PLANET SICK-BOY MOVIE CAPSULES

You know it’s a bad movie when you are left to entertain yourself by counting the number of times the boom mike drops into view. Showing that he’s more than just a television whore, Jerry Springer has taken his white-trash peddling derriere onto the big screen in what I can safely call "The Worst Film of the Year". It looks like it was written and filmed over a three-day weekend. I’ve seen better acting in porno, of which this is oddly reminiscent. I remember last month when Springer announced that he was going to film a biopic in the same vein as Howard Stern’s Private Parts. He should be shot just for mentioning himself in the same breath. I’ll be the first person to admit that the television show is entertaining, but the film is downright deplorable. (1:17 –

for nudity and language)

Max Fischer (Jason Schwartzman) is not your ordinary kid. He goes to a private academy, but instead of concentrating on his schoolwork he devotes all of his time to extra-curricular activities. So the worst student in the history of Rushmore is also the accomplished director of dazzling stage plays (like Serpico) and the founder of, among other clubs, both theYankee Racers and the Bombardment Society (read: dodgeball). He also befriends local business tycoon and Rushmore alumni Herman Blume (Bill Murray) who, whilst in the throes of somewhat of a mid-life crisis, sees more than a bit of himself in the energetic Max.

Max’s life is thrown into upheaval when he falls head-over-heels for a new teacher (Olivia Williams, The Postman) and must compete with Blume for her affection. And when these two fight, they take no prisoners. Rushmore is one of the funniest and freshest films of the year, and also the best performance of Bill Murray’s career (he was robbed of an Oscar nomination). From Wes Anderson and Owen Wilson, the creators of the equally hysterical Bottle Rocket. (1:33 – for adult language and some adult situations)

All of your favorite characters from the popular children’s television series make their big screen debut in this marginally acceptable adaptation. It’s pretty much a long version of the TV show, except Tommy Pickles’ head is larger and more misshapen. Oh, yeah – he has a new baby brother named Dil that he wants to take back to the hospital. Tommy has a change of heart when his dad tells him about "sponsatility." Thankfully, Angelica plays a very minor role. (1:23 –

for light-hearted family violence)

The best buddy teaming since 48 Hours, Rush Hour pits fast-talking Chris Tucker (Money Talks) with Hong Kong action hero Jackie Chan (Rumble in the Bronx). The kidnapping story is as asinine as they come, but Tucker and Chan raise the sloppy script to levels unbeknownst to typical comedy/action vehicles. And if I had a dollar for every person who thought that Chris Rock was in this movie, I would finally be able to ply myself with the highest quality meats and cheeses. (1:37 –

for violence and adult language)

If you're not all documentaried-out, ImageOut's June 19 fundraiser Radical Harmonies will unspool at the Little at 6:30 p.m. Harmonies tells the story of the feminist movement in music back in the early and mid '70s, when Lilith Fair was still a fairy tale.

Directed by Oscar nominee Dee Mosbacher, Harmonies featured artists with whom I was completely unfamiliar (aside from The Weavers' Ronnie Gilbert). I imagine the same could be said by most folks who haven't heard of Olivia Records and don't know the words to the groundbreaking single "Angry Atthis." Strangely, this music movement was also responsible for both the popularization of using ASL translators at public events, as well as the intentional misspelling of words (i.e. womyn and wimmin), which has since been appropriated by date-rape frat-rockers (i.e. Limp Bizkit, Staind, and every other band you hear on modern rock radio).

Playing like a 90-minute music video, Tom Tykwer’s Run Lola Run literally bursts off of the big screen with a nerve-wracking urgency, pulsating score and brazen visual style, making one heck of a relentless ride. The film stars Franka Potente as Lola, a bottle redhead that has twenty minutes to come up with 100,000 deutschemarks to keep her boyfriend Manni (Moritz Bleibtreu) from being killed in a bad drug deal.

The cat-like Lola has three lives to accomplish this task, learning from mistakes she made in previous efforts. Viewers can also see how other characters are affected by Lola’s different decisions when Tykwer, using a quick series of still photos, shows how they will spend their remaining days in a sort of fast-forward future. Tykwer, who also made the incredible but unseen festival hit Wintersleepers, wrote, directed and even provides the isochronal score. In German with English subtitles. (1:25 - for some violence and language)