftspeople, and designers. 65 min. Chicago Waldorf School

Hoodoo Gurus: Tunnel Vision Thirty music videos featuring the Australian power-pop band. 87 min. Delilah's

The Hurt Locker Kathryn Bigelow's heart-stopping Iraq war drama (2009) follows a U.S. army bomb squad around Baghdad as it defuses IEDs, a job that places the men … Highland Park, Logan, ShowPlace ICON and Webster Place 11

It's Complicated Nancy Meyers has become not just a writer-director but a brand: after What Women Want (2000) and Something's Gotta Give (2003), middle-aged women know they … Beverly Arts Center

The Last Station Adapted from a novel by Jay Parini, this lively costume drama chronicles the last days of Leo Tolstoy (Christopher Plummer), presented here as a knock-down, … Pipers Alley, Renaissance Place and Wilmette Theatre

Maman Est Chez le Coiffeur A French-Canadian teenager tries to save her family after the mother walks out on them. Lea Pool directed this 2008 drama. 97 min. Alliance Francaise

Marina of the Zabbaleen Engi Wassef directed this 2008 documentary about a young girl who lives in a zabbala, or trash village, on the outskirts of Cairo. In Arabic … Facets Cinematheque

Me and Orson Welles Surely the great filmmaker would have gotten a rueful chuckle from the fact that he's been a character in almost as many movies (including RKO … Tivoli

National Parks: America's Best Idea This 2009 television mini-series tells the story of the United States's national park system. Notebaert Nature Museum

Neil Young Trunk Show Following Neil Young: Heart of Gold (2006), this is the second installment in Jonathan Demme's planned trilogy of Neil Young concert documentaries. Demme recorded a …

Nick Nolte: No Exit For this profile of the veteran actor, video maker Tom Thurman records a nicely groomed Nolte posing a series of questions to himself and cuts … Facets Cinematheque

The Oscar Nominated Short Films 2010: Animated Like the features nominated every year, the shorts typically demonstrate a high level of professionalism and a conversely low level of artistic courage. Most of … the Vic

The Oscar Nominated Short Films 2010: Live Action Like the features nominated every year, the shorts typically demonstrate a high level of professionalism and a conversely low level of artistic courage. They range … the Vic

Our Family Wedding Interracial lovebirds America Ferrera and Lance Gross want to tie the knot, but before they can break the news to their parents, his father (Forest … Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero ShowPlace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, Gardens 7-13, Norridge, River East 21, Showplace 14 - Galewood Crossings and ShowPlace ICON

Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief Chris Columbus, who directed the first two Harry Potter movies, adapts another best-selling novel for young adults: Rick Riordan's inaugural book about a kid (Logan … Chatham 14, Cicero ShowPlace 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, Gardens 1-6, Niles ShowPlace 12 and River East 21

Potter-Belmar Labs The duo Leslie Raymond and Jason Jay Stevens, who collaborate as Potter-Belmar Labs, will perform their brand of "live cinema"—a combination of projected images, sounds, … Chicago Filmmakers

Precious: Based on the Novel ``Push'' by Sapphire With Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey as executive producers, this drama about an obese, illiterate black teen in Harlem practically guarantees some emotional uplift. But … Pipers Alley

A Prophet Some have compared this French crime drama to The Godfather, and though that may be a common critical touchstone, writer-director Jacques Audiard (Read My Lips, … Century 12 and CineArts 6, Landmark's Century Centre and Renaissance Place

Red Riding: 1974 Adapted from a series of novels by David Peace, the "Red Riding" trilogy (2009) incorporates true-crime stories from the north of England into a sweeping … Music Box

Red Riding: 1980 The real-life crimes of the Yorkshire Ripper figure heavily in this engrossing police procedural, the second installment in the neo-noir "Red Riding" trilogy (2009). After … Music Box

Red Riding: 1983 The third and last installment of the "Red Riding" trilogy (2009) works overtime to tie up all the loose ends from the previous two movies, … Music Box

Remember Me In 1991 a little girl witnesses her mother's murder on an elevated train platform in Brooklyn; ten years later, as a feisty, blue-collar student at … Century 12 and CineArts 6, Cicero ShowPlace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Gardens 7-13, Niles ShowPlace 12, Norridge, River East 21, Showplace 14 - Galewood Crossings, ShowPlace ICON and Webster Place 11

Repo! The Genetic Opera A goth successor to The Rocky Horror Picture Show, this gruesome 2008 rock opera takes place in a dystopian future when epidemic organ failure has … Music Box

Risky Business Paul Brickman's 1983 film approaches Jerzy Skolimowski's Deep End as one of the finest film explorations of the end of innocence. Taking off from the … Music Box

The Rocky Horror Picture Show This 1975 film version of the bisexual-chic rock musical tries its damnedest to be outrageous, but finally has a hard time justifying its R rating. … Music Box

Scott Walker: 30 Century Man A singular vocalist but a protean songwriter, Scott Walker became a teen idol in the 60s with the Walker Brothers, embarked on an ambitious series … Empty Bottle

Secret Beyond the Door Fritz Lang's third thriller with Joan Bennett (after Scarlet Street and The Woman in the Window), a Freudian version of the Bluebeard story, is probably … Music Box

Sherlock Holmes Arthur Conan Doyle's master detective became one of the great heroes in genre fiction precisely because he was so freakish: cold and methodical, Holmes was … Logan and the Vic

She's Out of My League A nebbish who searches suitcases at the Philadelphia airport (Jay Baruchel) stumbles into a serious commitment with a hot chick (Alice Eve), though his buddies … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero ShowPlace 14, Crown Village 18, Davis, Ford City, Gardens 1-6, Lake, New 400, Niles ShowPlace 12, Norridge, River East 21, Showplace 14 - Galewood Crossings, ShowPlace ICON and Webster Place 11

Shutter Island Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Ruffalo star as federal marshals summoned to an island hospital for the criminally insane; a patient has gone missing, but the … 600 N. Michigan, Century 12 and CineArts 6, Chatham 14, Cicero ShowPlace 14, City North 14, Crown Village 18, Ford City, Gardens 1-6, Niles ShowPlace 12, Norridge, River East 21, ShowPlace ICON and Webster Place 11

A Single Man Fashion designer Tom Ford makes his directing debut with this haunting adaptation (cowritten with David Scearce) of Christopher Isherwood's groundbreaking 1964 novel about gay love. … Highland Park and Landmark's Century Centre

Sita Sings the Blues Captivating, mesmerizing, spellbinding—I'll throw everything in the movie-critic book at this animated feature by Nina Paley. After her husband took a job in India and … Bezazian branch library

Valentine's Day Though not unlike a feature film in many respects, this succession of images, words, and music from goo-slinger extraordinaire Garry Marshall (Pretty Woman) is actually … 600 N. Michigan and River East 21

The Wolfman There have been plenty of werewolf movies, but incredibly, this is the first-ever remake of Universal's 1941 horror classic The Wolf Man. Perpetually haunted Benicio … Logan and Showplace 14 - Galewood Crossings

The Yellow Handkerchief William Hurt's considerable talents are wasted on this lugubrious road movie (2008), adapted from a Pete Hamill story that was also the basis for a … River East 21

The Young Victoria Smartly scripted by Julian Fellowes (Gosford Park), this historical romance chronicles the early reign of Queen Victoria, played with admirable intelligence and feeling by Emily … Pipers Alley

Youth in Revolt Nerdy nice guy Michael Cera finds the girl of his dreams (Portia Doubleday) while camping with his sluttish mom (Jean Smart) and her boorish boyfriend … the Vic