Failing to make it in the big city, Jim (Casey Affleck) returns to his small midwestern town in an amiably bedraggled comedy-drama. His family is a mess, but a budding romance with a nurse (Liv Tyler, right, in a lovely performance) keeps him going. Steve Buscemi directed. (R)
Slither
If only all horror movies had this many decent one-liners. Slither entertains by cheerfully mixing black humor with grotesque scares as residents of a small town battle murderous, oversized slugs from outer space. It's all pretty silly, but since the film never takes itself very seriously, the silliness goes down easy. Elizabeth Banks (left), Nathan Fillion, Gregg Henry and Michael Rooker star. (R)
ATL
Growing up is hard to do for two orphaned teen siblings scraping by in a hardscrabble Atlanta neighborhood. Older brother Rashad (rapper Tip Harris, far right) and Ant (Evan Ross, near right) share good times and bad in a frustratingly uneven coming-of-age film that tries to tell too many stories at once. Best joke: a golf-playing buddy is dubbed "Tiger Hood." (PG-13)
