Despereaux, voiced by Matthew Broderick, prepares to impress his friends in "The Tale of Despereaux."

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Opening Friday

Bride Wars ** — PG for suggestive content, language and some rude behavior. Best friends become enemies when they schedule their weddings the same day. Anne Hathaway, Kate Hudson. 90 minutes. Review on Page 15. El Con, Oasis, Marketplace, Century Park, Park Place, DeAnza, Desert Sky, Foothills, Harkins, Tower, Uptown.

Gran Torino **** — R for language and for violence. A prejudiced veteran lives next to an immigrant family and tries to get over his inert hatred. Clint Eastwood. 116 minutes. Review on Page 12. El Con, Oasis, Marketplace, Century Park, Park Place, Cinemark, Desert Sky, Foothills, Harkins, Tower.

Not Easily Broken — PG-13 for sexual references and thematic elements. A married couple endures a car accident and its aftereffects. Morris Chestnut. Park Place.

Repo! The Genetic Opera — R for strong violence and gore, language, some drug and sexual content. A girl searches for the cure to her disease amid a futuristic culture obsessed with drugs and surgery. Paris Hilton. 98 minutes. Loft.

Trouble the Water ***1/2 — Not rated. A documentary about a rapper and her husband who are trapped in the New Orleans flood. 93 minutes. Review on Page 13. Loft.

The Unborn — PG-13 for intense violence and terror, disturbing images, thematic material and language including some sexual references. A young woman battles a spirit that's possessing her. Odette Yustman. 88 minutes. El Con, Marketplace, Century Park, Park Place, DeAnza, Desert Sky, Foothills, Harkins, Tower, Uptown, Oasis.

Continuing Friday

Appaloosa ***—R for some violence and language. Two friends come to the aid of a small town terrorized by a rancher. Ed Harris, Viggo Mortensen. 114 minutes. Gateway.

Australia ** — PG-13 for some violence, sensuality, and brief strong language. In pre-World War II Australia, a British aristocrat inherits a ranch and must drive cattle over harsh terrain while the Japanese bomb the country. Nicole Kidman. 165 minutes. Foothills.

Bedtime Stories **1/2 — PG for some mild rude humor and mild language. An hotel handyman tells his niece and nephew bedtime stories, then is surprised to see them come to life. Adam Sandler. 99 minutes. Marketplace, El Con, Century Park, Park Place, DeAnza, Foothills, Harkins, Tower, Uptown, Oasis.

Beverly Hills Chihuahua ** — PG for some mild thematic elements. A small dog gets lost in Mexico. Drew Barrymore lends her voice. 93 minutes. Gateway, Crossroads, Oracle View.

Body of Lies ** — R for strong violence, including some torture, and for language throughout. A CIA agent discovers a terrorist hiding in Jordan, and must trust unsavory allies to accomplish his mission. Leonardo DiCaprio, Russell Crowe. 128 minutes. Gateway, Crossroads, Oracle View.

Bolt *** — PG for some mild action and peril. In this animated film, a dog actor is surprised to learn he has no superpowers in real life. John Travolta leads the voice cast. 92 minutes. Park Place, Foothills, Harkins.

The Boy in the Striped Pajamas **** — PG-13 for some mature thematic material involving the Holocaust. A Jewish boy in a concentration camp befriends the son of a Nazi. Vera Farmiga. 93 minutes. Crossroads.

Burn After Reading *** — R for pervasive language, some sexual content and violence. The Coen brothers direct a comedic drama about ne'er-do-wells who steal a CIA agent's memoirs. Brad Pitt. Gateway.

Changeling **1/2 — R for violent and disturbing content, and language. A woman's son is kidnapped and police return a different boy. Clint Eastwood directs. Angelina Jolie stars. 141 minutes. Gateway, Crossroads, Oracle View.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button ** — PG-13 for brief war violence, sexual content, language and smoking. A man is born in his 80s and ages in reverse. Brad Pitt. 167 minutes. El Con, Oasis, Marketplace, Century Park, Park Place, Cinemark, Desert Sky, Foothills, Harkins, Tower.

The Day the Earth Stood Still *1/2 — PG-13 for some sci-fi disaster images and violence. A remake of the groundbreaking 1951 sci-fi film in which aliens visit the planet. Keanu Reeves. 103 minutes. Century Park, Park Place, El Con, Cinemark, Foothills, Harkins, Tower.

Doubt *** — PG-13 for thematic material. A nun accuses a priest of molesting a boy in this adaptation of a play that won a Pulitzer Prize and a Tony. Meryl Streep. 104 minutes. El Con, Marketplace, Park Place, Cinemark, Foothills, Harkins, Tower.

Eagle Eye ** — PG-13 for intense action and violence, and for language. Two average people become unwitting accomplices to an assassination plot. Shia LaBeouf. 118 minutes. Gateway, Oracle View.

Four Christmases *** — PG-13 for some sexual humor and language. A wealthy couple whose parents are divorced feel compelled to visit their four sets of relatives in this comedy. Vince Vaughn. 82 minutes. Century Park, El Con, Park Place, DeAnza.

Frost/Nixon **** — R for some language. A British talk-show host interviews Richard Nixon in the wake of Watergate. Frank Langella. 122 minutes. Park Place.

High School Musical 3: Senior Year *** — G for all audiences. Students stage a musical that addresses their concerns with growing up, going to college and entering the real world. Ashley Tisdale. 118 minutes. Oracle View.

I've Loved You So Long *** — PG-13 for thematic material and smoking. A woman returns to her family after being ostracized for 15 years. Kristin Scott Thomas. In English and French, with subtitles. 115 minutes. Loft.

Let the Right One In ***1/2 — R for some bloody violence, disturbing images, brief nudity and language. A troubled boy falls in love with a vampiress. In Swedish with subtitles. 114 minutes. Loft.

Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa **1/2 — PG for some mild crude humor. The band of talking animated animals from the 2005 hit reunite for another adventure. Ben Stiller lends his voice. 89 minutes. Crossroads.

Marley & Me *1/2 — PG for thematic material, some suggestive content and language. A family learns lessons from its lovable, rambunctious dog. Jennifer Aniston. 110 minutes. El Con, Marketplace, Century Park, Cinemark, DeAnza, Desert Sky, Foothills, Harkins, Oasis, Tower, Park Place.

Milk **** — R for language, some sexual content and brief violence. A biopic on California's first openly gay elected official, Harvey Milk. Sean Penn. 128 minutes. El Con.

Nights in Rodanthe ** — PG-13 for some sensuality. A doctor and a woman with a broken marriage find romance. Richard Gere, Diane Lane. 97 minutes. Crossroads, Oracle View.

Nothing Like the Holidays ***1/2 — PG-13 for thematic elements including some sexual dialogue, and brief drug references. A Puerto Rican family in Chicago celebrate what they think could be their last Christmas together. John Leguizamo. 99 minutes. Gateway.

Pineapple Express **** — R for pervasive language, drug use, sexual references and violence. A stoner sees a cop commit murder, then goes on the run. Seth Rogen. 111 minutes. Oracle View.

Quantum of Solace ** — PG-13 for intense sequences of violence and action, and some sexual content. Daniel Craig stars as Agent 007, who goes rogue in order to take down a would-be water kingpin. 106 minutes. El Con.

The Reader *** — R for some scenes of sexuality and nudity. A man learns the woman he loved as a teen is a war criminal. Kate Winslet. 123 minutes. Foothills, El Con.

Religulous **1/2 — R for some language and sexual material. Bill Maher analyzes religion around the world in this offbeat documentary. 101 minutes. Oracle View.

Role Models ***1/2 — R for crude and sexual content, strong language and nudity. Energy drink salesmen are forced to join a youth mentorship program. Paul Rudd, Seann William Scott. 100 minutes. Gateway, Crossroads, Oracle View.

The Secret Life of Bees *1/2 — PG 13 for thematic material and some violence. A girl whose mother has died runs away from home and is taken in by beekeeping sisters. Dakota Fanning. 110 minutes. Crossroads.

Seven Pounds *1/2 — PG-13 for thematic material, disturbing content and sensuality. A suicidal man falls in love. Will Smith. 118 minutes. Century Park, El Con, Marketplace, Oasis, Park Place, Cinemark, Foothills, Harkins, Tower.

Slumdog Millionaire **** — R for some violence, disturbing images and language. To reunite with his love, an illiterate kid tries to win on a game show. Dev Patel. In English and Hindi. 120 minutes. Foothills, El Con, Harkins.

The Spirit *** — PG-13 for intense sequences of stylized violence and action, some sexual content and brief nudity. A cop reinvents himself as a superhero. Scarlett Johansson. 108 minutes. Century Park, Park Place, El Con, Oasis, Cinemark, Foothills, Harkins, Tower.

The Tale of Despereaux ** (Star rating derived from Metacritic.com) — G for all audiences. A mouse, a rat and a servant girl become heroes in this animated fantasy. Dustin Hoffman. 94 minutes. Marketplace, El Con, Century Park, Oasis, Park Place, Cinemark, DeAnza, Foothills, Harkins, Tower.

Transporter 3 ** (Star rating derived from Metacritic.com) — PG-13 for intense action and violence, some sexual content and drug material. A high-risk deliveryman leaps back into action. Jason Statham. 100 minutes. Gateway.

Twilight *** — PG-13 for some violence and a scene of sensuality. A teen girl falls in love with a vampire. Kristen Stewart. 120 minutes. Oasis, Park Place, Cinemark, Foothills, Harkins, Tower, El Con.

Valkyrie ** — PG-13 for violence and brief strong language. During World War II, a plot to assassinate Hitler unfolds. Tom Cruise. 120 minutes. Marketplace, El Con, Park Place, DeAnza, Desert Sky, Foothills, Harkins, Tower, Uptown, Oasis.

W. **1/2 — PG-13 for language including sexual references, some alcohol abuse, smoking and brief disturbing war images. Oliver Stone's examination of George W. Bush. Josh Brolin. 128 minutes. Crossroads.

Yes Man *** — PG-13 for crude sexual humor, language and brief nudity. A man heads into a self-help program that commands him to say yes to everything. Jim Carrey. 108 minutes. Century Park, El Con, Marketplace, Oasis, Park Place, Cinemark, DeAnza, Foothills, Harkins, Tower.

Zack and Miri Make a Porno **** — R for strong crude sexual content including dialogue, graphic nudity and pervasive language. Writer/director Kevin Smith's comedy about lifelong platonic friends who make a sex film. Seth Rogen, Elizabeth Banks. 102 minutes. Gateway, Crossroads, Oracle View.

– Phil Villarreal