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Volume
II No. 12
A
publication of the National Association of Theatre Owners
Advertise
in In Focus
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Thriller,
set at a CIA training facility, about a new
agency recruit who comes to suspect one of
his trainers is a double agent. Directed by
Roger Donaldson (Dantes Peak,
Thirteen Days) from a screenplay
by Mitch Glazer (Three of Hearts,
Great Expectations), Kurt Wimmer
(The Thomas Crown Affair, Equilibrium)
and Roger Towne (The Natural).
With Al Pacino (Simone), Colin
Farrell (Minority Report), Eugene
Lipinski (Who is Cletis Tout?),
Gabriel Macht (Bad Company), Bridget
Moynahan (The Sum of All Fears)
and Clayne Crawford (Swimfan).
Previously known as The Farm.
Scope. 105 min. PG-13: Violence; sexuality;
language. Jan. 31. Buena Vista.

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Supernatural
thriller about a Catholic priest who teams
with an escaped mental patient to track down
a serial killer who preys on excommunicated
Catholics. Written and directed by Brian Helgeland
(A Knights Tale). With Heath
Ledger (A Knights Tale,
The Four Feathers), Shannyn Sossamon
(The Rules of Attraction), Benno
Fürmann (The Princess and the Warrior),
Peter Weller (ivans xtc.) and
Mark Addy (The Time Machine).
Flat. 96 min. Jan. 17. Fox.

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Two
features linked by the theme of life in the
Middle East. The Settlers, a 58-minute
documentary directed by Ruth Walk, follows
a Jewish family struggling to live a normal
life despite the military and political turmoil
that surrounds them in the West Bank city
of Hebron. Close, Closed, Closure
(also known as Seger),
a 52-minute documentary directed by Ram Loevy,
depicts a Palestinian familys struggle
with life on the Gaza Strip, where the family
remains dependent on Israel for its economic
well-being. Jan. 15 in New York. First Run.
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Comedy
about a young woman who hopes to escape her
downscale origins for a more glamorous life
as a flight attendant. Directed by Bruno Barreto
(One Tough Cop, Bossa Nova)
from a screenplay by Eric Wald. With Gwyneth
Paltrow (Possession), Christina
Applegate (The Sweetest Thing),
Candice Bergen (Sweet Home Alabama),
Marc Blucas (Sunshine State, They),
Mark Ruffalo (Windtalkers), Mike
Myers (Austin Powers in Goldmember),
Rob Lowe (Austin Powers: The Spy Who
Shagged Me, The Specials),
Stephen Tobolowsky (Adaptation,
Love Liza) and Kelly Preston (Battlefield
Earth). Scope. 90 min. Jan. 24. Miramax.

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German-language
documentary about one of Adolf Hitlers
three personal secretaries, who describes
her first-hand 1942-1945 experiences with
the Third Reichs inner circle. Directed
by André Heller and Othmar Schmiderer.
Featuring Traudl Junge. 90 min. PG: Thematic
material. Dec. 25 in New York and Los Angeles.
Sony Pictures Classics.
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Spanish-
and English-language thriller about a group
of people who, endowed with great luck, compete
at a special island casino for each others
good fortune. Directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo
from a screenplay by Fresnadillo and Andrés
M. Koppel. With Leonardo Sbaraglia (Burnt
Money), Max von Sydow (Minority
Report), Eusebio Poncela, Mónica
López and Antonio Dechant. Scope. 108
min. R: Language; some violence; brief nudity.
Dec. 13 in New York, wider Dec. 20. Lions
Gate.

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Hindi-language
crime drama about a wily criminal who, after
leaving prison, hires a team of six strangers
to help him rob a Los Angeles bank
unaware that one of the strangers is an undercover
cop. Written and directed by Sanjay Gupta.
With Amitabh Bachchan (Sometimes Happy,
Sometimes Sad), Sanjay Dutt, Sunil Shetty,
Mahesh Manjrekar and Kumar Gaurav. Dec. 6
limited. Media Partners.
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Spanish-language
drama, set in Buenos Aires, about an unstable
20-year-old singer who finds herself drawn
into a world of prostitution by a charismatic
hustler. Written and directed by Veronica
Chen. With Cecilia Bengolea, Leonardo Brezicki,
Adrian Fondari, Pablo Razuk, Adrian Blanco
and Carlos Issa. 87 min. Dec. 20 in New York.
Strand.
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Drama,
set in New York, about a Latino cocaine dealer
who, while trying to leave the drug trade
behind for good, finds himself swindled out
of millions by a Wall Street investment broker.
Frank Reyes makes his feature directorial
debut from his own screenplay. With John Leguizamo
(Collateral Damage), Denise Richards
(Undercover Brother), Peter Sarsgaard
(K-19: The Widowmaker), Rubén
Blades (All the Pretty Horses),
Sonia Braga (Angel Eyes), Isabella
Rossellini (Roger Dodger), Rafael
Báez (Shanghai Noon), Anthony
Treach Criss (Love and a
Bullet) and Delilah Cotto (Girl
6). R: Strong violence; pervasive language;
drug content; some sexuality. Dec. 6. Universal.

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Drama,
set in suburban New Jersey, about a man who
finds escape from the everyday banality of
his grocery job and troubled personal life
by performing Tuesday night stand-up comedy
routines in a smoky dive bar along the New
Jersey Turnpike. Based on the play Veins
& Thumbtacks by Jonathan Marc Sherman.
Written and directed by Frank Whaley (Joe
the King). With Whaley (Chelsea
Walls), Ethan Hawke (Tape),
Carla Gugino (Spy Kids 2), Lynn
Cohen (Fast Food, Fast Women),
Jillian Stacom and Spelman M. Beaubrun. 96
min. Dec. 13 limited. First Look.

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Russian-language
fantasy (consisting of a single, unbroken
90-minute high-definition digital video shot)
about a French diplomat who encounters Russian
historical figures as he tours St. Petersburgs
State Hermitage Museum. Directed by Alexsandr
Sokurov (Mother and Son) from
a screenplay by Boris Khaimsky and Anatoli
Nikiforov. With Sergei Dontsov (Window
to Paris), Mariya Kuznetsova, Leonid
Mozgovoy, David Giorgobiani and Aleksandr
Chaban. Also known as Russkij Kovcheg.
96 min. Dec. 6 in New York. Wellspring.
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Drama,
set in New Orleans, about a young man who
hopes to use an Army career to get out of
the family business he despises: male prostitution.
Actor Nicholas Cage (Windtalkers,
Adaptation) makes his feature
directorial debut from a screenplay by John
Carlen. With Cage, James Franco (City
by the Sea), Brenda Blethyn (Pumpkin),
Mena Suvari (The Musketeer), Harry
Dean Stanton (The Pledge) and
Scott Caan (Oceans Eleven).
Also known as Pony Rides. 110
min. R: Strong sexuality; language; some drug
use; violence. Dec. 27 in New York and Los
Angeles. IDP. 
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