The Starting Lineup

Coming to a theatre near you today!

(An Aside: This is not a great weekend to take the kids to the movies.)


Saw (R)
Starring: Cary Elwes, Danny Glover, and Monica Potter
Director: James Wan

Two men awaken to discover they are chained inside a basement. One is a doctor (Elwes) who is instructed via microcassette to kill the other man within eight hours or his wife (Potter) and child will be murdered. They quickly discover that they are next in a line of victims of a serial killer known as the "Jigsaw." The killer has only left behind a few clues and two handsaws to aid them in their escape... if they so choose. As you can imagine, this is hardcore Halloween slasher flair and not for timid. Some have compared it to Se7en and The Silence of the Lambs but the gore factor is rumored to be significantly higher in this one.


Ray (R)
Starring: Jamie Foxx, Regina King, and Kerry Washington
Director: Taylor Hackford

Jamie Foxx, award winning actor? Stranger things have happened and if the trailer gives any indication of his performance Mr. Foxx just might be in the running for the little gold bald dude. Ray is a biopic based on the life and times of Ray Charles, a music legend. Its the kind or role that can make an entire career.

And to a theatre not so near you. (Limited Releases)

Birth (R)
Starring: Nicole Kidman, Cameron Bright, and Lauren Bacall
Director: Jonathan Glazer

Rumor has it this movie was booed at a very notable film festival because it contained of scene with Kidman kissing a ten year-old boy. But let's be clear here. The story is about a ten year-old who just happens to be the reincarnate of the widowed Kidman's dead spouse. The movie seems like a serious take Chances Are, an eighties flop that starred Cybil Sheppard, Robert Downey Jr., and Ryan O'Neal. Downey was much older than ten, however, if indie audiences booed the original cut it's a pretty good bet the flick's been recut to exclude the scene in question. Unfortunately, I can't say for sure. If it hangs around long enough to gain nationwide release I'll bet we'll be sure.


It's All About Love (R)
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Claire Danes, and Sean Penn
Director: Thomas Vinterberg

This one sounds like The Day After Tomorrow meets Ice Castles. Danes is a skater who comes to New York in troubled times to get Phoenix to sign some divorce papers. By troubled times I mean a world where ice ages come and go. And so does gravity in distant lands, or so I'm told. Big name stars don't necessarily guarantee a national release so we won't hold our breath waiting on this one.