Christian Bale as Batman in a scene from "The Dark Knight." The mythical Gotham City — long assumed to be an allegorical Big Apple – is unmistakably based on Chicago.

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Opening Friday

Brick Lane ** — PG-13 for some sexuality and brief strong language. A Bangladeshi woman becomes trapped in a loveless arranged marriage in 1980s Britain. Tannishtha Chatterjee. 101 minutes. Review on Page 15. Loft.

Mother of Tears * — Not rated. An old urn triggers a series of violent crimes. Asia Argento. 98 minutes. Review on Page 15. Loft.

Step Brothers *** — R for crude and sexual content, and pervasive language. Two spoiled men become stepbrothers when their parents marry. Will Ferrell, John C. Reilly. 95 minutes. Review on Page 13. El Con, Century Park Park Place, Cinemark, DeAnza, Desert Sky, Foothills, Harkins, Oasis, Tower.

The X-Files: I Want to Believe — PG-13 for violent and disturbing content and thematic material. David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson reteam as investigators who solve supernatural cases. 104 minutes. Review in Friday's Accent. El Con, Century Park, Park Place, Cinemark, DeAnza, Desert Sky, Foothills, Harkins, Oasis, Tower.

Continuing Friday

Baby Mama *** — PG-13 for crude and sexual humor, language and a drug reference. An executive discovers she can't have children so she hires a working-class woman to be her surrogate. Tina Fey. 95 minutes. Gateway.

The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian *1/2 — PG for epic battle action and violence. Children return to Narnia to help a prince overthrow an evil king in this adaptation of the C.S. Lewis story. Ben Barnes. 137 minutes. Gateway, Crossroads, Oracle View.

The Counterfeiters *** (Star rating derived from Metacritic.com) — R for some strong violence, brief sexuality/nudity and language. Nazis in the 1930s set up history's largest counterfeiting scheme. The film took home the Oscar for best foreign-language film. Karl Markovics. In various languages, with subtitles. 98 minutes. Crossroads.

The Dark Knight **** — PG-13 for intense violence and some menace. The Caped Crusader faces the Joker in this highly awaited follow-up to "Batman Begins." Christian Bale, Heath Ledger. 152 minutes. El Con, Century Park, Park Place, Cinemark, DeAnza, Desert Sky, Foothills, Harkins, Oasis, Tower.

Forgetting Sarah Marshall **1/2 — R for sexual content, language and some graphic nudity. A man goes on vacation to get over a recent breakup with his girlfriend, who is staying at the same resort. Jason Segel. 112 minutes. Gateway, Crossroads, Oracle View.

Get Smart **1/2 — PG-13 for some rude humor, action violence and language. Agents battle evil forces in this remake of the 1960s TV comedy. Steve Carell. 110 minutes. El Con, Century Park, Park Place, DeAnza, Foothills, Harkins, Tower.

Hancock *** — PG-13 for some intense sequences of sci-fi action, violence and language. A burned-out superhero tries to change his sordid public image. Will Smith. 92 minutes. El Con, Century Park, Park Place, DeAnza, Foothills, Harkins, Tower.

The Happening ** — R for violent and disturbing images. A mysterious crisis threatens humanity. Mark Wahlberg. M. Night Shyamalan writes and directs. 91 minutes. Gateway, Crossroads, Oracle View.

Hellboy II: The Golden Army ** — PG-13 for sci-fi action and violence, and some language. Supernatural creatures try to take over the world, but a hell-spawned hero stands in their way. Ron Perlman. 110 minutes. El Con, Century Park, Park Place, Cinemark, DeAnza, Desert Sky, Foothills, Harkins, Oasis, Tower.

Horton Hears a Who! *** — G for all audiences. An animated comedy, based on the Dr. Seuss book, about an elephant who communicates with a tiny society. Jim Carrey lends his voice. 85 minutes. Crossroads, Oracle View.

The Incredible Hulk **1/2 — PG-13 for sequences of intense action violence, some frightening sci-fi images, and brief suggestive content. The bulging green Marvel superhero rages out of control once again. Edward Norton. 114 minutes. Harkins.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull *** — PG-13 for adventure violence and scary images. Harrison Ford reprises the memorable swashbuckling role. Steven Spielberg directs the fourth installment of the action-packed series. 124 minutes. Park Place, Foothills, Harkins.

Iron Man ***1/2 — PG-13 for some intense sequences of sci-fi action and violence, and brief suggestive content. Marvel's hero in a metal shell makes his silver-screen debut. Robert Downey Jr. 126 minutes. Gateway, Crossroads, Oracle View.

Journey to the Center of the Earth *** — PG for intense adventure action and some scary moments. Explorers discover a living realm underneath the planet's surface. Brendan Fraser. 92 minutes. El Con, Century Park, Park Place, Desert Sky, Foothills, Harkins, Tower, Uptown.

Kit Kittredge: An American Girl *** — G for all audiences. A girl struggles through life during the Great Depression. Abigail Breslin. 95 minutes. Crossroads, Oracle View.

Kung Fu Panda **1/2 — PG for sequences of martial-arts action. A panda with questionable kung-fu skills aids jungle animals against an evil snow leopard. Jack Black lends his voice. 95 minutes. Century Park, Park Place, Foothills, Harkins.

The Love Guru * — PG-13 for crude and sexual content throughout, language, some comic violence and drug references. A love guru tries to help a star hockey player win the championship. Mike Myers. 88 minutes. Gateway, Crossroads, Oracle View.

Made of Honor *1/2 — PG-13 for sexual content and language. Patrick Dempsey stars in a romantic comedy in which a man in love with an engaged woman agrees to be her maid of honor. 101 minutes. Gateway.

Mamma Mia! **1/2 — PG-13 for some sex-related comments. The stage musical, featuring the music of ABBA, comes to the big screen. Meryl Streep. 108 minutes. El Con, Century Park, Park Place, Desert Sky, Harkins, Foothills, Oasis, Tower, Uptown.

Meet Dave *1/2 — PG for bawdy and suggestive humor, action and some language. Tiny aliens trying to save their world visit Earth in a human-shaped spaceship. Eddie Murphy. 90 minutes. Gateway, DeAnza, Oracle View.

Mongol *** — R for bloody warfare. A dramatization of Genghis Khan's early life. Sergei Bodrov directs. In Mongolian, with subtitles. 126 minutes. Loft.

Nim's Island ** (Star rating derived from Metacritic.com) — PG for mild adventure action and brief language. An adventure fantasy in which a little girl searches for her father on a mysterious island. Jodie Foster. 95 minutes. Gateway.

Roman de Gare *** — R for brief language and sexual references. A novelist researches her next book as a serial killer breaks out of jail. Dominique Pinon. In French, with subtitles. 103 minutes. Loft.

Space Chimps **1/2 — G for all audiences. Chimps blast off into space in this animated adventure. 81 minutes. Voices of Andy Samberg, Cheryl Hines. El Con, Century Park, Harkins, Oasis, Tower, Uptown.

Speed Racer *** — PG for sequences of action, some violence and language. A young race car driver strives for success. Based on a Japanese cartoon series. Larry and Andy Wachowski direct. 135 minutes. Oracle View.

The Strangers ** (Star rating derived from Metacritic.com) — R for violence/terror and language. Unknown assailants attack a couple at a vacation home. Liv Tyler. 90 minutes. Gateway.

21 *** — PG-13 for some violence and sexual content including partial nudity. MIT students use mathematics to win millions playing blackjack. Kevin Spacey. 123 minutes. Gateway.

WALL-E **1/2 — G for all audiences. A Pixar animated film about a robot attempting to find acceptance and love. 98 minutes. El Con, Century Park, Park Place, Cinemark, Foothills, Harkins, Oasis, Tower.

Wanted **** — R for strong bloody violence throughout, pervasive language and some sexuality. A young man discovers he's the son of an assassin and has super powers. Angelina Jolie. 100 minutes. El Con, Century Park, Park Place, Cinemark, DeAnza, Foothills, Harkins, Oasis, Tower.

What Happens in Vegas *** — PG-13 for some sexual and crude content, and language, including a drug reference. Two people get married after a crazy night in Las Vegas. Cameron Diaz, Ashton Kutcher. 99 minutes. Gateway, Crossroads, Oracle View.

Young at Heart ***1/2 — PG for some mild language and thematic elements. A documentary on senior citizens who perform rock and pop. 109 minutes. Crossroads.

– Phil Villarreal