The Wasteland

I wish I could be enthusiastic about this weekend's movies, really I do. But I've seen them.

Okay, "Step Up" isn't terrible, and the leads are engaging, but it overreaches in its last third and ends up missing its target -- I actually liked "Take the Lead" more.

On the art-house side, "Conversations with Other Women" is intriguing and nimble, with great performances from Aaron Eckhart and Helena Bonham Carter, but a key flashback device simply doesn't work, undermining all the good stuff in the present.

And then there are "Zoom" and "Pulse", which were screened for the press at the very last minute, to prevent opening-day reviews. The strategy works; my coverage will appear in Monday's Metro. But I warn you now: See something else. Or just run head-first into a brick wall; the time you spend in the ER will doubtless be more entertaining than either of these mediocrities.

Funnier, too.

Technorati tags: Movies, Step Up, Conversations with Other Women, Pulse, Zoom