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August 2005 Releases
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Guess Who
This new take on the 1967 drama GUESS WHO'S COMING TO DINNER puts a comedic spin on interracial dating. Bernie Mac (THE BERNIE MAC SHOW) costars as Percy Jones, a wealthy black banker who has an overbearing love for his family. Percy is about to host a lavish party at his sprawling New Jersey home in celebration of his 25-year wedding anniversary to Marilyn (Judith Scott, FLIGHT PLAN). His daughter Theresa (Zoe Saldana, THE TERMINAL) is coming home for the occasion, and she's bringing her new boyfriend, Simon Green (Ashton Kutcher, THAT 70S SHOW, PUNK’D). Theresa has neglected to mention that her new beau is white, however, and the formidable Percy is in for a surprise. Though Simon does everything in his power to impress his future father-in-law, nothing will make the imposing patriarch change his undermining disposition. Matters are further complicated because Simon has recently lost his job, and he struggles to keep the family from finding out. As unrest spreads, causing tension--and plenty of laughs--in the days leading up to the party, Simon and Theresa face uncertainty in their relationship while Percy and Marilyn suffer difficulties of their own.
Street Date: 8/2/2005
Genre:
Comedy
Rating:
PG-13
Starring:
Bernie Mac, Ashton Kutcher, Zoe Saldana, Judith Scott
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Alexander
Oliver Stone recreates the towering, true story of Alexander the Great (Colin Farrell), who in the 4th Century BC conquered Greece, Persia, Afghanistan and India- 90% of the known world. Against massive armies of chariots and elephants, he never lost a battle. Visionary, explorer, dreamer- he was also a tender son, torn by his mother's (Angelina Jolie) burning love and ambition and desperate for his father's (Val Kilmer) approval. His dream shaped the world we live in today.
Street Date: 8/2/2005
Genre:
Action/Advneture
Rating:
R
Starring:
Colin Farrell, Angelina Jolie, Val Kilmer
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After Image
In this shocking thriller, psychic Laura (Terrylene) falls in love with an alluring crime photographer (John Mellencamp). Soon, the pair find themselves in a dangerous hunt for a crazed killer. Will Laura's extrasensory abilities help them to save themselves and the imminent victims, or will the risk to their lives prove to be too great?
Street Date: 8/2/2005
Genre:
Suspense
Rating:
R
Starring:
John Mellencamp, Terrylene, Louise Fletcher, Billy Burke
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When Billie Beat Bobby
On September 20, 1973, the game of tennis would change forever. What began as a publicity stunt became an instant media circus and national event when Bobby Riggs (Ron Silver), an aging tennis pro and self-proclaimed chauvinist pig, challenged women's tennis champion Billie Jean King to a match--the ultimate Battle of the Sexes. Holly Hunter stars in this ABC original presentation as King, the spunky feminist who defied the traditional roles of men and women in sporting events and fought diligently for equal pay and respect. Riggs, a 55-year-old former Wimbledon champion, had hustled his way back into the sporting limelight by challenging numerous women's tennis champions as they rose to fame. After Riggs battled and beat Margaret Court (Jacqueline McKenzie), King decided to fight back, challenging him to a duel and refusing to back down despite constant verbal sparring and media sensationalism.
Street Date: 8/2/2005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
Holly Hunter, Ron Silver, Jacqueline McKenzie, Fred Willard
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Evel Knievel
Robert Craig Knievel, aka Evel Knievel, began his daredevil career in 1965, forming a troupe called Evel Knievel's Motorcycle Daredevils. He barnstormed the United States, performing automobile and motorcycle stunts for anyone who would pay him. Within three years, he attempted to jump 151 feet across the fountains in front of Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas. While the jump was successful, his landing was a disaster, and his injuries put him in a coma for a month. It wasn't long before Knievel was a household name and his stunts were drawing record crowds.
Street Date: 8/2/2005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
George Eads, Beau Bridges, Jaime Pressly, Carlos Diaz
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Because of Winn-Dixie
A smart, resourceful young girl, Opal thinks "people forgot how to share the joy." She's tired of moving from small town to small town with her father, a preacher at the Open Arms Baptist Church (Jeff Daniels); she just wants to find a home and stop being lonely. One night she wishes for a best friend, and that companion arrives in the form of a magical, trouble-causing dog she comes upon in a Winn-Dixie supermarket. She names the dog Winn-Dixie, and they become inseparable, making friends with many of the town's most unusual, quirky characters, including gruff and scruffy Otis (singer-songwriter Dave Matthews), who carries around his guitar and works at the rather unique Gertrude's Pet Shop. Academy Award winners Eva Marie Saint (as Miss Franny the librarian) and Cicely Tyson (as the mysteriously daffy but charming Gloria Dump) provide excellent support as well. Among the musicians on the infectious pop soundtrack are Emmylou Harris, Shawn Colvin, the Beu Sisters, the Finn Brothers, and Leigh Nash, whose "I've Gotta See You Smile" will make audiences do just that.
Street Date: 8/9/2005
Genre:
Family
Rating:
PG
Starring:
Jeff Daniels, AnnaSophia Robb, Dave Matthews, Cicely Tyson, Eva Marie Saint
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Kung Fu Hustle
The story is set in 1930s Hong Kong, with Chow as a shaggy-haired, would-be bad guy named Sing, who gets caught up in the middle of a war between the top-hat-wearing Axe gang and the hard scrabble inhabitants of Pig Sty Alley. Chow--who wrote, produced, and directed--doesn't step in as the star here for quite a while, letting the comic duties fly in a myriad of directions: a landlady in curlers (Yuen Qiu) has a yell that can flatten buildings; people get kicked across courtyards and through walls; musician assassins whip ghost sabers from lyre strings, and a mental patient in pink flip-flops named "the Beast" (Leung Siu Lung) catches bullets in his fingers. It's full of references to other films and filmmakers, revering spaghetti westerns and '70s Shaw brothers movies a la Tarantino's KILL BILL (fight choreographer Yuen Wo Ping worked on both films).
Street Date: 8/9/2005
Genre:
Foreign Films
Rating:
R
Starring:
Stephen Chow, Qiu Yuen, Wah Yuen
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The Mupppets' Wizard of Oz
Everyone's favorite puppet comedians re-interpret a family classic in THE MUPPETS WIZARD OF OZ. Pop star Ashanti stars as Dorothy, who lives in Kansas with her Auntie Em (Queen Latifah) while dreaming of success as a singer in Hollywood. Her wishes just might come true when a tornado whisks her away to the magical land of Oz, where she hears about a great wizard who can grant your greatest desires. Along with an unusual gang of misfits--the Scarecrow (Kermit the Frog), the Tin Thing (Gonzo), and the Cowardly Lion (Fozzie Bear)--she sets off to find the Wizard. But before she gets there, she'll have to contend with the jealous and overbearing Wicked Witch of the West (Miss Piggy). THE MUPPETS WIZARD OF OZ takes a classic tale and emphasizes the fun and comedic elements, as the Muppets always do.
Street Date: 8/9/2005
Genre:
Family
Rating:
PG
Starring:
Queen Latifah, Quentin Tarantino, David Alan Grier, Edward Hibbert, Jeffrey Tambor, Ashanti
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Redneck Comedy Roundup
A zany stand-up comedy showcase from some of the funniest comics in America.
Street Date: 8/9/2005
Genre:
Comedy
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
Jeff Foxworthy, Bill Engvall, Ron White
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Sin City
Adapted from Frank Miller's graphic novels, SIN CITY is Robert Rodriguez's striking film noir infused with fantasy, taking place in a world where it is eternally nighttime and everything is drenched in rain and violence. Using a unique combination of silvery black and white digital photography with occasional flashes of bright color for dazzling punctuation, Rodriguez employs green screen techniques and paints a backdrop around each scene, using Miller's co-direction as his cue to match the original setting as closely as possible. Three stories weave together, occasionally overlapping. With lines delivered flatly in the hard-boiled style of Raymond Chandler, these tales are about crime, love, loss, and being preternaturally tough.
Street Date: 8/16/2005
Genre:
Science-Fiction/Fantasy
Rating:
R
Starring:
Bruce Willis, Jamie King, Frank Miller, Jessica Alba, Rosario Dawson, Benicio Del Toro, Clive Owen, Mickey Rourke
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The Wedding Date
Kat Ellis's (Debra Messing) worst nightmare is about to come true. Not only is her younger, half-sister, Amy (Amy Adams), getting married before her, but to add insult to injury, the groom's (Jack Davenport) best man is Kat's ex-fiancee, Jeffrey (Jeremy Sheffield). Two years after being dumped, Kat is a single New Yorker and can't bear to attend the festivities at her parent's London home alone, so she does the next best thing: she hires an escort to play her boyfriend. Her rented date, Nick (Dermot Mulroney), fits the bill perfectly. He's handsome, intelligent, well spoken, intuitive, and a perfect gentleman--a virtual bargain at $6,000. The plan? Make Kat's ex sorry that he ever let her go.
But the plan takes a turn when Kat finds herself attracted to Nick, and the feeling seems to be mutual. But will their business arrangement stand in the way of a relationship? And just what is it that Kat's ex has been dying to tell her?
Street Date: 8/16/2005
Genre:
Comedy
Rating:
PG-13
Starring:
Debra Messing, Dermot Mulroney, Jack Davenport, Holland Taylor, Sarah Parish
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Brown Bunny
Vincent Gallo shocked the 2003 Cannes Film Festival with this highly personal film that he wrote, directed, produced, edited, photographed, and stars in. Gallo plays Bud Clay, a motorcycle racer on his way from New Hampshire to California in a van. The cross-country trip includes stops at a gas station, where Clay meets and falls for a gas station attendant named Violet (Anna Vareschi); a roadside food stand, where he meets the sadly beautiful Lilly (Cheryl Tiegs, making her feature-film debut); and the Las Vegas strip, where he picks up local prostitute Rose (Elizabeth Blake). As he comes into contact with these women, he can't let go of his past, which centers around Daisy (Chloe Sevigny), whom he hopes to find when he returns home to Los Angeles.
Street Date: 8/16/2005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
Chloe Sevigny, Vincent Gallo, Cheryl Tiegs
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The Ring Two
In this horror sequel from Japanese master Hideo Nakata, the curse of the videotape returns. Rachel Keller (Naomi Watts) and her son Aiden (David Dorfman) move from Seattle after their first terrible run-in with the tortured evil spirit Samara, relocating to Oregon. Attempting to make a fresh start, Rachel takes a job as a crime reporter at the local newspaper, instantly establishing a pluckily competitive friendship with colleague Max Rourke (Simon Baker). But when it turns out Samara (Kelly Stables) has followed their trail, taking out innocent teens along the way with her old videotape tricks, Rachel dives right back into the mystery. But Samara gets to her son Aiden first. And as a budding photographer in his own right, with a nifty digital camera that he takes everywhere, Aiden quickly finds his own way to harness the relentless ghost.
Street Date: 8/23/2005
Genre:
Horror/Suspense
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
Naomi Watts, David Dorfman, Simon Baker, Sissy Spacek, Elizabeth Perkins, Gary Cole
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Beauty Shop
Queen Latifah reprises her role as Gina, who audiences first met in the 2004 sequel to BARBERSHOP. This time she's the owner of her own beauty shop. A widow and single mom, Gina has moved from Chicago to Atlanta so that her daughter Vanessa (the charming Paige Hurd), a piano prodigy, can attend a performing arts school. Mother-in law Paulette (Laura Hayes) and sister-in-law Darnelle (Keisha Knight Pulliam, who played Rudy on THE COSBY SHOW) live with them. The bills are paid by Gina's job at Jorge's (Kevin Bacon) high-end salon, but his obnoxious personality ultimately proves insufferable. Gina quits her job and decides to get a place of her own, securing a loan with some resourceful tactics. Situated squarely in the ghetto and featuring a revolving cast of eccentric characters, the shop's quirky employees provide a constant stream of witty banter. Meanwhile the electrician who lives upstairs (Djimon Hounsou, AMISTAD) slowly wins Gina's heart. Despite challenges, Gina maintains grace, humor, and a magnanimous air that sees her through everything.
Street Date: 8/23/2005
Genre:
Comedy
Rating:
PG-13
Starring:
Queen Latifah, Mena Suvari, Djimon Hounsou, Alicia Silverstone, Kevin Bacon
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A Lot Like Love
A LOT LIKE LOVE is the story of two friends who seem destined to love each other--if they can ever realize that themselves. Meeting on a flight from Los Angeles to New York, naive Oliver (Ashton Kutcher) and tough Emily (Amanda Peet) have sex in an airplane lavatory before learning each other's names. Despite this intimate introduction, Emily is uninterested in getting to know the guy she just picked up, telling Oliver frankly that he's not her type. The two part ways, but end up running into each other hours later in what proves to be just the first of many semi-coincidental romantic encounters. After spending a fun day together in the city, Oliver gives Emily his home number and tells her to call him in 6 years, once he's gotten his life and career figured out. When an unforeseen breakup leaves Emily dateless for New Year's Eve a few years later, she calls Oliver and they meet again. In the years that have passed since their first meeting, Emily has taken up acting, Oliver has started an online diaper-selling business, and both have gotten more flattering haircuts. But Emily is disappointed to learn that Oliver is moving to San Francisco for business the next day. Over the course of a few years, Emily and Oliver grow to depend on each other in times of crisis, and develop a solid friendship. While each sporadic encounter contains an undeniable spark, the timing never seems to be right, with several bad relationships, career transitions, and location changes getting in the way.
Street Date: 8/23/2005
Genre:
Comedy
Rating:
PG-13
Starring:
Ashton Kutcher, Amanda Peet, Kal Penn
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One Last Dance
Husband and wife Patrick Swayze and Lisa Niemi team up for the dramatic tale of redemption ONE LAST DANCE. Travis (Swayze), Chrissa (Niemi) and Max (George De La Pena) were three students of master choreographer Alex McGrath, but had a falling out many years ago over a particularly difficult piece that Alex created just for them. But upon Alex's death, the three are reunited and agree to attempt the dance piece once more to save his company, in the process reopening old emotional wounds that were never properly healed. Featuring acclaimed choreography and dance scenes, ONE LAST DANCE allows Swayze and professional dancer Niemi to showcase their skills in a film written from the experiences and struggles of performing artists.
Street Date: 8/23/2005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
Patrick Swayze, Lisa Niemi, George De La Pena, Matthew Walker
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Sahara
Dirk (Matthew McConaughey) and Al (Steve Zahn) have been friends since kindergarten, having also gone through college and the Navy together. The two now work for a former admiral traveling around the world and salvaging treasures from the sea with the National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA). In his spare time, Dirk is obsessed with the 150-year-old mystery of the Texas, an Ironclad battleship that reportedly disappeared from Richmond, Virginia during a Civil War battle and turned up in Africa. When a Confederate coin--allegedly one of only five minted--surfaces in Mali, Dirk and Al plan to travel there from Lagos, Nigeria on the admiral's yacht to investigate. Meanwhile, in Lagos, Dirk meets Eva (Penelope Cruz), a doctor for the World Health Organization (WHO) who believes that there is a plague building in Mali. Since the WHO is unable to find another way into the war-torn country, Dirk and Al give Eva and her colleague a lift up the river. Once in Mali, Dirk, Al, and Eva quickly find themselves embroiled in trouble as she pursues the source of the disease. Meanwhile, Dirk and Al search for the Texas.
Street Date: 8/30/2005
Genre:
Action/Adventure
Rating:
PG-13
Starring:
Matthew McConaughey, Penelope Cruz, Steve Zahn, Delroy Lindo, William H. Macy
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Lilo & Stitch 2: Stitch Has A Glitch
The sequel to a Walt Disney animated hit, LILO AND STITCH 2 continues the adventures of the title characters, respectively a young Hawaiian girl and her best friend, an experimental alien creature. In their tropical paradise, Lilo and Stitch have a fun-loving life, as Stitch helps his friend prepare for the annual Hula festival. But things take a turn for the worst when a glitch in Stitch's genetic makeup causes him to go haywire, creating chaos and destruction all over the island. Now Lilo and the rest of Stitch's friends have to find him and stop his rampage before someone gets hurt. LILO AND STITCH 2 contains the same distinctive animation as its predecessor, and also features classic Elvis Presley tunes.
Street Date: 8/30/2005
Genre:
Family
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
Dakota Fanning (voice)
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Chrystal
Starring Billy Bob Thornton, CHRYSTAL is a touching tale of a man coming to terms with a life left in tatters. After 16 years spent behind bars, Joe (Thornton) returns to the wife he crippled in a car accident that proved fatal for their young son. Desperate to make amends and start afresh, Joe's wife, Chrystal (Lisa Blount), has a hard time accepting his presence back in her life. Director Ray McKinnon effortlessly guides his film through a series of ups and downs for Joe and Chrystal, creating a satisfying portrait of a man struggling to recapture what he once had. McKinnon also appears in the movie, in an impressive cast which also includes a turn from famed American character actor Harry Dean Stanton.
Street Date: 8/30/2005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
R
Starring:
Billy Bob Thornton, Lisa Blount, Ray McKinnon, Harry Dean Stanton
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