CAPSULES

'Easy Virtue' ½

(Jessica Biel, Ben Barnes, Kristin Scott Thomas) In 1920s England, cultures clash when a son (Barnes) returns to his parents' (Thomas and Colin Firth) country estate with an American wife (Biel). Biel is a bit out of her element in the lead, but that's not the problem here. The real issue is the unfunny dry British humor and painfully onedimensional characters. It's all such a bore. Rated PG-13.

'Little Ashes'

(Robert Pattinson, Javier Beltran, Matthew McNulty) Artist Salvador Dali (Pattinson) befriends Luis Bunuel (McNulty) and starts a forbidden relationship with writer Federico Garcia Lorca (Beltran) while at art school in 1920s Madrid. After the first 20 minutes of awkwardly looking like Johnny Depp in a Tim Burton movie, Pattinson ("Twilight") turns in a decent performance and the story is a solid drama about repressed feelings during a time of creative expression. Rated R.

'Up'

(Voices of Ed Asner, Jordan Nagai, Christopher Plummer) Elderly Carl Fredricksen (Asner) ties helium balloons to his house and sets off to South America in this sweet, breathtaking tale from Disney-Pixar films. Some of the aerial visuals may be a bit daunting for young children, and the movie is not among the studios' best efforts (the "Toy Story" movies, "Finding Nemo"), but it is quite good. Rated PG.