4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days *****

"4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days" is a dark and gripping drama, masterfully written, directed, and acted, covering one day in the life of a woman who helps a friend in the Romania of 1987. Otilia (Anamaria Marinca) has agreed to help her college roommate Gabriela, or "Gabita" (Laura Vasiliu), obtain an illegal abortion. The film dogs Otilia all day, as she gathers money, arranges, connives, lies, squeezes in dinner with her boyfriend's parents, and generally holds things together for Gabita, whose shortcomings become increasingly apparent.

It's a tense and exhausting day. Director/writer Cristian Mungiu stays with Otilia for virtually the entire film, with an impassive, still camera that records her movements almost like a documentary. There is no music; only the superbly-captured sounds of life: voices, footsteps, running water, the train. As Otilia negotiates with clerks and black marketers, and worse, it's clear that she has learned how to survive in an all-encompassing bureaucracy. Always ready with the quick lie that explains everything, she is nevertheless the most honest of friends. As events unfold, we see that the same cannot be said of Gabita, who has put herself and Otilia at great risk.

Mungiu's carefully-crafted script draws us into Otilia's world, and we soon are worrying about her worries. The dinner party scene is a marvel of suspense - will Gabrita call? - overlaid with personal and professional shop talk from, ironically enough, doctors. Their conversation gives us another window into Nicolae Ceausescu's Romania, where anything more than potatoes and polenta is a feast, and careers are careful negotiations of the state order. All the while the camera is focused on Otilia in the middle of the frame, and the others only partly visible on either side of her. We feel her torment and distraction, and when the phone does ring, it's a jolt. And when no one answers the phone - it is a party, after all - it's unbearable.

There are other moments like the dinner party phone; details that we worry about because we know that Otilia thinking about them, but which may not have any significance. Mungiu even holds a shot too long, way too long, and we start to wonder what's going on. It seems interminable, the waiting and the wondering, but that is exactly what Otilia is feeling at that point.

The acting is uniformly natural and believable. Laura Vasiliu is excellent as the weak friend who asks too much of everyone but herself. Vlad Ivanov is chilling as the back alley abortionist. But this is Anamaria Marinca's film; her quietly forceful performance ranks with the very best.

Unrated. 113 minutes. Written and directed by Cristian Mungiu. Produced by Cristian Mungiu and Oleg Mutu. Cinematography by Oleg Mutu. Edited by Dana Bunescu. Principal actors: Anamaria Marinca, Laura Vasiliu, Vlad Ivanov, Alexandru Potocean. Distributed in the U.S. by IFC Films. In Romanian with English subtitles.

Oscar Picks

Here are my thoughts on tonight's Oscars. It's a real pleasure remembering such an outstanding year for cinematic achievement.

Best Picture: "No Country for Old Men" will take it. It has so many other nominations, and the Coens are so talented and respected, that it's sure to take the top prize. But don't be so sure about all those other nominations. My personal favorite in the group is "There Will Be Blood."

Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis by universal acclaim, including mine, for his towering portrayal of oilman Daniel Plainview in "There Will Be Blood."

Actress: I think the Academy will by-pass sentimental favorite Julie Christie in favor of Marion Cotillard. Oscar loves transformative biographical roles - think "Ray," "Capote," "The Queen" - and Cotillard produced the most stunning and detailed portrait of Edith Piaf imaginable. Christie was very, very good in "Away From Her," but the movie didn't find an audience. Against Cotillard is the fact that "La Vie en Rose" is in French, but for a chanteuse that's less of a handicap.

Supporting Actor: Javier Bardem, also by universal acclaim for the personification of evil in "No Country for Old Men," although the voters just might make up for not picking Julie Christie by rewarding sentimental favorite Hal Holbrook for his touching portrayal of the old man in "Into the Wild."

Supporting Actress: Cate Blanchett for her gender-bending role as Bob Dylan in "I'm Not There." It's hard to imagine any other actress pulling off the role, and there is precedent for an Oscar win for a woman playing a man: Linda Hunt in "The Year of Living Dangerously" (1982). My personal favorite is Amy Ryan for her fearless performance as the neglectful mother in "Gone Baby Gone."

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson for "There Will Be Blood." Anderson pulled everything together into a coherent whole in this picture of American greed and false religion, and got top-notch performances from not only Daniel Day-Lewis and Paul Dano, but everyone else.

Documentary Feature: "No End in Sight," an examination of Iraq War unpreparedness in this political year.

Animated Feature: My personal favorite is "Persepolis" because it is a real story about real people. I feel I know Marjane Satrapi and understand more about Iran than I ever did before after seeing this autobiographical movie. However, it is in French, and "Ratatouille" has so many wonderful qualities, and employed an army of Americans in the making, that the cooking rat will get the Oscar.

Cinematography: "Atonement" should get this one. From the wonderful interiors to that amazing tracking shot, it's all there, and the Old Hollywood traditionalists can all get behind this one.

Original Screenplay: Diablo Cody for her first movie, "Juno," because her story is as interesting and quirky as Juno's.

Adapted Screenplay: OK, the Coens will get this one, too. The nominees are all of the very highest quality. It's a shame to pick just one, but I think the brothers will win in a crowded field.

Visual Effects: "Transformers" for my money.

Animated Short Film: "Peter & the Wolf" should win for it's no words, stop action take on Prokofiev's beloved work.

Live Action Short Film: "Tanghi Argentini" is a real gem and should win.

Art Direction: "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" will win because of it's all-encompassing vision.

Costume Design: It has to be "Across the Universe" for sustained originality that supports the story with a distinctly 60's flavor.

Film Editing: I will go against the conventional wisdom, and the Coens, by saying that "The Bourne Ultimatum" should and will win. It's editing was the real star and propelled the movie at break-neck speed from beginning to end.

Sound Mixing: "No Country for Old Men" for it's restraint.

Sound Editing: "No Country for Old Men" again.

Original Score: It may seem gimmicky, but I loved Dario Marianelli's syncopated typewriter in "Atonement," and I think it will win.

Original Song: I hope that "Once" will get some recognition, and "Falling Slowly" was a standout in one of the best, and most unassuming, musicals of all time. And with three nominees from "Enchanted" to split the vote, it could well win.

Makeup: Marion Cotillard had lots of expert help depicting the stages of Piaf's life, and Oscar will recognize that.

Vantage Point **

"Vantage Point" is a mildly entertaining action movie constructed around the interlocking stories of various viewers and participants in an attempted assassination of the American president at a conference in Salamanca, Spain. The first, and for me the most successful, vantage point is the straight news feed as news producer Rex Brooks (Sigourney Weaver) directs her reporter and cameramen from a trailer just outside the Plaza Mayor. We get backstory information on the president's security detail, and some quick banter as Rex keeps her show on track. We see President Ashton (William Hurt) arrive and go to the podium, where he is shot shortly after being introduced. The crowd starts to flee, and Secret Service agents Barnes (Dennis Quaid) and Taylor (Mathew Fox) spring into action as the president is rushed into an ambulance. A muffled explosion is heard from somewhere nearby. Then the podium explodes. Many people are hurt or not moving.

Then the movie does a quick rewind to twenty minutes earlier, and we see the same events from the perspective of a lone American tourist (Forest Whitaker), who is video-taping the ceremony. There are three more perspectives to come, as we gradually are let in on the people behind the attacks, and their various motives. The effect is additive as each perspective gives us more information, and more action. It's not really like Kurosawa's famous "Rashomon," where the various eye witness accounts are hopelessly contradictory. Rather, these accounts fill in the story, while advancing the action, until a final climactic car chase (what else?) through the narrow streets and sidewalks of Salamanca. In "Rashomon" the viewpoints served as a structure for the examination of the nature of truth and remembrance. Here it's just a device that is, untimately, pointless.

It's clear a lot of thought went into staging the action sequences. Unfortunately, the story of the perpetrators and victims is a mishmash of motiveless malignancy, blackmail, and betrayal that doesn't bear much scrutiny. What we have are stock characters all, down to the lost and frightened little girl who keeps turning up at the most dangerous moments. Mexican locations in Cuernavaca, Puebla, and Mexico City stand in well for Spain. Quaid and Fox turn in workmanlike performances. The final car chase is too long by half, but if you're looking for an action movie that doesn't ask much of you, "Vantage Point" could be your ticket.

Rated PG-13. 90 minutes. Directed by Pete Travis. Written by Barry L. Levy. Produced by Neil H. Moritz. Distributed in the U.S. by Columbia Pictures. Principal actors: Dennis Quaid, Mathew Fox, Forest Whitaker, Said Taghmaoui, Eduardo Noriega, Edgar Ramirez, Ayalet Zurer, Sigourney Weaver, William Hurt.

Definitely, Maybe ***

The latest romantic comedy to appear in this traditionally slow movie season, "Definitely, Maybe," Universal's Valentine's/President's Day weekend entry, is a cut above the competition. Ryan Reynolds stars as Will Hayes, separated and soon-to-be-divorced dad of a precocious daughter, Maya (Abigail Breslin of "Little Miss Sunshine"). The framing device is original: eleven-year-old Maya, fresh from her first sex education class, and spending Tuesday with Dad, wants to know how he came to choose Mom from all the contenders. As Will is finally convinced (and Maya is not above shouting "PENIS!" in an elevator lobby if she's not getting answers), he begins telling the story of the women in his life, with names changed to heighten the suspense. In the telling, Will comes to reconsider some of his decisions.

As he tells the story, which starts in 1992 with him leaving Winconsin to go to New York to work on the Clinton campaign, we see Will's life and loves unfold before us. And what a wonderful collection of ladies to choose from! There's Elizabeth Banks ("Invincible"), Isla Fisher ("The Lookout"), and Rachel Weisz (Academy Award winner for "The Constant Gardner"). The dialog from director/writer Adam Brooks has what we've been missing this year: clever, believable banter from clever and believable characters. All of the ladies make the most of some good material. Isla Fisher radiates a happy freedom and vulnerability. Elizabeth Banks is solid as the home town girl. And Rachel Weisz is particularly compelling as a New York writer, an intellectual who's shacked up with a literary lion exuberantly played by Kevin Kline when Will meets her.

The twists and turns of Will's life and with these women unfold over almost two hours with warmth, humor, and an avoidance of the obvious. I found Reynolds up to the task, although he does suffer from the "boyishly-handsome" syndrome that is mentioned more than once in the movie. On the whole, "Definitely, Maybe" is an enjoyable and entertaining rom-com that doesn't insult your intelligence, and provides a nostalgic trip down nineties lane.

Rated PG-13. 112 minutes. Written and directed by Adam Brooks. Produced by Tim Bevan and Eric Fellner. Distributed by Universal Pictures. Principal actors: Ryan Reynolds, Elizabeth Banks, Isla Fisher, Rachel Weisz, Abigail Breslin, Derek Luke, Kevin Kline.

In Bruges ****

Bruges, Belgium (say "Broozh") is reputedly the best-preserved medieval town in Europe, saved from modernization by an economic decline after its glory days from the 12th through the 15th centuries, and is now a major tourist destination. In that regard it's a lot like South Beach, and, like that reborn Art Deco architectural curiosity, it has an underbelly of drug dealers, petty thieves, prostitutes, and film crews. So it's not such a stretch to find two Irish hit men from London, Ray (Colin Farrell) and Ken (Brendan Gleeson) holed up there on orders from the boss, Harry (Ralph Fiennes), after a messy job in London.

This is a dark, very dark, crime comedy, where there is honor among thieves, and everyone, even professional killers, has a code they live by. The story centers on Ray, who is remorseful about a part of the job that went bad, and Ken, Ray's accomplice and mentor, who is forced to reconsider where his profession ends and his values begin. Ray is bored in Bruges, until he finds that underbelly, while Ken is the happy tourist. Then the story takes a very dark turn. The script is well-plotted, and clever in the way it weaves its strands together. Above all, the dialog has a many-sided ring to it. The locations are interesting, the pacing is good, and the sights of Bruges are put to good use, from churches and towers to violent medieval paintings.

Farrell does a terrific job as the guilt-racked hit man, eerily similar in some ways to his recent role in "Cassandra's Dream," which was shot in mid-2006, versus Feb-Mar 2007 for this feature. The attraction of the two roles, I dare say, besides the inner conflicts of the characters, is the relatively small scale of both movies. I think he's found his niche. Supporting players are uniformly good, from the sexy local Chloë (Clémence Poésy), to the dwarf American actor (Jordan Prentice), and of course the always dependable Fiennes. "In Bruges" oscillates between laugh-out-loud comedy and serious drama, and ends up as a wryly satisfying work, put together in a workman-like manner with its own version of grace.

Rated R. 107 minutes. Written and directed by Martin McDonagh. Produced by Graham Broadbent and Peter Czernin. Distributed by Focus Features. Principal actors: Collin Farrell, Brendon Gleeson, Ralph Fiennes, Clémence Poésy, and Jordan Prentice.

Jumper ***

I have been a fan of teleportation since reading Alfred Bester's classic "The Stars My Destination" many years ago. In Bester's book it was called "jaunting," as it was in the later British TV series "Tomorrow People." After all, quantum mechanics has been forced to accept the concept of subatomic particles going from one place to another without occupying any of the space in between, so why not get all of them synchronized to jaunt at tthe same time?

But the ease of learning to jump your body to a new place just by thinking about it in those works is different. In Bester's world it is a skill that can be learned. Following scientific study of a first adept, the secrets were learned, and taught, and jaunting pads were set up all over. For "Tomorrow's People," teleportation is one of several new skills that are awakened in highly-evolved individuals. In "Jumper," the skill is similarly innate in certain people, but who, far from being higher new beings, are freaks who seem to have appeared randomly for millennia, long enough to have attracted well-organized mortal enemies.

Fifteen year old David Rice (Hayden Christensen) discovers his talent when he falls through the ice on a river and almost drowns, then suddenly finds himself soaking wet in the library. Picked on by a bully at school, abandoned by his mother at an early age, and left with an abusive father, David quickly decides to use his new skill to escape his life and move to New York, where it's easy to pick up spending money if you can teleport into a bank vault.

Eight years later, David's adrenaline- and testosterone-fueled idyll is rudely interrupted by the appearance of murderous foes, led by black, white-haired Roland (a suitably menacing Samuel L. Jackson), who consider jumpers to be abominations who must be eliminated. This sets up the conflict of the movie, where the photogenic but wooden Christensen (why was he chosen to play Anakin Skywalker, anyway?) must elude, fight, and try to out-wit experienced and relentless foes. David is aided by another jumper, the loner Griffin, excellently played by the now grown-up Billy Elliot, Jamie Bell. And David does reconnect with his high-school crush Millie (the O.C.'s Rachel Bilson), just in time to put her in harm's way.

But the real star of the movie is the action sequences. The editing and special effects are spectacular. From the top of Khufu's pyramid, to downtown Tokyo, to a lush and accessible Rome, to Big Ben, the locations are convincing. The editing is often frenetic but never confused. For a fun ride, I haven't seen anything as good since "Transformers." And you would expect no less from Doug Liman, who also directed "The Bourne Ultimatum" and "Mr. & Mrs. Smith," and was executive producer of the other two "Bourne's." Clearly Liman is hoping for another franchise, as he leaves key characters, including a mysterious Diane Lane as David's mother, available for a sequel. While Christensen is no Matt Damon, on the whole you could do a lot worse for a popcorn thrill ride. Just don't expect interesting dialog, character development, or a robust back story. All that will have to wait for Jumper II.

Rated PG-13. 90 minutes. Directed by Doug Liman. Written by David S. Goyer, Jim Uhls, and Simon Kinberg, from the novel by Stephen Gould. Produced by Lucas Foster, Stacy Maes, Jay Sanders, and Simon Kinberg. Distributed by Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation. Principal actors: Hayden Christensen, Samuel L. Jackson, Diane Lane, Jamie Bell, Rachel Bilson.

Persepolis *****

"Persepolis" is the story of Marjane Satrapi's life in Iran, told in mostly black and white animation, beginning with her childhood under the Shah. This feature-length movie based on her graphic novel begins as we meet Marjane, a young woman with an Islamic headscarf at Orly airport, where she stops to sit and think, and smoke a cigarette. Clearly this young woman has a story, and we see it as she thinks back on her history.

Always a spirited child, Marjane ("Marji") was the favorite of her uncle, who was imprisoned under the Shah for his communist revolutionary activities, then freed by the revolution, and finally imprisoned again by the Islamic revolutionaries who grew more and more repressive after the initial elation of the revolution. It's an old story, from the Jacobins to Castro's Cuba, and perhaps calling the film "Persepolis," the sixth century B.C. capital of Cyrus and Darius the Great, instead of "Tehran," is meant to remind us to think long term, that no regime lasts forever.

The style of the film is comic-book spare; no life-like illusions here. The characters communicate with stance, pose, broad expression, and voice. The scene transitions can be quick cutting, or dreamily surreal. The compositions communicate the essense of the scene with economy, and the consistency of style makes it easy to settle into the rhythm of the movie.

The movie lives most vividly in the present, as the stages of Iran's revolution and war contrast with the coming of age of Marjane. Shipped off to a French school in Germany as a young teenager to save her from her own outspokenness, she gets a first-hand look at the rebellion of young European anarchists, who seem so shallow compared to real fighters like her uncle. When she exhausts her welcome and her tolerance, Marjane returns to Tehran a young woman ready to be serious about life and her studies. But what future is there for a free-thinking young woman in Iran? Her parents are supportive, and she gets wise counsel throughout her life from her worldly grandmother, but she must decide where she can live.

"Persepolis" is nominated for an Academy Award, but its story is so gripping, and its emotions so deep, that it does not seem to belong in the same class as "Surf's Up" or even "Ratatouille." It is a remarkable achievement.

Rated PG-13. 95 minutes. Written and directed by Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud. Produced by Xavier Rigault and Marc-Antoine Robert. Distributed in the U.S. by Sony Pictures Classics. Voices by Chiara Mastroianni, Catherine Deneuve, Danielle Darrieux, and Simon Abkarian. In French with English subtitles.

Vince Vaughn's Wild West Comedy Show ***

In mid-September 2005, fresh from his success in "Wedding Crashers," Vince Vaughn took four hand-picked comedians and a few actors on a performing tour from Hollywood to the heartland, performing 30 consecutive nights in 30 cities in the Southwest, South, and Mid-West. This documentary is more than a chronicle of that show and of the comedians in it. With back-stage and on-bus interviews interspersed with routines from the show, a picture gradually emerges of the lives and influences on these four comedians that informs their routines. And as with any good road movie, unexpected things happen, like Katrina, and the performers meet some extraordinary people in unlikely places.

The landmarks along the way are performers' icons, like The Crystal Palace and Buck Owens in Bakersfield and the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville. Or something more sobering, like the jail in Las Vegas where the Egyptian-born Ahmed Ahmed was held for 12 hours after being arrested at the airport, apparently for looking Arab. That experience has been incorporated into his routine, and from that and other stories, we see what made these performers who they are, and why each has something different to say to us about our culture, our American-ness, ourselves.

The big payoff comes in interviews with parents of the comedians near the end of the movie, when suddenly things seem to snap into focus. In talking about themselves and their offspring, seeing these comics we have come to know a little now through their parents' eyes, we see both their diversity and common themes of love, independence, and ambition that have brought these performers to this point.

Reportedly Vince Vaughn changed the movie's distributor because the original pick planned to promote the yuck-fest angle. And he was right. For while the movie is funny, really laugh-out-loud funny much of the time, there is something more it has to say than just chronicling four stand-up routines. Clearly Vaughn had this in mind when he chose Oscar-winner Ari Sandel (live action short "West Bank Story" 2005) to direct. The result is a funny/sad snapshot of our pop middle-class culture and the life these men have chosen.

Rated R. 100 minutes. Directed by AriSandel. Produced by Vince Vaughn. Distributed by Picturehouse Entertainment. With: Ahmed Ahmed, Peter Billingsley, John Caparulo, Bret Ernst, Justin Long, Sebastian Maniscalco, Vince Vaughn.

Fool's Gold *

"Fool's Gold," a Bahamian treasure hunter cartoon-like romantic comedy, sputters about, taking on water through its plot holes, and listing badly for almost two hours, before finally sinking without a trace. The movie relies heavily on sight gags (like you're underwater and don't notice that your boat just sank behind you) and slapstick (as in literally slapping Matthew McConaughey with a stick about every twenty minutes). But, as is the convention in cartoons, the blows and attempts at murder don't seem to have an effect on the characters, with one exception I'll cover in a moment. Even huge explosions that throw McConaughey fifty feet into the air make for a walk-away landing. I swear I expected Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote to race across the bottom of the crystal-clear waters wearing scuba gear at some point.

The tone of forced merriment usually falls on its face, inducing cringes rather than guffaws. The story involves a divorcing wife, played by Kate Hudson, who, after six years of great sex but finding no Spanish treasure with McConaughey, is ready to go back to Chicago and get her Ph.D. McConaughey, whose preparation for this role apparently took place entirely in a gym, certainly looks buff, so you can believe what she says about the sex. So he runs around bare-chested for a good part of the movie, mugging his way through scenes. Hudson, working on a rich man's yacht, presumably saving for grad school, turns in an earnest performance. The rich guy with the big boat and the dumb daughter is played by Donald Sutherland, who for some reason is British. Sutherland, who was superb as the very English Mr. Bennet in "Pride and Prejudice" (2005), tries to relieve the tedium by seeing just how bad an English accent he can muster. Alexis Dziena, as the bimbo daughter, is utterly convincing.

And then there are the villains. It is, after all, the Bahamas, so the big bad guy is black rap star Bigg Bunny (Kevin Hart) who has bought his own island, and whose two black henchmen are bumblers whose incompetence rises to the level of Stepin Fetchit. Writer/Director Andy Tennant must have realized he had strayed into non-PC territory here, because late in the film he brings in some Russian talent who promptly offs one of the henchmen in a show of Eastern-style restructuring. But if Bigg Bunny bought the island, isn't the treasure on it properly his, anyway?

The locations are beautiful; the photography excellent. It's nice to be reminded just how gorgeous the Bahamian waters can be (but that town is definitely not Key West, as they claim). To enjoy this locale, and two attractive leads, plus real locations and some suspense under water, I would recommend renting "Into the Blue" (2005), with an equally buff Paul Walker, and Jessica Alba, who looks much better in a bikini than Hudson.

Rated PG-13. 113 minutes. Directed by Andy Tennant. Written by John Claflin, Daniel Zelman, and Andy Tennant. Produced by Donald De Line, Bernie Goldman, Jon Klane. Distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. Principal actors: Matthew McConaughey, Kate Hudson, Donald Suterland, Alexis Dziena.