Emotionally complex drama about a gifted high school student (Agnes Bruckner) who becomes involved in an increasingly problematic relationship with her poetry teacher (David Strathairn). Directed by Karen Moncrieff, the textured narrative, echoing Nabokov's "Lolita" and buttressed by strong performances, explores people's hunger for authentic love and its unavoidable obstruction by the frailties of human nature. A sexual encounter and recurring rough language and vulgarities. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-IV -- adults, with reservations. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

"Confidence" (Lions Gate)

Slick, shallow caper in which a tight-knit group of con men (led by Ed Burns) rips off a crime lord (Dustin Hoffman) so must agree to pull off a very dicey scam as repayment, despite a federal agent (Andy Garcia) closing in on them. Director James Foley's smug movie, with its crime-definitely-pays perspective, admires its brutal characters and seems most impressed with its own cleverness and cynical worldview. Some violence, brief nudity, seamy sexual situations, recurring profanities and constant rough language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is O -- morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

"Identity" (Columbia)

Absurd horror flick in which a raging storm traps random individuals (including John Cusack, Ray Liotta and Amanda Peet) in a seedy motel where one by one they are being murdered. Director James Mangold's hoary, derivative tale features assorted gruesome deaths before inventing a pathetically ridiculous solution to the gory whodunit. Frequent violence, brief sexual innuendo, recurring profanity and much rough language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-IV -- adults, with reservations. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

"It Runs in the Family" (MGM)

Pleasantly affecting serio-comedy about three dysfunctional generations of fathers and sons exploring the foibles and follies of life, love and parenting. Directed by Fred Schepisi, the on-screen chemistry of Tinseltown father-son combo Kirk and Michael Douglas facilitates the theme of reconciliation and family unity to emerge with emotional honesty despite the at times schmaltzy sentimentality of the narrative. Recurring drug abuse and sexual situations, as well as minimal vulgarities and an instance of rough language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

"Manic" (IFC)

Provocative exploration of the troubled lives of adolescents in a juvenile mental institution. Though chock full of offensive language and violence, director Jordan Melamed's disturbingly raw film addresses important questions about abuse and alienation among today's youth. Recurring graphic violence and incessant rough and sexually explicit language as well as vulgarities. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-IV -- adults, with reservations. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

"People I Know" (Miramax)

Disappointing thriller about a washed-up New York celebrity publicist (Al Pacino), unwittingly entangled in a deadly web of murder and deceit among Gotham's movers and shakers. Director Dan Algrant's noirish foray into the shadowy world of glamour and politics borrows generously from earlier conspiracy yarns, but flounders as a result of a disjointed, hackneyed narrative and an at times hammy lead performance. Minimal violence, recurring drug abuse, rough language and vulgarities as well as brief sexual images and fleeting nudity. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

"Assassination Tango" (United Artists)

Disappointingly shallow tale of a Brooklyn hit man (Robert Duvall) on assignment in Buenos Aires where he becomes involved with an expert tango dancer (Luciana Pedraza). Also written and directed by Duvall, the tango dancing is entrancing in an otherwise bland and morally bankrupt exercise in which cold-blooded murders are treated with casual indifference. Sporadic violence, a shadowy sexual encounter, crude expressions and recurring rough language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is O -- morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

"Basic" (Columbia)

Unsatisfying military thriller in which an ex-Army Ranger (John Travolta) and a prickly Army captain (Connie Nielsen) must try to unravel the truth behind the Panama jungle deaths of a hated Special Forces sergeant (Samuel L. Jackson) and four trainees under him while two survivors spin an elaborate series of stories about what happened. Director John McTiernan's macho action flick takes a "Rashomon"-like approach to the narrative, but the dozen characters, murky visuals and constant plot twists eventually become tedious. Recurring violence, much rough language and intermittent profanity. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-IV -- adults, with reservations. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

"The Core" (Paramount)

Lavish sci-fi thriller in which the earth's electromagnetic atmosphere has gone awry, necessitating a team of six (including Aaron Eckhart, Hilary Swank and Stanley Tucci) to bore their spaceship into Earth's core to restabilize it. Director Jon Amiel's lengthy disaster movie may be preposterous but is well-crafted and well-acted, and its special effects are impressive. Scenes of mayhem, lethal danger and an instance of rough language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

"Head of State" (DreamWorks)

Tired comedy in which an African-American alderman (Chris Rock) is set up to be the losing presidential candidate but decides to forget politics and speak from the heart with his bail bondsman-brother (Bernie Mac) as his running mate. The film is also co-written and directed by Rock, who resorts to racial and political stereotypes, milking the populist theme for only occasional laughs. A live-in relationship, crass sexual references, racial epithets and an instance of rough language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

"View From the Top" (Miramax)

Leaden romantic comedy in which a small-town working-class woman (Gwyneth Paltrow) goes after her dream to become an international flight attendant. With a scatterbrained plot and flat jokes, director Bruno Barreto's failed satire chugs along awkwardly unable to maintain interest in its characters. An implied affair, a few sexual references and minimal crass language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

"The Bread, My Sweet" (Panorama)

Pleasant romance in which an Italian-American businessman (Scott Baio) torn between his professional ambitions and his love for making biscotti in his bakery proposes to the prodigal daughter (Kristin Minter) of his neighbor, a dying elderly woman, to fulfill her wish of seeing her daughter married. Written and directed by Melissa Martin, the film has endearing moments that pull on the heartstrings, but the predictable story holds it back from being truly moving. A sexual encounter, intermittent coarse language and profanity. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association of America.

"The Hunted" (Paramount)

Brutal drama in which a retired teacher of warfare (Tommy Lee Jones) must prevent his former student (Benicio Del Toro), a top Special Forces assassin gone mad, from killing innocent people. Director William Friedkin deftly builds white-knuckle tension in this straightforward tale while coaxing a fine performance out of Jones, but the film's excessive carnage and viciousness cannot be justified. Much savage violence and sporadic rough language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is O -- morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

"Spider" (Sony Pictures Classics)

Bleak psychological drama about a mentally ill man (Ralph Fiennes) living in a decrepit London halfway house who struggles to discover the dreadful truth about the death of his mother (Miranda Richardson) as his frail mental state declines. Director David Cronenberg spins together muddled childhood memories in a disturbed adult mind in this stark film with a chilling ending, but the deliberate, grinding pace grows wearisome. A few sexual situations, brief violence, fleeting nudity and a few instances of rough language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

"Willard" (New Line Cinema)

Grisly horror-comedy about a misfit (Crispin Glover), oppressed by a harridan mother and overbearing boss, who befriends an ever-growing army of rats in his basement. Glen Morgan's remake of the 1971 B-movie camps it up with over-the-top performances from Glover and his oppressors; the result, though decidedly not for all tastes, effectively works on the audiences' nerves where so many horror films deliver only gross-outs. Some grisly violence and menace, a depiction of a character viewing online pornography, an allusion to autoeroticism, occasional profanity and an instance of rough language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-IV -- adults, with reservations. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

"Agent Cody Banks" (MGM)

Juvenile comedy in which a 15-year-old CIA recruit (Frankie Muniz) teams with an older sexpot agent (Angie Harmon) to foil a plot that would allow a megalomaniac (Ian McShane) to control the world using microscopic robots. Director Harald Zwart attempts to fashion a teen-age James Bond franchise around the appealing Muniz but all the gadgets, chases and stunts don't amount to much when the adult characters are lame and situations unconvincing. Frequent stylized violence, mild sexual innuendo and some rude humor. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested.

"Bringing Down the House" (Touchstone)

Passable comedy in which a dull tax attorney (Steve Martin) mistakenly gets involved with a boisterous escaped con (Queen Latifah) who coaches him on how to win back his estranged wife (Jean Smart) and kids while insisting he can get her exonerated. Director Adam Shankman milks exaggerated racial stereotypes for occasional laughs but goes to extremes with an unnecessarily vicious catfight. Some comically intended violence, sexual situations and crass references, brief recreational drug use and an instance of profanity. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

"The Safety of Objects" (IFC)

Sensitive but wrongheaded drama explores the characters (including Dermot Mulroney, Patricia Clarkson and Mary Kay Place) in four neighboring households who struggle to resolve different age-related problems. Writer-director Rose Troche creates several realistic, three-dimensional characters but the choice taken by the mother (Glenn Close) of a comatose son makes a serious crime appear justifiable. Positive depiction of euthanasia, sexual situations with fleeting nudity, momentary violence and sporadic rough language. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is O -- morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

"Tears of the Sun" (Columbia)

Simplistic war movie-morality play lionizes superheroic Navy SEALs led by Bruce Willis as they rescue refugees and battle evil ethnic-cleansing rebel forces amid a Nigerian civil war. Director Antoine Fuqua's tribute to U.S. military men celebrates fortitude and compassion, but its generic, unconvincing moral dilemmas and dimensionless characters fail as drama. Recurring battlefield violence and restrained depictions of ethnic cleansing, a brief depiction of rape with fleeting nudity, much rough language and intermittent profanity. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

"Gods and Generals" (Warner Bros.)

Epic 220-minute Civil War drama focuses on the convictions and strategies of Confederate Gens. Lee and Jackson (Robert Duvall and Stephen Lang) and the North's Gen. Hancock and Lt. Col. Chamberlain (Brian Mallon and Jeff Daniels) in the early war years of 1861-63. As directed by Ron Maxwell, battle scenes are impressive and the faith-filled generals can be inspirational, but their lengthy speeches and drawn-out scenes undercut dramatic conflict and themes of courage, duty and loyalty. Battlefield violence. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

"Old School" (DreamWorks)

Obnoxious comedy about three thirtysomething former college classmates (Luke Wilson, Will Ferrell, Vince Vaughn) who turn a rented off-campus house into a frat house to attract members and female guests for nonstop, all-around debauchery. Writer-director Todd Phillips and co-writer Scot Armstrong have tried to retool "Animal House" for men approaching middle age, substituting gross-out humor for invention. Recurring vulgarity, graphic sexual references and content, some nudity and pervasive misogyny. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is O -- morally offensive. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is R -- restricted.

How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days

Drawn-out romantic comedy in which an ad exec (Matthew McConaughey) boasts he can make a magazine columnist (Kate Hudson) fall for him in 10 days, unaware that for her next advice column she intends to make him dump her in the same time frame. Donald Petrie directs a contrived and unconvincing battle-of-the-sexes comedy that lacks sparkling dialogue. Sexual references, fleeting violence, some rude slang expressions and occasional profanity. The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' Office for Film and Broadcasting classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents are strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.