Looking for a less expensive way to see the world? Head to your local movie theater this weekend and check out this week’s offering of new movies, each with an element of travel or an international flair.

Angels & Demons, the sequel to the 2006 blockbuster The Da Vinci Code, is the weekend’s biggest opener. Tom Hanks (Forest Gump, Philadelphia) reprises his role as Professor Robert Langdon, a renowned symbolist, in this Ron Howard-directed adaptation of Dan Brown's book of the same name. In this installment, Langdon travels around the world to stop the Illuminati time bomb from exploding and destroying the Vatican. Joining him on this quest is Vittoria Vetra, a beautiful and mysterious Italian scientist played by Ayelet Zurer (Adam Resurrected, Munich). Ewan McGregor (Moulin Rouge!, I Love You Phillip Morris) also stars as Camerlengo Patrick McKenna, an aide to the Pope, and adds even more star power to the film. The Da Vinci Code grossed over $700 million worldwide and Sony hopes this faster-paced sequel will perform even better. For a further look inside the film, be sure to read this week's In The Spotlight interview with Tom Hanks and Ron Howard.

The next film to open this week, Management, centers on the life of a traveling art saleswoman with a man problem. Specifically, hyper-organized Sue Claussen, played by Jennifer Aniston (Friends, The Good Girl), is being followed around the country by free-spirit Mike Cranshaw, portrayed by Steve Zahn (Sunshine Cleaning, Riding in Cars with Boys), whom she meets when she stays at his parent's hotel one night in Arizona. What follows from this chance meeting is a whirlwind cross-country courtship between two totally different individuals. The film's comedy and romance are a definite counterpoint to the action and heavy emotions found in the rest of this week's batch of movies.

If those heavy emotions are what you’re looking for, however, be sure to head straight for L'Heure D'été, or Summer Hours. Despite the casual and laidback connotations associated with the title, this French independent film deals with the issues surrounding death, family and memory. The film follows two brothers and a sister who are forced to deal with deep-seated family issues as they try to work out what each sibling will receive as part of the inheritance their recently deceased mother has passed on to them. The film has received strong reviews in the international press for its realistic portrayal of the minutia of everyday life following the death of a loved one. For more on this French transplant, see this week’s Inside Indiewood feature.

Finally, the last stop on this weekend’s trip is Japan, via the film Dai-Nipponjin, aka Big Man Japan. This fantastical comedy tells the story of An eccentric middle-aged man who lives alone in a decrepit house in Tokyo. While his life may seem ordinary, every once and a while he transforms into a giant to defend Japan from enormous monsters out to destroy Tokyo and generally wreak havoc on its citizens. The film takes a new approach to the classic Japanese monster movie genre and the film’s creators hope that this novel film will be appreciated by American audiences as well.

—John Bavoso