New in theaters

New in theaters Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (R)

Directors: Colin Strause and Greg Strause. With Reiko Aylesworth, Steven Pasquale. (86 min.)

After five Alien movies and three Predator films, a requiem is overdue. This time Alien larvae get out of their tanks on a Predator spaceship and kill the crew. When the ship slams into a Colorado mountainside, many beasties survive to terrorize the countryside. A damage-control specialist from the Predators' home planet arrives to exterminate the Aliens and wipe out evidence that they were ever there. Inexplicably, when the Predator kills humans who get in the way, he leaves the most spectacular evidence imaginable. The film's production values are good, but the goings-on are laughable, if not downright boring. Grade: D – M.K. Terrell

The Orphanage (R)

Director: Juan Antonio Bayona. With Fernando Cayo, Belén Rueda, Edgar Vivar. (110 min.)

By a wide margin, J.A. Bayona's "The Orphanage" delivers more goose bumps than anything Hollywood has served up in years – which I hope does not mean that Bayona, a first-time feature director and music video whiz, will be enlisted to direct "Saw V." Produced by Guillermo del Toro ("Pan's Labyrinth"), it's about Laura (Belén Rueda), a mother who purchases an orphanage that she hopes to restore as a haven for disabled children. But she didn't reckon on the spirits of the children who are already occupying the place. Bayona draws on everything from "Peter Pan" to Henry James's "The Turn of the Screw," but it has a creepiness that's all its own.Grade: A–– Peter Rainer

Still in theaters The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep (PG)

Director: Jay Russell. With Alex Etel, Brian Cox, Emily Watson. (111 min.)

"The Water Horse: Legend of the Deep" is an intelligent and family-friendly variation on the boy and his dog story in which the "dog" is a cuddly little creature that turns into the Loch Ness monster. The boy, Angus, is lonely since his father is away fighting in World War II. Angus gets a pal when "Crusoe" springs from a mysterious egg. Thriving on table scraps, Crusoe soon grows too big for the bathtub. Moving to the loch, it reaches fearsome size but is as affectionate as ever – until some soldiers use the loch for artillery practice. Grade: B – M.K. Terrell