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July 2005 Releases
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Hide and Seek
Dakota Fanning and Robert De Niro slug it out for top acting honors in this creepy psychodrama. After his wife is found dead in the bathtub, Manhattan psychologist David Callaway (De Niro) decides to take his traumatized child, Emily (Fanning), to live in a big, gloomy country house upstate. The shadow of the twisty backyard woods--or something darker--soon creeps over the house and Emily finds a weird friend named Charlie, who her father believes is only imaginary. Charlie likes to play games, and is also very jealous of anyone who tries to come between Emily and her dad, like an attractive local divorcee (Elizabeth Shue) and Emily's New York psychiatrist (Famke Jannsen).
Street Date 7/5/2005
Genre:
Horror/Suspense
Rating:
R
Starring:
Robert De Niro, Dakota Fanning, Famke Janssen
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Bride & Prejudice
Spinning a Bollywood tale from Jane Austen's classic novel, director Gurinder Chadha, writer Paul Madeya Berges, and producer Deepak Nayar (the BEND IT LIKE BECKHAM team) present this musical full of romance, intrigue, and cross-cultural celebration.
Street Date 7/5/2005
Genre:
Comedy
Rating:
PG-13
Starring:
Martin Henderson, Aishwarya Rai, Naveen Andrews, Nitin Ganatra
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Dear Frankie
Directed by Shona Auerbach and filmed on location in Scotland, DEAR FRANKIE is a poignant, humorous story about a family struggling with isolation and poverty. Deaf nine-year-old Frankie (Jack McElhone) only knows his dad through the letters they exchange. Frankie reads each new letter reverently, saving the exotic stamps his dad sends from the different ports he visits as a sailor on the Accra, and loves the sea just as he thinks his dad must. But Frankie's mother, Lizzie (Emily Mortimer), has a secret--she's the one writing the letters and sending them from a post office. When she reads that the Accra is coming to Glasgow, Lizzie must decide if it's time to tell Frankie the truth, or find a man (Gerard Butler) to pretend to be his father for one day.
Street Date 7/5/2005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
PG-13
Starring:
Emily Mortimer, Gerard Butler, Sharon Small, Jack McElhone
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In My Country
Noted filmmaker John Boorman (DELIVERANCE, THE GENERAL, THE TAILOR OF PANAMA) addresses the complex emotional scars leftover from Apartheid in South Africa in IN MY COUNTRY. The events of the film take place during hearings conducted in 1996 by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. The purpose of the hearings was to shed light on the unfortunate atrocities committed during the time of persecution. Anna Malan (Juliette Binoche) is a native Afrikaner poet who is covering the hearings for state radio. During the proceedings, she meets Langston Whitfield (Samuel L. Jackson) an American covering the matter for the Washington Post. Initially, the two don't get along. He thinks she shares collective guilt for cruelty that was carried out; she thinks he's a stubborn and ignorant American. Getting past those unfounded first impressions, the two fall in love.
Street Date 7/5/2005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
R
Starring:
Juliette Binoche, Samuel L. Jackson, Brendan Gleeson
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Strange Bedfellows
Veteran Aussie actors Michael Caton and Paul Hogan star in the good natured Australian comedy STRANGE BEDFELLOWS. After reading about the passing of new tax law that would benefit same-sex couples, working class guy Vince (Hogan) convinces his lifelong friend Ralph (Caton) to file their taxes together. They assume they will easily get away with the ruse, with no one in their cozy, small town the wiser. But when an official from the department of taxation (Pete Postlethwaite) arrives to investigate their claim, Vince and Ralph are forced to act out their ruse to avoid legal trouble--and end up shocking and surprising their family and the other townsfolk. Dean Murphy (MUGGERS) directed this comedy of errors that takes a playful look at both gay and straight stereotypes.
Street Date 7/5/2005
Genre:
Comedy
Rating:
(unrated)
Starring:
Paul Hogan, Michael Caton, Pete Postlethwaite
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Alien 3000
After a series of brutal, unexplained murders in a
remote forest, a rogue military unit is recruited to hunt for whoever - or whatever - has rendered the killing spree.
Street Date 7/5/2005
Genre:
Science Fiction
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
Lorenzo Lamas, Priscilla Barnes, Corbin Timbrook
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National Lampoon's Going the Distance
He may have just graduated but Nick (Christopher Jacot) has it all figured out - marriage, a lucrative career and a totally different lifestyle from that of his Westcoast hippy parents.
When he discovers that his future wife may be falling prey to a powerful and oversexed music producer, Nick is determined to win her back. However, his best friends have other ideas - the road trip adventure of his life.
Street Date 7/5/2005
Genre:
Comedy
Rating:
(unrated)
Starring:
Joanne Kelly, Jason Priestley
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Prozac Nation
A self-indulgent, privileged young woman with supposed troubles at home with her mother, leaves for Harvard unsure of her place in the world. Once at Harvard, the demons from her past resurface and she's unable to deal with her roommate and new boyfriend.
She turns to a suspicious psychiatrist who prescribes Prozac, the wonder drug of the nineties, to help her cope with her problems.
Street Date 7/5/2005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
R
Starring:
Christina Ricci, Anne Heche, Michelle Williams, Jason Biggs
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Million Dollar Baby
Released a little over a year after the grand success of his Oscar-winning feature MYSTIC RIVER, Clint Eastwood returns to the director's chair for MILLION DOLLAR BABY. Eastwood also stars, in the role of Frankie Dunn, a down-on-his-luck former boxing manager who spends the twilight years of his life running a small, dilapidated gym in downtown Los Angeles. Frankie's previous career was blighted by an injury to one of his prize fighters, Scrap (Morgan Freeman), who lost the sight in his right eye during a particularly brutal bout; Scrap now wiles away the hours working as a cleaner in Frankie's gym. Wary of similar occurrences being inflicted on the prestigious young talent that passes before him, Frankie lets a succession of great boxers slip through his fingers. But when the brash, confident young boxer Maggie Fitzgerald (Hilary Swank) strides into the gym, Frankie's life is irretrievably altered. Initially refusing to train Maggie due to her gender and age, Frankie relents when faced with her tenacity, spirit, and burning ambition. The combination of Maggie's talent and Frankie's tutelage paves the way for the adroit fighter to rise steadily through the ranks of women's boxing, with the unlikely coupling forming a genuinely touching bond in the process.
Street Date 7/122005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
Hilary Swank, Morgan Freeman, Clint Eastwood
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A Very Long Engagement
This World War I mystery finds limitless beauty in the nostalgia of loss. Directed by Jean-Pierre Jeunet, whose whimsical AMELIE riveted audiences, A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT also stars Audrey Tautou--the 21st century's Audrey Hepburn--in the stubbornly emotional role of a widow in denial. Here she is Mathilde, a waifish young woman with a pronounced limp from childhood polio. Living with her quirky aunt and uncle in a farmhouse by the sea, and waiting desperately for her fiance Manech (Gaspard Ulliel) to return from the war, she believes that if he were truly lost she would feel it in her heart. Thus, when the bad news arrives--Manech and five fellow soldiers were exiled to No Man's Land for shooting off their own fingers in hope of being discharged--Mathilde refuses to believe he is dead. Instead, she begins her own investigation into Manech's infantry, hiring a private detective and tracking down the wives and girlfriends of each of Manech's compatriots. Conducting countless interviews, Mathilde pieces together Manech's war stories--which are told in earthshaking flashbacks involving gruesome explosions, flying guts, and massive suffering. And yet, the all-in-this-together humanity of these awful scenes, and the heartfelt bravery with which Mathilde absorbs the details of each battle, is undeniably moving.
Street Date 7/12/2005
Genre:
Foreign Films
Rating:
R
Starring:
Audrey Tautou, Gaspard Ulliel, Clovis Cornillac
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State Property 2
This is thug filmmaking at its best courtesy of Damon Dash and his Roc-A-Fella crew, with Dash directing, writing, and co-starring as a "cakeaholic" (money addict) on the quest for international greatness in the Philadelphia drug-dealing biz. Beans (Beanie Sigel) is his main competition, but he's in jail for crimes perpetrated in the first film (ironically, Sigel himself went to jail for gun-related offences after shooting of the film was completed). Fellow inmate Loco (N.O.R.E.) promises to get Beans sprung and hook him up with some "kingpin paper" and a "sweet connect." Viewers who don't know this means money and a drug supplier may be a bit baffled by the film's Philly slang-enriched dialogue, but Beans' narration fills in a lot of the gaps. Another plus, there is a plethora of guest stars like Kayne West, Freeway, Mariah Carey, Sade, Ole Dirty Bastard, and Jimmy "Handyman" Jones.
Street Date 7/12/2005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
R
Starring:
Damon Dash, Beanie Sigel, Omillio Sparks
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Dracula III
Director Patrick Lussier gets behind the camera a third time for DRACULA III: LEGACY, completing the DRACULA trilogy that began with DRACULA 2000. Taking up where the second film's cliffhanger ending left off, Dracula (veteran character actor Rutger Hauer) has escaped to his native Romania, which is in the grips of a terrible civil war. Vampire hunters Luke (Jason London) and Father Uffizi (Jason Scott Lee) have tracked him there, and are intent on pursuing the bloodsucker and putting an end to him once and for all. But their task is complicated by the war zone around them and the fact that Dracula is holding Luke's beloved Elizabeth hostage. Playing off the terror of open spaces and war-torn landscapes, DRACULA III is an action-horror film marked by strong performances and character interactions, especially between protagonists Luke and Uffizi.
Street Date 7/12/2005
Genre:
Horror/Suspense
Rating:
R
Starring:
Rutger Hauer, Jason Scott Lee, Jason London, Roy Scheider
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Constantine
With the ability to identify angels and demons as they exist on Earth, Constantine (Keanu Reeves) is tormented and set apart from other people. He is self destructive and angry, yet he does the right thing in protecting the citizens of Los Angeles from the dark forces that surround them. However, when he falls in love with a cop (Rachel Weisz), everything begins to change.
Street Date 7/19/2005
Genre:
Science Fiction
Rating:
R
Starring:
Rachel Weisz, Keanu Reeves, Shia LaBeouf, Tilda Swinton
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Ice Princess
In ICE PRINCESS, a brainy high school student makes a sparkling transformation into a world-class figure skater. Casey Carlyle (Michelle Trachtenberg) doesn't have any friends, having sacrificed a social life in order to fulfill the high-minded expectations of her uptight mother, Joan (Joan Cusack). But that begins to change when she embarks on a science project that involves her lifelong dream of becoming an ice skater. After finding herself in skates of her very own, Casey realizes that she has a rare talent. With the help of former prodigy turned hardnosed coach, Tina (Kim Cattrall), Casey finally blossoms into the person that she's always wanted to be. Unfortunately, this person is the opposite of the person her mother wants her to be, putting a nearly unbearable strain on Casey. Fortunately, Tina's hunky son Teddy (Trevor Blumas) and daughter Gen (Hayden Panettiere) are there to provide support. As the regional championships approach, Casey must find the strength to put her conflicts with her mother out of her mind and skate like she's never skated before. Director Tim Fywell (I CAPTURE THE CASTLE) deftly balances comedy and drama to create a film that the whole family can enjoy.
Street Date 7/19/2005
Genre:
Comedy
Rating:
G
Starring:
Michelle Trachtenberg, Kim Cattrall, Joan Cusack
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Man of the House
Tommy Lee Jones stars in this action-comedy as a tough old Texas Ranger who winds up babysitting a squadron of cheerleaders when they inadvertently witness a gangster's murder. His no-nonsense ways clash with the girls' fun-filled lifestyle at first: he makes them wear seatbelts, confiscates their cell phones, beats up on any guy who comes near them (including an awestruck pizza delivery boy) and makes sure no one sneaks out of the house on dates. Eventually he discovers the girls aren't as ditzy as they first appear. They get him to loosen up a little, and even help him to patch things up with his neglected daughter (Shannon Marie Woodward). Meanwhile a crooked federal agent is out the send the girls to an early grave.
Street Date 7/19/2005
Genre:
Comedy
Rating:
PG-13
Starring:
Tommy Lee Jones, Anne Archer, Brian Van Holt, Christina Milian
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Urban Legends: Bloody Mary
Street Date 7/19/2005
Genre:
Horror/Suspense
Rating:
R
Starring:
Nancy Everhard, Michael Coe, Lillith Fields
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Blast!
An oil rig situated off the coast of California comes under attack from a terrorist organization in the nail-biting thriller BLAST! Michael Kittredge (Vinnie Jones of LOCK, STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS fame) disguises himself as an environmentalist and steers his crew out to the rig. Once there, his plan is to detonate a lethal bomb that will cause irreparable damage to a country that he hates. But Kittredge's plan goes awry when he encounters plucky ship's captain Lamont Dixon (Eddie Griffin) and an FBI agent known only as Reed (Vivica A. Fox), who attempt to foil his plans. It all culminates in some frantic action aboard the beleaguered rig, with director Anthony Hickox (STORM CATCHER) neatly guiding BLAST! to a satisfying conclusion.
Street Date 7/19/2005
Genre:
Action/Adventure
Rating:
R
Starring:
Eddie Griffin, Vivica A. Fox, Vinnie Jones, Breckin Meyer
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The Upside of Anger
Starring Joan Allen, THE UPSIDE OF ANGER spans three years of a woman's life following her husband's sudden disappearance. Terry Wolfmeyer (Allen), an affluent suburban Detroit wife and mother, goes from a paragon of sweetness to a volcano of rage in the wake of her husband's desertion; she thinks he has jetted off to Sweden with his Swedish secretary. Barely holding it together for her four daughters (distinctively played by Alicia Witt, Keri Russell, Erika Christensen, and Evan Rachel Wood), Terry fitfully adjusts while befriending Denny Davies (Costner), a retired baseball player and radio personality up the street who shares her love of the all-day cocktail hour.
Allen is a delightful force, displaying serious comedic talent and effortlessly stealing each scene, while Costner shines as the seemingly all-wrong man who turns out to be completely right.
Street Date 7/26/2005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
Joan Allen, Kevin Costner, Erika Christensen, Alicia Witt
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King's Ransom
Anthony Anderson sheds his usual sidekick status, heading up the ensemble cast of this farcical romp as Malcolm King, a boorish, egomaniacal billionaire who owns a huge, equally tasteless marketing firm in Chicago. The cocky businessman is quickly established as the kind of character audiences love to hate. Resentments toward King abound, and soon everyone gets the same idea: kidnap Malcolm, take him for all he's worth, and teach him a valuable lesson. Even the big man himself decides to orchestrate his own kidnapping, in order to throw a wrench in the plans of his wife's lawyer. A cacophony of mistaken identities, misunderstandings, and general mayhem ensues, during which time the supporting cast is given a chance to shine.
Street Date 7/26/2005
Genre:
Comedy
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
Anthony Anderson, Jay Mohr, Regina Hall, Loretta Devine, Kellita Smith
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Fighting Tommy Riley
Recalling Sylvester Stallone's star-making turn in ROCKY, the boxing film FIGHTING TOMMY RILEY was written and stars J.P. Davis. Davis plays the title character, an amateur boxer who has a past full of troublesome behavior. However, his pure, raw talent draws the attention of washed-up old trainer Marty Goldberg (Eddie Jones), who sees in the young man a chance to return to the world of professional boxing. But the process proves less than easy, as Tommy's fiery nature and Marty's own past problems cause difficulties for the two men that may be impossible to overcome. Featuring solid acting and cinematography, FIGHTING TOMMY RILEY is an independent production that eschews many of the clichés of the sports genre.
Street Date 7/26/2005
Genre:
Drama
Rating:
(not rated)
Starring:
Eddie Jones, Christina Chambers, J.P. Davis, Diane Tayler, Scott Belsky
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