(R) at 7 and 9.30 p.m. ? Neptune Theatre(PG) at 2.30, 5.30, 7.30 and 9.30 p.m. ? Liberty Theatre (PG13) at 2.30, 5, 7.15 and 9.30 p.m. ? Little Theatre- Ron Howard is trying to channel "The Searchers" with this Western kidnap thriller, but what he achieves is closer to "The Elizabeth Smart Story": cloying and clunky.

"The Missing" is contrived and obvious, with a belaboured father-daughter relationship serving as the backdrop for a perfunctory rescue mission. When the daughter of rancher Maggie Gilkeson (Cate Blanchett) is kidnapped, she enlists her estranged father (Tommy Lee Jones) to track the bad guys. Howard leaves no doubt about the creepiness of the American Indian villain (Eric Schweig), but provides no hint about the motivations for his actions. "The Missing" has no sense of danger because Howard telegraphs the story in his usual glossy style. R for violence. 130 min. One and a half stars out of four.

- If "Barbershop" was Ice Cube's "It's a Wonderful Life," the sequel is his "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington." The 2002 original cast Ice Cube as a successor to James Stewart and Frank Capra's George Bailey, a malcontent quietly seething over the confines of the family business until circumstance teaches him the richness of his life. The equally warmhearted follow-up puts Ice Cube in the footsteps of Stewart and Capra's Jefferson Smith, a naive idealist battling corrupt business and political forces in the name of communal decency. It's another winning formula, maintaining the original's mix of sweetness and urban attitude. With Cedric the Entertainer, Queen Latifah, Sean Patrick Thomas, Eve and Troy Garity. PG-13 for language, sexual material and brief drug references. 98 minutes. Three stars out of four