Rated:NONE Published in Paris 1954, The Story of O was an immediate bestseller and literate scandal: an elegantly written S&M fantasy that had all the hallmarks of being an autobiographical account by the pseudonymous Pauline Réage. In 1994 Dominique Aury, a mild-mannered, dowdy editor for France's prestigious Gallimard press, revealed her authorship. Pola Rapaport explores Aury's inspiration, recreating the world of '50s literary Paris and setting it against dramatic sequences that bring the infamous book to life. The author as well as various French intellectuals expound on the thorny relationship between sexuality and power, submission and freedom, liberation and non-being. Even today, The Story of O mystifies in its power and confounds in its contradictions.
Rated:R A provocative, unflinching look at the complexities of racial conflict in America, CRASH is that rare cinematic event - a film that challenges audiences to question their own prejudices. Diving headlong into the diverse melting pot of post-9/11 Los Angeles, this compelling urban drama tracks the volatile intersections of a multi-ethnic cast, examining fear and bigotry from multiple perspectives as characters careen in and out of one another’s lives. No one is safe in the battle zones of racial strife. And no one is immune to the simmering rage that sparks violence - and changes lives...
Funny, powerful, and always unpredictable, CRASH boldly explores the gray area between black and white, victim and aggressor…and finds no easy solutions. The dynamic feature directing debut of Emmy Award-winning writer/producer Paul Haggis, CRASH stars Sandra Bullock, Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Jennifer Esposito, William Fichtner, Brendan Fraser, Terrence Howard, Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, Thandie Newton, Ryan Phillippe and Larenz Tate, from a story by Paul Haggis and a screenplay by Haggis and Bobby Moresco. CRASH is produced by Cathy Schulman, Don Cheadle, Bob Yari, Mark R. Harris, Bobby Moresco and Paul Haggis.
Rated:R What begins as a weekend getaway for six friends becomes a terrifying fight for their lives in HOUSE OF WAX, an exciting re-imagining of the 1953 horror classic from Dark Castle Entertainment and producers Joel Silver and Robert Zemeckis.
Rated:R Orlando Bloom stars as Balian, a blacksmith who has lost his family and nearly lost his faith. The religious wars raging in the far-off Holy Land seem remote to him, yet he is pulled into that immense drama. Amid the pageantry and intrigues of medieval Jerusalem he falls in love, grows into a leader, and ultimately uses all his courage and skill to defend the city against staggering odds.
Rated:NONE "Mysterious Skin" explores the hearts and minds of two very different boys who turn out not to be as different as they appear. Brian is a troubled 18 year-old, who grew up a scared, introverted kid in the small town of Hutchinson, Kansas. Plagued by nightmares and terrified of the dark, Brian believes that he may have been the victim of an alien abduction. Neil McCormick is the ultimate beautiful outsider, wise beyond his years and curious about his developing sexuality. Eventually, Neil's pursuit of what he thinks is love leads him to New York City, while Brian's search for what happened leads him to Neil - together, both ultimately discover the truth.
Rated:NONE Set in small-town America circa 1953, A Hole in One is a romantic drama starring Michelle Williams as Anna, a young woman whose desire for piece of mind leads her to covet its latest fashion -- transorbital lobotomy. Raised in a pre-feminist era where women are not expected to think for themselves, Anna is scooped up by Billy (Meat Loaf), a small time gangster, when she is just barely old enough to be considered a woman. Anna looks for a way to relieve her pain, yearning for fulfillment, clarity and calm as madness flickers around the edges of her life. She thinks she finds a panacea in the pages of Life Magazine, in an article on the latest techniques in brain surgery.
Rated:R The story takes place in Paris in the years after the First World War. Modigliani, a Jew, has fallen in love with Jeanne (Zylberstein), a young and beautiful Catholic girl. The couple have an illegitimate child, and Jeanne's bigoted parents send the baby to a faraway convent to be raised by nuns.
Modigliani is distraught and needs money to rescue and raise his child. The answer arrives in the shape of Paris' annual art competition. Prize money and a guaranteed career await the winner. Neither Modigliani, nor his dearest friend and rival Picasso (Djalili) have ever entered the competition, believing that it is beneath true artists like themselves. But push comes to shove with the welfare of his child on the line, and Modigliani signs up for the competition in a drunken and drug-induced tirade. Picasso follows suit and all of Paris is aflutter with excitement at who will win.
With the balance of his relationship with Jeanne on the line, Modigliani tackles this work with the hopes of creating a masterpiece, and knows that all the artists of Paris are doing the same.
Emotionally-charged and bathed in absinthe green, "Modigliani" is the decadent portrayal of this tortured genius, his debilitating addictions, and overwhelming passion. The film delivers nothing short of a deeply heartfelt tribute to the artist.
Rated:R Jiminy Glick (Martin Short), an entertainment critic for a television station in Butte, Montana, arrives at the Toronto Film Festival, a complete unknown, intent on finding fame among the rich, famous and fabulous. His dreams of becoming the most celebrated and renowned star interviewer are realized when he is granted an exclusive with elusive young megastar Ben DiCarlo (Corey Pearson). This catapults Jiminy from obscurity to being the most talked about guy in town. Filmmakers and studio executives want to schmooze him and every actor wants to be interviewed by him, including fading Hollywood star Miranda Coolidge (Elizabeth Perkins). When Miranda is later found dead in Jiminy's bed, he thinks he is to blame and suddenly gets embroiled in a murder mystery whodunit complete with sex, scandal, rappers and glamorous celebrities.
Rated:R Michael (Thomsen) has everything under control: a successful military career, a beautiful wife (Nielsen) and two daughters. His younger brother Jannik (Lie Kaas) is a drifter, living on the edge of the law. When Michael is sent to Afghanistan on a UN mission the balance between the two brothers changes forever. Michael is missing in action - presumed dead - and Sarah is comforted by Jannik, who against all odds shows himself capable of taking responsibility for both himself and the family. It soon becomes clear that their feelings have developed beyond mutual sympathy. When Michael comes home, traumatized by being held prisoner in the mountains of Afghanistan, nothing is the same...
Rated:R Lonely and in poor health, trainer Marty Goldberg has been stuck working on the fringes of the professional circuit far too long. Searching for a way out, he discovers Tommy, a young man with raw talent to burn. Outside the ring however, Tommy displays a self-destructive streak that could end his career before it begins. As the two men begin to work together, they find it's not just Tommy's volatile tendencies that threaten their relationship, but also Marty’s painful past. Boasting some extraordinary performances that are by turns devastatingly poignant and vigorously uplifting, this debut feature by Eddie O'Flaherty is a powerful look at the world of men, both in and outside the ring.
Rated:NONE French Jewish actor Maurice (Stéphane Freiss) and his three fellow thespian friends have been waiting years for their big break. The future looks bright when the famous American director Rudolph Grishenberg (Peter Coyote) comes to Paris and offers Maurice the part of Shylock in his Yiddish screen adaptation of The Merchant of Venice. But his fortunes reverse quickly when Maurice learns that the role must go to another more famous actor and that his beloved wife Perla, played by the luminous Bérénice Bojo, is gravely ill with cancer.
Maurice is so in love with Perla that he even photographs her in secret while she's at work. After Perla's illness becomes apparent, Maurice realizes that the only thing keeping Perla happy is knowing that her husband is finally going to make it big in show business. This inspires Maurice to take on the role of his life in the mad hope that he can keep his beloved wife alive and happy.
Maurice and his friends will go to any lengths to keep Perla's spirits up and create a web of support to protect her from the truth. They chauffeur Maurice each morning to the "film set," conduct mock TV and magazine interviews, and even kidnap Grichenberg to take him to meet Perla.
Adapted from a novel by Daniel Goldenberg.
Rated:NONE Theirs is, at heart, a love story: Andrew and Jeremy met each other at Bromptons Club, a legendary gay bar in Earls Court, London. Despite a considerable age gap (Andrew is 49, Jeremy 69) and stark social differences, they fell in love and began sharing their lives together. Five years later, in May 2004, they got married at an emotional and intimate Town Hall ceremony. Andrew is a retired bus driver from South London, handsome in that rough and roguish way. Jeremy is an English professor - cute, fussy, vivacious and clearly from a patrician world. Both men experienced painful early struggles with their sexuality. Jeremy had a failed marriage to a woman, followed by a misguided attempt to 'cure' himself. Andy cruised public washrooms and indulged with much promiscuity - gay bars, drug addiction, crime, prison and rehabilitation. Jeremy has literary connections and moves in a sphere of chic dinner parties, poetry readings and gay picnics. Between their homes in London and their exploits in Palm Springs and Hollywood, we get to know these likeable, complex and sensitive men in a way that is rare in movies - which is to say we begin to care deeply about them and their relationship.
Rated:NONE Marty Rockman, the notorious producer of the hit reality-TV show "So Sue Me," has a brand new concept: "Citizen Verdict". Each week a real criminal case will be tried before the American people, but this time they're also the jury. If the defendant is voted guilty in a death penalty case, Rockman will televise the execution.
An escalation in violent crime and terrorism has hit the state of Florida hard. Governor Tyler, desperate to be seen as a tough-oncrime Republican leader in the upcoming Presidential race, decides to give Rockman his chance and "Citizen Verdict" goes into production in Tampa.
Sam Patterson is a well-respected liberal law professor trying to survive an expensive divorce when Rockman offers him a huge signing bonus to become the show's defense attorney. Convincing himself that the show has a valid purpose, Sam joins the team. Working as his assistant is the beautiful and brilliant prosecuting attorney, Jessica Landers, who is an ambitious law student. Now all Rockman needs is the first case for the viewing public to judge.
Selected by phone-in vote, Sam's first client is Ricky Carr: accused of the rape and murder of popular celebrity-chef Dolly Hamilton, the case is a surefire ratings winner. But when Sam starts to investigate, he finds evidence that Ricky may be innocent of murder.
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