J K Simmons

Romance and empathy are all very nice, but comic-book movies cry out for exceptional villains, and "Spider-Man 2" has come up with a memorable one. In bringing to vivid and extravagant life Dr. Otto Octavius, the ever-menacing Doc Ock, Spider-Man's nemesis since the comic's earliest days, this energetic sequel has taken the scenario that made the first film successful and turned it inside out.

The Coen brothers' new movie, "A Serious Man," opens with a piece of advice from medieval French rabbi Rashi: "Receive with simplicity everything that happens to you." Fast forward to the film's long-suffering hero, physics professor Larry Gopnik, who would really like to heed those words, but after entering a world of pain and enduring a series of misfortunes that would put Job to shame, Larry needs answers, not proverbs. What did he do to deserve all this? And why does he seem so suddenly alone in a cruel, cruel world?

FRIDAY 56 Up The latest installment of a decades-long documentary series chronicling the lives of 14 people from all over England who have participated in interviews every seven years since 1964. Directed by Michael Apted and Paul Almond. First Run Features Brief Reunion A successful entrepreneur has his comfortable life in rural New England turned upside down by the unexpected appearance of a former classmate. With Joel de la Fuente, Alexie Gilmore and Scott Shepherd.

Since its theatrical release in May, "Spider-Man" has earned more than $700 million worldwide, and with its $400-million domestic gross, the action-fantasy starring Tobey Maguire as Spidey is on track to become the third highest-grossing movie of all time in its first release. So is the DVD of the box-office hit based on the popular Marvel Comics superhero a similar blockbuster? Well, not exactly.

The brothers Polish, Michael and Mark, make a credible leap to big-budget studio features with the feel-good, dreamer drama, "The Astronaut Farmer." Though they relinquish some of their trademark quirkiness and visual flair, the sibling filmmakers nevertheless emerge with a movie that's atypical of Hollywood fare. There's something old-fashioned about "The Astronaut Farmer" that's so conventional it feels unconventional.

Sir James M. Barrie's "Peter Pan" may be nearing the century mark, but age hasn't touched the story of the boy who refused to grow up. And there's nothing stale about Cathy Rigby's performance in the production that soared into the Pantages Theatre on Wednesday. The role that she brought to the same theater last summer--which later earned her a Tony nomination--is still a triumph.

Best known for his intense portrayal of a traumatized amnesiac in "Memento," Guy Pearce embarks on another head trip in the psychological drama "First Snow." But while his character in Christopher Nolan's scrambled film noir suffered the frustrations of a blank-slate mind, the predicament here is just the opposite: too much information.

New in Town Lionsgate, $29.95; Blu-ray, $39.99 The "harried businessperson has heart melted by small-town simplicity" plot has been a staple of the cinema since the '30s screwball era, but the shtick works only if the small town has a winning character. In "New in Town," Renee Zellweger plays a Miami executive who gets sent to Minnesota to supervise the downsizing of a food-manufacturing plant; there she finds romance (in the form of Harry Connick Jr.

The event was "A Night at Sardi's," and the honoree was Walt Disney Co. Chief Executive Robert Iger. The result? Event co-chairwoman Laurie Burrows Grad said the 19th annual event, founded in honor of her father, Broadway legend Abe Burrows, raised more than $1.6 million for the Alzheimer's Assn. Asked what brought him to the Beverly Hilton, producer Jerry Bruckheimer replied, "Robert Iger. " "He's the man," said Nick Jonas, who came to sing Cole Porter tunes. Guests included Kristen Bell, Scott Bakula, Taye Diggs, Ken Howard, Audra McDonald and Kevin McKidd, as well as Kaley Cuoco, Johnny Galecki, Simon Helberg, Kunal Nayyar and Jim Parsons of the "Big Bang Theory.