Get Inside

Why you should see it: Cage is at his best when playing an everyman stuck in a horrific, real-life situation. (His portrayal of an EMT in Martin Scorsese's Bringing Out the Dead remains among his career highlights, even if no one saw it.)

Why you should not: Oliver Stone's a real hit-or-miss moviemaker; pray this is closer to Platoon and Salvador than to Alexander or Any Given Sunday. Or Natural Born Killers. Or U-Turn. Or Nixon.

Zoom Starring: Tim Allen, Courteney Cox Arquette and Chevy Chase

Directed by: Peter Hewitt (Garfield)

Written by: David Berenbaum (Elf)

What it's about: Remember that Disney movie Sky High, about a retired superhero and the superschool his kids attend? This is pretty much the same thing with a bigger budget. And it's based on an actual comic book, Zoom's Academy for the Super-Gifted.

Why you should see it: Sky High was fun.

Why you should not: But do we need another version? Tim Allen instead of Kurt Russell isn't exactly what you'd call trading up.

August 18

The Night Listener Starring: Robin Williams, Toni Collette and Rory Culkin

Directed by: Patrick Stettner (The Business of Strangers)

Written by: Armistead Maupin, Terry Anderson (The Young Graduates) and Stettner, based on the novel by Maupin

What it's about: Williams plays a Garrison Keillor-like public-radio host who tells embellished stories of his life and friends, but when he receives the manuscript of a memoir from an abused child (Culkin), he doesn't realize that it may be equally embellished.

Why you should see it: Stettner deftly dealt with similar issues of deceit in The Business of Strangers; Williams can certainly be as annoying as your typical talk-radio host.

Why you should not: When it comes to drama, Williams is either spot-on (One Hour Photo) or insufferably mawkish (What Dreams May Come). His character here is a gay man whose lover has battled AIDS, which may mean lots of hugging, tears and Williams doing that grinning thing that's supposed to make him look sad but really doesn't.

Snakes on a Plane Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, some snakes and a plane

Directed by: David R. Ellis (Final Destination 2)

Written by: John Heffernan and Sebastian Gutierrez (Gothika)

What it's about: The title really says it all here. For full disclosure, it really should be Snakes on a Plane With a Bald-Headed Badass Black Guy Who Yells a Lot. Yes, the snakes deserve to die, and he hopes they burn in hell.

Why you should see it: Pay attention. Snakes. Plane. Samuel L. Jackson. What's not to love?

Why you should not: Sorry, there's just no good excuse not to.

August 25

Beerfest Starring: Eric Christian Olsen (Not Another Teen Movie), Cameron Scher and Blanchard Ryan (Open Water)

Directed by: Jay Chandrasekhar (The Dukes of Hazzard)

Written by: Jay Chandrasekhar and Kevin Heffernan (Club Dread)

What it's about: Two wacky lugs travel to Germany to enter, compete in and perhaps maybe even triumph in a series of beer chugs. Seriously, that's it.

Why you should see it: It's possible to smuggle beer into a movie theater, but you're really better off with a pint of vodka to pour in a slushie.

Why you should not: Aside from the asinine concept, the label "from the director of The Dukes of Hazzard" packs the punch of a cigarette warning.

Crossover Starring: Anthony Mackie (She Hate Me), Wesley Jonathan (Roll Bounce) and Wayne Brady

Written and directed by: Preston A. Whitmore II (The Walking Dead)

What it's about: A gifted basketball player (Jonathan) wants to use his sports scholarship to get into UCLA pre-med; meanwhile, his best friend (Mackie) wants to get his GED and settle a street score. When romance enters the picture for both men, things get more complicated.

Why you should see it: I got nothin'. Sounds pretty predictable.

Why you should not: Mankind did not need more Wayne Brady.

DOA: Dead or Alive Starring: Jaime Pressly, Holly Valance and Devon Aoki

Directed by: Corey Yuen (The Transporter, Hero)

Written by: J.F. Lawton (Pretty Woman) and Adam & Seth Gross (Devour), based on the videogame

What it's about: Chicks in bikinis fight guys with swords. It's modeled after a fighting game, and the movie doesn't look like it added a ton of plot or anything, though the fanboys are already up in arms over the fact that the women aren't fighting each other in the trailer.

Why you should see it: It could be as fun as the first Charlie's Angels.

Why you should not: It could be as tedious as Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle.

How to Eat Fried Worms Starring: Luke Benward (Because of Winn-Dixie) and Hallie Kate Eisenberg (The Goodbye Girl)

Written and directed by: Bob Dolman (The Banger Sisters), based on the novel by Thomas Rockwell

What it's about: Fifth-grade kid goes head-to-head with the school bully by accepting a dare to eat 10 worms in a single day.

Why you should see it: The classic children's book brings hope and courage to a new generation of victimized youth. Who don't read books.

Why you should not: How many classic-children's-book adaptations can you name?