Opening This Week

ADORATION—Toronto filmmaker Atom Egoyan’s newest follows the effects of a high school student who creates a fictional story of his dead parents as terrorist agents. Starring Devon Bostick, Scott Speedman, Rachel Blanchard, Kenneth Welsh, and Arsinée Khanjian. Reviewed this issue. Amherst

EASY VIRTUE—Noel Coward adaptation set in the 1920s starring Jessica Biel as a free-spirited American woman at odds with the family of landed British gentry she has married into. Co-starring Ben Barnes, Kristin Scott Thomas and Colin Firth. Directed by Stephan Elliott (The Adventures of Priscilla). Reviewed this issue. Amherst

THE PROPOSAL—Sandra Bullock as a strong-willed executive and Canadian citizen who forces her assistant (Ryan Reynolds) to marry her so that she can remain in the US. With Mary Steenburgen, Craig T. Nelson and Betty White. Directed by Anne Fletcher (27 Dresses). Because this film was not previewed, a review will be posted at Too Long in the Dark on Fri. Flix, Maple Ridge, Market Arcade, Regal Elmwood, Regal Hollywood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria, Sunset Drive-In, Transit Drive-In

TRANSFORMERS: REVENGE OF THE FALLEN— More giant CGI robots battle. I know, but the first one was pretty entertaining. Starring Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Isabel Lucas, John Turturro, Rainn Wilson, and Tyrese Gibson. Directed by Michael Bay (Armageddon). Opens Wednesday 6/24; a review will be posted at Too Long in the Dark on Tues. Aurora, Flix, Market Arcade, Maple Ridge, Regal Elmwood, Regal Hollywood, Regal Transit, Regal Quaker, Regal Walden Galleria

YEAR ONE—Writer-director Harold Ramis, who hasn’t made a decent movie since Groundhog Day, hitches his wagon to the Judd Apatow star for this comedy starring Jack Black and Michael Cera as ancient doofuses (doofi?) who hit the road when they get kicked out of their tribe. With Oliver Platt, David Cross, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Vinnie Jones and Hank Azaria. Because this film was not previewed by our deadline, a review will be posted at Too Long in the Dark on Fri. Delevan Drive In, Flix, Maple Ridge, Market Arcade, Regal Elmwood, Regal Hollywood, Regal Quaker, Regal Transit, Regal Walden Galleria, Sunset Drive-In, Transit Drive-In

ETC:

BUFFALO GOING GREEN—Squeaky Wheel presents a program of short films from the Buffalo Youth Media Institute, which pairs high school students with professional filmmakers. This progam includes short documentaries about global warming, green burials, local food, alternative transportation, local recycling and reuse initiatives, zoo sustainability and other green-themed topics. Free and open to the public. Sun 3pm. Market Arcade Film and Arts Center, 639 Main St. (855-3022).

D.O.A. (1950)—Film noir classic starring Edmond O’Brien as an ordinary guy trying to find out who poisoned him in the few days before he dies. With Pamela Britton and Beverly Garland. Directed by Rudolph Maté, better known as a cinematographer who worked with Carl Dreyer. Fri-Sat 9pm. The Screening Room, Northtown Plaza in Century Mall, 3131 Sheridan Drive, Amherst (837-0376) www.screeningroom.net

DANGEROUS CROSSING (1953)—Adaptation of a John Dickson Carr mystery about a new bride (Jeanne Crain) whose husband disappears shortly after they board their honeymoon cruise. With Michael Rennie, Max Showalter and Carl Betz, Directed by the reliable “B” helmer Joseph M. Newman (Outcasts of Poker Flats). Fri-Sat 7:30pm. The Screening Room, Northtown Plaza in Century Mall, 3131 Sheridan Drive, Amherst (837-0376) www.screeningroom.net

DUNE (1984)— David Lynch’s few years of trying to work in the Hollywood mainstream resulted in this big-budget adaptation of Frank Herbert’s fantasy novels. Both fascinating and maddening, it fails to condense Herbert’s world into a digestible format, but contains many striking scenes and images. Starring Kyle MacLachlan, Francesca Annis, Brad Dourif, José Ferrer, Sting, Linda Hunt, Virginia Madsen, Kenneth McMillan, Jürgen Prochnow, Patrick Stewart, Dean Stockwell, Max von Sydow, Sean Young, and, of course, Jack Nance. Fri-Sat midnight. Hamburg Palace Theatre, 31 Buffalo St, Hamburg (649-2295) www.hamburgpalace.com

IS ANYBODY THERE—Drama starring Michael Caine as an elderly performer who bonds with a ten-year-old boy, the son of the owners of the old-age home he has moved into. Co-starring Bill Milner. Anne-Marie Duff, David Morrissey and Rosemary Harris. Directed by John Crowley (Boy A). Sat 8pm; Tue 7:30pm. Fredonia Opera House, 9 Church St. Fredonia (716-679-0891) www.fredopera.org

METROPOLIS (Germany, 1927)—Newly restored version of Fritz Lang’s magnificent silent classic set in a future society where mankind is divided into two classes, the thinkers and the workers. Tues 8 pm. The Screening Room, Northtown Plaza in Century Mall, 3131 Sheridan Drive, Amherst (837-0376)

MOM’S APPLE PIE—Documentary about five lesbian mothers in the 1970s who fought to retain custody of their children in the face of a legal system that sought to intervene by claiming that homosexuals were unfit to raise children. Directed by Jody Laine, Shan Ottey, and Shad Reinstein. Presented by Ways In Being Gay : Ways In/Between Gender. Fri 8pm. Hallwalls, 341 Delaware Ave. (854-1694) www.hallwalls.org