Kam's Kapsules: Weekly Previews That Make Choosing a Film Fun

OPENING THIS WEEK

Kam's Kapsules:

Weekly Previews That Make Choosing a Film Fun

by Kam Williams

For movies opening June 6, 2008





BIG BUDGET FILMS



Kung Fu Panda (PG for martial arts action) Animated comedy about a clumsy, panda bear (Jack Black) working as a waiter in his family’s noodle restaurant who is called upon to fulfill an ancient Chinese prophecy by defending his idyllic, peaceful homeland from a menacing snow leopard (Ian McShane) threatening the kingdom. Voice cast includes Dustin Hoffman, Lucy Liu, Jackie Chan, Angelina Jolie, Michael Clarke Duncan and Seth Rogen.



The Promotion (R for profanity, sexual references and drug use) Workplace comedy pits a couple of Chicago grocery store assistant managers (Sean William Scott and John C. Reilly) against each other as they vie for a coveted managerial position at the chain’s new location. Cast includes SNL’s Fred Armisen, Masi Oka and Spo.



You Don’t Mess with the Zohan (PG-13 for nudity, profanity, sexuality and crude humor) Action comedy starring Adam Sandler in the title role as an Israeli secret agent who fakes his own death to pursue his lifelong dream of becoming a beautician in NYC. Famous-faced cast includes John Turturro, Rob Schneider, Kevin James, Henry “The Fonz” Winkler, Talia “Adrian” Shire, George “Lt. Sulu” Takei, r&b diva Maria Carey, pop singer Dave Matthews, Lainie Kazan, Charlotte Rae and legendary comedian Shelley Berman.





INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS



Dreams with Sharp Teeth (Unrated) Retrospective bio-pic chronicles the storied career of prolific science fiction writer and iconoclastic Renaissance Man

Harlan Ellison who proves to be as cantankerous as ever at the age of 74.



The Go-Getter (R for profanity, sexuality and drug use) Bittersweet road flick about a teenager (Lou Taylor Pucci) who steals a car to travel across state lines to inform his long-lost half-brother (Jsu Garcia) about the death of their mother. En route, he develops an increasingly flirtatious relationship with the automobile’s owner (Zooey Deschanel) via cell phone. (In English and Spanish with subtitles)



The Grocer’s Son (Unrated) Return to roots saga about a 30 year-old man (Nicolas Cazale) who moves from the city back to the tiny town of his birth to run the family grocery store after his father (Daniel Duval) suddenly dies of a heart attack. (In French with subtitles)



Miss Conception (R for profanity and sexuality) Biological clock comedy, set in London, starring Heather Graham as a single businesswoman who waits too late to start a family and embarks on a desperate search for the perfect sperm donor after learning that she has just one month left before the onset of menopause.



Mongol (R for graphically-depicted battle sequences) Bloody bio-pic revisits the transformation of a lowly slave named Temudgin (Tadanobu Asano) into Genghis Khan (1162-1227), the legendary warrior who would unite numerous, nomadic, northeast Asian tribes en route to conquering half the world and creating the largest empire in history by 1206. (In Mongolian with subtitles)



On the Rumba River (Unrated) Overdue tribute to legendary African recording artist Wendo Kolosoy who released his first album in 1948 and whose music continues to sustain the Congolese people in spite of decades of suffering market by poverty, oppression, ethnic cleansing and civil war. (In Lingala with subtitles)



Operation Filmmaker (Unrated) “New lease on life” documentary examines the shifting fortunes of aspiring, Iraqi movie director Muthana Mohmed who was invited in 2003 by Liev Schreiber to participate in the production of a feature film following the bombing of his film school during the fall of Baghdad.



RFK Must Die (Unrated) Conspiracy theory documentary questions the conventional thinking about the Bobby Kennedy assassination case by suggesting that Sirhan Sirhan had an accomplice seen fleeing the murder scene in a polka dotted dress screaming “We shot him!” Plus, a Columbia University professor hints that Sirhan might have been a hypnotized, Muslim Manchurian candidate, while Munir Sirhan breaks his self-imposed silence to vouch for his brother’s character.



To the Limit (Unrated) “Because it is there” documentary, featuring breathtaking cinematography, paints a compelling portrait of a couple of very competitive mountain climbing siblings, Thomas and Alexander Huber, as they attempt to set a speed record while scaling the thousand foot-high vertical nose of El Capitan, a peak located in Yosemite National Park. (In German and English with subtitles)



The Wedding Director (Unrated) Romance drama, set in Sicily, about a famous filmmaker (Sergio Castellitto), already embroiled in a tawdry scandal, who now falls in love with the Princess (Donatella Finocchiaro) whose wedding he’s been hired to shoot.

(In Italian with subtitles)



When Did You Last See Your Father? (PG-13 for sexuality, mature themes and brief profanity) Twilight-of-life drama, based on Blake Morrison’s candid memoir of the same name, about a doctor (Colin Firth) who reflects upon his relationship with his terminally-ill father (Jim Broadbent) while at his side in the hospital.