Movieguy-47

MYSTERY MEN. Kinka Usher's "Mystery Men" is on the right track, satirizing comic book heroes. Captain Amazing (played by Greg Kinnear) is kidnapped by Casanova Frankenstein (Geoffrey Rush). In Amazing's place, the Mystery Men (a group of misfit superheroes) must take his place and rescue him from the clutches of the evil Frankenstein. The only really good comic energy comes from Ben Stiller, as Mr. Furious, and Janeane Garofalo, as The Bowler. Otherwise, this losing superhero satire is too long and seems like nothing more than a large collection of failed comic jokes. Rated PG-13. ** out of ****

SERIAL MOM. Kathleen Turner plays Beverly, the seemingly perfect, cheerful housewife and Mom (who also happens to be a foul-mouthed serial killer on the side), in John Waters's consistently sharp, amusing satire "Serial Mom." As far as plot structure goes, "Serial Mom" isn't all that impressive, but Turner's sheer comic energy as she kills typical suburban people for stealing parking spaces and not rewinding their rented videos carries this one quite a ways. Rated R. ***1/2 out of ****

THE SIXTH SENSE. M. Night Shaymalan's "The Sixth Sense" is an enjoyable ghost thriller, sometimes funny, sometimes creepy, and surprisingly rewarding. Bruce Willis is excellent as a child psychologist named Malcom Crowe whose latest patient is a nine-year-old kid named Cole (played stupendously Haley Joel Osment) who claims that he can see dead people. What follows is an intriguing and effective chiller that relies much more on characters than special effects. Rated PG-13. ***1/2 out of ****