Published: October 16, 2009
Kam's Kapsules: Weekly Previews That Make Choosing a Film Fun
By Kam Williams
For movies opening October 16, 2009
BIG BUDGET FILMS
Law Abiding Citizen (R for graphic violence, rape, torture and pervasive profanity) Revenge thriller, set in Philly, about a family man (Gerard Butler) who takes the law into his own hands after his wife's (Brooke Mills) and daughter's (Ksenia Hulayev) killers are set free by a plea bargain with the District Attorney (Jamie Foxx). With Viola Davis, Bruce McGill, Roger Bart and Regina Hall.
The Stepfather (PG-13 for mature themes, disturbing images, intense violence and brief sensuality) Remake of the 1987 horror flick about a military school student (Penn Badgley) who returns home to find his mother (Sela Ward) engaged to a suspicious man (Dylan Walsh) hiding a checkered past. Cast includes Amber Heard, Skyler Samuels and Braeden Lemasters.
Where the Wild Things Are (PG for mature themes, brief epithets and action sequences) Spike Jonze directs this screen adaptation of Maurice Sendak's classic children's tale about a misunderstood little boy (Max Records) crowned king by the strange creatures inhabiting a magical world created by his vivid imagination. With Catherine Keener, Forest Whitaker, Mark Ruffalo, James Gandolfini, Chris Cooper and Catherine O'Hara.
INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS
All the Best: Fun Begins (Unrated) Bollywood musical comedy revolving around the madcap antics of a dysfunctional family whose lives are turned upside down when a broke rock singer's (Fardeen Khan) benefactor step-brother (Sanjay Dutt) returns to town unannounced for an unexpected visit. Cast includes Bipasha Bapu and Mugdha Godse. (In Hindi with subtitles)
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Black Dynamite (R for profanity, nudity, sexuality, drug use, violence and ethnic slurs) Michael Jai White stars in this homage to blaxploitation era flicks about a two-fisted superhero bent on avenging the murder of his brother by the mob cartel that's been flooding the ghetto with heroin and malt liquor. Ensemble cast includes Arsenio Hall, Tommy Davidson, Mykelti Williamson, Brian McKnight, Salli Richardson, Bokeem Woodbine, Richard Edson and Richard Yuan.
Food Beware: The French Organic Revolution (Unrated) Eco-documentary inspired by a tiny French village whose mayor mandated that local schools adopt an organic lunch menu in order to protect the children from cancer-causing pesticides, chemicals and food additives. (In French with subtitles)
The Little Traitor (Unrated) Israeli independence saga, set in 1947, based on "Panther in the Basement," the Amos Oz novel about the unlikely friendship forged between a militant Jewish boy (Ido Port) and a Sergeant (Alfred Dunlop) in the British Army he'd like to drive out of Palestine. With Theodore Bikel, Gilya Stern and Lior Sasson.
The Maid (Unrated) Psychological thriller, set in Santiago, Chile, about the overreaction of a nanny (Catalina Saavedra) suddenly threatened by her employer's (Claudia Celedon) hiring another housekeeper. (In Spanish with subtitles)
New York, I Love You (R for profanity and sexuality) 11 directors, including Mira Nair, Brett Ratner, Wen Jiang, Faith Akin and Allen Hughes contributed segments to this sequel to Paris, Je T'aime, a series of cinematic shorts celebrating life in The Big Apple. Cast includes Orlando Bloom, Chris Cooper, Christina Ricci, Robin Wright Penn, Irfan Khan, Natalie Portman, Maggie Q, Hayden Christensen and Shia LaBeouf.
One Fast Move or I'm Gone (Unrated) Beat Generation bio-pic revisits Jack Kerouac's descent into alcoholism and depression in the wake of the overnight fame he enjoyed upon publication of Off the Road in 1957. Documentary includes recollections of such Kerouac contemporaries as Lawrence Ferlinghetti, Carolyn Cassady and Michael McClure.
Kam Williams is a syndicated film and book critic who writes for 100+ publications. He is a member of the New York Film Critics Online, the African-American Film Critics Association, and the NAACP Image Awards Nominating Committee. Contact him through NewsBlaze.
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