'O'Horten'

WHO WOULD NAME their son "Odd"? Apparently parents in Norway, where this sparse film about a 67-year-old train engineer forced to retire takes place. Not knowing what to do with himself, Odd (the perfectly deadpan Bard Owe) drifts aimlessly from one strange situation to the next.

I never really got the point of this film and I'm pretty sure there isn't one. But that doesn't make watching it an unenjoyable experience. It was sweet. In an Odd sort of way. Kids who can read subtitles can theoretically watch this, but they won't want to. (Norwegian with subtitles. PG-13: Brief nudity). 1 hour and 30 minutes.

Ratings (out of 4 stars):

Overall: 2 ½ stars

Kids: ½ star

Teens: 1 star

Adults: 2 ½ stars

Seniors: 2 ½ stars

Should you rent it? Yes — Quirky, dry Norwegian comedy.

'Whatever Works'

"Seinfeld" co-creator and curmudgeonly comic Larry David has, of course, been doing an extended Woody Allen imitation his entire career. So it's only fitting that he stars in the reclusive filmmaker's latest offering.

David amps up his Allen imitation to play a bitter, self-proclaimed genius who critiques everything in his path. Predictably, the 62-year-old David marries a barely legal runaway (Evan Rachel Wood). Her conservative Southern parents follow her to New York City to bring her home. Witty

The downsides to this film are that it feels like a recut version of the same movies Allen has been making for, well, forever. In addition, the already over-the-top David overflows with his excessively broad acting.

On the plus side, Allen and David are very funny men and I laughed a lot. Too dark for kids. (PG-13: Sexual situations). 1 hour and 32 minutes.

Ratings (out of 4 stars):

Overall: 2 ½ stars

Kids: N/A

Teens: 1 ½ stars

Adults: 2 ½ stars

Seniors: 2 ½ stars

Should you rent it? Yes — If you liked the last 39 Woody Allen films, you'll enjoy this one too.

'The Taking of Pelham 123'

John Travolta stars in this cops and robbers film as a crook who hijacks a New York City subway and demands a ransom for the safe release of the passengers. On the other end of the intercom back at transit control center is Denzel Washington, a civil servant dispatcher who rises to the occasion to serve as the lead hostage negotiator.

While the subterranean setting for this cat and mouse game is original (as original as it can be considering it's a remake of a 1974 film of the same name) the execution is as fresh as a Manhattan food cart pretzel.

Travolta's crazed killer routine is uninteresting and the plot developments transparent. But Washington's steady-Eddie bureaucrat (who shockingly isn't a former Navy Seal with superhuman fighting skills and a dead wife to avenge) saves the day and makes the movie worth watching. (R: Violence and language). 2 hours and 1 minute.

Ratings (out of 4 stars):

Overall: 2 ½ stars

Kids: N/A

Teens: 2 ½ stars

Adults: 2 ½ stars

Seniors: 2 stars

Should you rent it? Yes — Train robbery thriller that chugs along at a moderate pace.

J.B. Alderman lives in Piedmont and can be reached at jason@alderman.net.