Arts & Entertainment

In Bennett Miller’s adaptation of Michael Lewis’ non-fiction best seller Moneyball, Billy Beane is a one-time phenom who flamed out in the big leagues and now works as the GM for the Oakland Athletics, a franchise that’s about to lose their three best players to free agency.

Because the team isn’t in a financial position to spend as much as perennial favorites like the Yankees and the Red Sox, Beane realizes he needs to radically change how he evaluates what players can bring to the squad. After he meets Peter Brand, an Ivy League economics major working as an executive assistant for scouting on another team, Beane realizes he’s found the man who understands how to subvert the system of assessing players that’s been in place for nearly a century. However, as the duo begin to acquire players that seem too old, injured, or inept to play major-league baseball, they face stiff resistance from both the A’s longtime scouts and the team’s manager Art Howe, who refuses to allow Beane’s more-nontraditional acquisitions to play.  Director: Bennett Miller. Cast: Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Robin Wright, Chris Pratt. Rated: PG-13. Time: 2:06

A working mother strives to balance her demanding career with the stress of raising two young children and maintaining a healthy marriage in this comedy adapted from the best-selling novel by Allison Pearson.

By day, Kate Reddy works for a Boston-based financial management firm; by night, she’s a devoted mother to two adoring children and the happily married wife of out-of-work architect Richard. Though balancing those two worlds has its fair share of challenges, Kate generally manages to come out on top thanks to the support of her best friend, Allison, who’s had plenty of experience balancing kids and a career.

Meanwhile, on the other end of the spectrum, Kate’s sharp-as-a-tack junior associate assistant, Momo, possesses a fear of children and a strong work ethic. Just when Kate lands a lucrative new account that will see her traveling across the country on a regular basis, however, her new business associate Jack reveals his flirtatious side and Richard receives a job offer he can’t turn down.

Though it looks as if Kate and Richard couldn’t possibly take on any more responsibility, the demands of modern living ensure they’ll never have a dull moment, even if they try.

Director: Douglas McGrath. Cast: Sarah Jessica Parker, Pierce Brosnan, Kelsey Grammer, Christina Hendricks. Rated: PG-13. Time: 1:31.

A thriller about a teen who finds himself in mortal danger after realizing that his entire childhood has been built on lies.

Realizing that the people who raised him aren’t his real parents after stumbling across a childhood photo of himself on a website devoted to missing children, the frightened teen flees for his life as FBI agents Frank Burton and Sandra Burns race to protect him and uncover the truth about his mysterious past.

Director: John Singleton. Cast: Taylor Lautner, Alfred Molina, Antonique Smith, Maria Bello, Jason Isaacs. Rated: PG-13. Time: 1:46.

After the shooting of his police-captain father, Pittsburgh cop Tom Hardy accuses the force of hushing up the murder and finds himself demoted to the river patrol.

Two years later, with his uncle Nick in charge and an unlikely assailant convicted of the crime, Hardy is sure that a new spate of killings is the work of the same hand.

He shares his suspicion that one of his colleagues is a serial killer. This thriller centers on his hunt to prove his point, a search that becomes more desperate when the killer begins killing the cop’s female associates. Director: Rowdy Herrington.

Cast: Bruce Willis, Sarah Jessica Parker, Dennis Farina, Tom Sizemore, Brion James. Rated: R. Time: 1:412.

One’s a New York head hunter for GQ. The other’s an LA super art director. One can’t have enough of the Prince Charming formula. The other just can’t get over Hollywood’s love stories.

But both Dylan and Jamie are presently heartbroken — reason enough for them to bond outside the workplace. And what are buddies there for? To make you move on, to help you in times of need.... and a little bit of sex too. Just make sure there are no strings attached when in bed.

But getting physical has never been that easy.

Director:Will Gluck. Cast:Justin Timberlake, Mila Kunis, Patricia Clarkson, Jenna Elfman, Bryan Greenberg. Full cast + crew. Rated: R. Time: 1:49.

Two average sci-fi geeks get caught up in the ultimate interplanetary adventure after picking up an extraterrestrial during a road trip to Area 51 and becoming the targets of a nationwide manhunt.

Graeme and Clive are two British sci-fi geeks on holiday in America. After a trip to Comic-Con to meet their favorite author, Adam Shadowchild, Graeme and Clive load up their RV and hit the road for a tour of some of the most famous UFO hotspots in the American Southwest. They know we’re not alone in the universe, but they won’t be satisfied until they get a firsthand glimpse of the famed Area 51.

However, somewhere deep in the Nevada desert, the two UFO enthusiasts narrowly avoid crashing into a speeding car when they happen across a most unlikely hitchhiker. Paul is a pint-sized alien who has spent the last 60 years in Area 51. He’s been cooped up in the care of the U.S. Government for far too long, and he’s starting to get a little homesick.

Though Graeme and Clive are more than willing to help their wisecracking new friend get back to his mother ship, Special Agent Zoil of the FBI is closing in fast. And he’s not the only one; in their race to get their new friend home, Graeme and Clive have also become unwitting kidnappers, and the enraged father of their not-so-unwilling captive, Ruth, is determined to rescue his daughter at all costs.

Director: Greg Mottola. Cast: Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Seth Rogen, Jason Bateman, Kristen Wiig. Rated: R. Time: 1:44.