Kam's Movie Kapsules for 5-11-12

OPENING THIS WEEK

Kam's Kapsules:      

Weekly Previews That Make Choosing a Film Fun         

by Kam Williams

For movies opening May 11, 2012

BIG BUDGET FILMS

Dark Shadows (PG-13 for sexuality, profanity, smoking, drug use and horror violence) Johnny Depp stars in Tim Burton’s light-hearted reinterpretation of the classic TV series about a 200 year-old vampire who returns from the dead to discover dysfunctional descendants residing inside his family’s ancestral Maine mansion. Cast includes Michelle Pfeiffer, Helena Bonham Carter, Chloe Moretz and Jackie Earle Haley.

INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS

A Bag of Hammers (Unrated) Redemption comedy about a couple of con men (Jason Ritter and Jake Sandvig) forced to mature after adopting the orphaned, 12 year-old son (Chandler Canterbury) of a next-door neighbor (Carrie Preston) who has just committed suicide. With Rebecca Hall, Amanda Sefried, Gabriel Macht and Sally Kirkland.

Girl in Progress (PG-13 for sexuality, crude humor, mature themes and underage drinking) Coming-of-age dramedy about a precocious adolescent (Cierra Ramirez) who begins experiencing pangs of sexual awakening after her single-mom (Eva Medes) starts dating a very married doctor (Matthew Modine). Cast includes Raini Rodriguez, Patricia Arquette and Landon Liboiron.

God Bless America (R for profanity, sexuality and graphic violence) Vigilante comedy about a distraught, brain cancer patient (Joel Murray) who goes on a killing spree with the help of a 16 year-old sidekick (Tara Lynne Barr) in order to rid the country of reality-TV stars and other annoying people. With Mackenzie Brooke Smith, Melinda Page Hamilton and Rich McDonald. 

Hick (R for violence, drug use, profanity and underage drinking) Screen adaptation of the Derick Martini best-seller of the same name about a pistol-packing 13 year-old (Chloe Moretz) who runs away from Nebraska to Las Vegas to escape her alcoholic parents (Juliette Lewis and Anson Mount). Support cast includes Alec Baldwin, Rory Culkin, Blake Lively and Eddie Redmayne.

I Wish (PG for smoking, and mild epithets) Surreal road adventure about inseparable siblings (Koki and Ohshiro Maeda) who dream-up a magical way of reuniting in the wake of their parents’ (Nene Ohtsuka and Jo Odagiri) divorce which left them living far apart from each other. With Isao Hashizume, Kirin Kiki and Cara Uchida. (In Japanese with subtitles)

Nesting (PG-13 profanity, sexual references and drug use) Romantic comedy about a jaded married couple’s (Ali Hillis and Todd Grinnell) attempt to rekindle their romance by taking up residence as squatters in the same apartment they shared years before as carefree, young bohemians. With Kevin Linehan, Erin Gray and Alexi Wasser.

Nobody Else but You (Unrated) Quirky murder mystery about a Parisian crime novelist suffering from writer’s block (Jean-Paul Rouve) who decides to investigate the alleged suicide of an attractive, aspiring actress (Sophie Quinton). Cast includes Guillaume Gouix, Olivier Rabourdin and Clara Ponsot. (In French with subtitles)

Patience (Unrated) Genre-defying biopic about W.G. Sebald (1944-2001), the iconoclastic German novelist known for his introspective writings reconciling his conscience with his country’s role in the Holocaust.  

Portrait of Wally (Unrated) Courtroom documentary chronicling the 1997 legal case pitting the Museum of Modern Art against the rightful heirs of a priceless Egon Schiele painting looted by the Nazis in Vienna during World War II. 

The Road (R for terror, violence and disturbing images) Haunted highway horror flick about a decade-old, unsolved murder case reopened after three teens (Barbie Forteza, Derick Monasterio and Lexi Fernandez) go missing along the same stretch of an abandoned boulevard. With TJ Trinidad, Rhian Ramos and Alden Richards. (In Filipino, Tagalog and English with subtitles)

Small, Beautifully Moving Parts (Unrated) Baby-maybe comedy about a pregnant woman (Anna Margaret Hollyman) who is ambivalent about becoming a parent despite her boyfriend’s (Andre Holland) unbridled enthusiasm. With Sarah Rafferty, Mary Beth Peil and Richard Hoag.  

Tonight You’re Mine (R for profanity and sexuality) Battle of the bands comedy about the argumentative lead singers (Luke Treadaway and Natalia Tena) of competing rock groups who find themselves forced to settle their differences after being handcuffed to each other by a preacher (Joseph Mydell) the day before they’re both supposed to perform at a music festival. Support cast includes Mathew Baynton, Alastair Mackenzie and Gavin Mitchell     

Under African Skies (Unrated) Paul Simon returns to South Africa for a reunion concert a quarter-century after he recorded his Graceland album there much to the chagrin of the anti-Apartheid movement trying to topple the racist regime. With commentary by Harry Belafonte, Whoopi Goldberg, David Byrne and Maya Angelou.

Where Do We Go Now? (PG-13 for sensuality, violent images and drug use) Middle East dramedy about a group of Lebanese women’s effort to ease escalating tensions between Christians and Muslims in their tiny hometown by surreptitiously feeding the feuding men brownies bake with hashish. Starring Nadine Labaki, Leyla Hakim, Antoinette Noufaily and Claude Moussawbaa. (In Arabic, Russian and English with subtitles)