This film tells the real-life story of U.S. fighter pilot Dieter Dengler, a German-American shot down and captured in Laos during the Vietnam War. Dengler organized a death-defying escape for a small band of POWs, including Duane Martin. Written by Ryan

Let me admit right off the bat that the trailers for “Madagascar” did nothing for me. While “Shrek” and its sequel both had me at hello, “Madagascar” was a tough sell. Chris Rock has a decent voice for animated movies, but Ben Stiller, Jada Pinkett-Smith and David Schwimmer aren’t exactly known for their voice work, and the trailers and clips didn’t convince me they should look for more jobs in that particular field. Fortunately for moviegoers, the humor – in large part supplied by four wily, scene-stealing penguins - is strong enough to make up for the film’s lack of enchanting voices.

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Can I just start this out by declaring upfront Peter Jackson is a genius? There, I’ve said it and I stand behind my opinion. He’s a genius for having the guts to film the entire trilogy at the same time, for choosing the perfect mix of new, rising, and established actors, and for creating a fantasy world so breathtakingly entrancing fans of Tolkien’s work were left with very little to gripe about. Jackson’s also one smart cookie for his use of the Internet and fan sites to spread the news (and hype) surrounding “The Lord of the Rings.” Instead of keeping fans at a distance, Jackson did a fantastic job of embracing the people who would ultimately buy tickets, buy the DVDs, and support “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy.

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Taken just at face value, “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl” has a lot going against it. First, it’s loosely based on a popular Disney theme park ride - and tagging “The Curse of the Black Pearl” after the title doesn’t soften the initial blow. Secondly, it’s a pirate movie and that particular genre hasn’t done very well in the past 10 or so years. And finally, it’s hitting theaters at the same time as every other big effects/action drama seems to have chosen to set upon audiences.

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