What's new and/or interesting in Philly theaters this weekend.

Most Likely to Suck: Hell Ride
Larry Bishop writes, directs, and stars in this throwback to biker exploitation films of the '60s and '70s. The story is about a biker gang that rallies to avenge the violent murder of a fellow gang member. Dennis Hopper, Michael Madsen, and Vinnie Jones also star. We like all those guys, and this sounds like a fun idea for a movie, but sadly the reviews are almost universally bad. We have to reluctantly recommend that you stay away.
Trailer - Freshness
Showing at: Ritz at the Bourse

Boy A
The film adaptation of Jonathan Trigell's award-winning novel tells the story of a man named Jack who's released from prison at the age of 24 after having been institutionalized most of his life for the murder of a child. He has a hard time readjusting to the outside world, but with the fatherly mentoring of his parole officer, Terry, he begins to experience a coming-of-age that would normally have happened years ago. Unfortunately for him, the tabloid press and Terry's real son won't let him be. This looks like a pretty interesting and intense film, and the critics are mostly appreciative.
Trailer - Freshness
Showing at: Ritz at the Bourse

Baghead
When this horror/comedy played at the Philadelphia Film Festival earlier this year, Phillyists Ross and Jill were not very impressed. But it does have a respectably high freshness rating. So the question becomes... whom do you trust??
Trailer - Freshness
Showing at: Ritz Five

Most Likely to Rule: Man on Wire
This documentary takes a look back at a crazy event that occurred in August of 1974: a 24-year-old French high-wire artist named Philippe Petit stretched a wire between the two towers of the World Trade Center and not only walked from one building to the other, but also performed a serious of acrobatic movements on the wire. He then turned himself in to Port Authority policemen. Critics are almost universal in their praise of the film, and indeed it sounds like it would be really interesting.
Trailer - Freshness
Showing at: Ritz Five

Bottle Shock
This film, based on a true story, stars Bill Pullman as Jim Barrett, a man who's sacrificed everything to create the perfect hand-crafted chardonnay. His quest has left him with a struggling business and a rocky relationship with his slacker son (Chris Pine). Meanwhile, in Paris, British wine shop owner Steven Spurrier (Alan Rickman), in the hopes of reviving his own failing business, sponsors a competition which will pit the traditional French wines against the California upstarts. The stage is set for an event that will change the history of wine forever. So, the question is, do you care at all about the history of wine? Because if you aren't interested in the subject matter, the characters are going to have to be especially interesting to make up for it, and the mixed reviews suggest they're not quite interesting enough for us.
Trailer - Freshness
Showing at: Ritz East

Pineapple Express
This stoner/buddy comedy stars Seth Rogen and James Franco as two pot-smoking friends who mistakenly become involved with a vicious gang of drug dealers. (Lest you think at some point they all get on a fruit-laden train, we should point out that the title actually refers to a particular type of weed.) Rogen also co-wrote the script with Evan Goldberg, with the magic comedy duo of Judd Apatow and Shauna Robertson producing. The critically acclaimed David Gordon Green, usually known for serious drama, takes the director's chair. With all that talent, it can't be all bad, and indeed the ads look quite funny. The freshness rating isn't as high as you might want, but we're pretty sure it'll be good for at least a few dumb laughs.
Trailer - Freshness
Showing at: The Pearl, UA Riverview, The Bridge

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2
Those young women and their pants are back! Now they've hit college and are embarking on separate paths for the first time, where they'll learn challenging life lessons and start on their individual journeys toward adulthood. That doesn't sound fun to this Phillyist in the least, but this Phillyist is not a young woman. We suspect that among the target audience, this one will be popular; the critics are reasonably positive about it, anyway.
Trailer - Freshness
Showing at: UA Riverview

Image via Jo Blo