|
  


Volume VI No. 1
A
publication of the National Association of Theatre Owners
Advertise
in In Focus
©
|
|
The
Pink Panther
Comedy about bumbling French police inspector Jacques Clouseau, who investigates
the murder of a soccer coach and the disappearance of a rare gem, unaware
that his chauffeur is actually an undercover cop assigned to keep Clouseau
out of trouble. Based on the classic film series created by writer-director
Blake Edwards. Directed by Shawn Levy (“Just Married,” “Cheaper
By the Dozen”) from a screenplay by Steve Martin (“Bowfinger,” “Shopgirl”)
and Len Blum (“Beethoven’s 2nd,” “Private Parts”).
With Martin (“Shopgirl,” “Cheaper By the Dozen 2”)
as Clouseau, Kevin Kline (“Jiminy Glick in La La Wood”)
as Dreyfuss, Jean Reno (“Jet Lag”) as the undercover cop
and Beyoncé Knowles (“The Fighting Temptations”)
as a pop star who may have stolen the gem. Also with Emily Mortimer
(“Dear Frankie,” “Match Point”), Henry Czerny
(“The Ice Storm”) and Kristin Chenoweth (“Bewitched”).
PG: Occasional crude and suggestive humor; language. Feb. 10. Sony.

|
Sophie
Scholl
German-language drama, set during World War
II, about siblings who, after working
with an anti-Nazi resistance movement,
are captured by the Gestapo and tried
for treason. Directed by Marc Rothemund
from a screenplay by Fred Breinersdorfer.
With Julia Jentsch (“Downfall”),
Gerald Alexander Held (“Downfall”),
Fabian Hinrichs, Maximilian Brückner,
Joanna Gastdorf, Petra Kelling and Johannes
Suhm. 120 min. Feb. 24. Zeitgeist.
|
Tyler
Perry’s
Madea’s Family
Reunion
Pistol-packing grandma Madea Simmons holds
a wedding, a funeral and a family reunion,
all on the same weekend. A sequel to
2005’s “Diary of a Mad Black
Woman,” based on Tyler Perry’s
popular series of plays. Perry, who wrote
the screenplay for “Diary,” makes
his feature directorial debut from his
own script and reprises the role of Madea.
Co-stars include Boris Kodjoe (“The
Gospel”), Jenifer Lewis (“The
Cookout”), Tangi Miller (TV’s “Felicity”),
Lynn Whitfield (“Head of State”),
Blair Underwood (“Malibu’s
Most Wanted”), Cicely Tyson (“Because
of Winn-Dixie,” “Diary of
a Mad Black Woman”) and Maya Angelou
(“How To Make An American Quilt”).
Feb. 24. Lions Gate.

|
When
A Stranger Calls
Horror thriller about a teen babysitter harassed
by an increasingly threatening series of prank
phone calls. A remake of the 1979 Carol Kane
vehicle. Directed by Simon West (“The
General’s Daughter,” “Lara
Croft: Tomb Raider”) from a screenplay
by Jake Wade Wall. With Camilla Belle (“The
Chumscrubber”), Brian Geraghty (“Jarhead”),
David Denman (“Big Fish”), Tessa
Thompson (TV’s “Veronica Mars”),
Kate Jennings Grant (“Kinsey”),
John Bobeck (“Mr. 3000”) and Molly
Bryant (“The Anniversary Party”).
Feb. 3. Sony.

|
|
Something
New
Romantic comedy about an ambitious African-American
professional who, discouraged by the low
percentage of black men who marry, puts aside
her “ideal man checklist” and
sets her sites on a white landscaper. Music
video director Sanaa Hamri makes her feature
directorial debut from a screenplay by Kriss
Turner (TV’s “Everybody Hates
Chris”). With Sanaa Lathan (“Alien
Vs. Predator”), Simon Baker (“Land
of the Dead”), Golden Brooks (“Beauty
Shop”), Mike Epps (“Roll Bounce”),
Donald Faison (“King’s Ransom”)
and Taraji P. Henson (“Hair Show”).
Also known as “42.4 Percent.” PG-13:
Sexual references. Feb. 3. Focus.

|
Tsotsi
Drama, set in the ghettos of Johannesburg,
South Africa, about a young gang leader who
steals a car, unaware that there is a baby
in the backseat. Written and directed by
Gavin Hood. With Mothusi Magano (“Hotel
Rwanda”), Jerry Mofokeng (“Lord
of War”), Ian Roberts (“I Dreamed
of Africa”), Presley Chweneyagae, Thembi
Nkosi, Terry Pheto, and Israel Makoe. 91
min. R: Language; some strong violent content.
Feb. 24 limited. Miramax.
|
Unknown
White Male
Documentary about a young British man who
awoke on the New York City subway in Coney
Island without any memory of who he is. Rupert
Murray makes his feature directorial debut.
80 min. PG-13: Drug references; brief strong
language. Feb 17 in New York and Los Angeles.
Wellspring.
|
Winter
Passing
Drama about a young woman who visits her
estranged novelist father after seven years
and finds
his home full of eccentric strangers. New York
playwright Adam Rapp (“Finer Noble Gases”)
makes his feature directorial debut from his
own screenplay. With Zooey Deschanel (“The
Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”),
Ed Harris (“A History of Violence”),
Will Ferrell (“Wedding Crashers,” “The
Producers: The Movie Musical”), Amelia
Warner (“Quills”) and Amy Madigan
(“Pollock”). 98 min. R: Language;
some drug use; sexuality. Feb. 17. Freestyle.

|
|
|

|
|
Blossoms
of Fire
Documentary about the women of Juchitan, Mexico, a small city run
largely by the wives of the local fishermen. Directed by Ellen
Osborne and Maureen Gosling. Written by Gosling and Toni Hanna.
74 min. Jan. 20. New Yorker.
|
Roving
Mars
Giant-screen 3D documentary utilizing high-definition
stereoscopic footage shot in 2004 by Spirit
and Opportunity, the two “Mars Exploration
Rovers” that roamed The Red Planet.
Directed by George Butler (“Pumping
Iron,” “Shackleton’s Antarctic
Adventure,” “Going Upriver: The
Long War of John Kerry”). G. Jan. 27.
Buena Vista.
|
Tristram Shandy:
A Cock And
Bull Story
Comedy about a
film director trying to shoot an adaptation
of British novelist Laurence Sterne’s
meandering 18th-century comic novel “The
Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman.” Directed
by Michael Winterbottom (“Code 46,” “9
Songs”) from a screenplay by Frank Cottrell
Boyce (“24 Hour Party People,” “Code
46,” “Millions”). With Steve
Coogan (“Happy Endings”), Jeremy
Northam (“Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius”),
James Fleet (“The Phantom of the Opera”),
Rob Brydon (“24 Hour Party People”),
Ian Hart (“Breakfast on Pluto”),
Naomie Harris (“After the Sunset”),
Kelly MacDonald (“Finding Neverland,” “Nanny
McPhee”) and Gillian Anderson (“House
of Mirth”). 94 min. R: Language; sexual
content. Jan. 27. Picturehouse.

|
|
Mirage
Macedonian-language drama about a young boy
who – having been tormented by his
peers, neglected at home and rattled by
the growing pains of his nation – escapes
into a fantasy world of his own creation.
Directed by Svetozar Ristovski from a screenplay
by Ristovski and Grace Lea Troje. With
Marko Kovacevic, Dejan Acimovic, Slavica
Manaskova, Nikola Djuricko, Salaetin Bilal
(“Behind Enemy Lines”), Mustafa
Nadarevic and Nikola Hejko. 108 min. Jan.
27 in New York. Picture This.
|
Tristan & Isolde
Historical romantic drama about
a young English knight who falls for the married
daughter of Ireland’s monarch. Kevin
Reynolds (“187,” “The Count
of Monte Cristo”) directs from a screenplay
by Dean Georgaris (“Paycheck,” “The
Manchurian Candidate”). With James Franco
(“The Great Raid,” “Annapolis”),
Sophia Myles (“Thunderbirds”),
Rufus Sewell (“Legend of Zorro”),
David O’Hara (“Hotel Rwanda”),
Henry Cavill (“I Capture the Castle”)
and Lucy Russell (“Batman Begins”).
PG-13: Intense battle sequences; some sexuality.
Jan. 13. Fox.

|
|
|
|