Jeff, Who Lives at Home ***

"Jeff Who Lives at Home" is a sweet fable brought to us by the Duplass brothers, Mark and Jay, who share writing and directing credits. Famous for their pioneering work in independent cinema, and credited as founding lights of the mumblecore movement, they here present some everyday characters in a workaday world who end up on a quest. The Jeff of the title (a suitably disheveled Jason Segel) aimlessly living in his mother's basement, becomes convinced that he must follow a sign he's been shown, no matter where it leads. In the end his journey to Home Depot takes on added meaning as he is led to his impulsive but driven brother (an edgy Ed Helms), who has created a crisis in his marriage. Meanwhile Mom, warmly played by Susan Sarandon, languishes in an unfulfilling cubicle job. Things start to converge, and wonders happen in the most mundane places. I thought it was fine.

21 Jump Street ****

Actually quite funny, "21 Jump Street" is a nice surprise, and Channing Tatum proves to be more than capable of holding his own opposite comedy veteran Jonah Hill. This "Jump Street" is played for laughs, as two bumbling rookies, whose major skills are looking and acting immature, go undercover at a high school to bust a locally sourced synthetic drug ring. Gleefully raunchy, the movie takes pot shots at its own conventions: high school life movies, cop movies, action movies, teen movies, buddy movies, not to mention its own TV origins. They took some chances here, and for me, it paid off handsomely.

John Carter ***

I thought it was fun. The idea sound fine: take a vision of life on Mars imagined and published exactly a century ago by the popular and prolific Edgar Rice Burroughs, creator of Tarzan, and give it the full CGI treatment with four-armed natives (above), a beautiful princess (Lynn Collins) and a strapping young hero (Taylor Kitsch). Mix in some steam-punkish flying machines (which don't have to work that hard on the lower gravity on Mars), some interplanetary travel via mumbo-jumbo, and you've got a winner, right? I'm sure it sounded great in the board room, and that's why Disney sunk a reported $250M into the project.

Unfortunately, it's been one of the biggest domestic bombs ever for such an expensive film, although I suspect international will be a different story. If you like this brand of fantasy action adventure, do see it, and on the largest available screen. It is fun, and while some marketing executives may lose their jobs, we can be glad it got the green light.

2012 Oscar Nominated Animated Shorts ****

Once again the good people at Pixar have assembled the Oscar nominated animated shorts, and we have a chance to see them, along with a few honorable mentions, before the Oscars. My personal favorite is "The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore," a whimsical and heartfelt tribute to the power of books and the imagination. It's too bad we don't get a chance to see works like this more regularly in the multiplexes.

Pina 3D ****

Truly, there are some things that cannot be said with words. That is the overwhelming lesson of "Pina." The Pina in question is Philippina "Pina" Bausch, German choreographer and artistic director of her own troop in Wupperthal, where she created a large repertory of works with a loyal corps of dancers. She died, tragically, in 2009 a few days after a cancer diagnosis and just before a long-planned documentary by Wim Wenders was to begin filming. That documentary, now also a tribute and a memorial, is now finished, with excerpts from many of her most famous works along with interviews with dancers and footage of Pina herself speaking about her art.

"Pina" is in 3D as well, which provides the most visceral experience of a dance movie I have ever seen. At times the viewer is literally in the middle of the action on stage, and the sheer physicality of the movements is overwhelming. The music as varied as the movements, and the subjects range from the unending seasons of the year to struggle, love, and longing. Wenders also makes use of locations in Wupperthal, a city with abundant parks and a famous monorail. This movie is a joy to experience.

Pariah ****

"Pariah" is an unflinching, unvarnished look at a teenager, Alike, living at home in Brooklyn, a good student with a talent for poetry, who faces emotional thrills and pains with her friends and her family, as she embraces her identity as a lesbian. The focus of the film is close in and intimate, almost claustrophobic, as we see the differing reactions of those closest to her. The films rings with truth, and the performances, especially that of Adepero Oduye as Alike, are outstanding. Director/Writer Dee Rees, who expanded an earlier short subject into this full-length feature, deserves high praise for her honesty, talent, and skill in bringing us this engaging and moving work.

Joyful Noise **

Fun and bubbly, just like Dolly herself, "Joyful Noise" is a pleasant diversion with some toe-tapping music, burnished with a slick gospel shine. Dolly Parton and Queen Latifa go at it, nicely most of the time, in this souped up "Glee" episode that features competing visions of the which way the church choir should go in the annual competition. Keke Palmer as Latifah's daughter, and Jeremy Jordan as Dolly's grandson add the love interest, spice, and some good singing. Don't expect too much, and you may be converted into a fan.