"The Golden Compass" — Nicole Kidman's presence in this elaborate fantasy flick is emblematic of the movie itself: aesthetically lush but ultimately cold to the touch. This adaptation of the first novel in British writer Philip Pullman's "His Dark Materials" trilogy has some fanciful moments but never achieves the sense of awe-inspiring wonder of the "Lord of the Rings" films, to which comparisons will be inevitable. It's also probably too scary for a lot of kids, with its themes of totalitarianism and mind control; adults, meanwhile, may find it hard to take seriously, despite how seriously it takes itself. ¿ Liberty Theatre

"This Christmas" ¿ Deceptions start at the very core of the Whitfield clan, whose pious matriarch, Ma Dear (Loretta Devine) has been playing house with a stolid fellow named Joe Black (Delroy Lindo). But she's been keeping the relationship a secret from her grown-up-and-long-gone children, and with a Christmas family reunion on the horizon, she and Joe agree to live separately until they can find a way to tell everyone. Other secrets begin drifting in with the wayward offspring. The ensemble cast includes Regina King and Mekhi Phifer. ¿ Neptune Theatre

"American Gangster" ¿ So perhaps "American Gangster," Ridley Scott's much-anticipated mobster epic, doesn't have a single original idea in its head, with its unshakeable shades of "Scarface" and "Serpico" and "Superfly".And maybe it's a half-hour too long ¿ this time of year, what film with awards ambitions isn't?

But it's exceptionally crafted and superbly acted, with Denzel Washngton and Russell Crowe unsurprisingly proving impossible to resist, even though it takes about two hours for their paths to cross. ¿ Southside Cinema