Our critics recommend...

The Angels' Share

See Steven Rea's preview on H2.

The Company You Keep See Steven Rea's preview on H2.

The Lords of Salem Salem, Mass., is terrorized by witches.

Oblivion See Steven Rea's preview on H2.

Renoir The French artist and his son, who is recovering from a wound suffered during World War I, get a breath of fresh air from a young woman who joins them in the French countryside. French and Italian with subtitles.

Simon Killer A New Yorker's attempt to flee his troubles in Paris backfires when he becomes involved with an exotic woman.

Reviewed by critics Steven Rea (S.R.) and Tirdad Derakhshani (T.D.). W.S. denotes a wire-service review.

The Gatekeepers Dror Moreh's Oscar-nominated documentary finds six former heads of Israel's counterterrorism agency speaking with striking candor, and with no little regret, about the decisions that backfired and the iron-fisted policies that brought about more violence, more bloodshed, not less. If there's a way out of the Israeli/ Palestinian conflict, these men may have the answer. 1 hr. 37 PG-13 (violence, adult themes) - S.R.

Silver Linings Playbook A head-spinning wonder of a movie about love, pain, reinvention, rehabilitation, and the totemic power of an NFL franchise, with Bradley Cooper as a guy dealing with bipolar disorder and heartbreak, best actress Oscar-winner Jennifer Lawrence as a young widow with her own troubles, and an amazing supporting cast. From director David O. Russell, based on Matthew Quick's novel, and about as Philly-centric as you can get. 2 hrs. 02 R (profanity, sex, drugs, violence, adult themes) - S.R.

The Place Beyond the Pines

Ryan Gosling and Bradley Cooper star in this roaring drama about a motorcycle stunt rider bank robber and the cop who chases him down. Riveting and electric, and boldly ambitious, with great performances from Eva Mendes, Ben Mendelsohn, Harris Yulin, and Ray Liotta. 2 hrs. 20

R

(violence, profanity, drugs, sex, adult themes) -

S.R.

Ginger & Rosa Elle Fanning gives a performance of remarkable power and passion - playing a 16-year-old Londoner haunted by images of nuclear holocaust, and by more personal devastation - in Sally Potter's 1960s coming-of-age tale. With Alice Englert as Rosa, and Alessandro Nivola and Christina Hendricks as Ginger's parents. A beautiful, heartbreaking film. 1 hr. 30 R (sex, profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Lore Five children, led by a strong-minded teenage girl, trek across Germany in the first days after the fall of the Third Reich. The siblings' father was a Nazi officer, they have been taught to hate the Jews, and a chance encounter puts those teachings to the test. A fierce and powerful coming-of-age saga about the trauma of war, about legacy, about collective guilt. 1 hr. 49 No MPAA rating (violence, sex, nudity, adult themes - S.R.

No Gael Garcia Bernal stars as a hot, young ad exec in 1988 Chile who joins the media campaign to oust military dictator Augusto Pinochet in this fictionalized piece of reeling, ricocheting history. 2 hr. R (violence, adult themes) - S.R.

Side Effects Filmmaker Steven Soderbergh's tightly coiled psychological thriller - with The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo's Rooney Mara, Jude Law, and Catherine Zeta-Jones - would make James M. Cain proud. On one level, a dark take on the culture of pharmaceutical cure-alls; on another, a classic, twisting noir. R (violence, profanity, sex, nudity, drugs, adult themes) - S.R.

Starbuck A big-hearted French-Canadian comedy that has nothing to do with coffee and everything to do with paternity, in which a former sperm donor discovers several decades later that he is the biological father of 533 children, 143 of whom now wish to know his identity. Soul- searching and stalking ensue. 1 hr. 49 R (adult themes) - S.R.

42 ***

Inspirational, old-fashioned Hollywood account of Jackie Robinson's historic demolition of the color barrier in Major League Baseball, and his relationship with Branch Rickey, the Brooklyn Dodgers exec who gave Robinson a uniform. Chadwick Boseman and Harrison Ford star. 2 hrs. 08

PG-13

(profanity, racial epithets, adult themes) -

S.R.

The Croods **1/2 DreamWorks' latest animated blockbuster is a visually dazzling, if a little empty-headed, 3D feast for the eyes. Nicolas Cage stars as the patriarch of a prehistoric caveman family who are forced to go on a road trip when their cave is destroyed. Emma Stone plays his adventurous daughter and Ryan Reynolds her love interest, a more evolved man who introduces the family to fire, cooking, and tool-making. The flick is breezy, diverting, and fun, though it lacks the inspired wit that made Shrek a classic. 1 hr. 38 PG (some scary action) - T.D.

Evil Dead *** This remake of Sam Raimi's 1981 demonic gorefest doesn't surpass the original, but it measures up well enough to give fans of the genre what they crave. 1 hr. 32 R (ultra-violence, extreme gore, demonic slapstick, drug use, profanity) - T.D.

G.I. Joe: Retaliation ** An elite military unit fights an evil organization bent on death and destruction, while also clearing their names in the eyes of a government that no longer trusts them. Bruce Willis, Channing Tatum, and Dwayne Johnson star in this action film with a very high body count. 1 hr. 50 PG-13 (intense sequences of combat violence and martial arts action throughout, brief sensuality, profanity) - W.S.

Jurassic Park *** It's back, and in 3D. Steven Spielberg went for scary awe in this 1993 thriller about a theme park where biologically cloned dinosaurs run amok. Parents should think twice about taking their younger children, however - there's fuel for nightmares here. 2 hrs. 07 PG-13 (dino-violence, body parts, kids in jeopardy) - S.R.

Olympus Has Fallen **1/2 The White House is under siege, but luckily a lone Secret Service agent - a brooding, burly Gerard Butler - is on the loose, sneaking around 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. with a headset and some handguns. Die Hard on the Potomac, enjoyably tacky, cartoonishly violent. 1 hr. 59 R (violence, profanity, adult themes) - S.R.

Reviewed by Wendy Rosenfield (W.R.), Jim Rutter (J.R.), and David Patrick Stearns (D.P.S.)

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Mame

(Media Theatre) Andrea McArdle is everybody's favorite madcap aunt. Previews Wednesday, Thursday, opens Friday.

North of the Boulevard (Theatre Exile) Bruce Graham's new comedy about a decaying garage in a declining neighborhood. Previews Thursday-April 23, opens April 24.

The American Play

(Plays & Players) Suzan-Lori Parks' unsettling work about an African American gravedigger who looks uncannily like Abraham Lincoln. Extended through April 28.

A Raisin in the Sun (Arden Theatre) With this Lorraine Hansberry classic, Walter Dallas creates a "just folks" atmosphere that illuminates the play's continuing relevance. Through next Sunday. - D.P.S.

Cooking With the Calamari Sisters (Society Hill Playhouse) Mamma Mia! Two guys portray behavior-challenged Italian sisters in a spoof of cooking shows. Extended through May 19.

Good People (Walnut Street Theatre) A tough South Boston single mother with money troubles seeks help from a high school boyfriend who made good. It's all about class. Through April 28. - T.Z.

The Hand of Gaul (Inis Nua/PIFA) Three Irish soccer fans vow revenge when an unchecked French foul knocks them out of the 2010 World Cup. Through April 28.

Henry V (Lantern Theatre Company) Prince Harry now is king - and what a king. Ends Sunday.

I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change (Montgomery Theater) Charming performances can't rescue this tired, formula-driven musical. Through April 30. - W.R.

Much Ado About Nothing (Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre) Domenick Scudera's brilliant direction elucidates the duality between earnestness and fear, tenderness and the urge for self-preservation in a fresh, exuberant production. Through May 19. - J.R.

Othello (Philadelphia Shakespeare Theatre) This production lasers in on what motivates its fine Iago's malicious actions. Through May 31. - W.R.

Permanent Collection (InterAct Theatre) Tom Gibbons' drama is loosely based on the Barnes Foundation saga, pre-move. Through May 5.

The Pirates of Penzance (Bristol Riverside Theatre) Poor Fredric is in thrall to both the pirates (literally) and fair Mabel (metaphorically). What to do? Sing! Lovely. Through April 28.

- D.P.S.

The Prescott Method (Walnut Street Theatre Independence Studio) It's 1966, and for these two housewives, bread-baking is bond-making. For the audience, it isn't. Ends Sunday. - J.R.

Seminar (Philadelphia Theatre Company) Novelist wannabes hear brutal truths from a celebrity teacher in Theresa Rebeck's witty comedy. Ends Sunday. - J.R.

South Pacific (Delaware Theatre Company) There is nuthin' like a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical. Through May 5.

Timon of Athens (Philadelphia Artists Collection) A courageous attempt, but a disappointing one, at seldom-seen late Shakespeare. Through Saturday. - T.Z.

The Trial of Murderous Mary (PIFA) Puppets, mass hysteria, politics, song, and spectacle tell the tragic tale of a circus elephant. Through Saturday.

Vainglorious (Applied Mechanics/PIFA) The Epic Feats of Notable Persons in Europe After the Revolution, says the subtitle of this epic, glorious production. Ends Sunday. - T.Z.

At 2 p.m. Sunday, WRTI-FM (90.1) broadcasts the Philadelphia Orchestra's recent concert under guest conductor Christoph von Dohnanyi of Franz Schubert's Symphony No. 8 in B minor ("Unfinished") and Anton Bruckner's Symphony No. 4 ("Romantic").

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