Alegria (DVD)
A feature-length film starring the Cirque du Soleil, ALEGRIA is a beautifully filmed fantasy about the strange world inhabited by circus performers and their interpersonal relations. Veteran thespians Mako, Langella and Cox provide the acting chops while members of the famed Canadian troupe do their inimitable thing.PG"
Director: Franco Dragone
ACTORS: Rene Bazinet, Frank Langella, Mako, Julie Cox, Heathcote Williams
Blue in the Face (DVD)
Toward the end of shooting SMOKE, director Wayne Wang, screenwriter Paul Auster, and, seemingly, the entire crew were having such a good time that they approached producers Harvey and Bob Weinstein for more money to continue shooting the mostly improvised BLUE IN THE FACE. Not all the actors could return to Auggie Wren`s cigar shop, but they were replaced by some well-known stars making cameo appearances. Lily Tomlin plays a strange man in search of Belgian waffles, Michael J. Fox appears as an equally odd man conducting a bizarre survey, Madonna delivers a singing telegram, and Roseanne does a dramatic scene as the wife of the shops owner. What plot there is concerns the owners desire to close the cigar store and rent the space to a vegetarian restaurant. In a documentary style, there are interviews with Brooklyn residents, archival footage of the demolition of Ebbets Field, and other attempts to show the look and feel of life in Brooklyn. In spite of the star appearances, it`s the nonactors who provide much of the genuine warmth and easy improvisation as thinly veiled characters. A man with unusual glasses (musician Lou Reed), looking right into the camera, explains why he loves Brooklyn and feels nervous in Stockholm. Bob (filmmaker Jim Jarmusch) comes in to smoke his last cigarette with Auggie; he then demonstrates how one can always tell who the bad guys are in the movies because they invariably hold their cigarettes in a strange manner. As in SMOKE, Harvey Keitel holds the whole ensemble together with his touching portrayal of Auggie, a kind of Brooklyn everyman.R"
Director: Wayne Wang|Paul Auster
ACTORS: Harvey Keitel, Michael J. Fox, Roseanne, Mira Sorvino, Lily Tomlin
A Storm in Summer (DVD)
Based on the original 1970s television movie written by Rod Serling, A STORM IN SUMMER beautifully tells the story of an unlikely friendship between an embittered Jewish deli owner and a young black boy during the Vietnam War era, the story unfolding with intelligence and great humanity. Peter Falk stars as Abel Shaddick, a man grieving the loss of his son and who agrees to mentor a precocious nine-year-old inner-city youth, Herman D. Washington (Aaron Meeks), for two weeks after the boy is dumped on Abel at his upstate New York home by his deadbeat nephew, Stanley (Andrew McCarthy). At first reluctant, Abel is soon won over by Hermans tough demeanor. While Abel and Hermans worlds are vastly different--both generationally and culturally--their genuine friendship helps them both come to terms with life. A powerful and touching film without unnecessary sentimentality, A STORM IN SUMMER is boosted by solid performances by Falk and Meeks, who work excellently together. Director Robert Wise uses his signature timeless filming techniques to not only revive an excellent screenplay but to give it new life.NR"
Director: Robert Wise
ACTORS: Peter Falk, Aaron Meeks, Ruby Dee, Nastassja Kinski, Andrew McCarthy
Dragon Ball Z: The Movie - Broly: the Legendary Super Saiyan (DVD) Edited Version This DRAGON BALL Z feature focuses on the appearance of Broly, a powerful Super Saiyan warrior bent on destroying the galaxy. Goku and Vegeta clash over who will be the one to do battle with the new menace, and the resul...
This DRAGON BALL Z feature focuses on the appearance of Broly, a powerful Super Saiyan warrior bent on destroying the galaxy. Goku and Vegeta clash over who will be the one to do battle with the new menace, and the result is an action-packed series of fight sequences between the Z team and the most evil forces in the universe.
NR"
Charlotte Gray (DVD) Widescreen CHARLOTTE GRAY is directed by Gillian Armstrong (MRS. SOFFEL, OSCAR AND LUCINDA) with her signature recipe for success: a love story set in beautiful nature played by an all-star cast. Here, Charlotte Gray (Cate Blanchett) i...
CHARLOTTE GRAY is directed by Gillian Armstrong (MRS. SOFFEL, OSCAR AND LUCINDA) with her signature recipe for success: a love story set in beautiful nature played by an all-star cast. Here, Charlotte Gray (Cate Blanchett) is a Scottish woman in mid-WWII, living with an adventuresome pair of young female roommates. While attending a snooty book publishing party, Charlotte escapes from her girlfriends long enough to meet a British pilot, Peter (Rupert Penry-Jones), with whom she falls in love. After a brief but passionate affair, Peter is sent on a mission to Nazi-occupied France where his plane is shot down and he is reported M.I.A. Torn apart by love, Charlotte enlists herself as an underground operative in the resistance and accepts a mission to rural France. Charlotte, now working under the code name Dominique, parachutes out of an airplane, and captures two young Jewish boys in her net. The man who untagles the bunch, Julien (Billy Crudup), becomes her one trusted contact, and arranges a job for her as governess to the two boys, hiding out in the chateau owned by his curmudgeonly father (Michael Gambon).
Presenting a beautiful love story complicated by WWII tension, Armstrong creates a photographically impeccable film with a strong orchestral score and a capable, utterly attractive cast. CHARLOTTE GRAY is based on the best-selling novel by Sebastian Faulks.
PG-13"
Director: Gillian Armstrong
ACTORS: Cate Blanchett, Billy Crudup, Michael Gambon, Rupert Penry-Jones, John Benfield
