Persall's top 5

Recent releases recommended by Times film critic Steve Persall

By Times staff

© St. Petersburg Times, published July 28, 2000

1: X-Men -- Action-packed yet thoughtful screen version of the Marvel Comics superheroes. Ian McKellen and Patrick Stewart make classy antagonists amid the sci-fi hardware.

2: Chicken Run -- The Great Escape, starring stop-animation poultry instead of Steve McQueen. Loads of puns and fun from the creators of cult favorites Wallace and Gromit.

3: The Patriot -- Mel Gibson defends his family and Old Glory from British invasion. Bloody battles make this Saving General Washington.

4: Nutty Professor 2: The Klumps -- Eddie Murphy reprises his multiple roles from the 1998 remake of a Jerry Lewis comedy classic. Janet Jackson returns to the screen, but Murphy's makeup is his best co-star.

5: The Perfect Storm -- Taut, true-life drama of a 1991 meteorological fluke sinking a doomed commercial fishing boat. George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg co-star with queasy water effects.