NEW MOVIES: 5/18

Shrek the Third

Every other film that comes out this week is an indie under limited release, so it seems that if there is a toddler in your life or even within you, you'll be forced to watch this. Shrek goes on a search for Artie (Justin Timberlake) to be the heir to the throne of Far Far Away so he won't have to be king. Meanwhile, Fiona's trying to keep that conceited Prince Charming and his brood of allies (Hook, Wicked Witch, and Rumpelstiltskin) away from it. Since Artie is a teenager there will be humiliating moments fueled by hormones and the trials of puberty, and Shrek will be trying to speak slang. Translation: this will once and for all be funny for all ages.

Fay Grim

Parker Posey has always been an oddball--even in commercial films (Superman Returns, Josie and the Pussycats). This one takes the cake. She plays the wife of a missing man who's suspected of writing top secret information in several notebooks. She has them and a lot of people want them. Now just imagine if your mom had to cooperate with the CIA and nab the bad guys. How inefficient would she be? Multiply that by 10 and add Posey's humor and you've got this quirky action comedy. Here's a little inside scoop: It comes out on DVD Tuesday (22nd). So if you can bare to wait a couple days, you could save a couple of bucks.


The Wendell Baker Story

A pathetic idiot (Luke Wilson) who makes fake I.D.s for illegal immigrants gets arrested. When he's released, he's forced to work at a retirement home with a total slacker (Owen Wilson) who "disposes" of the old folks when it gets too crowded. Everything's pretty decent in his new life, except he can't stop thinking about his old girlfriend (Eva Mendes). Of course, his competition has to be Will Ferrell. Luke's gathered some big names for a pretty small film that he and his brother Andrew co-wrote and co-directed.


EVEN MONEY

This film shouldn't be whittled down to "a bunch of gamblers who get in over their head." It's more about how an addiction to chance, to betting against the odds, to sacrificing the lives of people around you affect your life and the people you love. It isn't romantic like Drew Barrymore's Lucky You. It's dramatic and suspenseful. The roster speaks volumes: Kim Basinger, Forest Whitaker, Danny DeVito, Kelsey Grammar, Nick Cannon, Ray Liotta...