Killers
Amidst the sorrow of a recent breakup, Jen Kornfeldt (Katherine Heigl) considers herself finished in the realm of love. While on vacation, Jen meets a dashing man, Spencer Aimes (Ashton Kucther). Her tumultuous love life finally finds solace as they swiftly get married. All is well in her idyllic romance until she discovers he's an international super spy who has a hit out for his life. Soon their suburban paradise turns into a paranoid game of dodge-the-bullet as they try to save their marriage, maintain neighborly appearances, and even try to manage the in-laws.
Get Him to the Greek
In this spinoff from Forgetting Sarah Marshall, writer/director Nick Stoller reprises out-of-control British rock star Aldous Snow (Russell Brand) as he releases a brand new single - "African Child" - about the atrocities going on in Africa. The song is considered horrible and offensive, deemed the worst thing to happen in Africa since apartheid. It ruins his career, and he hopelessly falls into a slew of drug and alcohol abuse. A new intern at Capitol Records (Jonah Hill) is sent to London by his needy executive boss (Sean Combs) to bring Snow back and get him to The Greek Theatre to perform and rejuvenate his career.
Opening Friday, June 11
The Karate Kid
As a loosely based remake of the 1984 classic, this version follows the obligated move of popular inner city kid Dre Parker (Jaden Smith) away from his roots in Detroit, and to China. Once in China, Dre clashes with not only the culture, but also with Cheng, the malicious class bully at school. After receiving a beat down from the hostile Cheng, Dre turns to the only one who can help; the maintenance man Mr. Han (Jackie Chan), who is secretly a master of kung fu.
The A Team
A group of veterans from the Iraq War band together after being framed and wrongly accused for a crime they didn't commit. Going rogue, the team uses their skills and talents to clear their names and find the true culprit of their alleged crimes. The A-Team fights back with the master planner Hannibal Smith (Liam Neeson), the MacGyver-like Templeton "Face" Peck (the Hangover's Bradley Cooper), the team's driver and muscle B.A. Baracus (Quinton "Rampage" Jackson), and the loony pilot "Howling Mad" Murdock (District 9's Sharlto Copley).
Opening Friday, June 18
Toy Story 3
After a long time playing with his toys, Andy no longer has use for his unique ensemble of playthings, as prepares to depart for college. Dropping Woody (Tom Hanks), Buzz (Tim Allen), and the rest of the gang off at a daycare, they hastily plot a great escape in an attempt to get away from the new, unruly children.
Opening Friday, June 25
Grown Ups
With an all-star comic cast featuring Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, David Spade, Kevin James, and Rob Schneider, this laugh-out-loud comedy centers around five friends and former teammates who reunite years later after the passing of their childhood basketball coach. Along with their wives and children, they spend the Fourth of July weekend at a familiar lake house, and discover that growing old is much different than growing up.
Opening Wednesday, June 30
The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
In this next addition of The Twilight Saga, Bella (Kristen Stewart) finds herself in danger when Seattle is hit with a series of mysterious killings. While a malevolent vampire continues to seek out revenge, and graduation is approaching rapidly, Bella is faced with the hardest decision of her life; she must choose between Edward and Jacob, potentially igniting the feud between werewolf and vampire.
CMIFF Brings Critically Acclaimed Flicks to Mt. Pleasant
Written by Mary Ann Sabo
The focus will be on independent, foreign and documentary films at the upcoming Central Michigan International Film Festival, but moviegoers will also have the chance to catch a little bit of Hollywood.
That's because four of the 20 films scheduled to screen during the eighth annual festival have been nominated for Academy Awards® for either best film or best feature-length documentary. To Stephanie Mathson, one of the event's planners, that's a bonus.
"The film festival arose out of a need that concerned faculty at CMU had that a lot of great films never come our way in Mt. Pleasant," said Mathson, a member of the CMIFF executive board. "The festival is a way to bring in a lot of independent, foreign and documentary films that haven't been released in this area.
"We are pleased to be showing films that are receiving critical as well as popular attention from audiences. It's great to bring in films that have been nominated for Oscars."
Mathson said the executive board tries to have a broad range of films. It works closely with distributors, such as Human Rights Watch and California Newsreel, to identify timely documentaries.
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Central Michigan International Film Festival
Celebration Cinema, Broadway Theatre and Park Theatre, Mt. Pleasant March 19-28 $5 per film, or $30 for a book of 10 tickets
cmfilmfestival.com |
"We think the festival is an important community and university partnership," Mathson said. "It's an opportunity to get people on campus, as one of the venues is in the Park Library. It's also great to have a venue like Celebration Cinema, which is one of our corporate sponsors, as well as a wonderful venue like the historic Broadway Theatre."
Tickets go on sale March 1 and are $5 per film, or $30 for a book of 10 tickets. Seating is on a first-come basis. Sponsors for the event are Celebration Cinema, CMU Charles V. Park Library, CMU College of Communication and Fine Arts, CMU Office for Institutional Diversity, and Pleasant Graphics.
Festival highlights include:
• Burma VJ, an Oscar-nominated documentary about the suppression of the media in 2007 in Burma when foreign news crews were banned, the Internet was shut down and the government sought to close off the country from the rest of the world.
• Bliss, a drama from Turkey and adaptation of a best-selling novel that tells the story of a woman who is condemned to death by her village after being raped and the bond that develops with the man who is tasked to carry out the sentence.
• Afghan Star, a film about an American Idol type show held in Afghanistan that deals with controversies of women's dress, performing onstage and other social issues.
• The Headless Woman, an Argentinian drama about a woman who thinks she may have killed someone while driving, and then goes back and pieces together what may - or may not - have happened.
At press time, CMIFF were in discussions to bring several additional big-name films to the festival.
Opening Friday, Feb. 5
Dear John
John Tyree (Channing Tatum), a soldier who returns to his North Carolina home on leave from the Army, finds himself falling for conservative college student Savannah Lynn Curtis (Amanda Seyfried). When reality sweeps back in, their relationship hits rocky ground and the struggle of holding onto romance proves difficult in the midst of separation. Based on the New York Times Best Seller by Nicholas Sparks.
From Paris With Love
When the position is offered, subordinate intelligence operative (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) for the U.S. Ambassador in France accepts but finds himself involved with more than he agreed to. Partnered with a dare-devil wisecracking American spy (John Travolta), they are sent to stop an alleged terrorist attack in Paris.
Opening Friday, Feb. 12
Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief
Adapted from the book by Rick Riordan, Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief is a story of high school student Percy Jackson (Logan Lerman). Percy finds himself amidst gods and monsters that have escaped the pages of his Greek mythology textbook. Discovering he is the descendant of a Greek god, Percy embarks to resolve the continuous battle between the deities of Mount Olympus.
The Wolfman
With the light of the full moon, trouble has come upon the Victorian hamlet of Blackmoor and Lawrence Talbot (Benicio Del Toro) is drawn back to his family estate in search of his brother who mysteriously vanished. Reunited with his father (Anthony Hopkins), Talbot finds himself trapped by a dreadful fate of troubling transformation.
Valentine's Day
The story of make-ups and break-ups of multiple Los Angeles couples and singles as they struggle with living up to the pressures and expectations of yet another Valentines' Day. This ensemble cast features big names Taylor Lautner, Jessica Biel, Jessica Alba, Jennifer Garner, Julia Roberts, and Ashton Kutcher, among others.
Opening Friday, Feb. 19
Shutter Island
It's 1954 and a patient from Shutter Island's Ashecliffe Hospital, an asylum for the criminally insane, has suddenly disappeared. Assigned to investigate the case, U.S. marshal Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio), along with help from partner Chuck Aule (Mark Ruffalo), venture to the island with additional motives and finds himself questioning his role in a twisted plot of the hospital doctors.
Opening Friday, Feb. 26
The Crazies
In the picture-perfect American town of Ogden Marsh, a toxin has mysteriously contaminated the water supply and has transformed the town into an appalling refuge for decadent, blood-thirsty killers. Sheriff David Dutton (Timothy Olyphant) tries to deal with the horrific violence caused by insanity while being quarantined in with the insane by government forces. Dutton, his wife Judy (Radha Mitchell), medical assistant Becca (Danielle Panabaker), and Deputy Russell (Joe Anderson), band together in a gruesome struggle to escape town for survival.
OPENING FRIDAY, JAN. 8
Takers
Daybreakers
A plague has swept the globe, transforming almost every human into a vampire. Now, in 2019, the remaining humans are hunted and farmed for sustenance. The vampires must find a way to ensure the survival of their dwindling blood supply, and thus their own species. Two secret groups battle for the same goal-one for immortality, the other for humanity.
Takers
A group of bank robbers who specialize in executing spectacular plans for large payouts join up for one last $20-million job. Things get messy when the hard-boiled Detective Jack Welles (Matt Dillon) tries to interrupt the heist. Produced by rapper T.I., who also plays a bank robber called Ghost.
OPENING FRIDAY, JAN. 15
The Book of Eli
Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil
Little Red Riding Hood (Hayden Panettiere) is back, this time to investigate the mysterious disappearance of Hansel (Bill Hader) and Gretel (Amy Poehler) with the help of Wolf W. Wolf (Patrick Warburton) in this animated adventure. A feel-good soundtrack features Earth, Wind, & Fire; Baha Men; Ben Folds; and others.
The Book of Eli
In the post-apocalyptic wasteland of a future America, Eli (Denzel Washington) guards a book that may hold the key to saving humanity. Carnegie (Gary Oldman), the despot of a makeshift town, will kill to get his hands on the book and the promises it holds. The Hughes brothers, Albert and Allen, have returned to direct their first film since 2001's From Hell.
OPENING FRIDAY, JAN. 22
Legion
Legion
When God loses His faith in humanity, he sends his legion of angels to exterminate the world's population for a second time. The only hope may lie in the archangel Michael (Paul Bettany), who leads a group of strangers to a small, New Mexico diner where a young waitress (Adrianne Palicki) may be pregnant with Christ in his second coming.
Extraordinary Measures
The true story of biotechnology executive John Crowley (Brendan Fraser) comes to life. When Crowley's two young children are diagnosed with a potentially deadly neuromuscular disease, he raises money for research scientist Robert Stonehill (Harrison Ford) to develop a treatment that may save his children's lives.
OPENING FRIDAY, JAN. 29
When in Rome
Beth Harper (Kristen Bell) is a successful but hopelessly single art curator in New York City. On a trip to Rome to attend the impulsive wedding of her sister (Alexis Dziena), she takes a few coins from a reputed "fountain of love." A band of aggressive suitors, whose coins she took from the fountain, pursue her from Rome back to New York City.
