Jiro Dreams of Sushi ****

Jiro is Jiro Ono, 85-year-old master sushi chef, who has devoted his life to his 10-seat restaurant in the Tokyo subway, an establishment Michelin has awarded three stars, which means it's worth a journey to the country to eat there. Jiro is a perfectionist, well-known to his suppliers, who will offer only those fish they know will meet his standards, an exacting boss and teacher of his sons and employees, and a very hard worker. This straight-forward documentary shows us every aspect of his life, details his history, and, like the best work of the genre, shows his relationship to his city and its culture, and gives us a sense of the changes he has seen in his long career. It helps if you love sushi, but even a strictly beef and potatoes viewer will understand his attention to quality and consistency, his pursuit of a purity of experience, and an artist's love of his medium. The film, like Jiro, is an outstanding example of its kind.

The Hunger Games ***

"The Hunger Games" depicts the barbaric hunt and battle to the death of young "tributes" in a dystopian future, chosen to represent their starving districts for the entertainment of the fortunate 1% in the capital and the distraction of the poor 99% back home. As one of the approximately 11 people who have not read the book, I found it a chilling alternate universe, fleshed out convincingly and well-imagined. Many of those who have read the book have complained of the lack of detail and back story, but that is the way of all movies, and at least the author, Suzanne Collins, was involved and has a screenplay credit, which is generally interpreted as a seal of approval.

The young heroine Katniss Everdeen, convincingly played by Jennifer Lawrence, who was such a standout in "Winter's Bone" in a role that has more than a few similarities, is well-prepared for the hunting game, not by training, but by her hardscrabble life. She forms an alliance of convenience with the other tribute from her district, Peetah, a softly appealing Josh Hutcherson. Woody Harrelson as the alcoholic coach, and Stanley Tucci as a purple-haired future reincarnation of Ryan Seacrest add depth and verve to the show. I found it quite interesting, but I think fans of the book will enjoy the film most.

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen ****

When a government fisheries expert is drafted by the prime minister's office into a scheme to help a prominent sheik realize his dream of bringing salmon fishing to his desert kingdom, you might expect a bit of, ahem, swimming upstream. Ewan McGregor is the hapless functionary who must help the government, represented by an acid-tongued and very funny Kristin Scott Thomas, and the sheik's investment house, represented by a beautiful and really smart banker played by Emily Blunt (I know, type-casting). Director Lasse Hallstrom ("Chocolat," "The Cider House Rules") does a fine job with a small budget. Amr Waked ("Syriana") brings some nuance to the role of the sheik in a role studded with land mines. The chemistry between McGregor and Blunt is palpable, and the story is a small parable about how we might help people help themselves. I thought it was terrific.

This Means War **

The idea is engaging and provides for a mix of technology-heavy action with an old rom-com story: two best-friend CIA agents fall for the same girl and use their wiles in an all-out contest for her affections. But it's a difficult mix to maintain, since the fights and brawls need a little edge to avoid being totally cartoonish, but too much realism destroys the romantic comedy aura. The result is an uneven picture with some good moments, not a new model for a subset of the genre. An attractive cast of Reese Witherspoon, Tom Hardy, and Chris Pine are very entertaining, and Chelsea Handler as Witherspoon's sister gives scene-stealing advice from the other side of matrimony. "This Means War" is not a bad choice if you're in the mood for a slightly different kind of romance.

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.