'Daytime Drinking'

Now in his 50s, Berkowitz still lives in New York but alone and destitute. He has learned that "People prefer simple answers to complex problems -- even if they're wrong."

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Kevin Thomas --

"Sex Positive." MPAA rating: R for strong sexual content, including graphic dialogue and images, and for language. Running time: 1 hour, 26 minutes. At the Sunset 5 in West Hollywood.

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Famous actor and a mystery child

Tahmineh Milani is considered one of Iran's most accomplished filmmakers, but you wouldn't necessarily glean that from her disappointing drama "Superstar." This potentially rich if familiar father-daughter tale never really takes off, largely because of its unpleasant main character, Kurosh Zand (Shahab Hosseini), an insufferably narcissistic, self-destructive actor. Why the handsome, seemingly wealthy and successful movie star is so tense and angry is one of several key questions that are never adequately answered in director Milani's script.

Then there's the inconsistently drawn relationship between Kurosh and Raha (Fattaneh Malek-Mohammadi), a precocious young girl he meets when she starts hanging around his movie set. Kurosh reluctantly -- and not very believably -- lets her into his messed-up life and soon learns Raha may be the product of an affair he had at 16. Curiously, he never follows through on a briefly mentioned DNA test, which would have easily resolved the is-she-or-isn't-she? of it all.

In addition, though Kurosh and Raha eventually bond, the youngster doesn't much improve the actor's bad attitude, at least until the film's third act, whose abrupt conclusion is vague and unsatisfying. Still, if an American remake of "Superstar" was announced, it wouldn't be a surprise.

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Gary Goldstein --

"Superstar." MPAA rating: Unrated. Running time: 1 hour, 45 minutes. In Farsi with English subtitles. At Laemmle's Music Hall, Beverly Hills, and Laguna Hills Mall Cinema.

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