Away From Her” is the lyrical screenplay adaptation of celebrated author Alice Munro’s short story, “The Bear Came Over The Mountain,” a beautiful yet unconventional story of a couple coming to grips with the onset of memory loss. Beloved by critics and audiences alike when it premiered at the 2006 Toronto International Film Festival, the film marks the arrival of an exciting new filmmaker in Canadian actress Sarah Polley, who makes her feature screenwriting and directorial debut.
In the movie “Away From Her,” married for almost 50 years, Grant’s (Gordon Pinsent) and Fiona’s (Julie Christie) commitment to each other appears unwavering. Their daily life is filled with tenderness and humor; yet this serenity is broken by Fiona’s increasingly evident memory loss – and her restrained references to a past betrayal. For a while, the couple is able to casually dismiss these unwelcome changes. But when neither Fiona nor her husband can deny any longer that she is being consumed by Alzheimer’s disease, the couple is forced to wrenchingly redefine the limits of their love and loyalty – and face the complex, inevitable transition from lovers to strangers. “Away From Her” also stars Olympia Dukakis, Kristen Thomson, with Michael Murphy and Alberta Watson. “Away From Her” is a love story about memory and devotion. The Andersson’s have remained committed to each other for fifty years, but now their marital tranquility is disrupted by Fiona’s failing memory at the hands of Alzheimer’s Disease. While Grant chooses to deny Fiona’s gradual deterioration, it soon becomes impossible to ignore. Fiona first looses hold of recent memories – largely a good time in the Andersson’s marriage – and plunges back into the trauma of the past, resurrecting old emotions that both Fiona and Grant would rather forget – “Away From Her.”
Tom Reilly (Zach Braff) and his wife Sofia (Amanda Peet) are in for some major changes now that they have a newborn. As a lawyer, Sofia has always provided a comfortable living while Tom has contributed love, support and the occasional paycheck. When Sofia decides to be a stay-at-home mom all that changes. Tom moves the family to Ohio to work for his father-in-law (Charles Grodin) as an ‘Assistant Associate Creative’ for “Sunburst Communications.” His boss Chip (Jason Bateman) happens to still carry a torch for Sofia from their high school days. Each time Tom gains some ground at the firm, Chip wheels in and steals his thunder. Dirty tricks and sabotage abound creating an atmosphere of fierce paranoia that eventually threatens Tom and Sofia’s relationship. Chip will stop at nothing to see Tom defeated while no one but Tom can see Chip for the evil genius he is. Through it all Tom’s esteem is depleted, his manhood challenged (by a surprisingly large adversary) and he’s watching his family slip away.
STARRING: Zach Braff, Amanda Peet, Jason Bateman, Charles Grodin, Mia Farrow, Donal Logue, Amy Poehler, Amy Adams
DIRECTOR: Jesse Peretz
STUDIO: MGM/The Weinstein Co.
RATING: PG-13 (For language and sexual situations)
Blind Dating” is a comedy about Danny (Chris Pine), an intelligent, confident, handsome young man who also happens to be blind. Not that he’s letting that hold him back — for the most part, Danny refuses to let his visual impairment get in the way of anything. He’s one of the most popular guys in town, and is even an ace at basketball. Which is why Danny’s girl-crazy, limo-driving brother Larry (Eddie Kaye Thomas, “American Pie”) is horrified to discover that Danny is not only shy and nervous when it comes to the opposite sex, he’s also a virgin. Determined to help Danny have his first sexual experience, his brother Larry sets up a series of hysterically disastrous blind dates with shallow girls that can’t seem to get past his sight impairment. Danny is all but ready to give up on love, until he meets a pretty young East Indian nurse named Leeza (Anjali Jay), who works at the office of his eye doctor. The two seem made for each other…until Leeza reveals that she has been promised to another man in an arranged marriage. Also starring Jane Seymour as Danny’s psychologist (who has a penchant for disrobing during their sessions together), “Blind Dating” is a warm and funny story about overcoming the cultural boundaries, physiological differences, and above all, finding true love – “Blind Dating.”
Rebellious teenager Rachel (Lindsay Lohan) screams, swears, drinks and is–in a word–uncontrollable, a real bitch. (And you call this role she is currently in acting?) With her latest car crash, Rachel has broken the final rule in mom Lily’s (Golden Globe winner Felicity Huffman) San Francisco home. With nowhere else to take the impulsive and rambunctious girl, Lily hauls her daughter to the one place she swore she’d never return…her own mother’s Idaho farm.
Matriarch Georgia (two-time Oscar winner Jane Fonda) is not your typical sweet and doting grandmother. She lives her life by a number of unbreakable rules, demanding anyone who shares her home do the same–God comes first and hard work comes a very close second. Now saddled with raising the young woman, it will require each patient breath she takes to understand Rachel’s fury.
But as Rachel succumbs to her summer of misery and shakes up the tiny Mormon town, Georgia notices something is changing within her granddaughter. Given structure and responsibilities, Rachel is letting her guard down and learning compassion…especially for her mother. Her journey will lead all three women to revelations of buried family secrets and an understanding that–regardless what happens–the ties that bind can never be broken.
STARRING: Jane Fonda, Lindsay Lohan, Felicity Huffman, Dermot Mulroney, Cary Elwes, Garrett Hedlund
DIRECTOR: Garry Marshall
STUDIO: Universal Pictures
RATING: R (For strong language, violence, sexual situations)
Wendell Baker (Luke Wilson) is a dreamer and schemer whose latest scam lands him in jail and alienates him from his longtime girlfriend Doreen (Eva Mendes, best friend Reyes (Jacob Vargas) and even his dog, Junior. Eternally optimistic, Wendell makes the most of his time behind bars and vows to turn his life around. Upon release, he gets a job at the Shady Grove retirement hotel, where he befriends residents Boyd (Seymour Cassel), Skip (Harry Dean Stanton) and Nasher (Kris Kristofferson). Wendell’s new friends advise him on how to win back his girlfriend, while he helps them battle the hotel’s evil head nurse, Neil King (Owen Wilson) and his right-hand man, McTeague (Eddie Griffin).
STARRING: Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson, Eva Mendes, Seymour Cassel, Jacob Vargas, Harry Dean Stanton, Kris Kristofferson, Eddie Griffin
DIRECTORS: Andrew and Luke Wilson
STUDIO: THINKFilm
RATING: PG-13 (For some crude and sexual humor and language)
Angel A” – Down-on-his-luck petty criminal Andre (Jamel Debbouze) has reached the end of his rope. Irreversibly in debt to a local gangster, with no one to turn to, his only solution is to plunge himself into the Seine. Just as he is perched to do so, a fellow bridge-jumper beats him to the water. Diving in, he saves Angela (Rie Rasmussen), a beautiful, statuesque and mysterious woman. As they pull themselves out the water, the two form a bond and venture into the streets of Paris determined to get Andre out of the hole he has found himself in. As Andre will find out, not all debts are financial, and sometimes the solutions to life’s problems are found in the unlikeliest of places. Is Angela simply repaying Andre for his kindness, or are there other forces at work beyond his comprehension? “Angel-A”
STARRING: Jamel Debbouze, Rie Rasmussen
DIRECTOR: Luc Besson
STUDIO: Sony Classics
RATING: R (For language and some sexual content)
When Russell’s character Jenna, a waitress in a cheery southern diner, discovers that she’s pregnant, she doesn’t exactly jump for joy. Motherhood was never in her plans, and she’s already saddled with her needy, jealous and infantile husband Earl (Jeremy Sisto).
At first, things seem hopeless and her dreams for a better life are in ruins, until a good-looking doctor (Nathan Fillion) arrives in town and mixes things up. With the support and love of her friends and co-workers (Adrienne Shelly and Cheryl Hines) at Joe’s Pie Diner, Jenna exhibits her skills with crusts and fillings which are particularly appreciated by Joe himself (Andy Griffith). She then gains the courage to embrace independence and create the life of her dreams – “Waitress.”
STARRING: Keri Russell, Nathan Fillion, Cheryl Hines, Adrienne Shelly, Eddie Jemison with Jeremy Sisto, Andy Griffith
DIRECTOR: Adrienne Shelly
STUDIO: Fox Searchlight
RATING: PG-13 (For sexual content, language and thematic elements)
Race You to the Bottom” centers around a beautifully complicated and heated love affair between two young 20-somethings: a straight woman and her best friend, a gay man. Starring young actors Cole Williams (“Harry and Max”) and Amber Benson (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) in career-making lead roles, “Race You to the Bottom” is a vibrant, sexy artistic achievement and a cultural milestone in reflecting a fast changing new world of fluid sexuality.
Propelled by the exhilaration of their six-month secret affair, gay Nathan and straight Maggie embark on a sun-drenched road trip through Napa Valley wine country, all the while leaving their respective boyfriends behind. The lovers try to define their relationship on their own terms: sensual, liberating and rebellious, but also one fraught with complications that they might not have the maturity to overcome.
The result is an unlikely love story with sharply drawn, intelligent and flawed characters. As these two hedonists tear through Northern California, the film reminds us of the glorious moments when romance seems to have no boundaries – “Race You To The Bottom.”
STARRING: Amber Benson, Cole Williams, Jeremy Lelliott, Danielle Harris, Justin Zachary
DIRECTOR: Russell Brown
STUDIO: Regent Releasing
RATING: R (For sexual content, language and brief drug use)
In “Blades of Glory,” rival figure skaters Chazz Michael Michaels (Will Ferrell) and Jimmy MacElroy (Jon Heder) go ballistic in an embarrassing, no-holds-barred fight at the World Championships. They are stripped of their gold medals and banned from the sport for life. Now, three-and-a-half years on, they’ve found a loophole that will allow them to compete: if they can put aside their differences, they can skate together – in pairs’ figure skating – “Blades Of Glory.”
STARRING: Will Ferrell, Jon Heder, Will Arnett, Amy Poehler, William Fichtner, Jenna Fischer, Romany Malco, Nick Swardson, Rob Corddry, Craig T. Nelson
DIRECTORS: Will Speck & Josh Gordon
STUDIO: Paramount Pictures
RATING: PG-13 (For Language and Adult Situations)
I Think I Love My Wife,” written, directed by and starring Chris Rock, is a sophisticated comedy about marriage and the lure of a new love. Nikki (Kerry Washington) is the exciting free spirit who makes Richard’s (Chris Rock) daydreams come true while Richard’s wife Brenda (Gina Torres) is so preoccupied with her own career and raising their two children that she has little time for her husband.
STARRING: Chris Rock, Kerry Washington, Gina Torres, Steve Buscemi
DIRECTOR: Chris Rock
STUDIO: Fox Searchlight
RATING: R (For pervasive language and some sexual content)
