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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Friday’s openings: ‘Hercules’ comes on strong

Dan Webster

As the slow days of midsummer pass, and we all recover from our Michael Bay mugging, a number of films open in local theaters bearing themes as diverse as Greek mythology, 30-something angst and contemporary spies.

Friday's opening are as follows:

"Hercules" (IMAX 3D, regular 3D and standard format): Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson stars as the Greek demigod. Still not ready for Shakespeare, Johnson takes on watered-down Aeschylus.

"And So It Goes": Rob Reiner ("When Harry Met Sally") returns with this senior-centered look at what happens when a working man (Michael Douglas), one, discovers that he is a grandfather and, two, is forced to take care of his preteen granddaughter (Sterling Jerins).

"Wish I Was Here": Zach Graff ("Garden State") continues to explore contemporary life, this time documenting the problems of a guy in his mid-30s who is having troubles reconciling his career, family and personal ambitions.

"Lucy": Scarlett Johansson stars as a woman, used as transport for a valuable chemical, who evolves into a brainiac capable of doing marvelously nasty things to the men who had taken advantage of her. 

"A Most Wanted Man": The late Philip Seymour Hoffman stars in this adaptation of the John le Carré novel about spies fighting international terrorism.

"The Fluffy Movie": The comic Gabriel "Fluffy" Iglesias performs in concert.

And at the Magic Lantern: Nothing new is opening, though it will continue running "Life Itself," "Belle," "Ida," "Snowpiercer" and "The Grand Budapest Hotel."

Special note: AMC Riverpark Square is scheduled to open Richard Linklater's film "Boyhood" on Aug. 15. That's one to definitely put on your personal movie calendar.