December 2009 Movies

Made for Each Other

The independently financed comedy stars Christopher Masterson as a man who, three months into a sexless marriage, cracks and has a one-night stand. He decides the only just way to rectify his mistake is to get his wife (Phillips) to cheat on him. With the help of his best friend (Levine), he sets out to find the right man (Warburton) to bed the missus. Danny Masterson will play an attorney waiting to handle what he figures is a sure-fire divorce.

Patrick Warburton, Bijou Phillips, Sam Levine, Danny Masterson, Christopher Masterson, Eric Lord, George Segal

Brothers

One of two brothers is sent to fight in Afghanistan while the other "black sheep" brother becomes caretaker to his wife and child.

Tobey Maguire, Natalie Portman, Michael De Luca, Mare Winningham, Joni Sighvatsson, Jake Gyllenhaal, David Benioff, Clifton Collins

Armored

A young armored car guard is persuaded by his veteran cohorts to empty the truck of its $10 million haul.

Laurence Fishburne, Matt Dillon, Nimrod Antal, Sam Raimi, Josh Donen, Columbus Short, Dan Farah, Jean Reno

Everybody's Fine

Robert De Niro plays a widower who realizes his only connection to his children was through his deceased wife. So, he decides to take a trip to reconnect with his kids, and discovers they are living far from perfect lives.

Robert De Niro, Kate Beckinsale, Sam Rockwell, Melissa Leo, Gianni Nunnari, Katherine Moennig, Kirk Jones, Drew Barrymore

One Peace at a Time

Filmed in 20 countries, the documentary explores the insights of Nobel Laureates and others about improving the world.

Turk Pipkin

Transylmania

Spoof horror in which a group of college kids do a semester abroad in Romania and realise that if the partying doesn't kill them, the vampires just might!

James DeBello, Scott Hillenbrand, Patrick Cavanaugh, Paul Kim, David Hillenbrand, Tony Denman, Jennifer Lyons

Up in the Air

Ryan Bingham’s job as a Career Transition Counselor–he fires people–has kept him airborne for years. Although he has come to despise his line of work, he has come to love the culture of what he calls "Airworld," finding contentment within pressurized cabins, anonymous hotel rooms, and a wardrobe of wrinkle-free slacks. With a letter of resignation sitting on his boss’s desk, and the hope of a job with a mysterious consulting firm, Ryan Bingham is agonizingly close to his ultimate goal, his Holy Grail: one million frequent flier miles. But before he achieves this long-desired freedom, conditions begin to deteriorate.

Ivan Reitman, Anna Kendrick, George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Daniel Dubiecki, Jeff Clifford, Jason Reitman, Ted Griffin

Paa

A politician's relationship with his unusually developed son - the child suffers from a disease that causes him to age rapidly, rendering him an old man.

Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan, R. Balki

Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call...

In the movie, a re-imagining of the original movie starring Harvey Keitel, Nicolas Cage stars as a "cop on the edge". Val Kilmer will play his partner while Xzibit will play a baddie named "Big Fade".

Nicolas Cage, Avi Lerner, Val Kilmer, Jennifer Coolidge, Eva Mendes, Stephen Belafonte, Alan Polsky, Shawn Hatosy

Serious Moonlight

A high-powered attorney duct tapes her adulterous husband to the toilet right before their home is invaded by burglars.

Kristen Bell, Cheryl Hines, Adrienne Shelly, Justin Long, Meg Ryan, Timothy Hutton, Andy Ostroy, Michael Roiff

Until the Light Takes Us

A documentary chronicling the history, ideology and aesthetic of Norwegian black metal.

The Princess and the Frog

A musical set in the greatest city of them all, New Orleans, "The Princess and the Frog" marks Disney's return to the timeless art form of traditional animation. The film teams Ron Clements and John Musker, creators of "The Little Mermaid" and "Aladdin," with Oscar-winning composer Randy Newman to tell the most beautiful love story ever told ... with frogs, voodoo, and a singing alligator.

Keith David, John Goodman, Greg Erb, Jason Oremland, Anika Noni Rose, Oprah Winfrey, John Lasseter, Ron Clements

Invictus

The film tells the inspiring true story of how Nelson Mandela joined forces with the captain of South Africa's rugby team to help unite their country. Newly elected President Mandela knows his nation remains racially and economically divided in the wake of apartheid. Believing he can bring his people together through the universal language of sport, Mandela rallies South Africa's underdog rugby team as they make an unlikely run to the 1995 World Cup Championship match.

Clint Eastwood, Matt Damon, Morgan Freeman, Roger Birnbaum, Gary Barber, Lori McCreary, Anthony Peckham, Tim Moore

Did You Hear About the Morga...

The story is about a New York couple who witness a murder and consequently are put into a witness-protection program in Wyoming.

Elisabeth Moss, Hugh Grant, Martin Shafer, Liz Glotzer, Michael Kelly, Sarah Jessica Parker, Mary Steenburgen, Marc Lawrence

The Lovely Bones

The story of Susie Salmon, a young girl who is murdered but continues to observe her family on Earth after her death. She witnesses the effect of her loss on her loved ones, while her killer skillfully covers his tracks and prepares to murder again.

Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz, Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson, Saoirse Ronan, Michael Imperioli, Stanley Tucci, Susan Sarandon

Rocket Singh: Salesman of th...

Harpreet Singh Bedi is a fresh graduate trying to find a balance between the maddening demands of the 'professional' way, and the way of his heart.

Ranbir Kapoor, Shimit Amin, Jaideep Sahni

Tenderness

The film follows a violent teenager, Eric, whose life intertwines with Lori, a 16-year-old runaway who can't resist his charm. Crowe will play Lieutenant Cristofuoro, a cop who sets out to unravel Eric's complex past.

Laura Dern, Fisher Stevens, John Penotti, Russell Crowe, Tim Williams, Jon Foster, Emil Stern, Sophie Traub

Broken Embraces

"Broken Embraces" is a four-way tale of amour-fou, shot in the style of '50s American film noir at its most hard-boiled, and will mix references to works like Nicholas Ray's "In a Lonely Place" and Vincente Minnelli's "The Bad and the Beautiful," with signature Almodóvar themes such as Fate, the mystery of creation, guilt, unscrupulous power, the eternal search of fathers for sons, and sons for fathers.

Penelope Cruz, Pedro Almodovar, Angela Molina, Blanca Portilla, Kiti Manver, Chus Lampreave

Larger Than Life in 3D

Live concert footage of the Dave Matthews Band, Ben Harper and Relentless7 and Gogol Bordello, shot at the three-day Austin City Limits festival in October 2009.

Lawrence Jordan

The Slammin' Salmon

A restaurant owner and former heavyweight champ pits his wait staff against each other in a "Glengarry Glen Ross"-like competish.

Paul Soter, Jay Chandrasekhar, Erik Stolhanske, Richard Perello, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Michael Clarke Duncan, Julia Dray

A Single Man

The story is about a gay man (Colin Firth), who tries to go about his normal routines after the death of his partner. Matthew Goode will play Firth's former boyfriend, and Julianne Moore will be his friend.

Julianne Moore, Colin Firth, Matthew Goode, Tom Ford, David Scearce

My Son, My Son, What Have Ye...

A man acts out a play in his mind and kills his mother.

Willem Dafoe, Michael Peña, Brad Dourif, Michael Shannon, Chloë Sevigny, David Lynch, Werner Herzog, Herbert Golder

Crazy Heart

A down-on-his-luck, alcoholic country music singer is able to get his life and career back on track through his relationship and experiences with a female reporter

Robert Duvall, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Jeff Bridges, Scott Cooper, Eric Brenner, Jeff Yapp, Brian Gleason, Michael A. Simpson

A Town Called Panic

During one of their adventures, Cowboy, Indian and Horse discover a strange and fascinating underwater world. While there, a conflict with the habitants is solved with the physical and geographical distribution of the two worlds.

Bouli Lanners, Vincent Patar, Veronique Dumont, Stephane Aubier

Ricky

When Katie, an ordinary woman, meets Paco, an ordinary man, something magical happens: a love story. From this union an extraordinary child is born: Ricky.

Francois Ozon

Avatar

"Avatar" is the story of an ex-Marine who finds himself thrust into hostilities on an alien planet filled with exotic life forms. As an Avatar, a human mind in an alien body, he finds himself torn between two worlds, in a desperate fight for his own survival and that of the indigenous people.

Michelle Rodriguez, Zoe Saldana, James Cameron, Stephen Lang, Giovanni Ribisi, Sam Worthington, Matt Gerald, Jon Landau

The Young Victoria

The film follows the early years of Queen Victoria's reign and her romance with Prince Albert.

Rupert Friend, Jean-Marc Vallee, Jim Broadbent, Martin Scorsese, Thomas Kretschmann, Graham King, Emily Blunt, Paul Bettany

The New Daughter

The movie, based on a short story by noted horror-thriller writer John Connolly, follows a single dad who has moved his two children to a remote farm where a strange mound in the surrounding fields appears to be the key to his daughter's increasingly ominous behavior.

Kevin Costner, John Travis, Ivana Baquero, Luiso Berdejo

Nine

Famous film director Guido Contini reaches a creative and personal crisis and has to balance the numerous women in his life, including his wife, his mistress, his film-star muse, his agent and his mother.

Nicole Kidman, Kate Hudson, Penelope Cruz, Rob Marshall, Judi Dench, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Daniel Day-Lewis, Anthony Minghella

Fall Down Dead

Police are on the trail of a serial killer – following clues that are as barbaric as they are "artistic". They have called the criminal the "Picasso Killer": death is his inspiration, the carved bodies of his victims are his works of art.

Dominique Swain, Udo Kier, David Carradine, Jon Keeyes, Mehmet Gunsur, R. Keith Harris

Alvin and the Chipmunks: The...

Alvin, Simon and Theodore compete against The Chipettes in the $100,000 Battle of the Bands.

Anna Faris, Jonathan Aibel, Jesse McCartney, Zachary Levi, Amy Poehler, Karen Rosenfelt, Betty Thomas, Justin Long

Up in the Air

Ryan Bingham’s job as a Career Transition Counselor–he fires people–has kept him airborne for years. Although he has come to despise his line of work, he has come to love the culture of what he calls "Airworld," finding contentment within pressurized cabins, anonymous hotel rooms, and a wardrobe of wrinkle-free slacks. With a letter of resignation sitting on his boss’s desk, and the hope of a job with a mysterious consulting firm, Ryan Bingham is agonizingly close to his ultimate goal, his Holy Grail: one million frequent flier miles. But before he achieves this long-desired freedom, conditions begin to deteriorate.

Ivan Reitman, Anna Kendrick, George Clooney, Vera Farmiga, Daniel Dubiecki, Jeff Clifford, Jason Reitman, Ted Griffin

It's Complicated

Meryl Streep will play a recent empty-nester who runs a successful bakery restaurant, who finds herself romantically torn between her persuasive exhusband (Alec Baldwin) and her new friend and architect played by Steve Martin.

Meryl Streep, John Krasinski, Suzanne Farwell, Scott Rudin, Alec Baldwin, Hunter Parrish, Zoe Kazan, Lake Bell

Nine

Famous film director Guido Contini reaches a creative and personal crisis and has to balance the numerous women in his life, including his wife, his mistress, his film-star muse, his agent and his mother.

Nicole Kidman, Kate Hudson, Penelope Cruz, Rob Marshall, Judi Dench, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Daniel Day-Lewis, Anthony Minghella

Sherlock Holmes

In a dynamic new portrayal of Arthur Conan Doyle's most famous characters, "Sherlock Holmes" sends Holmes and his stalwart partner Watson on their latest challenge. Revealing fighting skills as lethal as his legendary intellect, Holmes will battle as never before to bring down a new nemesis and unravel a deadly plot that could destroy the country.

Robert Downey Jr., Rachel McAdams, Jude Law, Guy Ritchie, Kelly Reilly, Mark Strong, Dan Lin, Anthony Peckham

The Lovely Bones

The story of Susie Salmon, a young girl who is murdered but continues to observe her family on Earth after her death. She witnesses the effect of her loss on her loved ones, while her killer skillfully covers his tracks and prepares to murder again.

Mark Wahlberg, Rachel Weisz, Steven Spielberg, Peter Jackson, Saoirse Ronan, Michael Imperioli, Stanley Tucci, Susan Sarandon

The Imaginarium of Doctor Pa...

Dr. Parnassus has the gift of guiding the imaginations of others. With his traveling theater troupe, Parnassus offers audience members the chance to transcend reality by passing through a magical mirror.

Andrew Garfield, Johnny Depp, Colin Farrell, Jude Law, Christopher Plummer, William Vince, Samuel Hadida, Terry Gilliam

The White Ribbon

Strange events happen at a rural school in the north of Germany during the year 1913, which seem to be ritual punishment.

Michael Haneke, Ulrich Tukur, Stefan Arndt, Michael Katz, Veit Heiduschka, Margaret Menegoz, Susanne Lothar, Theo Trebs