'Cloverfield'

Back in the day, any self-respecting gross-out horror movie would promote itself with a line in the ad saying, "Vomit bags will be issued at the door."

Apparently, some folks needed them for "Cloverfield," not because it's disgusting, but because of the 84 minutes of handheld camera. Now, the movie and the motion sickness can be enjoyed, to a lesser effect, in the comfort of your own living room (and bathroom, if necessary).

The concept, from producer J.J. Abrams, is akin to a "Godzilla" movie shot from the POV of the fleeing masses. This one is set in New York among a group of stylish twenty-somethings throwing a send-off for a friend moving to, where else, Japan. The party, already troubled by a boy-girl drama, is interrupted by the appearance of a 30-story monster pushing skyscrapers around like Leggos and sending 9/11-looking clouds of smoke and debris through the air.

It's all captured on the video camera of Hud (T.J. Miller), who was supposed to be collecting goodbyes for his friend and, in a morbid sense, is doing just that. Director Matt Reeves goes beyond the "Blair Witch Project" and cleverly fills the screen with cool, big-budget special effects while never losing the shaky feel of a handycam film.

In the commentary, Reeves notes that some of the scenes were actually shot by the actors. When Michael Stahl-David told him, "I really don't know how to use this" he said, "That's perfect."

The deleted scenes and alternate endings are barely worth watching, but because of the nature of the film, the making-of segments are more interesting than most. And yet, they strip away from the movie's mystique.

Really, the best way to watch "Cloverfield" would be to know nothing and just stumble upon it cold and get sucked into the character drama, not even knowing the American Godzilla is coming. This review has now contributed to making that less likely.

-- Scott Mervis, Post-Gazette Weekend Mag editor

'Charlie Wilson's War'

3 1/2 stars = Very good
Ratings explained

In a season of politics in which pandering often outranks principle, think of "Charlie Wilson's War" as your oasis from the fray.

This little gem, starring Tom Hanks, Julia Roberts and the never-short-of-wonderful Philip Seymour Hoffman, is the real deal -- real life, real flaws, but real principles. Directed by Mike Nichols and new to the DVD racks, "Charlie Wilson" reminds us that change really can escape the bonds of sloganeering.

Hanks plays a Texas congressman who loves women, alcohol and his country, probably in that order. But when he learns of the suffering in Afghanistan (back when the invaders were Russians), he teams with a CIA operative (Hoffman) and a wealthy Christian conservative socialite (Roberts) to dig up guns and money so that the Mujahedeen can defend their people.

That all of this is largely true, save the typical Hollywood stretch here and there, underscores the point that fact almost always trumps fiction. And with "West Wing" alumnus Aaron Sorkin contributing magic prose, you're in for genuine moments of inspiration, not to mention laughs.

Extras? It's slim pickings. The obligatory "making of" feature is worth your time, but save your gratitude for "Who Is Charlie Wilson?" It's a nifty little profile that includes interview snippets with our real-life protagonist, who served in the House of Reps from 1973 through 1996.

We have too few unsung heroes these days, so it's nice that this clever little film exercises its vocal cords on behalf of a true, if imperfect, American patriot. A few flaws in the ointment can't taint humanitarian courage.

-- Allan Walton, AME/Multimedia

Also new this week

'The Savages'

4 stars = Outstanding
Ratings explained

Philip Seymour Hoffman is a neurotic college professor and Laura Linney a struggling playwright in this story of a brother and sister who must care for their estranged father (Philip Bosco), who is sliding into dementia. Director-screenwriter Tamara Jenkins, whose first film was the cult hit "Slums of Beverly Hills" (1998), has a second one here -- a wryly personal film awash in sweetly unsentimental cynicism.

'The Orphanage'

3 stars = Good
Ratings explained

A woman discovers dark secrets hidden in her childhood home, an orphanage by the sea, in this supernatural drama from a young Spanish director, Juan Antonio Bayona. It relies on your standard haunted-house tropes: spooky shadows, self-slamming windows, slow-turning doorknobs, dusty secret crypts. But the filmmaker fashions them fairly freshly, eschewing the special FX excess that rules the genre these days.

'Starting Out in the Evening'

3 1/2 stars = Very good
Ratings explained

Frank Langella is frighteningly good in this character study of an aging and fading novelist revived by a pretty young grad student (Lauren Ambrose).

• "One Missed Call": Edward Burns stars in this remake of a Japanese horror film about people receiving voicemails from their future selves, with information about the date and details of their deaths.

• Special: "Shirley Temple: America's Sweetheart Collection, Volume 6."