Film Reviews

Gabriella, a Columbian immigrant, is obsessed with understanding violent crime. The current string of murders by "The Blue Blood Killer" of affluent Miami socialites provides her with fodder for her scrapbook of death. She lands a job with a post-murder cleaning service and during a Blue-Blood clean-up job, discovers evidence that police have overlooked.

During his long career, bounty hunter Ralph "Papa" Thorson has caught over 5,000 criminals. Now, while he is working on apprehending fugitives in Illinois, Texas and Nebraska, he himself is being hunted by a psychotic killer.

A man gets involved in a kidnapping scheme with the wife of a wealthy businessman. She lets herself be tied up and confined in his house while he sends the ransom demand. When he returns home that night, however, he finds her laying dead on the floor. In a panic he buries her body deep in the woods and tries to return to his ordinary life. One day, he thinks he spots her walking down the street. Is his mind playing tricks on him, or has she somehow returned from the grave?

'Hotline' is a feature length documentary about the intense connections made between strangers over the telephone, and explores these anonymous conversations people are often too hesitant to have with the people closest to them. From crisis centers to psychics and sex workers, this documentary eavesdrops on the inner-workings of hotlines and puts faces to the voice on the other end of the line.

A love story centered on the lives of three young German soldiers in the years following World War I. Their close friendship is strengthened by their shared love for the same woman who is dying of tuberculosis.

Op de uiterste westkaap van Normandië, Cap de la Hague, leeft de 75-jarige Paul Bedel al zijn leven lang als boer, samen met zijn twee zussen die net als hij ongetrouwd zijn. Paul is zo krom als de bomen in het heuvelige land waar de zee wild omheen spoelt. Hij trekt in de ochtendnevel zijn karretje voort, met op de verre achtergrond de nucleaire centrale die veertig jaar geleden de streek voorgoed veranderde. Boeren verlieten de landbouw om er te gaan werken, maar Paul en zijn zussen bleven zaaien, maaien en cider maken zoals ze dat altijd al hadden gedaan. Nooit ging hij mee met de modernisatie, liever sleutelt hij eindeloos aan zijn haperende machinepark: een hooibalenmaker uit 1956, een maaimachine uit 1945 en een roestige dorsmachine uit 1937. Toch komt ook voor Paul eens het moment om te stoppen...

A former pro-wrestler is hired to be the bodyguard/nanny for a couple of bratty kids whose inventor father is being stalked by a rival.

The history of post-World War II popular dance up to the mid-sixties is explored with the focus being on the Twist.

Welcome to the special special special comedy special. It's very good. I love comedy. And who do I want to make laugh more than Marilyn and Joel Bamford, my parents? So, we've cut out the middle man of 200 strangers in a tv studio and gone right to the source. With some paid audiences, the feigned enthusiasm can be a little uncomfortable to watch, but I genuinely rock the house. My parents only wish they could be there with you when you watch this with your parents.

Two young aspiring filmmakers, director Jaco and cameraman Pablo, travel from Katowice to Warsaw. During their journey, they talk about life and movies.

Odd Horton is dependable and contained: he's a train driver retiring after 40 years of service, living a simple life. His idea of adventure is to fly from one city in Norway to another. Starting on the night of his retirement dinner, Odd has a series of dislocating experiences: a boy insists that Odd sit by his bedside while he falls asleep; misadventure causes Odd to miss his last run; he witnesses an arrest; he assists an old man and makes a friend; he takes a trip with a blindfolded driver; he adopts a dog; he takes stock late one night at the roundhouse; he revisits his mother's disappointment in him. How should he live the rest of his life?

In a small town in the 1950s, Ellie Dane loses her musician father, and her mother suddenly turns away from her. She finds solace in wise jazz singer Hattie Cale and learns that she's inherited her dad's skill at the piano. But she also begins to uncover dark truths about her family's past and the reason for her mother's emotional distance. A rich jazz score accompanies this moving drama.

Four best friends, about to graduate from high school, must find a way to raise money to help a family member in need. When one of them discovers her banker father having an affair, the foursome plots to rob his bank during graduation ceremonies. When things don't go according to plan, they end up learning more about themselves in one day than they ever did in school.

Richard Martin buys a gift, a new NDR-114 robot. The product is named Andrew by the youngest of the family's children. "Bicentennial Man" follows the life and times of Andrew, a robot purchased as a household appliance programmed to perform menial tasks. As Andrew begins to experience emotions and creative thought, the Martin family soon discovers they don't have an ordinary robot.

'Night Shift' really knocked me out. I hesitate to call it a thriller, I suppose psychological drama is the more apt description, but it packs in more tension and suspense than 90% of today's Hollywood thrillers. I was hooked from the outset, and the film held me in its grip until the closing scene. Refreshingly set in a blue collar background, something Hollywood very rarely (if ever!) does anymore, it's a simple story of a nice guy/family man Pierre (Gerald Laroche) who moves to a new section of the factory he works at and begins the night shift.