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Click on the title for details. |
JULY 18 - JULY 24, 2006
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JULY 18 - JULY 24, 2006 |
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ATL (dir: Chris Robinson, PG-13) – Growing up on Atlanta’s south side is fondly recalled in this loosely autobiographical coming-of-age story from producers Dallas Austin, T-Boz (from TLC) and Will Smith. While darker aspects of the inner city exist here, this is more focused on hanging out at the Waffle House and laying down some moves at the roller rink. More importantly, why are there no Waffle Houses above the Mason-Dixon line? Why should all those red states have a monopoly on delicious breakfast foods? |
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^CLEAN (dir: Olivier Assayas, R) – Hong Kong superstar Maggie Cheung won best actress at Cannes and the Cesar for her devastating portrayal of a woman battling heroin addiction. After her rock-star husband overdoses, she loses custody of her young son and moves to Paris to try and beat her habit. It’s one of the performances of the year, so don’t miss it. Nick Nolte co-stars. | |||
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DON’T MOVE (dir: Sergio Castellitto, Not Rated) – Penelope Cruz stars as a destitute woman who haunts the memory of a successful surgeon. Director and star Sergio Castellitto’s lusty melodrama won two Italian Academy Awards for its lead performances. |
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EDISON FORCE (dir: David J. Burke, R) – Why would a cop thriller starring Morgan Freeman, Kevin Spacey, LL COOL J and Justin Timberlake never see the inside of a darkened movie theater? Bring this stinker home and find out. | |||
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ELECTRIC SHADOWS (dir: Xiao Jiang, Not Rated) – Imagine a Chinese CINEMA PARADISO. That’s what this debut feature about a little girl in love with the movies wants to be: a swooning ode to the transcendence of filmmaking magic. It doesn’t quite get there, veering toward sentimentality too often, but its heart is firmly in the right place. |
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MIRAGE (dir: Svetozar Ristovski, Not Rated) – If you’re a sensitive Macedonian boy being tormented by bullies, please don’t take your teacher’s advice and enter the poetry competition. It will just make things worse. | |||
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MONSTER THURSDAY (dir: Arild Ostin Ommundsen, Not Rated) – I nearly flew out of my Crocs when I came across this month’s selection from those dear-hearts at Film Movement. Combining two of my absolute favorite things in existence, Norway has given us the world’s first Scandinavian surfing movie! |
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PEACHES (dir: Craig Monahan, Not Rated) – An orphaned teenage girl reads her mother’s diary and uncovers a world of lusty secrets she never imagined in this Australian drama. Hugo Weaving stars as her uncle, and Jacqueline McKenzie, so good as Russell Crowe’s punching-bag in ROMPER STOMPER, plays her aunt. And they have secrets of their own. | |||
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QUEER DUCK: THE MOVIE (dir: Xeth Feinberg, Not Rated) – JM J. Bullock, Conan O’Brien, Andy Dick and David Duchovny all lend their voices to this feature length edition of the popular webtoon. Too bad about it not being funny. |
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THE SECOND CHANCE (dir: Steve Taylor, PG-13) – Christian rocker Michael W. Smith plays a rebellious pastor sent to preach in Nashville’s poorest neighborhood after his unconventional methods upset the church elders. I’d suggest a double feature of this and QUEER DUCK: THE MOVIE. | |||
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SEX WITH LOVE (dir: Boris Quercia, Not Rated) – In Chile’s biggest box office hit ever, the rigid constraints of a strictly Catholic society come undone behind closed doors. This humorous look at the sexual lives of three Santiago couples charmed its way across Latin America. |
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SHE’S THE MAN (dir: Andy Fickman, PG-13) – If you’re a tween with below average intelligence, you’ll love this update of TWELFTH NIGHT starring Amanda Bynes. But the downside of that is that you’re a tween and your intelligence is below average. Enjoy! | |||
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SUBJECT TWO (dir: Philip Chidel, R) – If you’ve been waiting for someone to throw FRANKENSTEIN, THE SHINING and MISERY into a blender, here’s your chance to drink a straight-to-video horror smoothie. |
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*TSOTSI (dir: Gavin Hood, R) – The winner of this year’s Academy Award for foreign language film, TSOTSI is about a young gang leader in Johannesburg, South Africa whose life takes a drastic turn when he steals a car with a baby inside. Oprah loved it and that means you’ll love it. | |||
| * = Greg's pick of the week ^ = Bart's pick of the week | ||||||