A crime drama spinoff is surprisingly funny, with fresh new faces and hilarious gags. It should be a hit with moviegoers because it's the funniest film to come out this year.By Brett MartinJonah Hill and Channing Tatum play bumbling cops Schmidt and Jenko who go undercover and back to high school in "21 Jump Street."The film is a spinoff of the Fox TV show of the late '80s and early '90s, helping to launch the career of a young Johnny Depp. This fresh rewrite is a pleasant surprise. Our duo, under the supervision of their police captain (played by Ice Cube), investigates a new illegal drug at…

Taylor Kitsch (from "Friday Night Lights") plays a Civil War veteran who finds himself on Mars caught up in all sorts of interplanetary fighting in "John Carter."The original story was penned by Edgar Rice Burroughs 100 years ago. Now it's a 3D epic, from the folks who brought us "WALL-E," and is bigger than life. John Carter is a small man compared to the 12-foot-tall, four-armed creatures around him, but he does have his own superpowers while on the Martian planet.If you haven't read the book, there is a lot to keep track of here. Carter wants to go home -- An alien species wants him to …

Daniel Radcliffe plays a single parent who settles in for several nights of terror in "The Woman in Black." Radcliffe plays Victorian Solicitor Arthur Kipps, a widower whose wife died during the birth of his son four years earlier. Despite warnings from the terrified locals, he takes up residence in a creepy old house to handle the affairs of the now deceased owner. When night falls, the supernatural world comes out, complete with wind-up toys, total darkness, and spooky images of a ghost. Radcliffe is suited for this kind of film. The Harry Potter franchise has made him an expert in the art …

Kermit the Frog, Miss Piggy, Fozzie Bear, Gonzo, Animal and all the rest are back together again in "The Muppets." Jason Segel co-wrote and stars in the film as Gary. He and girlfriend Mary (Amy Adams) head to Hollywood on a dream trip. Tagging along is Gary's brother Walter, a cute little puppet who is the world's biggest Muppets fan. Upon arriving in Hollywood, they find out the Muppets' studio has fallen into disrepair. Kermit and his gang of friends have long since parted company, but reunite just in time to put on a telethon to raise cash to buy back the studio. An all-star cast of …

A remake of the original from 1984, Footloose pits old farts who hate rock and roll against wild, young dancing teens who want to shake their groove thing all night long. The story remains basically the same. Some teens, including the son of a local reverend, are killed in a car accident after a night of dancing and partying. The reverend (Dennis Quaid) then leads the drive to pass an ordinance forbidding public dancing. Fast forward a few years. Now the reverend's daughter Ariel, played by Julianne Hough, starts to stir up controversy by participating in some forbidden, underground dancing. …

Six actors play three roles over a 30-year time period in this thriller about Nazis, Israeli spies and all sorts of lies in The Debt.Helen Mirren plays a retired Israeli Mossad agent named Rachel who is honored for her role in the assassination of a Nazi war criminal in 1965. Thirty years have passed, but questions still remain. Did she and associate Stephan (Tom Wilkinson) and others really kill their target? After an apparent suicide of a certain spy, Mirren rewinds the entire mission to 30 years prior. Jessica Chastain plays a young Mirren, who along with Sam Worthington's character, build…

Movie: 'Our Idiot Brother' Paul Rudd looks all hippie dippy as "Ned," an immature man-child who drives his family crazy in the film "Our Idiot Brother." Rudd spends most of the movie crashing on one sofa after another in a series of unfortunate events.  Ned first lands at his sister Liz's house. Liz, played by Emily Mortimer, is an insecure Brooklyn mom married to Dylan (Steve Coogan). Ned quickly wears out his welcome and moves in with his sister Miranda, played by Elizabeth Banks, a writer for Vanity Fair. Finally he joins his artsy, bisexual bohemian sister Natalie, played by Zooey …

This week's Dinner and a Movie features the flick "Conan the Barbarian" and dinner at Iron Wok for all the iron men out there. Movie: "Conan the Barbarian" Conan the Barbarian is back. Bare chested, bloody, and brutal, it is everything you would expect from a franchise that helped launch Arnold Schwarzenegger's career 30 years ago. Move over "ah-nold" -- there is a new barbarian breaking new ground. Hawaiian actor Jason Momoa breathes new life into the role as Conan. Momoa is best known for his role in the wildly popular HBO show "Game of Thrones" as Khal Drogo. Now the long-haired actor, who…

This week's Dinner and a Movie features the flick "30 Minutes or Less" and Elwood's Pizza. Movie: 30 Minutes or Less "Social Network" star Jesse Eisenberg finds himself in dire straits as a pizza delivery guy turned bank robber in the dark comedy "30 Minutes or Less".Eisenberg, along with "Parks and Recreation" star Aziz Ansari, team up to rob a bank to help Dwayne (played by Danny McBride) obtain $100,000 in order to pay a hit man (Michael Peña) to kill Dwayne's father (played by Fred Ward). The reason for the murder -- to get Dwayne's inheritance. Nick Swardson plays McBride's sidekick in …