Saturday, February 1, 2014

Kam's Movie Kapsules for 2-7-14



OPENING THIS WEEK
Kam's Kapsules:      
Weekly Previews That Make Choosing a Film Fun         
by Kam Williams
For movies opening February 7, 2014


BIG BUDGET FILMS   

The Lego Movie (PG for mild action and rude humor) Animated adventure revolving around an ordinary mini-figure (Chris Pratt) mistakenly recruited to join the dream team of Master Builders determined to defeat an evil tyrant (Will Ferrell) with a diabolical plan to destroy the Lego universe by gluing all the pieces together. Voice cast includes Liam Neeson, Morgan Freeman, Channing Tatum, Jonah Hill, Will Arnett, Elizabeth Banks and Will Forte.     

The Monuments Men (PG-13 for violence and smoking) George Clooney directed and stars in this adaptation of the Robert Edsel best seller of the same name chronicling the real-life exploits of an Army platoon comprised of curators, archivists and art historians whose mission was to retrieve masterpieces plundered by the Nazis during World War II. A-list ensemble features Matt Damon, John Goodman, Cate Blanchett, Bill Murray, Jean Dujardin, Bob Balaban and Hugh Bonneville. (In English, Russian, French and German with subtitles)

Vampire Academy (PG-13 for sexuality, profanity, violence and bloody images) Screen adaptation of the Richelle Mead fantasy novel of the same name about a couple of teenage BFFs, one, a half-human/half vampire (Zoey Deutch), the other, a princess vampire (Lucy Fry), who find themselves threatened by a race of bloodthirsty vampires while away at boarding school. With Danila Kozlovsky, Gabriel Byrne and Olga Kurylenko.
  

INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS 

7 Boxes (Unrated) Paraguayan action thriller about a 17 year-old pushcart porter (Celso Franco) who inadvertently becomes an accessory to a crime after agreeing to deliver some suspicious packages for a quick $100. With Lali Gonzalez, Victor Sosa and Nico Garcia. (In Spanish and Guarani with subtitles)

Afternoon of a Faun (Unrated) Reverential biopic about the life and times of Tanaquil Le Clercq (1929-2000), a prima ballerina who wowed audiences as the leading dancer of her day until she was paralyzed by polio at the height of her career. Featuring archival footage of Arthur Mitchell, Jerome Robbins and her husband, George Balanchine.

Cavemen (R for sexuality, nudity and profanity) Romantic comedy about a reformed playboy (Skylar Austin) who decides it’s time to find his soul mate and settle down, much to the chagrin of the womanizers (Dayo Okeniyi, Chad Michael Murray and Kenny Wormald) with whom he shares a bachelor pad. With Jason Patric, Camilla Belle and Alexis Knapp.

Demi-Soeur (Unrated) Josiane Balasko wrote, directed and stars in this road flick as a recently-orphaned autistic woman who shows up unannounced on the doorstep of the long-lost half-brother she’s never known (Michel Blanc) in the wake of the death of their mother. Cast includes Brigitte Rouan, Francoise Lepine and George Aguilar. (In French with subtitles)

A Fantastic Fear of Everything (R for profanity) Crime comedy about a mystery writer (Simon Pegg) left a paranoid, emotional wreck by all of his research into Victorian serial killers. With Alan Drake, Kiran Shah and Michael Feast. 

Kids for Ca$h (PG-13 for profanity and mature themes) Pay for play documentary chronicling the shocking 2008 scandal in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania where crooked judges put innocent juveniles behind bars in return for kickbacks from a privately-owned penitentiary in need of inmates.

The Last of the Unjust (PG-13 for mature themes) Holocaust documentary shedding light on the truth about Theresienstadt, a godforsaken concentration camp promoted by Hitler henchman Adolph Eichmann in Nazi propaganda as an idyllic Jewish ghetto. (In German, French and English with subtitles)   
  
Love & Air Sex (Unrated) Twerking comedy about a brokenhearted loser (Michael Stahl-David) who flies to Austin in search of his ex (Ashley Bell) only to arrive in time to enter the World Air Sex Competition. With Sara Paxton, Zach Cregger and Addison Timlin.

Nurse 3-D (R for profanity, gory violence, explicit sexuality and graphic nudity) Gruesome revenge flick revolving around a vigilante nurse (Paz de la Huerta) who moonlights as a temptress to lure cheating dudes to their deaths. High attrition rate cast includes Boris Kodjoe, Judd Nelson, Corbin Bleu and Niecy Nash.

The Pretty One (R for profanity and sexuality) Macabre romantic comedy about a shy and retiring wallflower (Zoe Kazan) who assumes her relatively-vivacious, late twin’s identity in order to land a  new neighbor (Jake Johnson). With Ron Livingston, Danny Pudi and Frances Shaw.

Welcome to the Jungle (Unrated) Screwball comedy about a corporate retreat to the tropics which turns into a struggle for survival for a group of office workers who find themselves abandoned on a deserted island. Co-starring Jean-claude Van Damme, Adam Brody and Dennis Haysbert.      

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