Red Tails 2012
Directed by Anthony Hemingway
Starring: Cuba Gooding Jr., Terrence Howard

Academy Awardr Winner Cuba Gooding Jr.* and Academy Awardr Nominee Terrence Howard** lead a powerful ensemble cast in this high-flying epic inspired by the real-life adventures of the first African-American combat unit to serve in World War II. Italy, 1944. As the war takes its toll on Allied forces in Europe, a squadron of black pilots known as the Tuskegee Airmen are finally given the chance to prove themselves in the sky...even as they battle discrimination on the ground. Featuring jaw-dropping aerial action and thrilling special effects, Red Tails is a breathtaking tribute to the unsung heroes who rose above extraordinary challenges and ultimately soared into history. (Lucas Film)

We Need to Talk About Kevin 2011
Directed by Lynne Ramsay
Starring: Tilda Swinton, John C. Reilly

A suspenseful and gripping psychological thriller, Lynne Ramsay's We Need To Talk About Kevin explores the fractious relationship between a mother and her evil son. Tilda Swinton, in a bracing, tour-de-force performance, plays the mother, Eva, as she contends for 15 years with the increasing malevolence of her first-born child, Kevin (Ezra Miller). Based on the best-selling novel of the same name, We Need To Talk About Kevin explores nature vs. nurture on a whole new level as Eva's own culpability is measured against Kevin's innate evilness. Ramsay's masterful storytelling simultaneously combines a provocative moral ambiguity with a satisfying and compelling narrative, which builds to a chilling, unforgettable climax. (Oscillocope Pictures)

This Means War 2012
Directed by McG
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine

Spy flick meets romantic comedy in this surprisingly entertaining film about two CIA agents who find themselves in competition for the affections of the same beautiful woman. Agents FDR (Chris Pine) and Tuck (Tom Hardy) are accustomed to using whatever means necessary to complete a mission--and that mentality has a tendency to bleed over into their personal lives. The two agents are also close friends, so when they discover they're both dating Lauren (Reese Witherspoon), they enter into a gentleman's agreement that stipulates they not interfere with one other, allow Lauren to choose the best man for her, and walk away from Lauren if seeing her begins to affect the men's friendship. The agreement quickly degenerates into a pissing contest of epic proportions thanks to the men's competitive natures and the arsenal of government resources at their disposal. Oblivious to the rivalry and the high-tech circus going on around her, Lauren desperately tries to figure out which of the two men is right for her. Her married friend Trish (Chelsea Handler) offers plenty of advice, assuring Lauren that just because she's dating two guys at the same time, "You're not going to hell, but if you are, I'll be there to pick you up." What makes this film so good is its perfect blend of high-action spy caper, laugh-aloud humor, and romance--all skillfully delivered by a talented cast. --Tami Horiuchi

Chronicle 2012
Directed by Josh Trank
Starring: Michael B. Jordan, Michael Kelly

If you should come upon a glowing, possibly extraterrestrial object buried in a hole, go ahead and touch the thing--you might just get superpowers. Or so it goes for the three high-school buds in Chronicle, an inventive excursion into the teenage sci-fi world. Once affected by the power, the guys exercise the joys of telekinesis: shuffling cars around in parking lots, moving objects in grocery stores, that kind of thing. Oh yeah--they can fly, too: and here director Josh Trank takes wing, in the movie's giddiest sequence, as the trio zips around the clouds in a glorious wish-fulfillment. It goes without saying that there will be a shadow side to this gift, and that's where Chronicle, for all its early cleverness, begins to stumble. Broody misfit Andrew (Dane DeHaan), destined to be voted Least Likely to Handle Superpowers Well by his graduating class, is documenting all this with his video camera, which is driving him even crazier (the movie's in "found footage" style, so everything we see is from a camcorder or security camera, an approach that gets trippy when Andrew realizes he can levitate his camera without having to hold it). Trank and screenwriter Max Landis (son of John) seem to lose inspiration when the last act rolls around, so the movie settles for weightless battles around the Space Needle and a smattering of mass destruction. Still, let's give Chronicle credit for an offbeat angle, and a handful of memorable scenes. --Robert Horton