Film Clips 

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BEFORE THE DEVIL KNOWS YOU'RE DEAD If I'm still around at the age of 83, I doubt I'll even be able to successfully navigate the remote control. Yet here's the great veteran director Sidney Lumet (Twelve Angry Men, Dog Day Afternoon, The Verdict, and on and on and on), at the helm of an impressive picture that's earning him his best reviews in ages. And for most of the way, this deserves those stellar notices, but like a long-distance runner who miscalculates his own endurance level, it falters at the very end, with a two-pronged wrap-up that disappoints with both barrels. Yet this isn't the fault of Lumet as much as first-time screenwriter Kelly Masterson, who otherwise contributes a compelling script that adds a twist to the standard heist flick by also making it a personal family drama. Philip Seymour Hoffman heads the powerhouse cast as Andy, who, sensing that money might be the way to save his faltering marriage (to Marisa Tomei's Gina), talks his weak-willed younger brother Hank (Ethan Hawke, never better) into taking part in the robbery of a jewelry store – the one owned by their parents (Albert Finney and Rosemary Harris). Devil spins its story in a fragmented style that skips between past and present, but as played out, this technique isn't merely for show but as an immediate way to pinpoint how each dire consequence is the result of several major and minor decisions. But the ending's a cheat, with one plotline feeling rushed and another feeling abandoned. Still, while Masterson's script might come up a hair short, Lumet remains firmly in control: Even at 83, there's nothing arthritic about his ability to engage our emotions or our intellect. ***

BEOWULF For the record, this isn't a review of Beowulf. It's a review of Beowulf in Digital 3D, and I have to assume that might make some degree of difference. Director Robert Zemeckis, whose 2004 The Polar Express felt like an animated feature that had been embalmed, again employs the "performance capture" technique with far greater success, overlaying real actors with a cartoon sheen and placing them in the middle of a CGI landscape. In 2D, which is how the film is being shown in most theaters, this runs the risk of looking as soulless as many other CGI works, but in 3D (at select venues), it results in a positively astonishing experience. Tossed coins roll directly toward the camera, spears poke directly out at audience members, and even an animated Angelina Jolie's, umm, assets seem more pronounced than usual. Based on the ancient poem, the script by Neil Gaiman and Roger Avary doesn't always match the movie's visual splendor, but their modifications to the text are more often than not respectful. After the gruesome monster Grendel (snarled by Crispin Glover) wreaks havoc on the castle of King Hrothgar (Anthony Hopkins), the heroic (and boastful) Beowulf (Ray Winstone) arrives to save the day. Yet he finds himself not only having to confront Grendel but also the misshapen creature's mother (Jolie) and, in the climactic pièce de résistance, a fierce dragon. Given the massive advances in 3D technology – and depending on the success of this picture – it's possible that more and more movies will be presented in this format. Anyone up for Shortbus 2 in Digital 3D? ***

ENCHANTED It's a nice touch having Julie Andrews serve as narrator in Walt Disney's Enchanted. Andrews played the title nanny in the studio's Mary Poppins, which contains the famous phrase "practically perfect in every way." And I can't think of a better way to describe Amy Adams' performance as Giselle, the animated damsel who doesn't long to be a real girl but becomes one anyway. This begins in the style of the classic Disney toon flicks of yore, with the beautiful Giselle, at one with nature and its furry inhabitants, longing for "true love's kiss" from the lips of a handsome prince. She gets her wish when she meets Prince Edward, but his scheming stepmother, Queen Narissa, banishes Giselle to a faraway land, which, it turns out, is our own New York City. Now flesh and blood, Giselle turns to a stranger, a buttoned-up divorce lawyer (Patrick Dempsey), to help her survive in this bewildering city; meanwhile, others arrive in pursuit of Giselle, including Edward (James Marsden) and the evil Queen (Susan Sarandon). Entrusting such a rich premise to the writer of Sandra Bullock's limp thriller Premonition is a dubious tactic, and Bill Kelly doesn't come to exploiting this subject for all it's worth. But that's not to say there aren't moments of genuine inspiration, such as when Giselle calls out to the creatures of NYC for help and instead of the expected rabbits, deer and chipmunks gets rats, roaches and flies. But what pushes the film over the top is the terrific turn by Adams, who really seems like a Disney heroine come to life (as the preening prince, Marsden also displays fine comic chops). Her performance is every bit as enchanting as one dreams it would be. **1/2