2 DAYS IN NEW YORK (R) Julie Delpy wrote, directed and stars in this follow up to 2007's 2 Days in Paris. Marion and Mingus (Delpy and a hipster-looking Chris Rock) live peacefully together with children from their former marriages before their relationship is tested when Marion's family comes to visit and shakes things up in their stereotypically French way (customs nabs them for smuggling in cheese).

• ALEX CROSS (PG-13) I’ve never read one of James Patterson’s bestsellers featuring police detective/forensic psychologist Alex Cross, but I did see Kiss the Girls, which I recall enjoying. Alex Cross is no Kiss the Girls. In Detective Dr. Cross’ third cinematic case, Tyler Perry takes over for the much more capable Morgan Freeman, who portrayed Cross in Kiss the Girls and Along Came a Spider. Perry’s Cross must hunt down Picasso (a muscular skeleton that once was Jack from “Lost”), a professional assassin-cum-serial killer whose first murder is a mass one. When Picasso makes his mission personal, Cross goes off the reservation, which judging by Perry’s emotional acting playbook is little different from being on the reservation. A strong supporting cast—Edward Burns, Rachel Nichols, John C. McGinley, Jean Reno, Cicely Tyson and Giancarlo Esposito—prove no match for Perry’s lack of screen presence, Rob Cohen’s mindless action direction and the laughable script by Marc Moss and Kerry Williamson. This movie would have been more entertaining had Perry also donned his fat suits and pursued Picasso as Cross, Madea and her brother, Joe; Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Alex Cross is a bad movie idea I could get behind.

ARGO (R) Ben Affleck’s career revival continues with what might be his best directing effort yet; as life-or-death as the tension gets, the movie is ultimately a less grueling entertainment experience than either The Town or Gone Baby Gone. Revealing the once classified story of how the CIA rescued six American hostages in the midst of the Iranian Revolution, Argo is both an intriguing modern history lesson and a compelling, old-fashioned Hollywood thriller. The first-act scenes of the revolution terrify with present day relevance; the middle sequence that sets up the outlandish rescue op humorously skewers late-'70s Hollywood, thanks to excellent work by John Goodman as real life, Oscar-winning makeup artist John Chambers, as well as Alan Arkin; and the climactic escape epitomizes edge-of-your-seat suspense. Affleck has collected one hell of a cast—Bryan Cranston, Kyle Chandler, Victor Garber, Scoot McNairy, Chris Messina and many more recognizable faces—but the movie isn’t dominated by any one showy actor, and certainly not its tightly controlled director-star. Its greatness is certainly a sum of all parts—directing, writing (by first-time scripter Chris Terrio) and acting. The Academy will certainly recognize Argo, the year’s best, most accessible release to date, in its expanded best picture race.

ATLAS SHRUGGED, PART 2: EITHER-OR (PG-13) John Putch directs this second installation of the adaptation of Ayn Rand's 1957 novel, Atlas Shrugged.

THE BOURNE LEGACY (PG-13) Tony Gilroy has been scripting exceptional Bourne films for a decade now. His first time directing one plays exactly like his previous two directing efforts (Michael Clayton and Duplicity); well-crafted but unexciting. Matt Damon’s unseen Jason Bourne is on the run, but another enhanced secret agent, Aaron Cross (Jeremy Renner, who’s an adequate replacement for Damon), is in the crosshairs of some nasty government spooks, led sociopathically by Edward Norton. Cross and pretty scientist, Marta Shearing (Academy Award winner Rachel Weisz), travels across the globe to find the means to permanently enhance the superspy’s mental abilities. This admirable, modern action franchise has always lacked in the fun department (I’ve never wanted to rewatch a Bourne); now it misses Paul Greengrass’ kinetic, athletic, handheld style. Legacy is more desk jockeying than spy gaming. (Call the undergrads; Cross proves to be one hell of a fake ID crafter.) Its respectable action set pieces lack the ooh ahh moment. Still, I’m curious to see the franchise advance with a Bourne/Cross faceoff or team up, but I’d prefer if Gilroy returns to scripting and Greengrass to behind the camera.

BRAVE (PG) A good, not great, Pixar film, Brave strays into traditional Disney territory after a tremendously magical first act. Headstrong Scottish Princess Merida (wonderfully voiced by the lovely Kelly Macdonald) wants to choose her own destiny. She does not want to marry the first-born of the clans allied with her father (v. Billy Connolly), but her mother, Queen Elinor (v. Emma Thompson), will hear none of her complaints. In typical stubborn teenage fashion, Merida short-sightedly asks a wood-carving witch (v. Julie Walters) for a spell to change her mother. The aftermath of the spell leads to some heartwarming and charming derring-do, but the sitcom-ish mix-up is a bit stock for what we’ve come to expect from the studio that gave us Wall-E and Up, two animated features that transcended their cartoonish origins.

CHASING MAVERICKS (PG) Michael Apted and Curtis Hanson have two of the most varied filmographies of any two directors currently working together. Between them are a Meryl Streep action thriller, a domestic horror hit, a period detective drama, a rap biopic, a chick-lit flick, a Bond movie, an eight-entry documentary series, a Narnia movie, a Loretta Lynn biopic…why not a surfing drama? Surfer Jay Moriarty tackles the infamous Northern California surfing break known as the Mavericks. With Jonny Weston, Gerard Butler and Elisabeth Shue.

CLOUD ATLAS (R) A new epic from the combined creative might of the Wachowskis (Andy and Lana) and Tom Tykwer (Run Lola Run) brings Tom Hanks, Halle Berry, Hugh Grant, Hugo Weaving, Jim Broadbent, Jim Sturgess, Susan Sarandon and more together for an adaptation of David Mitchell’s dramatic sci-fi fantasy. Everything is connected as years, lives and actions collide and impact the past, present and future. I’m not really sure what Cloud Atlas is about (I’m not really sure I’ll know once I’ve seen it), but I certainly know that I want to see it.

THE DARK KNIGHT RISES (PG-13) Fanboy expectations of all-time greatness aside, The Dark Knight Rises concludes filmmaker Christopher Nolan’s Batman trilogy as satisfyingly as one can hope. Having taken the fall for the murder of Harvey Dent in The Dark Knight, Batman is no longer welcome in Gotham City, which is all right with shut-in Bruce Wayne (Christian Bale), the eccentric billionaire who continues to mourn the death of his love, Rachel. (Interestingly, The Joker is never mentioned.) But a new evil, the muscle-and-respirator-clad Bane (Tom Hardy, finally doing the great Bat-breaker justice), has risen, requiring Batman to return to action. Meanwhile, a pretty cat burglar named Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway, making audiences forget both Michelle Pfeiffer and Halle Berry) has targeted Gotham’s elite. Nolan delivers the dense blockbuster we expect after TDK and Inception. He plays a masterful game of cinematic chess, knowing how to perfectly place every component—script, actors, action set pieces—on the board. A brilliant blockbuster, TDKR cannot best its immediate predecessor; the three-quel lacks the Ledger zeitgeist and shockingly needs more Batman. Still, The Dark Knight Rises darkly comic-bookends the movie summer that blissfully began with Joss Whedon’s candy coated Avengers. I’m sad Nolan’s time in Gotham is over.

DREDD (R) Judge Dredd heads back to the big screen for the first time since Sylvester Stallone’s failed 1995 franchise starter, and early judgments are shockingly positive. Karl Urban plays the futuristic law enforcement officer, charged with acting as judge, jury and executioner. Vantage Point’s Pete Travis seems an odd choice for director, but 28 Days Later… writer Alex Garland is a perfect fit for the dark, comic material. Dredd, at its best, could compete with 80s great dystopian satire Robocop. With Lena Headey (300) and Olivia Thirlby (Juno).

FRANKENWEENIE (PG) I’m not going to tell you Tim Burton is back, but Frankenweenie is his best film since the 1990s. Going back to his animation roots and his love of classic horror invigorates the blockbuster auteur. Frankenweenie is certainly his best genre film since 1999’s underrated James Whale love letter, Sleepy Hollow. This classic horror movie homage, itself a remake of Burton’s lovely black and white 1984 short film of the same name, will please both adult genre fans and their indiscriminate children. This family horror flick easily bests recent release Hotel Transylvania and probably has a slight edge on ParaNorman. Sweet Victor Frankenstein reanimates the family dog, Sparky, after he’s hit by a car. Unfortunately, the townspeople of New Holland, especially his classmates, either don’t understand the power Victor has discovered or are simply afraid of science in general. Fans of Burton’s original short will be pleased with the narrative additions made in John August’s script. The last act of monster mayhem enjoys a silly Gremlins-meet-Godzilla showdown at the town fair that is a sheer horror delight. One excellent family friendly horror film this year (ParaNorman) was cause for excitement; two is cause for celebration.

FUN SIZE (PG-13) A smart, troubled teen (Victoria Justice of “Victorious”) loses her odd little brother on Halloween and has to find him before the night is over. This comedy’s pedigree is really good. It’s based on one of the biggest scripts from the Black List (the best unproduced screenplays); it’s written by Max Werner, a “Colbert Reporter”; “Gossip Girl" creator Josh Schwartz makes his directorial debut and the cast includes Johnny Knoxville, Chelsea Handler, Ana Gasteyer and Kerri Kenney.

HACK-O-LANTERN (R) Bad Movie Night returns with a seasonal entry also known as Halloween Night. A kindly grandpa (Hy Pyke) runs a satanic cult, and he’d love for his grandson, Tommy (Gregory Scott Cummins, Luther from “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia”), to take up his murderin’, devil worshippin’ ways. Padded with heavy metal videos, Hack-O-Lantern might be just the kind of crappy movie to see you through this holiday season. Tis the reason for the season, after all. (Ciné)

HERE COMES THE BOOM (PG-13) Adam Sandler’s made plenty of pictures worse than this Kevin James vehicle about outlandish ways to save education. James’ Scott Voss is a high school biology teacher who turns to MMA to fund the extracurriculars at his struggling school. An appealing supporting cast includes Salma Hayek, Henry Winkler, Greg Germann and real life MMA fighter Bas Rutten (after an appearance in Paul Blart: Mall Cop and voice work in Zookeeper, he’s becoming a James regular) to assist the extremely likable James in an odd, family-friendly mash-up of educational messages and inspirational sports, where the sports are extremely vicious. It doesn’t NOT work, but more refined audiences will cringe at the movie’s genial attitude toward violence.

HOTEL TRANSYLVANIA (PG) Unlike the superior ParaNorman, which was a genuinely, safely frightening family horror flick, Hotel Transylvania is an amusing, run-of-the-mill animated family movie where the main characters are harmless monsters. (The lesson that monsters aren’t dangerous is a terrible, hazardous message to teach children.) To protect monsters and his daughter, Mavis, from their dreaded enemies, humans, Dracula (genially voiced by Adam Sandler) sets up a hotel in the safe confines of Transylvania. On the eve of Mavis’ 118th birthday, a human named Jonathan (v. Andy Samberg) discovers Drac’s hideaway. Thank goodness director Genndy Tartakovsky (“Dexter’s Laboratory,” “The Powerpuff Girls” and “Samurai Jack”) brings his visual creativity to this rather rote tale of prejudice and cross-cultural romance. The sequences that work best are the ones that have fun with the conventions of Universal’s classic movie monsters. Samberg’s saddled with a rather boring character, but Selena Gomez’s Mavis has spunk. The adults—Kevin James as Frankenstein, Steve Buscemi as the Wolfman, David Spade as the Invisible Man and CeeLo Green as the Mummy—are even better as cartoon monsters than their usual human cartoons. Horror movie fans will prefer ParaNorman, but the kids will love checking into Hotel Transylvania.

LAWLESS (R) Despite what works in John Hillcoat’s follow-up to The Road, the main characters of Lawless—a family of bootlegging brothers played by Tom Hardy, Shia LeBeouf and Jason Clarke—don’t quite welcome viewing visitors to Franklin County, VA, “the Wettest County in the World.” Facing off against a perfumed dandy of a sheriff, Charlie Rakes (Guy Pearce, as if he’s auditioning to play the new Dick Tracy villain, No Brows), the legendary Bondurant Brothers survive sure death time and again, but the story never makes their continued existence the viewer's imperative outside of “If the bros die, the film ends.” West Central Georgia does a fine job of portraying early 20th-century Virginia; the below the line crew does a phenomenal job. Nick Cave and Warren Ellis’ soundtrack gives the film a jauntier energy than either its writing or performances. The muscular, sturdy Hardy croaks his lines without changing his facial expression once, and still, the prospect of him leaving the film early, forcing viewers to spend even more time with LeBeouf’s yippy littlest Bondurant, Jack, chills. Gary Oldman barely peeks in as gangster Floyd Banner. Lawless has loads of potential, but the resulting film fails to arrest.

LOOPER (R) Whoa! Ever since Brick, I have waited for Rian Johnson to make good on that coolly stylish teen-noir’s immense promise. Johnson might still have better films to come, but this tricksy, time travel, sci-fi noir ensures Brick’s promise has been fulfilled. In a future where time travel is an illegal reality, hitmen called loopers wait in the past for gangsters to send them their targets. Armed with a blunderbuss, Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) awaits his marks, knowing one day he will have to “close the loop,” meaning kill his older self. When Old Joe (Bruce Willis) finally shows, the showdown doesn’t go as smoothly as planned. Had The Terminator mated with a film noir, Looper would be the exciting result. Don’t expect any lengthy scientific discussions of time travel (that doesn't mean the film doesn’t have a lot to say; one flaw is a too-wordy middle act). Do expect lots of violence, a bit of a mind trip and the best Bruce Willis movie in years. Willis might still be the top draw, but the talented Gordon-Levitt as a young Bruno keeps the movie moving. Looper is certainly 2012’s best science fiction and is shortlisted for the year’s best.

THE MASTER (R) Auteur Paul Thomas Anderson’s tremendous, flawless cinematic masterpieces can be pompous, emotionally distant and inscrutable to a fault. The Master proves no less perfectly composed and no less difficult to process. Volatile, World War II vet Freddie Quill (Joaquin Phoenix) is struggling to adjust to post-war life when he meets author Lancaster Dodd (Philip Seymour Hoffman), the founder of a spiritual movement called The Cause. Despite Anderson’s basing Dodd on Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, don’t expect any evisceration of the controversial religion; you’ll leave disappointed. Instead, revel in the never mundane, constantly homoerotic study of two vastly different, wonderfully deep characters. Phoenix powers Quill with explosive animalistic instinct (it’s the sort of performance audiences have come to expect from the seemingly crazed thespian), while Hoffman duels his fiery costar with Dodd’s cool, intellectual restraint. Like indispensable cogs, removing either man would stop Anderson’s precise cinematic engine. Other films will rival The Master for cinematic excellence this year. These films will engage audiences on a simpler level and probably waltz off with next year’s top prizes, but audiences up for the challenge will likely find no more enriching a work this year than Anderson’s latest gem. (Ciné)

• PARANORMAL ACTIVITY 4 (R) While the quality of Paranormal Activity 4 is little changed from its three predecessors (they are all above-average examples of how to shoot found footage flicks), the tense atmosphere, where the scares collectively imagined and anticipated by the audience are so much more terrifying than anything delivered by the film, is utterly absent. No imminent danger is established as the 15-year-old protagonist, whose name I cannot recall (Kathryn Newton, who resembles a young Jane Krakowski), and her equally unmemorable boy-who’s-just-a-friend tape every uninteresting moment of their tame not-quite-courtship. Some creative set-ups never pay off; the Kinect bits epitomize the movie’s wasted potential for terror. Even the anticipated return of the original’s statuesque Katie Featherston disappoints, as she’s barely around. The climactic sequence finally ramps up the scary but only for maybe five of the movie’s 88 minutes. PA4 also fails to develop the intriguing mythology introduced by its immediate predecessor. Boo on all counts. Skip this exceedingly weak entry in what, for three movies, had been a smart, effective horror franchise. If you ignore this advice, stick around through the credits for what looks like a teaser of the next installment.

THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER PG-13. Stephen Chbosky directs the adaptation of his 1999 book of the same name about a high school freshman dealing with isolation, new friends and a disturbed past. The book is one of the best modern stories about less than golden high school experiences. (Ciné)

PITCH PERFECT (PG-13) Infectious is the best word to describe the a cappella college comedy Pitch Perfect. Barden University’s women's singing group, the Barden Bellas, need some fresh blood after a devastating loss in the national finals of collegiate, competitive a cappella. Freshman Beca (Anna Kendrick, delightful as ever even if her character is an overly pouty teen), Fat Amy (rising star Rebel Wilson) and several interchangeable coeds join seniors Aubrey (Anna Camp, “True Blood”) and Chloe (Brittany Snow, “American Dreams”) as they battle their way back to the top. In their way are Barden’s resident a cappella badboys, The Treblemakers, led by Bumper (Adam Devine of the devious “Workaholics”) and new guy/Beca’s love interest, Jesse (Skylar Astin). It’s understandable that many, many people, especially males, are going to see the “Glee”-ful previews or read the synopsis and instantly decide, “I’m out.” That rush to judgment will deprive them of a decidedly anti-“Glee” experience. The movie lacks any message stronger than a cappella is a lot of fun, and the comic ensemble, including John Michael Higgins and Elizabeth Banks, lend a spiteful, humorous edge to what could have just been a bland radio friendly hit.

PONYO (G) 2008. From Sept. 27 through Oct. 21, Ciné presents the Studio Ghibli Film Series, a retrospective that includes four of animation legend Hayao Miyazaki’s masterpieces. Beloved animator and Academy Award winner Miyazaki’s Ponyo will delight anyone willing to venture beyond Pixar, Ice Age, and Shrek. A young goldfish princess named Ponyo must save the world with the help of a young boy. Featuring an all-star voice cast including Cate Blanchett, Matt Damon, Liam Neeson, Tina Fey, Lily Tomlin, Cloris Leachman and Betty White. (Ciné)

RUBY SPARKS (R) The directors of Little Miss Sunshine, Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris, return with a fantastical romantic comedy about an author, Calvin (Paul Dano), who conjures the titular woman (screenwriter Zoe Kazan) out of thin air. Ruby ends up being Calvin’s one true love. But is it love if you can control the person’s every move, thought and emotion? With the underrated Chris Messina, Annette Bening, Antonio Banderas, Steve Coogan, Elliot Gould and “Arrested Development”’s Alia Shawkat. (Ciné)

THE SALT OF LIFE (NR) 2010. Gianni Di Gregorio, played by himself, wrote and directed this film in which he stars as an aging Italian family man. Time has left Gianni under-appreciated by his family, and out of boredom and need for revitalization, he seeks to create a spicy, extra-marital love life, made difficult by his ailing, needy mother and his own meekness.

SEVEN PSYCHOPATHS (R) Martin McDonagh set the bar really high with his feature writing-directing debut, In Bruges. His sophomore effort, Seven Psychopaths, isn’t better than its excellent predecessor, but it does clear the bar. The exceedingly meta film begs to be described as Tarantino-esque. An Irish screenwriter named Marty (Colin Farrell) is working on a script called “Seven Psychopaths.” His psycho pal, Billy (Sam Rockwell), wants to give Marty all the inspirational help he can, so Billy and his oddball partner, Hans (Christopher Walken), kidnap the beloved Shih Tzu of another psychopath, gangster Charlie (Woody Harrelson, who replaced Mickey Rourke, maybe to the film’s benefit). Somehow, they all wind up in the desert for the climactic shootout of which Billy’s always dreamed. This movie is extremely violent, extremely bloody and extremely funny. Rockwell and Harrelson have a ball, and Walken hasn’t been this successfully quixotic in years. Also, Tom Waits shows up as another psycho who carries around his pet rabbit, which is okay by me. Everything may not work, but so much does that the faults don’t matter. McDonagh remains one of the most exciting filmmakers to watch; I hope we don’t have to wait four years for his third film.

SILENT HILL: REVELATION 3D (R) A second cinematic visit to the creepiest burg in video games, Silent Hill, is long overdue. In what seems to be a movie version of Silent Hill 3, Heather Mason (Adelaide Clemens, who somehow exactly resembles both Michelle Williams and Carey Mulligan) must find her father, Harry (Sean Bean), in the foggy town of Silent Hill. The trailers for director Michael J. Bassett’s (Wilderness) visit to Silent Hill look appropriately horrifying. With Radha Mitchell, Kit Harington (“Game of Thrones”), Martin Donavan, Deborah Kara Unger and Malcolm McDowell.

SINISTER (R) Sinister, the new film from Scott Derrickson (I really liked his The Exorcism of Emily Rose and don’t hate his rather boring remake of The Day the Earth Stood Still), is my favorite theatrical horror experience since The Strangers. Ethan Hawke intensely stars as true crime novelist Ellison Oswalt, who has moved his family—pretty wife, tween son, young daughter—into the murder house for the latest crime he is investigating. What he discovers is much deadlier and more demony than he could have imagined. Sinister utilizes found footage—Ellison finds a box of home movies in the attic of his new home—more uniquely than any of the glut of the latest (fading?) horror fad. These little short snuff films and Ellison’s drunk, terrified reactions supply some of the movie’s scariest moments, and Derrickson shows a lot of ingenuity in how he subtly shows the grisly kills. Extra points for James Ransone (HBO’s “Generation Kill” and “Treme”) as the not-as-dumb-a-deputy-as-he-seems comic relief. Released amid a lot of buzz in the horror community, this terrific October chiller delivers.

TAKEN 2 (PG-13) Most movies fail to encapsulate the description “unnecessary sequel” as perfectly as Taken 2. (I wish it had had some silly subtitle like Taken 2: Takenier, but alas.) As a consequence of the violent methods he employed to retrieve his kidnapped daughter, Kim (Maggie Grace), in the first movie, retired CIA operative Bryan Mills (Liam Neeson), must face off against the Albanian dad (played by go-to Eastern European baddie Rade Serbedzija) of one of the sex traffickers he killed during his rescue mission. Once Bryan get himself and Kim to safety, he must go after some more Albanians and save his estranged wife, Lenore (Famke Janssen). The scenery—Bryan must clean the Eurotrash from the bazaars of Istanbul as opposed to the streets of Paris—isn’t the only thing that’s changed. While writer-producer Luc Besson returns, he replaces Taken director Pierre Morel with Transporter 3’s Olivier Megaton. Unfortunately, that substitution brings with it action choreography/cinematography that is far less comprehensible. Add a far too slow opening act to the jumbled action and Taken 2 falls far below the bar set by its surprise success of a predecessor.

TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE (PG-13) You’ll have no Trouble with the Curve so long as old man jokes, spryly delivered by a grouchier than usual Clint Eastwood, can keep you entertained for two hours. As aging baseball scout Gus Lobel, Eastwood seems to be workshopping a new stand-up routine (after his speech at the Republican National Convention, who knows?). He constantly mutters one-liners to himself, be he alone or sharing a scene with one of the movie’s terrific supporting actors, including Amy Adams, Justin Timberlake, John Goodman, or the gaggle of familiar old faces that play Gus’ scouting rivals. When the script asks him to act, Eastwood can still make any movie fan’s day. Adams and Timberlake bring some refreshing youth to this rather aged dramedy. Director Robert Lorenz hasn’t learned as much from his longtime collaborator as you'd like (he’s been Eastwood’s assistant director since 1995’s The Bridges of Madison County and producer since 2002’s Blood Work); writer Randy Brown’s Mitch Albom-y script doesn’t help. Fortunately, the capable bunch of on-camera talent, led by Hollywood’s elder statesman, should please the hometown crowds wishing to play a game of “Spot the Shots of Athens.”