The kids

have torn through all of their gifts underneath the tree

and the big meal is long over. It is still very early in

the day and it is not like you can go back to bed just

yet, so why not go to the movies?

It is a

tradition that seems to grow each year. More and more

movie studios are releasing films on or around Christmas

to get the post-Christmas celebrators in the audience.

There are five movies scheduled for release on Christmas

Day, which is on a Saturday this year. Strange, because

most movies open Wednesday or Friday.

Another

reason for the seasonal release is that to be considered

for Academy Award nominations films must be in a certain

number of theaters on or before Christmas Day.

The five

films scheduled to be released this Saturday are

"Galaxy Quest," "The Talented Mr.

Ripley," "Snow Falling on Cedars,"

"Magnolia" and "Any Given Sunday."

They seem to offer something for everybody in the family

and look to make huge pushes at the upcoming awards

ceremonies.

"Galaxy

Quest" is the story of a group of actors that played

space explorers on a hokey television show. A race of

people from a distant planet see their show and think

that they are real heros. They send for them to come to

their planet and rescue them from an evil presence. It

kind of sounds like "Three Amigos in Space,"

and "Three Amigos" wasn't a terrible film.

"Galaxy Quest" stars Tim Allen and Sigourney

Weaver and is rated PG.

"The

Talented Mr. Ripley" features one of the most

talented writer/directors and some of the hottest talent

in Hollywood. Anthony Minghella, director of "The

English Patient," directs this tale of a young man

who is sent to Italy to retrieve a wealthy man's playboy

son. Once there, Ripley becomes envious of the son and

his girlfriend.

This is a

fairly dark piece and Mr. Ripley's talents are neither

legal nor moral. The film looks every bit as lush and

detailed as "The English Patient" and the

performances should be nothing short of excellent.

"The Talented Mr. Ripley" is rated R.

"Snow

Falling on Cedars" is based on a book of the same

name and stars Ethan Hawke. His ex-lover is falsely

accused of a crime and it is up to Hawke, a journalist,

to save him, despite being bitter and still very much in

love with the girl. Hawke is great when his characters

are tortured and in love. "Snow Falling on

Cedars" is rated PG-13.

"Magnolia"

is the third film from Paul Thomas Anderson, the writer

and director of "Boogie Nights." Much like an

Altman film, "Magnolia" focuses on 11 people

and the circumstances that bring them together. The cast

is stellar; Julianne Moore, Jason Robards, Phillip

Seymour Hoffman and Tom Cruise head the cast in what is

being hailed as Anderson's masterpiece. High praise

considering "Boogie Nights" was an excellent

film in its own right. "Magnolia" is rated R.

"Any

Given Sunday" is the latest film from Oliver Stone.

It deals with a fictional professional football team and

their coach. When their veteran quarterback goes down,

the backup takes the field and the league by storm. The

team goes topsy-turvy and it is up to Pacino to lead the

team to glory. The buzz is that Stone is finally back

making hard-hitting, high quality films and that Pacino

hasn't been this good since the late 1970s. "Any

Given Sunday" is rated R.

Two other

films that should be quite good are "Man on the

Moon," the new Jim Carrey film, and "The Cider

House Rules," based on John Irving's best seller.

"Man

on the Moon" is the story of the life of Andy

Kaufman. The film is directed by the same team who made

"The People Vs. Larry Flynt" and lovingly

recreates many of the ups and downs of Kaufman's crazed

career. One interesting note about the film is that for

all of the scenes dealing with Kaufman's stint on the

sitcom "Taxi," the original cast of

"Taxi" reunites. "Man on the Moon"

comes out today and is rated R.

"The

Cider House Rules" came out in Atlanta last Friday.

It is the story of an orphanage and one orphan in

particular, Homer Wells. Wells is adopted twice but is

eventually placed under the wing of the orphanage

director Dr. Wilbur Larch, played by Michael Caine. The

film is being considered the best adaption from an Irving

novel, possibly because he penned the screenplay.

"The Cider House Rules" is rated PG-13.

The

theaters also are stuffed with other holiday fare that

has come out recently. "Anna and the King,"

"Stuart Little," "Bicentennial Man"

and "The Green Mile" have all been in theaters

for over a week now and offer fun for the whole family.

"Anna

and the King" tells the same story that "the

King and I" told, only without song. It stars Jodie

Foster and Hong Kong action hero Chow Yun Fat.

"Stuart Little" is loosely based on E.B.

White's children's classic about a mouse adopted by a

human family. Stuart is voiced by Michael J. Fox and his

human brother is played by Jonathan Lipnicki, the kid

from Jerry McGuire.

"Bicentennial

Man" focuses on the life of an android as he becomes

more human. Robin Williams plays the android and the film

is directed by Chris Columbus ("Home Alone" and

"Mrs. Doubtfire").

"The

Green Mile" is about a falsely accused man on death

row with the power to heal people. Tom Hanks plays the

guard who starts to believe in miracles. "Stuart

Little" and "Bicentennial Man" are rated

PG, "Anna and the King" is rated PG-13 and

"The Green Mile" is rated R.

If you do

decide to venture out to the theaters on Christmas Day,

check your local listings for showtimes.

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