Movie Reviews: What To Watch This Month

Atonement

Can't summarize, just go. Go for the smokin'-hot love story (based on the Ian McEwan novel) that pits Keira Knightley against James McAvoy in a battle over who's the dewier, fresher, more glowing bit of eye candy. Go for Knightley's enviable '40s style: the emerald gown, oxford heels, and crimson pout. Go for the sound editing-yes, sound editing-which weaves elements like a tapping typewriter into a magnificent score. Just go.

Juno

The story of a strong-willed, acerbic teenager searching for the ideal adoptive parents for her unborn baby, Juno is a wholly original, gratifying romp through the perils and, remarkably, howling laughs of teen pregnancy. With just-right suburban Minnesota details-novelty phones, arctic-blue Big Gulps, and Hot Pockets-absurdly talented screenwriter Diablo Cody evokes that bittersweet moment when we all entered the hallway of adulthood, ready or not.

The Savages

In writer/director Tamara Jenkins's schmaltz-free latest, Laura Linney is a neurotic, pill-popping temp and sister to Philip Seymour Hoffman's stoic, schlubby professor (and secret crybaby). The two travel to Sun City, AZ-a retirement oasis of water aerobics and rock gardens-to bring their estranged father back to frigid Buffalo. As the self-absorbed siblings sink into rivalry and midlife meltdowns, Jenkins happily puts the fun back in dysfunctional.