Spitball Army

I live in the Crestwood neighborhood of Birmingham. There is a movie theatre down the street from me called The Edge 12. I can walk there from my home, if I so desire. This theatre has twelve screens. They frequently show films of great merit. They also show films for everyone else. We all get to choose.

(photo: spitballarmy.com)

Two new films open at The Edge 12 today:

Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)
Directed by Joe Johnston.
Starring Chris Evans, Hugo Weaving, Tommy Lee Jones, Dominic Cooper, Stanley Tucci, Hayley Atwell, Derek Luke, Samuel L. Jackson and Toby Jones.
Rated PG-13.

It’s the mid-20th century, and 90-pound-weakling-with-the-heart-of-a-lion Steve Rogers (Chris Evans) enlists to fight in the global conflict. After being deemed unfit for service, he volunteers for a clandestine program that turns him – with the aid of an experimental serum – into the Super Soldier known as Captain America. As Captain America, Rogers joins forces with U.S. allies to wage war on the evil HYDRA organization (a.k.a. Nazis), led by the villainous Red Skull (Hugo Weaving). He is also aided by an indestructible shield that can be thrown as a weapon, a la Oddjob‘s bowler hat in Goldfinger.

The character of Captain America is based on the Marvel Comics figure that made its debut in 1941. He ranks sixth in IGN Entertainment’s 2011 poll of the Top 100 Comic Book Heroes (behind – from #1 through #5 – Superman, Batman, Spider-Man, Wolverine and Wonder Woman).

Though Captain America was filmed in 2D, it will be screened in both a 2D and a converted 3D version nationally, including at The Edge 12.

Friends with Benefits (2011)
Directed by Will Gluck.
Starring Mila Kunis, Justin Timberlake, Patricia Clarkson, Jenna Elfman, Bryan Greenberg, Woody Harrelson, Richard Jenkins, and Andy Samberg.
Rated R.

Dylan (Justin Timberlake) and Jamie (Mila Kunis) think that it’s going to be easy to add the simple act of sex to their friendship. Simple?!! For people like Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis, maybe. But their two fictional characters soon discover that getting physical really does always lead to complications. Let the unconvincing attempts at genuine romantic screwball comedy begin!

The following nine films have been extended for another week:
• Bad Teacher
• Cars 2
• Cave of Forgotten Dreams
• Delhi Belly
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2 (2D and 3D)
• Horrible Bosses
• Transformers: Dark of the Moon (3D)
• Winnie the Pooh
• Zookeeper

The following three films ended their current run this week:
• Green Lantern
• Larry Crowne
• Super 8

The Edge 12 has some ongoing promotions. Tuesdays have been dubbed “$5.00 Tuesdays”: most films can be seen for just a $5.00 admission ticket. And, on Fridays, The Edge 12 offers free popcorn at all shows.

The Edge 12 Theatre is located at 7001 Crestwood Boulevard. A recording detailing all movie times can be accessed by telephoning (205) 795-3500; a real live human answers the phone at (205) 795-3595. Showtimes can also be found on the MovieTickets website. The theatre has a Facebook page under the name The Edge 12 Birmingham and tweets under the handle @Edge12Bhm.

Information in the capsule summaries above might have been provided, in varying degrees, by IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes and Wikipedia.