New Movie Reviews: 'Moneyball,' 'Abduction,' 'Machine Gun Preacher' Hitting Theaters

10:50 PM PDT 9/22/2011 by THR staff

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Sony Pictures; Lionsgate

"Moneyball," left, and "Abduction"

What do THR's critics have to say about the films opening this weekend?

Moviegoers have many options this weekend.

'Moneyball's' Brad Pitt Becomes One of the Few Non-Athletes to Cover Sports Illustrated

'Moneyball': Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill in New Trailer

'Abduction's' Taylor Lautner is 'Like a Young Tom Cruise' Says Studio Exec (Video)

'Abduction': Taylor Lautner Gets Chased Down, Shot at in New Trailer (Video)

'Abduction's' Taylor Lautner on Performing the Movie's 'Crazy Stunts' (Video)

'Moneyball': What the Critics Are Saying

The first of the big movies that debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier this month are now coming to theaters this weekend. Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill star in the comedy-drama Moneyball, which is about baseball and baseball statistics and an unlikely collaboration between a major league general manager and a Yale economics graduate.

PHOTOS: 'Moneyball' Premiere in Oakland

Taylor Lautner stars in Abduction, a thriller about a teenager forced on the run to uncover his past. Lily Collins, Alfred Molina and Maria Bello co-star in director John Singleton's movie.

Meanwhile, Gerard Butler plays the real-life and highly flawed hero Sam Childers for Marc Forster's Machine Gun Preacher. Childers went from a small-time criminal to a preacher and then savior to countless orphans in the war-torn African country of Sudan.

PHOTOS: 'Abduction' Red Carpet Premiere

Charles Martin Smith’s Dolphin Tale also tells a true story, only this one concerns a creature of the sea, a dolphin that whose damaged tail is replaced by a prosthetic one.

Also opening Friday is Killer Elite, a male thriller with a cast headed by Jason Statham, Robert De Niro and Clive Owen, which delves into former British special forces operatives.

See what The Hollywood Reporter's critics have to say about those films -- and others opening this weekend -- and find out how well they are expected to perform at the box office.

Moneyball

Bottom Line: A baseball movie for people who dislike the sport as a desperate general manager and an economics grad turn baseball on its head.

Click here to read The Hollywood Reporter’s review.

PHOTOS: 'Abduction' Photos: Taylor Lautner and Lily Collins on the Run

Abduction

Bottom Line: Taylor Lautner tries to hold his own in an action thriller too silly to give him much of a chance.