ENCOUNTERS AT THE END OF THE WORLD: Filmmaker Werner Herzog travels to the Antarctic community of McMurdo Station, on Ross Island, the headquarters for the National Science Foundation and home to 1,100 people during the austral summer. McMurdo is a gathering place for people who want to step off the map and where everyone seems to be full-time travelers and part-time workers. Beyond the settlement, Herzog ventures from the under-ice depths of the Ross Sea to the brink of the Mount Erebus volcano. Over the course of his journey, nature in the wild shares equal time with human nature and he encounters many a colorful character along the way.

THINKFilm

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WAR, INC.: An assassin posing as a trade-show producer fixes his crosshairs on a Middle Eastern oil minister while maintaining his cover by organizing a high-profile wedding in this satirical action comedy starring John Cusack, Hilary Duff, and Marisa Tomei. A private American corporation run by a former U.S. vice president (Dan Aykroyd) is occupying the war-torn nation of Turaqistan, but a powerful Middle Eastern oil minister is preventing them from taking total advantage of the situation. In order to gain a monopoly on the lucrative opportunities that Turaqistan has to offer, the CEO of the corporation hires an evenhanded hitman named Hauser (Cusack) to take the oil minister out of the picture.

Now, in order to carry out the contract without a hitch, Hauser will pose as the corporation's trade-show producer. The stakes are high and the potential for disaster is evident, though if Hauser can successfully organize the wedding of Central Asian pop-star Yonica Babyyeah (Duff),he's got a good chance of pulling it off. But sexy and resourceful left-wing reporter Natalie Hegalhuzen (Tomei) is determined to uncover the truth about what's happening in Turaqistan, and the moment she does, this carefully constructed scheme will crumble like a house of cards. Joshua Seftel directs a screenplay co-written by Mark Leyner, Jeremy Pikser, and producer/star John Cusack.

First Look

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BEFORE THE RAINS-  An Englishman intent on opening a spice plantation in Kerala attempts to gain the trust of the local villagers and destroys numerous lives in the process in this period drama from director/cinematographer Santosh Sivan. The year is 1937, and the power that the English wield over the citizens of India can be devastating even in the mildest of cases. Henry Moores (Linus Roache) is an entrepreneur and businessman who has singled out Kerala as the site where he plans to break ground on a potentially lucrative spice plantation. When Henry discovers that he will have to build a new road in order to make his plans feasible, he enlists the aid of trusted right-hand man T.K. (Rahul Bose) is warming the locals to the idea. The project is going to take plenty of manpower, and Henry is going to need all the help he can get. But while Henry relies on T.K. to help him realize his professional goals, his personal needs fall on the shoulders of his pretty housekeeper, Saja!
ni (Nandita Das). One day, when their trip into the forest to collect honey takes a decidedly sensual turn, two local village boys witness the erotically charged tryst and word eventually gets back to Sanani's husband in the village. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Roadside Attractions

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IRON MAN  From Marvel Studios and Paramount Pictures comes Iron Man, an action-packed take on the tale of wealthy philanthropist Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.), who develops an invulnerable robotic suit to fight the throes of evil. In addition to being filthy rich, billionaire industrialist Tony Stark is also a genius inventor. When Stark is kidnapped and forced to build a diabolical weapon, he instead uses his intelligence and ingenuity to construct an indestructible suit of armor and escape his captors. Once free, Stark discovers a deadly conspiracy that could destabilize the entire globe, and dons his powerful new suit on a mission to stop the villains and save the world. Gwyneth Paltrow co-stars as his secretary, Virginia "Pepper" Potts, while Terrence Howard fills the role of Jim "Rhodey" Rhodes, one of Stark's colleagues, whose military background leads him to help in the formation of the suit. Jon Favreau directs, with Marvel movie veterans Avi Arad and Kevin Feige producing. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, All Movie Guide

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MORTON MARCUS, Film Discussion
Mr. Marcus is a well known author, critic, former film instructor at Cabrillo College, co-host of "CinemaScene" - a half hour movie review show which airs Thursdays and Sundays on Santa Cruz Cable Channel 26 at 6:30 p.m. and Channel 27 at 8:30 p.m. (and at the same times on Watsonville Channels 72 & 73 respectively); and on Sunday at 8:30pm on Santa Cruz Channel 27 and Watsonville Channel 73. Cinema
Scene is now being Podcast throughout the world. For both new & archived shows, go to: www.Cinemascene.org

Admission is free!

YOUNG AT HEART : Prepare to be entertained by the inspiring individuals of YOUNG@HEART, a New England senior citizens chorus that has delighted audiences worldwide with their covers of songs by everyone from The Clash to Coldplay. As Stephen Walker's documentary begins, the retirees, led by their demanding musical director, are rehearsing their new show, struggling with a discordant Sonic Youth number and giving new meaning to James Brown's "I Feel Good." What ultimately emerges is a funny and unexpectedly moving testament to friendship, creative inspiration, and reaching beyond expectations.

Fox Searchlight

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WHEN DID YOU LAST SEE YOUR FATHER? : Adapted from poet Blake Morrison's bestselling memoir by screenwriter David Nicholls and directed for the screen by Anand Tucker, And When Did You Last See Your Father explores - like its source material - the complex, manifold emotional layers of a father-and-son relationship as it shifts and evolves over the passing decades. At the film's center is Blake Morrison himself, who for as long as he can remember has lived in the overarching shadow of his physician father Arthur (Jim Broadbent) - falling prey to feelings of embarrassment from the old man, as well as occasional awe. In the 1950s, when Blake (Bradley Johnson) was a child, the boy watched as Arthur partook in socially uncouth behavior such as wheedling his way into clubs to which he didn't belong, and carrying on an extramarital affair with the full knowledge of his wife, Kim (Juliet Stevenson). As the years passed, teenage Blake's (Matthew Beard) discomfort around his father hard!
ened into resentment - particularly when the adolescent boy expressed interest in a girl, Rachel (Carey Mulligan) who clearly preferred his father; compounding the situation, Blake then had to suffer through Arthur's decision to publicly humiliate his son in front of everyone. The central dynamic has changed for the two, however, by the late 1980s, when Blake - now married to Kathy (Gina McKee) and freshly established as a successful novelist and poet - learns that Arthur has contracted terminal cancer. Now, the junior Morrison takes a headfirst plunge into the memories and recollections of his youth - and grapples with the dynamic of his relationship with Arthur for the first time in his life as he comes face-to-face with the need to provide loving care for the old man.

Sony Pictures Classics

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SAVAGE GRACE : Adapted from the nonfiction book by Natalie Robins and Steven M.L. Aronson, Tom Kalin's Savage Grace recounts the true crime tale of the death of Barbara Baekeland. Stephen Dillane stars as Brooks Baekeland, the son of the man who invented Bakelite, one of the early forms of plastic. As the family fortune begins to decrease after years of wealth, Brooks marries Barbara (Julianne Moore), who desires to mingle in the highest social circles. They have a child, Antony, who is homosexual. Antony grows up to kill Barbara, in part because Barbara takes a personal interest in "curing" her son of his orientation. This was Kalin's first film since 1991's Swoon, a film about the infamous Leopold and Loeb murders.

IFC Films

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MONGOL: Award-winning Russian filmmaker Sergei Bodrov ('Prisoner of the Mountains') illuminates the life and legend of Genghis Khan in his stunning historical epic, 'Mongol.' Based on leading scholarly accounts and written by Bodrov and Arif Aliyev, 'Mongol' delves into the dramatic and harrowing early years of the ruler who was born as Temudgin in 1162. As it follows Temudgin from his perilous childhood to the battle that sealed his destiny, the film paints a multidimensional portrait of the future conqueror, revealing him not as the evil brute of hoary stereotype, but as an inspiring, fearless and visionary leader. 'Mongol' shows us the making of an extraordinary man, and the foundation on which so much of his greatness rested: his relationship with his wife, Borte, his lifelong love and most trusted advisor.

Picturehouse

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THE FALL : Los Angeles, circa 1920‘s, a little immigrant girl finds herself in a hospital recovering from a fall. She strikes up a friendship with a bedridden man who captivates her with a whimsical story that removes her far from the hospital doldrums into the exotic landscapes of her imagination. Making sure he keeps the girl interested in the story, he interweaves her family and people she likes from the hospital into his tale.

Roadside Attractions

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GET SMART- 40-Year-Old Virgin star Steve Carell steps into the telephonic shoes of television's most beloved bumbling detective in this big-screen adaptation of the hit 1960s-era comedy series created by Mel Brooks. The evil geniuses at KAOS have hatched a diabolical plot to dominate every living man, woman, and child on the planet, and their plot gets under way as they attack the headquarters of the U.S. spy agency Control. As a result of the attack, the identity of every agent working for Control has been compromised. Realizing that the only way to thwart KAOS' evil plan is to promote eager but inexperienced Control analyst Maxwell Smart (Carell) to the rank of special agent, the Chief (Alan Arkin) reluctantly teams Smart with Agent 99 (Anne Hathaway) -- a veteran super-spy whose beauty is only surpassed by her lethality. With no real field experience to speak of and nothing but sheer enthusiasm and a handful of fancy spy gadgets to help him accomplish his deadly mission, Maxwell Smart his new partner, Agent 99, will be forced to faces malevolent KAOS head Siegfried (Terence Stamp) and his loyal army of minions in a decisive fight that will determine the fate of the free world. Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, David Koechner, Terry Crews, and Ken Davitian co-star. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Warner Brothers

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WANTED-  Night Watch director Timur Bekmambetov helms his first English-language feature film with this big-screen adaptation of Mark Millar's action-packed graphic novel. Wesley Gibson (James McAvoy) is a cube-dwelling hypochondriac whose uneventful life has become a mundane blur of terminal boredom. Repeatedly humiliated by his boss and constantly cuckolded by his cheating girlfriend, weakling Wes seems to be living right down to everyone's expectations that he would never amount to anything in life. However, upon discovering that the father he never knew has been brutally murdered, the spineless, clock-punching pushover is recruited into a secret society of assassins known as the Fraternity. During the course of his training, the man who was once an office-bound wimp develops lightning-fast reflexes and superhuman dexterity courtesy of his skilled mentor Fox (Angelina Jolie). Upon completing his training, Wes is assigned the task of dealing out death to the mythological Fates, who possess the ability to alter the lifelines of mortal men. It isn't long before the nebbish nerd-turned-agile assassin is erasing the bad guys with surprising efficiency, yet as Wes begins to carry the mantle passed down to him by his father, he gradually begins to suspect that his wise tutors are not the crime-fighting enforcers they present themselves to be. Now, with everything he ever wanted in life finally within his grasp, Wes is about to find out that the only thing more difficult than ending the lives of others is summoning the courage to take control of his own. ~ Jason Buchanan, All Movie Guide

Universal

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